Real-Life Math -- Solution
1. You plan to finish the shoot in 5 days. Will you be under your $35,000 budget?
3,200 x 4 = 12,800
The puppets will cost $12,800 to make.
800 x 2 x 5 = 8,000
The puppeteers' salaries will cost $8,000.
2,200 x 5 = 11,000
The television crew's salaries will cost $11,000.
800 x 5 = 4,000
The various expenses will cost $4,000.
12,800 + 8,000 + 11,000 + 4,000 = $35,800
The 5-day shoot will cost $35,800, slightly over budget.
2. How much will it cost if you take 7 days to shoot the pilot?
Cost = 12,800 + (800 x 2 x 7) + (2,200 x 7) + (800 x 7)
Cost = 12,800 + 11,200 + 15,400 + 5,600
Cost = 45,000
If the shoot takes 7 days, it will cost $45,000. That's $10,000 over budget. Your boss would not be happy!
Even a puppeteer who doesn't produce shows needs math skills. Puppeteers usually have many different jobs over a year, so they need to keep track of their money.
Puppeteer Yolanda Yott says math is important "for your own personal finances. It's not brain surgery, but it is mathematics."
Yott is a freelance puppeteer, so she works for herself. This means she's always doing different jobs.
"The key to freelancing is to be really diverse and to be able to have your hands in a whole bunch of different pots and then, hopefully, you're always working on things."
A freelance puppeteer needs to keep track of money spent, as well as money made. This is because they are a one-person business. Detailed records need to be kept for tax purposes. Most puppeteers can't afford to hire an accountant to keep track of numbers for them.
"It would cost a fortune, so the more you can do yourself, the better," Yott says.