Indie film 40 Dates and 40 Nights worked faster with Wrapbook
Overview
In the world of independent filmmaking, every dollar counts. And with tight budgets and even tighter schedules, production accountants like Carrie Wright play a crucial role in keeping productions running smoothly. With a career spanning from major network shows to indie passion projects, Carrie has seen firsthand how outdated payroll and accounting tools can slow down a production.
Her latest project, 40 Dates and 40 Nights, needed a payroll and accounting solution that was efficient, easy to use, and cost-effective. Having struggled with legacy providers in the past, Carrie found Wrapbook—and it completely changed the way she works.
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![Source: Andrew Delaney [@andydelaney]](https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/6467d96400e84f307e2196ef/67d05e333befaf9115457f85_work-image-2.webp)
![Source: Andrew Delaney [@andydelaney]](https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/6467d96400e84f307e2196ef/67d05b1b9be8daf2e4885ce3_work-image-3.webp)
The Problem
Carrie’s experience with traditional payroll providers had been frustrating, to say the least. Outdated software, clunky user experiences, and poor customer support made her job harder than it needed to be.
“Here’s our software. It’s from 1985. Don’t worry about it.”
That’s what it felt like dealing with legacy providers. While they technically got the job done, they weren’t built for the fast-paced, always-changing needs of low-budget film productions like 40 Dates and 40 Nights. Not only that, working with legacy payroll providers was a big expense, which made tight budgets even tighter.
To make matters worse, these systems often required coordinating across multiple platforms, with inefficient workflows, frustrating manual data entry, and endless logins—each with its own two-factor authentication protocol.
“I mean, for one, you’re just constantly logging in and out and putting the little code on your phone. And you know, I already have logins for 90 different shows. That’s just one less thing to worry about.”
On one past production, the crew struggled so much with the timecard system that Carrie ended up filling them out for the entire crew herself—an exhausting and unsustainable solution. Worse yet, she felt like the big payroll providers cared more about their bottom line than the success of her shows.
She needed something better.
Why Wrapbook?
Carrie first used Wrapbook about two years previously for SAG payroll, after hearing about it through her network. She loved how it enabled her to run payroll with a single click, but back then, Wrapbook’s production accounting tools hadn’t yet launched. When she heard the full suite was now available, she was eager to give it another try.
As it turned out, the producing team for 40 Dates and 40 Nights had already decided to use Wrapbook. Having worked with Wrapbook before—and knowing industry veteran Ryan Broussard—Carrie was happy to move forward. What she didn’t expect was how much she’d love it.
The Solution
From day one, Wrapbook simplified workflows for both the production team and the crew. The difference was immediate:
User-Friendly Design
Wrapbook’s intuitive user experience makes it simple for the crew to complete tasks—like onboarding—with minimal assistance.
“It’s been a very simple platform to use. It’s very user-friendly; it’s easy for the crew.”
All-in-One Platform
Carrie loves that she can access information about crew members quickly and easily—even when she’s working on accounting. Because everything is integrated into a single platform—onboarding, payroll, accounting, and more—there’s no need to switch back and forth between systems to find what she’s looking for.
Seamless Payroll
With her old payroll provider, Carrie felt like she was trudging through mud to fix a timecard error, facing endless back-and-forth emails. Now, she’s able to handle most payroll tasks herself, right in the platform, saving time and allowing her to focus on more important things.
Tax Incentive Tracking
One thing Carrie didn’t anticipate about Wrapbook? How easy the platform makes it to track incentives for state and local tax breaks. The platform’s accounting suite is optimized to help small productions stay organized and stretch their budgets further.
Concierge-Level Support
Whenever Carrie has a question or needs assistance, Wrapbook’s team—including Stella Perez, Production Accounting Specialist, and Rae Gibson, Senior Union Paymaster—provides quick support. Not only that, but they’re eager to hear her suggestions and use her input to improve Wrapbook further.
“I’ll say, ‘This is kind of weird,’ or ‘It would be cool if it did this.’ A lot of those things that I’ve suggested actually take effect within a month or a few weeks. It’s cool.”
Business Impact
For 40 Dates and 40 Nights, Wrapbook streamlined payroll, reporting, and accounting, making the entire production process smoother. The tax incentive reporting was a breeze, and crew timecards were so simple that Carrie rarely had to answer questions about them.
“I never get any questions about doing timecards.”
Most importantly, Wrapbook made her feel like a valued partner, not just another customer.
“I feel like Wrapbook is actually listening to me, and that they’re trying to make changes that are friendly to the accounting community.”
The Future
After seeing the impact of Wrapbook firsthand, Carrie is now one of its biggest advocates. She actively recommends it to producers and accountants she works with, confident that it will continue to evolve and improve.
“I’m actively trying to get my shows to use Wrapbook.”
As she continues working on indie productions, Carrie knows one thing for sure: Wrapbook is here to stay.
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