Forum/Pay Talk
Pay Talk·Would You Take This?·@nightshiftactor·15d ago

$200/day micro drama lead, 15 shooting days, no overtime

Got offered a lead role on a micro drama. The breakdown: - $200/day flat, no overtime - 15 shooting days over 3 weeks - 12-14 hour days expected - No meal penalty if lunch is late - Platform: newer app, not ReelShort/DramaBox tier - They want a 1-year exclusivity clause The role is actually great — complex character, real arc, 60+ pages of dialogue. The director has two other micro dramas that did well on the platform. But $200/day for 15 days of lead work with no overtime? That's $3,000 total for what will basically be a month of my life. My effective hourly rate would be around $15. The footage would be good for my reel though. And it's steady work for 3 weeks which beats waiting by the phone. Would you take this?

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@lavillainera14d ago

I'd counter at $400 minimum. If they say no, you just saved yourself a month of being underpaid. If they say yes, you got a 100% raise. The worst case of asking is the same as the best case of not asking.

@atlcommercialbook13d ago

15 shooting days at $200/day with no overtime is going to feel like slavery by day 10. I've done something similar and the burnout was real. The footage was fine but I was too exhausted to audition for anything else that month.

@negotiationswin12d ago

The exclusivity clause is the real killer here. You're locking yourself out of other platform work for a YEAR at $200/day. That's the part I'd push back on hardest.