The verdict in three sentences
A TV production company in London or Toronto running 40 programmes a year with 300 freelancers on spreadsheets keys the same data three times: schedule, deal memo, budget. Market tools at 250 to 850 GBP a month (roughly 450 to 1,500 CAD) cover scheduling or payroll well, but rarely broadcast rights windows. A custom production system linking shoots, crew contracts, episode budgets and rights ships in 3 to 5 months, in the medium to complex band of the Kolonell grid: 4,000,000 to 15,000,000+ FCFA (6,100 to 22,870+ EUR).
Where time and money leak in a spreadsheet production
The head of production juggles call sheets, shooting schedules, freelance deal memos, IR35 status checks in the UK (or union paperwork with ACTRA and IATSE in Toronto), and the cost reports broadcasters ask for. Every change (unavailable cast, refused location, weather) is carried by hand into contracts and the episode budget.
| Item | Spreadsheets and email | Custom system |
|---|---|---|
| Shooting schedule and call sheets | Written by hand each evening | Generated from the schedule, sent by SMS |
| Deal memos for 300 freelancers | 45 minutes each | 10 minutes with pre-filled templates |
| Payroll inputs | Re-keyed into the payroll bureau tool | Prepared export |
| Episode budget | Updated weekly | Daily actuals, variance in real time |
| Locations | Scattered files, permits by email | Location record, permit, cost, history |
| Rights expiries | Business affairs memory, calendar alerts | Alerts at 90, 30 and 7 days per territory and platform |
| Broadcaster and tax relief reporting | 2 days of compilation | Export in minutes |
The costliest risk is rights. A music cue, archive clip or format licence that expires before a repeat or a streaming release can trigger a claim of roughly 4,000 to 25,000 GBP (about 7,000 to 45,000 CAD), as a 2026 order of magnitude.
Market tools or bespoke
| Option | Indicative 2026 cost | Strengths | Limits |
|---|---|---|---|
| SaaS scheduling tool | 250 to 500 GBP a month | Breakdowns, stripboards | Weak link to contracts and budgets |
| Specialist freelance payroll | 350 to 850 GBP a month | Payroll, holiday pay, pensions | Ignores rights and locations |
| International rights SaaS | Subscription, often in USD | Windows, territories | Built for distributors, heavy setup |
| Stack of 3 tools | 750 to 1,850 GBP a month | Rich features | Triple entry, no consolidated budget view |
| Kolonell custom system | Custom grid below, no licence subscription | One data source, exports to payroll | 3 to 5 month project to scope |
The right architecture keeps the specialist payroll bureau, whose compliance is proven, and builds a single source of truth around it: programmes, episodes, freelancers, locations, contracts, budgets and rights.
Scope, budget and timeline
Phase 1 covers scheduling, call sheets, freelancer records and deal memos. Phase 2 adds episode budgets, locations and a rights register with alerts. Freelancer personal data (National Insurance or SIN numbers, bank details) falls under UK GDPR or PIPEDA: encryption, role-based access and retention periods are set in the specification.
At Kolonell, the custom application grid is: simple 2,500,000 to 4,000,000 FCFA (3,810 to 6,100 EUR), medium 4,000,000 to 7,000,000 FCFA (6,100 to 10,670 EUR), complex 7,000,000 to 15,000,000+ FCFA (10,670 to 22,870+ EUR). A 40-programme slate with a rights register usually lands in the upper medium or complex band, delivered in 3 to 5 months. Maintenance is 35,000, 75,000 or 120,000 FCFA per month (53, 114 or 183 EUR). Integration with your payroll tool is quoted separately.
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Tom, head of production at a London company with 40 programmes a year, issues around 1,600 deal memos a year for 300 freelancers. At 45 minutes each, that is 1,200 hours. With pre-filled templates it drops to 10 minutes, or 267 hours, freeing 933 hours, about 0.6 of a full-time production coordinator. Add one avoided rights claim at 12,000 GBP, and first-year savings exceed the top of the Kolonell medium band, 10,670 EUR.
FAQ
Do we have to replace our payroll provider?
No, the custom system prepares hours, fees and dates and exports them to your existing payroll. You avoid rebuilding a tool whose compliance is costly to maintain.
How are rights expiries handled?
Each item (music, archive, format) carries an end date, territories and platforms. The system alerts at 90, 30 and 7 days and blocks the delivery of an episode whose rights lapse before transmission.
Can crews see the schedule on mobile?
Yes, call sheets go out by SMS or email and stay readable on phones, including offline after first opening.
Can it produce tax relief and broadcaster reports?
It exports spend by episode and category in minutes instead of 2 days. The exact report formats, for example for UK creative industry relief or Canadian tax credits, are fixed during scoping.
How soon is a first version usable?
Phase 1 (scheduling, freelancers, deal memos) is usable in 8 to 10 weeks. Phase 2 (budgets, locations, rights) follows in 6 to 8 weeks.
Let's scope your project. Shoot scheduling, freelancer contracts, episode budgets and a rights register in one tool, delivered in 3 to 5 months. Detailed quote within 48 h. WhatsApp +221 77 596 93 33.
Mohamed Bah
Fondateur, Kolonell
Passionate about digital and entrepreneurship in Africa, Mohamed has been helping Sénégalese businesses with their digital transformation since 2020. Founder of Kolonell, he believes every SME deserves a professional and accessible online présence.
