Each pilot budget line is split two ways: a Pattern share (the recurring, per-episode cost the same category will run every episode once the show is in series) and an Amort share (one-time, series-level costs — standing sets, main titles, pilot-only bonuses, stage build-outs — that are incurred once but benefit every episode). The Amort budget's grand total is then divided by the number of episodes ordered and added back into the Pattern topsheet as a single "Amortized Series Costs" line, exactly as it appears in real studio pattern budgets.
Most per-category split percentages are medians derived from a set of comparable DET one-hour drama pilots with matching Pilot, Pattern, and Amort budgets. (Seven categories use a wider comp set — see below.) These are modeling estimates based on a small comp set, not a studio-certified budget — actual results will vary by show, location, and deal terms.
Each category is also tagged to how its cost tracks the shoot schedule: crew and day-rate categories (Cast, Camera, Sound, Grip, Wardrobe, etc.) scale with Total Shoot Days; location-dependent categories (Location & Office Expense, Transportation, Travel & Living) scale with Location Days; and deal-based or post-production categories (Story Rights, Producer, Music, VFX, Editorial, Insurance-adjacent fees) stay schedule-neutral. The three day inputs above default to the average per-episode pattern schedule across the reference comp set, rounded to whole days (9 total = 4 stage + 5 location); leaving them at default reproduces the percentages exactly, and moving them scales only the categories tagged to that day type. Days per episode are always whole numbers — any entry is rounded automatically.
Seven categories are pegged to a flat comp-set average instead of the pilot. Story Rights, Writer, Producer, Director, Set Construction, Second Unit, and Stage & Backlot Charges are negotiated fees or one-time build costs that don't scale off pilot spend in any reliable way — testing showed the pilot-ratio approach for these categories bounced unpredictably show to show (helping one, hurting another) with no consistent direction. So instead of deriving them from your pilot, the tool always uses the flat median dollar figure for that category, regardless of what the pilot shows. This is unconditional (not just a floor for near-zero pilot lines) and isn't affected by the schedule day inputs. These seven medians are drawn from a wider reference set of five comparable series, since no pilot budget is needed to use them this way; every other ratio and range in this tool is still based on the original, smaller pilot-to-pattern comp set — the only shows with a matching Pilot budget to derive a ratio from. Flagged as "Comp-set average" in the Drivers page's Primary Driver column.
Set Dressing and Strike Labor still use a day-rate floor. Pilots are shot almost entirely on practical locations — stage rental and set construction on the pilot are usually minimal or zero, since there's rarely a standing set to justify a soundstage yet. For these two remaining categories, the tool uses a $-per-day benchmark taken directly from the reference shows' own Pattern and Amort budgets, applied to the Stage Days you enter, only when the pilot's own line for that category is at or near zero (under $1,000). If the pilot actually spent real money there, that pilot-ratio estimate is trusted instead. Flagged as "Day-rate benchmark" in the Drivers page's Primary Driver column.
Any of these estimates can be adjusted by hand. Use the Adjustments tab to override the Pattern and/or Amort dollar value for any category directly — useful once you know an actual deal term or vendor quote. Adjusted values flow through to the Topsheets, Budget Drivers, ratio table, and both exports.