INDEPENDENT FILM PRODUCER INSURANCE
PROTECTING THE PERSON BEHIND THE PROJECT
Producers get sued — not just productions. The right coverage protects your personal assets, your company, and your professional reputation when actors, locations, financiers, distributors, or co-producers file a claim against you, the producer.
- FIRST-TIME INDIE PRODUCERS
- WORKING PRODUCERS WITH SLATES
- LINE PRODUCERS & UPMs
- EXECUTIVE & CO-PRODUCERS
- LLC, S-CORP, & SOLE PROPRIETOR
- SAG SIGNATORY PRODUCERS
- CROWDFUNDED & GRANT-FUNDED
- FOREIGN-LOCATION PRODUCERS
YOUR PRODUCTION IS INSURED. ARE YOU?
The production package covers the project. It doesn't always cover the producer personally — and certainly not professionally. Indie producers carry exposures that follow them long after the film wraps.
Most indie producers think the production policy protects them. It mostly doesn't. A standard production package covers the production company entity for on-set incidents. It doesn't shield you personally from breach-of-contract claims, financier disputes, intellectual property accusations, or co-producer fights — all of which are common.
Independent film producer insurance is a layered approach: producer liability, professional indemnity, distribution-grade errors and omissions, and personal asset protection structured around the realities of running an indie production company. The right structure depends on whether you're shooting one project or running an annual slate that may benefit from a DICE policy.
For first-time producers especially, the gap between "I have a production policy" and "I'm actually protected" is wide. We close it with coverage that's built for how producers actually get sued — not the off-the-shelf template every generalist agency tries to sell.
NINE WAYS INDIE PRODUCERS GET SUED
These are the claim categories carriers see most often against independent producers. Not theoretical — these are the actual legal threats that come up after a wrap.
BREACH OF CONTRACT
Cast, crew, vendors, location owners, and co-producers sue when contracts are alleged to have been breached — payment terms, deliverables, exclusivity, credit obligations.
MOST COMMONFINANCIER DISPUTES
Investors and financiers claim funds were misallocated, budgets were misrepresented, or returns were promised that didn't materialize.
HIGH SEVERITYCOPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT
Allegations that scripts, music, footage, or imagery used in the film infringes someone else's intellectual property — handled through E&O.
E&O TERRITORYDEFAMATION & PRIVACY
Real people (or their estates) allege defamation, false light, invasion of privacy, or misappropriation of likeness — common in narratives based on true stories.
E&O TERRITORYON-SET INJURIES
Cast, crew, or third parties injured on set bring claims that name the producer personally alongside the production company entity.
LIABILITY TERRITORYEMPLOYMENT CLAIMS
Wage-and-hour, harassment, discrimination, and wrongful termination claims from cast and crew — increasingly common on indie productions.
EPLI TERRITORYCHAIN-OF-TITLE GAPS
Distributors discover gaps in script, life rights, music, or footage clearances after delivery — and assert claims against the producer who warranted clean title.
DELIVERY RISKCO-PRODUCER FALLOUT
Disputes between producing partners over credit, profit participation, decision authority, and ownership of the underlying property.
PARTNERSHIP RISKPERSONAL GUARANTEES
Producers who personally guarantee equipment leases, location agreements, or vendor contracts can be held personally liable when the production company defaults.
PERSONAL ASSET RISKTHE LAYERED APPROACH TO PRODUCER PROTECTION
Independent producer insurance isn't a single policy. It's a stack of coordinated coverages, each protecting against a different category of exposure.
PRODUCTION PACKAGE
Project-level coverage protecting the production company for on-set GL, equipment, cast, props, sets, and extra expense.
PRODUCER E&O
Errors and omissions for copyright, trademark, defamation, privacy, title, and clearance claims — required by every distributor.
PROFESSIONAL LIABILITY
Coverage for errors, omissions, and negligence in the performance of producing services — including breach-of-duty claims from financiers.
D&O / MANAGEMENT LIABILITY
Directors and officers coverage for the production company's principals — protects personal assets from claims tied to management decisions.
EMPLOYMENT PRACTICES (EPLI)
Wage-and-hour, harassment, discrimination, and wrongful termination claims from cast and crew on or after the production.
UMBRELLA / EXCESS
Excess limits over the production package and other underlying lines — required when distributors or locations demand $5M, $10M+ towers.
CYBER LIABILITY
Protection for data breaches involving cast info, financier records, scripts, dailies, and unreleased media — increasingly demanded by streamers.
DICE ANNUAL POLICY
For producers running multiple projects per year — annual coverage spanning Documentary, Industrial, Commercial, and Educational work.
HOW YOUR BUSINESS STRUCTURE SHAPES COVERAGE
The legal entity you produce under affects what coverage you actually need. Three common structures, three different risk profiles.
SOLE PROPRIETOR / DBA
- No legal separation between you and the business
- Personal assets directly exposed to all claims
- Tax-simplest structure, highest personal risk
- Often used by first-time and one-off producers
SINGLE-PURPOSE LLC
- Production-specific LLC for one project
- Separates production liability from your personal assets
- Standard structure for indie features and shorts
- Personal guarantees can pierce the veil
PRODUCTION COMPANY (LLC / S-CORP)
- Ongoing production entity covering multiple projects
- Separate single-purpose LLCs typically formed per film
- Annual operations require ongoing coverage
- Best fit for producers running active slates
EVERY KIND OF INDIE PRODUCER
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1
FIRST-TIME PRODUCERS
Producing your first feature, doc, or short. We place programs that don't penalize the lack of credits the way generalist carriers do.
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2
WORKING PRODUCERS WITH ACTIVE SLATES
Multiple projects per year. Annual policies, DICE structures, and ongoing professional coverage that scales with your slate.
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3
LINE PRODUCERS & UPMs
Producers hired to run productions. Professional coverage that protects you when the producer of record's policy doesn't extend to you.
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4
EXECUTIVE & CO-PRODUCERS
Coverage for credited producers who aren't running production day-to-day but face liability tied to their producing role and decisions.
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5
SAG SIGNATORY PRODUCERS
Programs structured for SAG-AFTRA Ultra Low, Mod Low, and Low Budget Project signatories — including additional insureds and waivers.
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6
CROWDFUNDED & GRANT-FUNDED
Producers running productions funded by Kickstarter, Indiegogo, Seed&Spark, Sundance, and grant programs — coverage that protects backer obligations.
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7
FOREIGN-LOCATION PRODUCERS
Producing internationally or shooting overseas. Coverage that follows the production with appropriate territorial extensions.
QUESTIONS EVERY INDIE PRODUCER ASKS
DOES THE PRODUCTION POLICY ALREADY COVER ME PERSONALLY?
WHY DO INDIE PRODUCERS NEED THEIR OWN INSURANCE?
CAN A PRODUCER BE PERSONALLY SUED IF THE FILM IS UNDER AN LLC?
WHAT IS PRODUCER E&O AND WHEN DO I NEED IT?
HOW MUCH DOES INDEPENDENT PRODUCER INSURANCE COST?
SHOULD I FORM AN LLC FOR EACH FILM?
DO I NEED INSURANCE BEFORE I HAVE FINAL FUNDING?
WHAT'S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN PRODUCER INSURANCE AND DICE?
YOUR FILM IS YOUR ART. YOUR ASSETS ARE YOUR LIFE.
Don't let one breach-of-contract claim, one financier dispute, or one chain-of-title gap put both at risk. Submit the short-term film production intake form and we'll structure coverage built around how you actually produce.
THE COMPLETE FEATURE FILM INSURANCE LIBRARY
FEATURE FILM INSURANCE
The complete overview of feature film coverage — every spoke, every policy type, every budget tier.