Day Rates Update - Film & Motion
Typical roles within the Film & Motion Category include: 3D Designer, Motion Graphics, Videography, Animation and Video Editing.
Day Rates
The average day rate across the Film & Motion discipline in 2020 was £365, nearly a 5% increase on 2019.
Overall in the Film & Motion discipline, data shows an average project length of 9 working days. This is slightly down on 2019, where we saw an average of 11 working days.
Although we can see an increase on the overall discipline, the rates across the sub-disciplines hasn't changed significantly from 2019 to 2020.
3D Designer
The average day rate for contracted 3D Designer in 2020 was £352, similar to that of the rates in 2019.
Animator
Contacted Animators had an ever so slight increase year on year, from an average of £348 in 2019, to £349 in 2020.
Motion Graphics Designer
Freelance Motion Graphics Designer had an average day rate of £346 in 2020, a slight decrease on 2019 rates.
Video Editor
Freelance Video Editors contracted average day rate in 2020 was £351, a 2.5% increase on 2019 rates.
Videographer
Freelance Videographers contracted average day rate in 2020 was £362, slightly down on 2019 rates.
Gender Divide in Film & Motion
Film & Motion has done a good job of reducing the gender pay gap, in fact in 2020 women were actually paid 4% more, on average, than men. However, the worrying finding here is the very low proportion of contracts being awarded to women (this is broadly a function of the limited pool of female freelancers in the field).
The extent of the drop in bookings in 2020 may in part be a function of the COVID-19 pandemic, it may in part be a result of women having longer average booking lengths than men last year, however it does not change the negative overall picture.
With only 17% of freelancers working in Film & Motion being female, we met with Natalie Hobbons, Senior Motion Designer, to get her thoughts on how she thinks more young female talent could be encouraged to work in film & motion.
I think role models are one part to play in it. Somewhere along the way, I went from being an illustration student amongst a sea of women, to being a motion designer sitting in a studio amongst all men.
For me, it was a gradual and natural transition from illustration and design into animation, and therefore into production.However, if I had stereotyped this video production work as ‘male’, I may indeed have been put off. In the early days of my career, it was just me and another female responsible for the video work... so I didn’t think anything of it for quite a while.
Natalie Hobbons, Freelance Senior Motion Designer
For more insights into the gender divide within the UK’s creative & tech freelance community - check out the 2021 For Everyone Report.
| Old rule (2021 Independent Contractor Rule) | New Rule (Effective March 11, 2024) | |
|---|---|---|
| Basis of classification | Relied on a simpler, more straightforward approach that may not fully capture the complexity of modern work relationships. | Restores a multifactor "economic reality" test that considers a wider range of factors to determine employment status. |
| Legal consistency | Criticised for deviating from established legal precedent and potentially leading to more misclassifications. | Aims to align closely with longstanding legal precedent, offering more clarity and consistency in classification decisions. |
| Impact on workers | Concerns were raised that it might make it easier to classify workers as independent contractors, potentially denying them employment benefits. | Seeks to reduce the risk of misclassification, ensuring workers who should be classified as employees receive the benefits and protections that they're entitled to receive. |
| Guidance for employers | Provide a simpler framework for employers to classify workers, which could lead to broader interpretations and confusion. | Offers detailed guidance through the economic reality test, aiming to provide a clearer path for proper classification and reduce misclassifications. |
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