First of all, I just want to clarify here that this is a standard minimum rate for dancers. Some productions may offer you way more than this. By accepting budgets that are below this you are hurting all other talents in the industry by undercutting already low budgets.
Second of all, many clients see dancers as extras, while they should be treated similar to stunt men. Both dancers and stunt men require training and experience. Tori Lao-Lee, one of the most experienced Western dancers in the field, noted that the rate used to be 10,000 Baht in normal clothes and 12,000 Baht in bikini, similar to that of stunt men, and has dropped down ever since.
The standard minimum rate for dancers is quite straightforward as there are two main job categories: TVC / Movie jobs and Events.
The budgets below are what you, as dancer, should be getting into your hand. In brackets (…) behind that is the budget including agency fee.
Standard Minimum Rate for Dancers in Music Videos
5.000 baht in your hand for normal clothes/costumes. (6,500-7,000 Baht including agency fee)
6.000 baht in your hand for bikini/sexy samba costumes. (7,500 – 8,000 Including agency fee)
Standard Minimum Rate for Dancers in MOVIES
5.000 – 7,000 baht in your hand for normal clothes/costumes. (6,500-9,000 Baht including agency fee)
6.000 – 7,000 baht in your hand for bikini/sexy samba costumes. (7,500 – 9,000 Including agency fee)
Standard Minimum Rate for Dancers in TVCs
7,500 baht in your hand. (10,000 Baht including agency fee)
As mentioned above, this is the minimum rate. The budget you may be getting can be much higher.
The rates above are standard for most jobs and acceptable to most clients. (Source: Tori Lao-Lee)
For TVCs and Movies it is only one dance, 3-5 minutes
For Rehearsals:
In case rehearsals are required, you differentiate between half day and full day rehearsals:
- A half day rehearsal should be 50% of the budget (2-4 hours rehearsal per day)
- A full day rehearsal – the same budget as for one full shooting day
The Standard Minimum Rate for Dancers at Events Is Different.
The standard minimum rate for dancers at events depends on the following factors:
- the number dances
- the length of each dance is
- the amount of dancers at each entry
In general you can say, that 1 dance or entry should be budgeted in your hands with 5.000 baht (6,500 – 7000 Baht including agency fee)
But sometimes you encounter 3 entries / performances with a budget of 8.000-9.000 baht in your hands. (11,000-12,000 Baht including agency fee)
*Please note that this rate is for trained dancers with experience.
I hope this can help newcomers to get an easy overview of what the budget situation is like for dance jobs.
Do you want to know how to become an actor / model in Thailand? Check out this video or this article How To Become an Actor in Thailand:
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