Aaron Marcus breaks down local contracts for actors: standard locals work within 60 miles with no travel pay, while modified locals within 500 miles can request lodging, per diem, and up to $300 mileage reimbursement. Productions often approve the request if you ask through your agent.
In this video, I'm going to be sharing with you what you need to know about an actor's modified local contract. It's actually, it's very important for you to know this. Watch this video to the end and I'll be sharing with you a link to another great bonus video. This one is one unbelievable app that all actors need to use. So give your career a boost. find out what it is. Okay, let's get started. Hi, I'm Aaron Marcus, and welcome to the Acting and Modeling Quick Tips channel and the Actor Career Center. In this video, I'm going to be talking about modified local contracts, and this is something that all actors need to know about. Now, before I tell you about a modified local contract, let me make sure that you know Exactly what a local contract is all about. So there are 2 different versions of local contracts. One is that the actor lives within 60 miles, and once again, you know, these numbers, you never know when they might change, but as of today, as I'm recording this, you have to be living within 60 miles of where they're shooting, of where production is. Now, the other tricky thing is, because sometimes you will see information about an audition and it will say you have to be a local hire. Okay, so for some people, they are willing to make the trip even if they live farther than 60 miles. From location. Now, when you are hired as a local, what that means is they're not paying for transportation, they're not paying for hotels or lodging, and you don't get a per diem. Now, a per diem is— and once again, this is for union projects— per diem is— and once again, in today's time, it could change— It's It's $70 a day. Every day that you are working, the actor will get $70. It's on top of what their base pay is. If you are working under a local contract, you don't get a per diem either because you're not going to have additional expenses. You're going to travel back home. Now, there is another kind of local when they say you have to be a local hire. Which also means that you actually have to live in the state of where they're shooting. So let's just say they're shooting in Atlanta. Well, you have to provide proof that you have a Georgia driver's license or you pay taxes in Georgia. And the reason why they do this is because when they are promoting and voting for tax incentives. Basically, that means that the state legislature will get together and they will allow a certain amount of money to be given back to production as a way of enticing them to come in and shoot in their area. And what they're going to say is, see, we are giving money back to production, but we're also getting a lot of local citizens Hired. They are actually working. So you have to find out if it's a true local hire or you just are willing to work as a local without getting paid the additional money for transportation and hotels and per diem. Now that takes us— oh, you know, before, before I tell you about the modified local contract, let me also just say there are some actors I know, and it's not good or bad, everybody just runs their business differently, and I'll tell you what I do. Who will not work as a local. They feel— let's say they live, I don't know, 150 miles away or 200 miles away, and they might say, you know what, I'm not going to pay for my own hotel. I'm not paying for gas. I'm not paying for meals when I'm not actually working. And that's fine if that's how you want to run your business. I do things very differently. Because I have always found that work brings on more work for me. So yeah, I might make less because I have to pay for a hotel, or let's say it's a really long drive, I might actually have to pay for a hotel the night before that I'm going to arrive on the set. Maybe I'm shooting for just one day, and then I might have to pay for a hotel again on You know, the night that I finish, or maybe I'll drive straight home. I do that though, and because once again, work brings on work, and you never know what might happen on a set. Maybe you're only supposed to work one day, and now all of a sudden they really love the character, they love what you did, maybe they're going to bring you back. Maybe you made a great connection with a director who might bring you back on another project that he or she is working on. So once again, it's completely your Your call. So the modified local contract, you have to be living within 500 miles of where they're shooting. And what that will mean is if you're able to get it, and what I always do if I'm not a local, I always ask. Either I ask, or if it's through an agent, I'll ask my agent to request a modified local contract. It's not a demand. It's not either, you know, Either give it to me or I'm not working. It's a request. And what that means is they will pay for mileage if you're driving there. The days that you are shooting, they will put you up and they'll cover all of that as well. And you do get a per diem, at least for the days that you're working. So that's what I do, and I have found that to be very helpful to me. And quite often they've done it. Not always, but quite often. And the reason why, you know, they want to just hire somebody locally is mostly because it's probably a small role and they figure we don't have to spend extra money bringing people in from out of town where there are plenty of local people who can do what is needed. But sometimes not. So my suggestion is always ask and see what happens. And by the way, if it is a modified local contract, fact, they will only pay up to $300 in transportation, in mileage for transportation. So there is a, a limit. If you're driving from Los Angeles to New York, you're going to be spending a lot more than $300, $300 in gas. But anyhow, that's, that's exactly what that means. And I think it's really important for all actors To understand this, and that way you're doing things in a really intelligent way. Hey, if you've ever worked under a local or a modified local contract, share your experience with us in the description so that way we can learn from you. If you haven't done this yet, don't forget, subscribe, click the notification bell so you always know when a new video has been uploaded. If you like it, give it a thumbs up and share, share the link with fellow actors. I did promise a great bonus video, and it's right up here, and it's the one app that all actors need to use, and it will really help move your career forward. So watch the video and learn what it is. I'm Aaron Marcus, and I can't wait to talk with you again soon. See ya.
