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Two shoot days on a stylized schedule with an 11 hour 20 minute rest gap marked between the day one wrap and the day two call.

Turnaround math, in plain language

Scheduling

Turnaround is the rest between wrap and the next call. The math is simple. It is the NIGHT-to-DAY swing that quietly turns into a forced call.

2026-06-24 · 5 min read

Turnaround is one of those numbers everyone nods along to until it costs them. So here it is in plain language: turnaround is the rest a cast or crew member gets between wrap one day and call the next. Wrap-to-call. That's the whole definition.

The trouble isn't the idea. It's that you're counting it the night before, across a dozen call times, while the schedule is still moving. That's where it slips, and a slip is a forced call: real money you didn't budget for.

How to count it

It's subtraction, done per person. Take the wrap, add the rest they are owed, and check the next call against it.

  1. Take the wrap time

    The clock starts the moment a person actually wraps, not when the day was scheduled to end.

  2. Add the required rest

    The hours depend on the agreement (see below). The math underneath never changes.

  3. Compare it to the next call

    If the next call is earlier than wrap plus rest, you have a forced call. You're paying a penalty to bring them back early.

Reference · Turnaround Thresholds

The rest you owe, by agreement

SAG-AFTRA castTypically 12 hours, less on some contracts.
IATSE crewCommonly 10 hours, with weekend and distant-location variations.
Non-unionWhatever the deal memo says, so the number actually has to be written down.
Turnaround is per person, and the required rest depends on the agreement. Non-union has no default, so the number has to be written into the deal memo.

None of that is exotic. It's subtraction. The reason it goes wrong is that turnaround is per person, and a real day has a dozen different wrap and call times stacked on top of each other.

Why NIGHT-to-DAY is the one that bites

Most turnaround is fine because the day shifts forward gently. The one that catches people is the swing from a NIGHT scene to a DAY scene. You wrap at 4am. The next day is exteriors with a hard light call. Suddenly the rest you owe runs straight through the morning you wanted to shoot.

If a NIGHT day is followed by an early DAY day, check turnaround before you check anything else. That's where the forced call hides.

This is exactly the kind of thing that's invisible on a spreadsheet and obvious on a board. When the two days sit next to each other, the gap between wrap and call is right there, and so is the fix. Usually it's moving a scene or flipping the order of two days.

Catch it in prep, not on the cost report

AD PrePro flags turnaround as you build the schedule, per person, across SAG-AFTRA, IATSE, and non-union profiles, and tells you which day caused it. It won't make the call for you. It just makes sure the NIGHT-to-DAY swing isn't the thing you find out about at 5am.

Count it as wrap-to-call, watch the night-to-day turns, and fix it while it's still a strip. That's the whole game.