Film Location Scouting Service Break-Even: $69K Monthly Revenue

Fixed costs $44.8K/mo Current cost base

Contribution margin 70.5% After variable costs

Break-even revenue $63.6K/mo Monthly target

Break-even timing Month 10 Launch ramp

Break-even calculator

Use this to test monthly revenue, direct costs, and overhead against break-even for a film location scouting service.

Lean Base Full

Monthly revenue Revenue sets the pool that covers direct costs and fixed overhead. $ Slow month Busy month Variable expenses These rise with jobs and cover direct travel, permits, and scout labor. $ Lean costs Heavy costs

Money available to cover fixed costs $142,840 $188,167 revenue - $45,327 variable expenses

Margin ratio

76%

Covers fixed costs

Yes

Fixed monthly costs This is the monthly overhead the model must absorb. $ Tight overhead Large overhead

Break-even chart Revenue Total costs

Which location scouting expenses are fixed, and which move with sales?

Cost classification

Your Month 10 break-even depends on separating steady overhead from job-linked field costs. Misclassifying travel, permits, or freelance scouting can make each new production look more profitable than it is.

Expense	Cost	Break-Even Treatment	Common Mistake
HQ Office Rent	Fixed	Include $6,500 per month in baseline overhead before testing job volume.	Spreading rent across projects and missing the monthly cash burn.
Legal and Accounting Retainer	Fixed	Include $2,200 per month as recurring operating overhead.	Treating core compliance support as occasional project expense.
CEO and Lead Scout payroll	Fixed	Include the $155,000 salary as steady monthly payroll in the break-even base.	Leaving founder salary out and overstating true operating profit.
Director of Sales payroll	Semi-fixed	Model the $95,000 salary in steps as sales capacity rises.	Assuming sales payroll scales smoothly with each new customer.
Location Manager payroll	Semi-fixed	Add $80,000 per full-time role as production workload requires more coverage.	Adding revenue without adding the staff needed to service shoots.
Freelance Scout Day Rates	Variable	Apply 18.0% of revenue in the first year as direct delivery labor.	Booking low-margin jobs without pricing freelance scout time.
Permit and Filing Fees	Variable	Apply 4.5% of revenue in the first year because fees rise with booked work.	Using average margin while ignoring permit-heavy locations.
Travel and Site Visit Logistics	Variable	Apply 5.0% of revenue in the first year for site visits and travel needs.	Treating travel-heavy assignments like normal-margin work.

How does break-even shift from a lean launch to full scale?

Scenario table

Break-even gets easier as retainer work and repeat clients lift the margin and spread fixed costs over more billable hours. The lean setup is still fragile, the base case is close to the model’s Month 10 break-even, and full scale gives the widest cushion.

Planning assumptions only; actual break-even will move with client mix, travel needs, and billable-hour use.

Scenario	Monthly Revenue	Variable Costs	Fixed Costs	CM Ratio	Operating Profit	Break-Even Signal
Lean launch	$55K	$16K	$54K	70.5%	-$15K	Still below its break-even point, so cash burn stays in play.
Base case	$121K	$32K	$69K	73.2%	$19K	Near break-even, so small swings in utilization can flip profit.
Full scale	$420K	$83K	$119K	80.3%	$218K	Comfortably above break-even, with room for more travel-heavy work.

What breaks the break-even plan for a film location scouting service?

Stress test

The plan is most exposed to softer bookings, higher contractor scout spend, and travel-heavy work. A 10% revenue dip or a 5-point margin hit pushes the business further from break-even fast.

Stress Case	Changed Assumption	Break-Even Revenue	Revenue Gap	Risk Signal
Current plan	Year 1 base mix and cost load hold as modeled.	$689,000/month	$141,000 gap	Break-even lands in Month 10, so early slippage hurts.
Revenue shortfall	Monthly revenue runs 10% below the Year 1 average.	$689,000/month	$195,000 gap	Fewer bookings widen the cash gap right away.
Fixed-cost increase	Fixed costs rise 10% from the Year 1 base.	$758,000/month	$210,000 gap	Overhead growth pushes the break-even line up fast.
Margin pressure	Variable expenses rise 5 points, from 295% to 345%.	$741,000/month	$193,000 gap	More travel and contractor spend cut the cushion.
Combined pressure	Revenue is 10% lower, fixed costs are 10% higher, and margin pressure hits too.	$815,000/month	$211,000 gap	Slower retainers and higher insurance can break the plan.

Can you prove the pipeline, margin, and cash before you sign the office lease?

Founder checklist

Don’t lock the lease or full payroll until the pipeline can support about $69K in monthly break-even revenue and Year 1 CAC still comes in at $2,500. If those two checks miss, the Month 10 break-even target slips and cash tightens fast.

1Break-evenMonth 10

Verify you can keep enough qualified productions in the pipeline to hit break-even by Month 10 before you commit to the lease and full payroll.

2Fixed Load$11.9K/mo

Confirm the monthly fixed cost base stays inside your booked work, because that overhead starts on day one and does not wait for volume.

3CAC Payback$7.2K/mo

Here’s the quick math: 42 billable hours at a $171 blended rate gives about $7.2K a month per active customer, so $2,500 CAC only works if close rates stay strong.

4Database BuildMonth 6

Finish the location database by Month 6 before promising fast turnaround, because the core asset has to work before clients expect speed.

5Scout Bench18%

Line up freelance scouts before overflow work, since Year 1 already assumes 18% of revenue goes to freelance scout day rates.

6Cash Cushion$578K

Hold the $578K minimum cash cushion through Month 14 and delay the admin hire until volume justifies it, or runway gets thin before payback.