Have you ever looked at movie posters and wondered how the fine print at the bottom is created?
The billing block contains a standard format for the listing of credits, dictated by a combination of industry practices, guild rules, and individual contract terms. Getting the wording and order is important – both for the industry and for the respect of the individuals involved.
The Quickest Method
Uploading an Excel sheet to BillingBlox.com
BillingBlox operates using a basic Excel template. After entering the credits in the Excel sheet, you can upload it, and the service will create a billing block with the appropriate formatting, condensed font, and hierarchy.
That’s it! If your credits have been compiled, you will be able to go from spreadsheet to block in a matter of minutes.
You can also create billing blocks manually by adding credits one at a time on the site, or do it yourself in the graphic suite of your choice. Either way, this post will explain to you the building blocks of the billing block.
The Design
Traditionally, billing blocks use the font Univers® 39 Thin Ultra Condensed. In practice, plenty of posters use variations or alternative narrow fonts. The first row of the block is typically all caps with small caps segments, detailing production companies, the title, and actors in the film. The text after that lists crew names and positions – crew names full height all caps text, and titles immediately to the left, half the height of the name, all caps, and stacked on two lines, listing key crew, producers, writers, and director.
The Order of Credits
The billing block has a fairly standard order used across the industry, though it can vary from production to production and contractual reasons:
1. Presentation credit
2. Distributor credit
3. Production company
4. Cast
5. Key crew
6. Producer credits
6. Writing credits
7. Directed by
Here is the breakdown by section:
Cast
Billing order of cast is usually contractual, so you should know the billing order by the time you’re doing a poster. If there are no contractual obligations, the two most common orders are:
- Straight order by importance or size of the role
- Alphabetical
There can also be certain callouts seen in the cast listing:
- “With [Name]” and “And [Name]” to highlight certain cast with roles that aren’t as large, but are perhaps more popular
- “And [Name] as [Character]” implies a featured cameo
- “Introducing” is used for a genuine debut
Key Crew
The following roles are usually included in the crew credits in the following order:
- Casting
- Music
- Costumes
- Editing
- Production Design
- Director of Photography
D.P.s who are members of the A.S.C. may use those initials after their name.
Writing Credits
Three general avenues for this:
- Story By — for contribution to the story other than the final script
- Screenplay By — the final script for shooting
- Written By — only if the story and screenplay are written by the same person
Producing Credits
The standard hierarchy goes: Associate Producer, Executive Producer, Co-Producer, Produced By. Each of these has a different meaning depending on production and deal — if you do not know how to assign them, it’s best to have a conversation with the producers and legal team, it’s not something this tool or blog can help with.
Directed By
Always the last credit, no questions asked. If the director is also the writer, then you can do Written and Directed By — but it is still the final item on the block.
A Final Word on Credit Agreements
The sequence and phrasing here are standard industry practice. Your specific responsibilities are determined by your cast and crew contracts — if there is a concern regarding a credit entitlement or placement, consult your entertainment lawyer. BillingBlox is a tool for formatting, not for legal advice.
