Help with a School Project

[PerfidiousRaoul]

Posted: 2/10/17 at 6:42pm

Hi everyone!

I am undertaking a course called 'Design and Technology' and I have to do one major project this year- at the moment, I'm creating a set design for The Great Comet of 1812 (obviously unofficial), but for a touring production. That being said, I need to create a 'financial budget' for a rough estimate at costs. This doesn't need to be extensive, I honestly just need to brush over it.

So, the problem is, I'm not really sure where to look for resources to find this information. If anyone can give me some tips or sources that would be awesome. 

 

Thanks!

[PerfidiousRaoul]

Posted: 2/11/17 at 2:46am

Sorry for the bump, I just really need help for this.

[blaxx]

Posted: 2/11/17 at 3:13am

You should ask Alice Ripley. She helped her friend Helen with her school project project. 

[dramamama611]

Posted: 2/11/17 at 7:10am

Why isn't this something covered on your class?  Where is everyone else getting their info?  

 

[wonkit]

Posted: 2/11/17 at 8:14am

It isn't much of a course if they ask you to do something that they are supposed to be teaching you to do! You might try the internet, Commercial Theatre Inc. website, or find out who does accounting work for major productions - look in the back of Playbill. But none of those sources may be particularly authoritative. Can't you ask your professor? I mean, isn't that what you are paying for?

[wonkit]

Posted: 2/11/17 at 9:10am

And as a teacher I will give you some more free advice. BEFORE you go to your professor, do some work, find some sites, think about them (pros and cons), and go to the professor with "I have looked at X, Y and Z, and they have some information but I didn't like [give your reasons]. Can you give me some direction to go in with this?" 

 

You're welcome.

[trpguyy]

Posted: 2/11/17 at 10:32am

PerfidiousRaoul said: "So, the problem is, I'm not really sure where to look for resources to find this information. If anyone can give me some tips or sources that would be awesome."

You're not alone. Many Broadway GMs also don't know how to budget a show. 

I would suggest reaching out to some production companies and scene shops with questions, but it's unlikely you'd get the response you're looking for. 

If you simply need a number with no explanation of how it breaks down, $2M isn't a terrible place to start. 

[John Adams]

Posted: 2/11/17 at 11:42am

PerfidiousRaoul said: "I'm creating a set design for The Great Comet of 1812 (obviously unofficial), but for a touring production. [...and...] This doesn't need to be extensive, I honestly just need to brush over it."

You are the designer of the set, so only you know what materials you will need to build it. Have you (at least roughly) calculated its dimensions? Have you made a sketch of the design and decided what what materials you'll need to build it (i.e., wood, paint, fabric, yadda, yadda, yadda...)?

Once you've established the materials and dimensions of your set, you can then start calculating the quantities you'll need of each element. Always order more than you think you'll need. After that, you can google, or make phone calls.

As an aside, you mentioned that your set will be for a touring production. I'm not 100% certain of this (as I've never done a tour), but I believe that a touring set is more demanding to design and build due to the need for it to be constantly assembled, then disassembled, yet still be structurally sound and safe for actors/crew throughout the tour.

If your set were designed for a sitting production, you could get away with using cheaper materials that did not have to stand up to the rigors of a tour i.e., using faux materials like styrofoam moldings, etc.... Just a thought.

[GhostXmasPast]

Posted: 2/11/17 at 4:54pm

Suggest you start here:

http://newmusicaltheatre.com/greenroom/2016/01/broadway-budgets-101-breaking-down-the-production-budget/

then do some research and extrapolate against recent estimated budgets.

 

 

[PerfidiousRaoul]

Posted: 2/11/17 at 7:29pm

Thanks so much to everyone who replied, the sources have been immensely helpful.

And if anyone is wondering why I'm not asking my teacher it's because Design and Technology is a very broad course, most people usually make nick-nacky infomercial type of stuff for their major designs, and that's the sort of stuff my professor knows about (and the theory syllabus is rubbish). He doesn't know anything about theatre, and unfortunately where I'm from (Wagga Wagga, Australia) theatre isn't a big thing.

Thanks again everyone!