Budgeting Software Made for Indie Film Producers

Movie Magic makes budgeting tedious. We fixed that.

A modern interface built for the way line producers actually work.

Build your next budget today.

First month free. If it isn’t better than Movie Magic, don’t pay for the second.

Import

Your Movie Magic budgets come with you.

Export from Movie Magic to Excel, import into Periscope. A few short steps and your structure, fringes, and globals are in — nothing to rebuild.

What producers say

“I worked with Joshua for years. Every frustration I had with Movie Magic, he knew — and built software that actually addresses them. It’s more intuitive, it’s faster, and as a line producer I get my budgets out the door in a fraction of the time.”

Arthur Boon

Line Producer, King the Land (Netflix)

The Problem

You’re not renewing Movie Magic because it’s good.

Most people renew anyway, because the budgets are in there. That’s the only reason.

Budget Templates

Start from a studio-format template, not a blank budget.

Netflix, DreamWorks, Warner Bros, HBO, Marvel, A24 and many more — the budget formats, ready to use.

01 · Navigation

Click any line with your mouse. No drilling in and out.

See the line you need? Click it. No stepping down through category and account levels, no backing out to get anywhere else.

02 · Split view

Work in two places in the same budget.

Count the crew in G&E and update the number of meals in Catering — both sections open at once, neither one closed.

03 · Classic mode

Or work exactly the way you already do.

Classic mode is CMD + up/down, same as Movie Magic. Zero learning curve on day one. Switch to the new navigation whenever you want it — or never.

04 · Support

Support that answers.

Guaranteed reply within 24 hours. Chat, email, or a phone callback. You’re talking to people who make budgets for a living, not a ticket queue.

05 · Live collaboration and activity history

One live version. Every change attributed.

Share a budget like a Google Doc. See edits as they happen. When a number changes, see who changed it and when — and roll back to any point.

06 · Side-by-side budget comparison

Compare two budgets, side by side.

Spin up a second version next to your original and compare two different scenarios line for line in the same window — like an 18-day shoot against a 24-day shoot. See exactly where they differ, on the spot.

07 · Dual currency on top sheet

Your top sheet can show two currencies at once.

Shooting abroad? See every number in your currency and the local currency of where you’re shooting — both on the top sheet, side by side.

Fringes

Every union fringe, built in and automatic.

SAG-AFTRA, DGA, IATSE, Teamsters and more are applied automatically as you budget — no manual math, no outdated rate tables.

Built by people who line produce for a living.

Joshua Dixon is an executive producer and line producer. He oversees a full-time production department of 6 line producers at Mbrella Films. Joshua has produced and supervised series and films for Netflix, Disney+ and other major OTT studios.

We built Periscope because we needed it. We still use it on every show.

Comparison Table

How we compare.

Every budgeting software makes you give something up. We built the one that doesn’t.

Feature	Movie Magic	Saturation	A spreadsheet
Price (monthly)	$42.99 per user	Free tier, then $32	Free	$19 per user, 1st month free
Import Movie Magic budgets	Yes	Yes	No	Yes
Real-time collaboration	No	Yes	Limited	Yes
Split view	No	No	No	Yes
Speed	Slow, legacy software	Cloud-based	Fast, but you build it	Blazing-fast, cloud-based
Activity history	No	Yes	No	Yes
Side by side budget comparison	No	No	No	Yes
Dual currency on top sheet	No	No	Yes	Yes
Producer's book bundle	No	No	No	Yes
Support	No guarantee	No guarantee	None	Guaranteed reply in 24 hours

Pricing

Film budgeting pricing.

$19/month with your first month free, or save with yearly. Unlimited budgets on every plan. Cancel anytime — your budgets stay in your account.

Monthly

$19

/ month

First month free. Cancel anytime.

Yearly

$149

/ year

Save $79 — plus the $200 book bundle.

Need team seats or studio billing? Talk to us →

Book Bundle

Included with yearly: the Film Producer Book Bundle.

Three books by working producers. $200 value, yours free.

Guarantee

Use Periscope free for a full month. Build a budget in it. If it isn’t faster than Movie Magic, don’t pay for the second month.

FAQ

Are there tutorials?

Yes. Start with the getting-started video and you’ll have a budget open in minutes. From there, in-depth tutorials cover every part of the software. If you’d rather be walked through it, a live onboarding call is available.

Does it work on Mac/PC?

Both. Periscope runs in any modern browser, with a dedicated Mac app available.

Can I import my old budgets?

Yes. Export your budget from Movie Magic as an Excel file, then import it into Periscope. A few short steps and your structure, fringes, and globals come across. There’s a walkthrough in the tutorials.

What budget templates are included?

Studio-format templates for feature and TV — Netflix, DreamWorks, Warner Bros, HBO, Marvel, A24 and many more — plus your own saved formats.

I've used Movie Magic for fifteen years. How long until I'm as fast?

Start in Classic mode and you’re as fast on day one — same CMD + up/down navigation. The new one-click navigation is there when you want it.

What happens if I cancel?

Your budgets, fringes, and templates stay intact in your account.

Is there support?

Chat, email, or a phone callback — with a guaranteed reply within 24 hours.

Are my budgets secure?

Enterprise-grade cloud storage with regular backups, granular access controls per project, and a full audit trail. Every change is timestamped and attributed.

Your Movie Magic renewal is coming. Try this first.

Import your budgets, work a week in Periscope, decide then. First month free.

Contact

Have a question first?