DreamSpinner Media – Film, Television and Web production

13 September 202416 September 2024

Australian Low Budget & Indie Crew Agreements

Warning: You cannot contract out of the Requirements of Australian Employment Law and the National Employment Standards. Stop it!

Every low budget and indie production wants to know what agreement to work under. The common answer is the Motion Picture Production Agreement (MPPA). Sometimes referred to as the Motion Picture Production Certified Agreement. (MPPCA)

Aside: For truly indie non-commercial projects there is a way not to pay everyone involved. No, I'm not going to explain it publically because you goblins will abuse it. Get in touch if you want to discuss it. No, you won't like the process and I don't recommend it for most productions.

But the MPPCA expired in 2013. The C stood for Certified. And certainly not Collective, I’m looking at you Screen Producers Australia. Now that it expired it is just the Motion Picture Production Agreement MPPA. Nothing about that agreement is certified anymore.

The other agreement you can use for motion picture production in Australia is BRECA the Broadcasting, Recorded Entertainment and Cinemas Award [MA000091]. This is the modern award and compliant with National Employment Standards.

The Media Entertainment & Arts Alliance is the union that represents Performers (the Actors Equity division) and Crew (Entertain Crew & Sport)

My opinion was SPA didn’t want MPPA any more, and MEAA wanted the Offshore Productions crew rates more than MPPA, neither has forced a deal.

MEAA increases their version of MPPA by the percentage that all awards are increased every year. SPA just increased their version by CPI minimum until BRECA caught up. SPA now increases their MPPA by whatever BRECA goes up by. The result is the discrepancy you see.

Reality is that BRECA now pays the same as SPA’s MPPA, and in some cases BRECA pays more. It is illegal to pay less than BRECA. So you can’t say “we’re paying SPA’s MPPA” and be 100% legal. You can be 100% legal with MEAA’s MPPA.

On page 5 of SPA’s version it says

If you are paying only minimums on an MPPCA contract, that also means that you are paying the Award (BRECA) safety net minimums. In this situation, you will need to consider the 5 BRECA provisions (in Part 13) that are different, potentially more employee-beneficial to ensure you provide terms and conditions no less than the Award:

Any crew personnel starting work before 7.00am is entitled to a 25% loading on the Award hourly rate for each hour of work before 7.00am. Under the MPPCA, crew can start from 6am without payment of this loading.
If crew personnel work ordinary hours between 8.00pm to midnight on a Friday night, you must pay a loading of 50% of the Award hourly rate for each of these hours. Under the MPPCA, this loading is 25%.
Crew personnel starting work before 7.00am on Monday having performed work on either the Saturday or Sunday preceding, are entitled to a 100% loading on the Award hourly rate.
Under BRECA, the employer can nominate the place of call within 25 km of the GPO in your capital city. If the place of call is outside the 25 km radius, then the employee is entitled to be paid travel time at an amount of two minutes for each kilometre of distance between the 25 km radius and the location, using the shortest practicable route by road between the employer’s usual place of business and the location. Under the MPPCA, the radius is 20 km but travel time outside that radius is 1 minute for each kilometre of distance beyond the radius. The MPPCA calculation is likely to favour the employee in this situation, but you should check this to ensure a minimum-pay employee is not disadvantaged.
Under BRECA all casual crew must be paid no less than the minimum hourly wage plus a loading of 25% (rather than the lower MPPCA loading of 20%).

FYI Casual crew are defined as Daily hires not Weekly hires.

The producers could schedule production to ensure they don’t fall foul of these traps.

I believe that if you can’t pay everyone according to SPA’s MPPA without lots of exceptions, and double checking a whole new award, it isn’t a reliable agreement.

Therefore there are only two choices for agreements to work under at the moment: BRECA or MEAA’s version of the MPPA.

13 October 202313 October 2023

NSW Public Holidays for Productions

I’ve updated the Dreamspinner Media – NSW Public Holidays calendar. It helps producers check public holidays as far out as they need.

It even has every Good Friday, Easter Saturday, Easter Sunday and Easter Monday until 2099. Plus it works out when the standard holidays generate an extra day because they fall on a weekend.

Details on how to download it or subscribe with your favourite calendar app are on the page https://dreamspinnermedia.com/nsw-public-holidays/

Hopefully SAG-AFTRA reaches a deal with SMPTP to allow productions for the major streamers to start up again. It’s been very quiet in Sydney during the strikes.

21 February 20224 March 2024

DIY Appleboxes

Baseline Digitial used to have plans for US-style apple boxes. Australian sets use nesting apple boxes.

I built a set of these back in the day. I now prefer the nesting apple boxes. I can carry two full Australian applebox sets in the space required for a single US applebox set. Here’s what the Aussie appleboxes look like nested.

A trolley of nested apple boxes on set in Australia — Nested apple boxes on set in Australia

Anyway, Baseline Digital’s website is no more, so I’ve got an archive of the page reproduced here. Orginally posted Sep 2, 2008 at www.basslinedigital.com/tutorials/diy-appleboxes/

Webb and Sharon Pickersgill owned Bassline Digital, LLC in Pheonix Arizona. They graciously shared these designs at the time. If anybody knows them or has an update please comment below.

The figures referenced below are also in the PDF. Remember the prices are from 14 years ago.

DIY Appleboxes

Posted on Sep 2, 2008

Download Instructions as PDF

(Thanks to Emerson S. for compiling the PDF Instructions!)

These simple little boxes are a necessity for any studio, location or set. Incredibly handy for propping, sitting, elevating equipment, leveling, and a ton of other things. These things are the Ginsu Knives of the production world! They come in 4 standard sizes:

Length and Width are always 20″x12″ respectively.
Full = 8″ tall
Half = 4″ tall
Quarter = 2″ tall
Eighth (aka Pancake) = 1″ tall

Safety First

Please be sure to wear eye and hearing protection. Use common sense! If you are not comfortable with any part of the tutorial, please ask someone who knows what they are doing to help you.

The Materials

The material list for these things is incredibly simple:

4′x4′ 3/4″ Plywood (For sides and support) ~ $25
4′x4′ 1/2″ Plywood (For tops and bottoms) ~ $20
5/16″ wood dowels (Or screws if you choose) ~ $8
Wood Glue ~ $2

1/2" and 3/4" plywood thickness — 1/2″ and 3/4″ plywood

The Cutting List

I needed 2 extra pancakes which will be cut from the 3/4″ wood and will be slightly thicker than standard pancakes. So this layout makes the most use out of the wood for my purposes. You may choose to alter the cuts to better use the wood for your project. Click the thumbnails to download the cuts to be made on the 4′x4′ wood.

cut sheet for 1/2" thumbnail — 1/2″ cut sheet

3/4" cut sheet thumbnail — 1/2″ cut sheet

Cuts on the 1/2″ 4′x4′ Piece

Measure in 20″ from one side and scribe across the entire piece. Make Cut #1.
Measuring from the cut edge, measure in another 20″ and scribe across the entire piece again. Make Cut #2.
Now, adjusting for 12″ pieces** cut these 48″x20″ strips into 8 12″x20″. (Fig 2) These are the tops/bottoms of your boxes.

** You have a choice on how to cut these. Since the board is slightly shorter than 48″, and the cuts you make actually take away wood, your pieces will be slightly shorter than 12″ each. You can adjust for this anyway you like. Either make each piece 11 15/16″, or perhaps make all pieces 12″ and your pancakes 11 3/4″, your choice.

Cuts on the 3/4″ 4′x4′ Piece

Just like we did on the 1/2″ piece, measure in 20″ from one side and scribe across the entire piece. Make Cut #1. These will become your extra Pancakes, if you want them.
On the remaining piece, measure down 20″ and scribe across. Make Cut #2. This will become the sides.
On the remaining piece, measure down 10 1/2″ and scribe across. Make Cut #3. This will become the front/back/support for the full box.
Measure down another 10 1/2″ and scribe across. Make Cut #4. This will become the front/back/support for the half and quarter boxes.
Go back to your “sides” piece and begin cutting your 2 1″ strip from it. Then cut your 3″ strips, then finally your 7″ strips. You should now have your sides done (Fig 3)
Now go back to your “front/back” pieces, and cut those pieces out as well. You should now have your fronts, backs, and supports done. (Fig 4)

Cutting Handles (Full and Half Apple Boxes)

For the full apple box, measure in 1 1/2″ from top and bottom, then 3″ in from each side.
The intersection of these measurements will create 4 marks.
Drill a 1″ hole at each of those 4 marks. (Fig 5)
Using a reciprocating saw, cut between the 2 holes to form handle openings.
For the half apple box, you’ll only need one opening. You’ll still measure 1 1/2″ (Exactly half of the 3″ height), and 3″ on each side.
For the quarter apple box, use a 3/4″ drill bit and drill the holes after the boxes are assembled for more stability.

Assembly Of Sides and Supports

Take all of your cut pieces and dry-fit them together to be sure everything is the right size.
Clamp them together dry, and drill 5/16″ holes for your dowels. (Fig 6)
(Yeah yeah, when I took this picture my saw blade had broken so I hadn’t finished cutting the second handle and I was to excited to wait.. so I glued it together and sawed the hole later.
Dry-fit all your dowels to be sure they all line up correctly.
Glue all dowels and all wood-to-wood surfaces. Clamp in place and allow to dry for at least one hour. (See drying times on your choice of wood glue)
Repeat this for your Full, Half and Quarter Apple Boxes.

Assembly of Tops/Bottoms

Put the tops and bottoms on your boxes and dry-clamp them in place.
Drill 5/16″ holes around the perimeter of the top for your dowels, dry-fitting your dowels as you go.
Drill one hole into the center of the top that will go into the center support.
I put a total of 11 dowels in the top. 2 on the front and back, 3 along each side, and one in the middle.
Repeat for the bottom.
Once everything is drilled and dry fit together, start glueing everything!
When you’re done, clamp everthing tight and let it dry. (Fig 7)

Final Touches

Saw off and/or sand down the dowels so that they are flush with the surface.
Sand the hard edges so that they have a nice smooth semi-rounded edge to them.
Take a sander to all of your completed boxes to get a nice spliter-less finish to them. (Fig 8)
Optionally, you can use a 1/4″ round router bit to round out the inside of the handles.
Optionally, you can prime and paint your boxes to give them a nice non-glare matte black finish.

All DONE!

That’s it. I hope you enjoyed this quick tutorial. If you have any comments or questions, please feel free to Contact Us.

12 August 202112 August 2021

Safety on Set

Here are overlooked budget items or crew positions every PM or Producer should consider and justify in writing why they don’t hire suitably qualified people for the roles.

Safety Report

During pre-production get a safety report prepared in accordance with at least the current recommended Film and TV Safety Code and up-to-date Work Health and Safety (WHS) legislation and regulations.

The current agreed code for Australia is from 1983 because SPA and the MEAA can’t agree on anything. However, SafeWork Australia and the state equivalents are enforcing updated WHS rules so nobody has any excuse to use 40-year-old pre-digital safety guidelines.

In some jurisdictions, all the Producers and the Director can be criminally liable for WHS breaches, as well as company directors of production entities.

The Safety Report should be prepared by an accredited Safety Consultant/Supervisor.

Safety Consultant/Supervisor

A person suitably graded, qualified and skilled to provide specialist knowledge, expertise and advice regarding the most appropriate measures to minimize risks associated with the production.
Media Entertainment & Arts Alliance – National Stunt Grading Procedure – September 2010

There should also be an on-set Safety Supervisor if you have more than a handful of crew. A Safety Supervisor accreditation requires a minimum of 8 years (with 200-500 on-set days) or 6 years (with 400-800 on-set days). Producers should never hire a PA to fill in as a on-set Safety Supervisor.

They notice things. Things others don’t see. Things that can get cast, crew, or the general public, injured or killed.

Hire them, trust them, do what they say.

COVID Supervisor

The pandemic is still fresh but a PA can not and must never fill in as a COVID Supervisor. COVID Supervisors need enough on-set experience to navigate the chain of command and understand what (and how) the crew is shooting on the day. They must also have some level of infectious disease control training and experience.

It takes experience and confidence to tell your executive producer, director or A-List talent (or worse their “people”) that they must mask correctly, maintain distance and have them happily comply and cooperate. If the crew aren’t properly managed, you’ll get bad press and Tom Cruise-like rants

That’s just the visible tip of the job. Plus coordinate tests and results, work-zones, state and insurance compliance, stay-at-home orders. I’ve yet to hear of a single production that had an uneventful, COVID-compliant shoot. Crew don’t just show up tested and ready to work and follow the rapidly changing rules without it being someone’s job to inform, instruct and monitor them.

Nurse/Paramedic

The odds of an accident approach increase by the square of the number of people on a location. Once your cast & crew size is more than 50 people, you will probably get a trip, sprain, burn, cut or scrape.

Hire someone whose job it is to prevent injuries and treat inevitable mishaps. Your insurance and film permit probably requires it. Your WHS legal obligation definitely requires it even when not spelled out.

Traffic Controllers

Your experienced Location Manager will know all about this, but if you’re reading this far down chances are you have a new LM or haven’t made that hire yet.

Film crews expect to own the space they are working in. This comes from experience working in studios where they don’t have to share. Once on location, their reticular activating system doesn’t kick in to remind them they will be hit by a neighbour’s car. I’ve seen smart and experienced film crew step in front of a moving garbage truck because they’re focused on moving a c-stand or cutter.

Your Traffic Control Team not only lockdown the road for your shot, they also stop traffic (for up to 3 minutes) while your trucks park up, gear gets moved across a street, crew unload or pack-down, and a hundred other things throughout your shooting day. It is their job to keep you and your crew safe while they work on or near a road.

Your council film permit may specify the use of Authorised Traffic Controller, or you may even need to submit a Traffic Control Plan/Traffic Guidance Scheme with your permit application.

Bonus: Safety Briefings

At main Crew Call of every shooting day the 1st AD must include a safety briefing and if any crew members are not present they should be specifically briefed by their HoD, the 1st or the 3rd AD. Pick one and stick to it.

Document safety briefing attendance!

This especially includes hair & makeup artists, pre-light, pre-rig, pre-call and unit who are left out of morning briefings because they are at the unit base, in a trailer, or away from set. If they are not at the on-set briefing you still need to ensure they get a daily safety briefing.

Pro Tip: It’s like the aircraft take-off safety demonstration. No matter how many times you’ve seen it, you’ll be glad you paid attention if they ditch 3 minutes into the flight.

Have I left anyone or anything off? Comment below.

7 April 20207 April 2020

CNC 3018 Pro Router

I’ve got a few DIY projects, particularly some filmmaking gear. So I bought this cheap 3018 CNC Pro Router off eBay for AUD $233.22. This is sold under a number of different names but the model number is always mentioned.

I did some research before I bought it. Don’t let the Pro in the title fool you. This is definitely only a hobby level, beginners, tabletop CNC router.

I also considered buying a 3D printer, when I realised that my friend BigOz Productions has had one for over a year and I’ve printed nothing in that time.

I also know a few maker-spaces where I could get something printed if I needed it. Again, nothing grabbed me enough to rush out and make. Of course the thought of being able to make something whenever I want is more attractive than the actual projects I’ve considered 3D-printing.

So a CNC 3018 Pro engraver/router? That’s different. I have an immediate list of four projects to start with. Unfortunately two of those require aluminium parts and this machine is definitely not suited to milling aluminium out-of-the-box. I’ll need to spend about the same money as I paid for it on modifications before it can reliably cut aluminium. That said a bigger, more expensive CNC router to cut aluminium would probably set me back about $1,000 and I’m not willing to go there… yet.

Plus the learning curve of CNC milling/routing/fabrication means it would be cheaper to get that all fabricated by someone else. But what else would I do with my down time during all this social isolation? Write a screenplay? Yeah, sure!

The production space on this little desktop CNC router is 300mm x 180mm x 45mm so it’s not great for large projects. I’ll send anything bigger out to a fabricator.

Seriously though, as a producer, my initial reaction most things is “Why not?” and “How can this work?”. That’s the case even for film projects I pass on. Saying no is a skill.

Enough philosophy!

I didn’t get the laser cutter which is the default with this model. I don’t intend to do much engraving which is what the laser seems best at. Plus the wooden parts I intend to make will be too charred if I laser cut them with the default laser. I could upgrade the laser for a beefier model, but if I do that I may as well get a very beefy laser, more powerful than the 5500W version most people get for it. I also don’t want to deal with the eye safety issues yet.

The router will be used to make some models for a horror feature I’m developing. Static models will be cut out of foam, then the later articulated versions will be wood. This project is what drove the decision to buy the CNC3018 router.

Next I’ve been wanting to make some jigsaw puzzles out of clear acrylic. If I can get a good edge and sufficient reproducibility, I’ve got a couple of wickedly difficult puzzles in mind.

Lastly I am a nerd and the idea of paying crazy prices for camera cages and mounting gear irritates me. Now if you’re mounting an expensive camera with an even more expensive lens make sure it’s something engineered for the job. Seriously pay the money to the professionals for the professional gear. But for experiments, and crazy ideas? Well that’s how most of the amazing innovations and inventions in grips and lighting and even camera came about.

I’ll use it scratch my own itch. I’ll add photos once it’s fully set up and I’ve run a project or two.

Modifications planned:

400W replacement spindle (arrived).
End-stop switches (ordered)
Spoilboard build
Z-axis extension to 85mm
Supported rails on the gantry to stop X-axis and Z-axis flex.

25 March 20205 March 2020

April 2020 Sydney Sunrise & Sunset Times for Call Sheets

Call sheets often list First Light/Dawn, Sunrise, Sunset and Dusk/Last Light times. First/Last Light is normally Civil Twilight.

Best practice is to calculate them for your shooting location. I’ve provided Sydney for April 2020 below.

SYDNEY Lat=-33°52’00” Long=+151°12’00”
TIMES OF SUNRISE AND SUNSET (for ideal horizon & meteorological conditions)

AT Astronomic Twilight = Centre mass of Sun is 18° below the horizon. Light pollution prevents astronomy.
NT Nautical Twilight = Centre mass of Sun is 12° below the horizon. Horizon can normally be distinguished.
CT Civil Twilight = Centre mass of Sun is 6° below the horizon. Normally enough light to see without artificial light.
Transit Time when Sun is highest in the sky.

	AT rise	NT rise	CT rise	Sunrise	Transit	Sunset	CT set	NT set	AT set

2020-04-01	0545	0614	0643	0708	1259	1851	1915	1944	2013
2020-04-02	0546	0615	0643	0708	1259	1849	1914	1943	2012
2020-04-03	0546	0615	0644	0709	1258	1848	1913	1942	2011
2020-04-04	0547	0616	0645	0710	1258	1847	1912	1940	2009
2020-04-05	0448	0517	0546	0611	1158	1745	1810	1839	1908
2020-04-06	0448	0517	0546	0611	1158	1744	1809	1838	1907
2020-04-07	0449	0518	0547	0612	1157	1743	1808	1837	1906

2020-04-08	0450	0519	0548	0613	1157	1741	1806	1835	1904
2020-04-09	0451	0520	0548	0614	1157	1740	1805	1834	1903
2020-04-10	0451	0520	0549	0614	1157	1739	1804	1833	1902
2020-04-11	0452	0521	0550	0615	1156	1737	1803	1832	1901
2020-04-12	0453	0522	0551	0616	1156	1736	1801	1830	1859
2020-04-13	0453	0522	0551	0617	1156	1735	1800	1829	1858
2020-04-14	0454	0523	0552	0617	1156	1734	1759	1828	1857

2020-04-15	0455	0524	0553	0618	1155	1732	1758	1827	1856
2020-04-16	0455	0524	0553	0619	1155	1731	1757	1826	1855
2020-04-17	0456	0525	0554	0620	1155	1730	1755	1824	1853
2020-04-18	0457	0526	0555	0620	1155	1729	1754	1823	1852
2020-04-19	0458	0526	0556	0621	1154	1728	1753	1822	1851
2020-04-20	0458	0527	0556	0622	1154	1727	1752	1821	1850
2020-04-21	0459	0528	0557	0623	1154	1725	1751	1820	1849

2020-04-22	0500	0529	0558	0623	1154	1724	1750	1819	1848
2020-04-23	0500	0529	0558	0624	1154	1723	1749	1818	1847
2020-04-24	0501	0530	0559	0625	1153	1722	1748	1817	1846
2020-04-25	0501	0531	0600	0626	1153	1721	1746	1816	1845
2020-04-26	0502	0531	0601	0626	1153	1720	1745	1815	1844
2020-04-27	0503	0532	0601	0627	1153	1719	1744	1814	1843
2020-04-28	0503	0533	0602	0628	1153	1718	1743	1813	1842

2020-04-29	0504	0533	0603	0629	1153	1717	1742	1812	1841
2020-04-30	0505	0534	0603	0629	1152	1716	1741	1811	1840

Computed using National Mapping Division’s sunrisenset program, version 2.2
Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Australia Licence. This data is provided without warranty of any kind including the implied warranty of merchantability. If you absolutely need accurate and reliable data you should be paying for someone to do this for you.

Planning ahead? Here is 2020:

5 March 202020 February 2024

Daylight Savings Time bug in Sunrise & Sunset times

I found a bug in the Sunrise & Sunset times lists for some people in Australia. It failed to show the time in Australian Eastern Daylight Time (AEDT) depending on your browser settings and instead showed it in Australian Eastern Standard Time (AEST). Fixed now.

I’m still working on a way to just get the Sunrise and Sunset times automatically, either via a calendar or just a web service.

25 February 20203 March 2020

March 2020 Sydney Sunrise & Sunset Times for Call Sheets

Call sheets often list First Light/Dawn, Sunrise, Sunset and Dusk/Last Light times.

Best practice is to calculate them for your shooting location. I’ve provided Sydney for March 2020 below.

SYDNEY Lat=-33°52’00” Long=+151°12’00”
TIMES OF SUNRISE AND SUNSET (for ideal horizon & meteorological conditions)

	AT rise	NT rise	CT rise	Sunrise	Transit	Sunset	CT set	NT set	AT set

2020-03-01	0517	0548	0618	0643	1308	1932	1957	2027	2058
2020-03-02	0518	0549	0619	0644	1307	1930	1956	2026	2056
2020-03-03	0519	0550	0620	0645	1307	1929	1955	2024	2055
2020-03-04	0520	0551	0621	0646	1307	1928	1953	2023	2054
2020-03-05	0521	0552	0621	0647	1307	1927	1952	2022	2052
2020-03-06	0522	0553	0622	0647	1306	1925	1951	2020	2051
2020-03-07	0523	0554	0623	0648	1306	1924	1949	2019	2049

2020-03-08	0524	0554	0624	0649	1306	1923	1948	2017	2048
2020-03-09	0525	0555	0625	0650	1306	1921	1947	2016	2046
2020-03-10	0526	0556	0626	0651	1305	1920	1945	2015	2045
2020-03-11	0527	0557	0626	0652	1305	1919	1944	2013	2043
2020-03-12	0528	0558	0627	0652	1305	1918	1943	2012	2042
2020-03-13	0529	0559	0628	0653	1305	1916	1941	2011	2040
2020-03-14	0530	0600	0629	0654	1304	1915	1940	2009	2039

2020-03-15	0531	0600	0630	0655	1304	1914	1938	2008	2037
2020-03-16	0532	0601	0631	0655	1304	1912	1937	2006	2036
2020-03-17	0533	0602	0631	0656	1304	1911	1936	2005	2034
2020-03-18	0533	0603	0632	0657	1303	1909	1934	2004	2033
2020-03-19	0534	0604	0633	0658	1303	1908	1933	2002	2032
2020-03-20	0535	0605	0634	0659	1303	1907	1932	2001	2030
2020-03-21	0536	0605	0634	0659	1302	1905	1930	1959	2029

2020-03-22	0537	0606	0635	0700	1302	1904	1929	1958	2027
2020-03-23	0538	0607	0636	0701	1302	1903	1928	1957	2026
2020-03-24	0539	0608	0637	0702	1301	1901	1926	1955	2024
2020-03-25	0539	0609	0637	0702	1301	1900	1925	1954	2023
2020-03-26	0540	0609	0638	0703	1301	1859	1924	1952	2022
2020-03-27	0541	0610	0639	0704	1301	1857	1922	1951	2020
2020-03-28	0542	0611	0640	0705	1300	1856	1921	1950	2019

2020-03-29	0542	0612	0640	0705	1300	1855	1919	1948	2017
2020-03-30	0543	0612	0641	0706	1300	1853	1918	1947	2016
2020-03-31	0544	0613	0642	0707	1259	1852	1917	1946	2015

Computed using National Mapping Division’s sunrisunset program, version 2.2
Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Australia Licence.

25 January 20203 March 2020

February 2020 Sydney Sunrise & Sunset Times for Call Sheets

Call sheets often list First Light/Dawn, Sunrise, Sunset and Dusk/Last Light times.

Best practice is to calculate them for your shooting location. I’ve provided Sydney for February 2020 below.

SYDNEY Lat=-33°52’00” Long=+151°12’00”
TIMES OF SUNRISE AND SUNSET (for ideal horizon & meteorological conditions)

	AT rise	NT rise	CT rise	Sunrise	Transit	Sunset	CT set	NT set	AT set

2020-02-01	0442	0516	0549	0616	1309	2001	2028	2101	2136
2020-02-02	0443	0517	0550	0617	1309	2000	2028	2100	2135
2020-02-03	0444	0519	0551	0618	1309	2000	2027	2059	2134
2020-02-04	0446	0520	0552	0619	1309	1959	2026	2058	2132
2020-02-05	0447	0521	0553	0620	1309	1958	2025	2057	2131
2020-02-06	0448	0522	0554	0621	1309	1957	2024	2056	2130
2020-02-07	0450	0523	0555	0622	1309	1956	2023	2055	2129

2020-02-08	0451	0524	0556	0623	1309	1956	2022	2054	2128
2020-02-09	0452	0526	0557	0624	1309	1955	2021	2053	2127
2020-02-10	0453	0527	0558	0625	1309	1954	2020	2052	2125
2020-02-11	0455	0528	0600	0626	1309	1953	2019	2051	2124
2020-02-12	0456	0529	0601	0627	1309	1952	2018	2050	2123
2020-02-13	0457	0530	0602	0628	1309	1951	2017	2049	2121
2020-02-14	0459	0531	0603	0629	1309	1950	2016	2047	2120

2020-02-15	0500	0532	0604	0630	1309	1949	2015	2046	2119
2020-02-16	0501	0533	0605	0631	1309	1948	2014	2045	2118
2020-02-17	0502	0535	0606	0632	1309	1947	2013	2044	2116
2020-02-18	0503	0536	0607	0633	1309	1946	2012	2043	2115
2020-02-19	0505	0537	0608	0634	1309	1945	2011	2041	2113
2020-02-20	0506	0538	0609	0634	1309	1944	2009	2040	2112
2020-02-21	0507	0539	0610	0635	1309	1942	2008	2039	2111

2020-02-22	0508	0540	0610	0636	1309	1941	2007	2038	2109
2020-02-23	0509	0541	0611	0637	1309	1940	2006	2036	2108
2020-02-24	0511	0542	0612	0638	1309	1939	2005	2035	2106
2020-02-25	0512	0543	0613	0639	1308	1938	2003	2034	2105
2020-02-26	0513	0544	0614	0640	1308	1937	2002	2032	2104
2020-02-27	0514	0545	0615	0641	1308	1935	2001	2031	2102
2020-02-28	0515	0546	0616	0642	1308	1934	2000	2030	2101

2020-02-29	0516	0547	0617	0642	1308	1933	1958	2028	2059

Computed using National Mapping Division’s sunrisunset program, version 2.2
Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Australia Licence.

25 December 20193 March 2020

January 2020 Sydney Sunrise & Sunset Times for Call Sheets

Call sheets often list First Light/Dawn, Sunrise, Sunset and Dusk/Last Light times. First/Last Light is normally Civil Twilight.

Best practice is to calculate them for your shooting location. I’ve provided Sydney for January 2020 below.

SYDNEY Lat=-33°52’00” Long=+151°12’00”
TIMES OF SUNRISE AND SUNSET (for ideal horizon & meteorological conditions)

	AT rise	NT rise	CT rise	Sunrise	Transit	Sunset	CT set	NT set	AT set

2020-01-01	0404	0443	0518	0547	1258	2009	2038	2114	2153
2020-01-02	0405	0444	0519	0548	1259	2009	2038	2114	2153
2020-01-03	0406	0444	0520	0549	1259	2010	2039	2114	2153
2020-01-04	0407	0445	0521	0550	1300	2010	2039	2114	2153
2020-01-05	0408	0446	0522	0551	1300	2010	2039	2114	2153
2020-01-06	0409	0447	0523	0551	1301	2010	2039	2114	2153
2020-01-07	0410	0448	0523	0552	1301	2010	2039	2114	2152

2020-01-08	0411	0449	0524	0553	1302	2010	2039	2114	2152
2020-01-09	0412	0450	0525	0554	1302	2010	2039	2114	2152
2020-01-10	0413	0451	0526	0555	1302	2010	2039	2114	2152
2020-01-11	0414	0452	0527	0556	1303	2010	2038	2113	2151
2020-01-12	0415	0453	0528	0557	1303	2010	2038	2113	2151
2020-01-13	0417	0454	0529	0557	1304	2010	2038	2113	2151
2020-01-14	0418	0455	0530	0558	1304	2009	2038	2113	2150

2020-01-15	0419	0456	0531	0559	1304	2009	2038	2112	2150
2020-01-16	0420	0458	0532	0600	1305	2009	2037	2112	2149
2020-01-17	0422	0459	0533	0601	1305	2009	2037	2111	2148
2020-01-18	0423	0500	0534	0602	1305	2008	2037	2111	2148
2020-01-19	0424	0501	0535	0603	1306	2008	2036	2110	2147
2020-01-20	0425	0502	0536	0604	1306	2008	2036	2110	2146
2020-01-21	0427	0503	0537	0605	1306	2007	2035	2109	2146

2020-01-22	0428	0504	0538	0606	1307	2007	2035	2109	2145
2020-01-23	0429	0506	0539	0607	1307	2006	2034	2108	2144
2020-01-24	0431	0507	0540	0608	1307	2006	2034	2107	2143
2020-01-25	0432	0508	0541	0609	1307	2005	2033	2107	2142
2020-01-26	0433	0509	0543	0610	1308	2005	2033	2106	2142
2020-01-27	0435	0510	0544	0611	1308	2004	2032	2105	2141
2020-01-28	0436	0511	0545	0612	1308	2004	2031	2104	2140

2020-01-29	0438	0513	0546	0613	1308	2003	2031	2104	2139
2020-01-30	0439	0514	0547	0614	1308	2003	2030	2103	2138
2020-01-31	0440	0515	0548	0615	1308	2002	2029	2102	2137

Computed using National Mapping Division’s sunrisenset program, version 2.2
Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Australia Licence.