Saturation is a cloud-based financial operating system for film and TV production teams that combines collaborative budgeting, expense management, and production banking into a single platform.
What is Saturation?
Saturation is a web-based financial management platform purpose-built for production teams in film, television, commercials, and music videos. It takes budget line items, expenses, and bank transactions as inputs and produces real-time cost reports, final budgets, and expense tracking. The platform is developed by Saturation, Inc. and was built by film producer Jens Jacob to replace legacy desktop tools like Movie Magic Budgeting.
Key Features
- Real-time collaboration — Build budgets collaboratively with line items, rates, fringes, and actuals. Share budget links instead of emailing spreadsheets.
- Industry-standard templates — Jumpstart projects with templates from Netflix, Paramount, Marvel Studios, BBC, Disney, HBO, Amazon, and more.
- Expense management — Issue virtual and physical expense cards, upload receipts via the Saturation Wallet app, and categorize transactions in real time.
- Plaid integration — Connect to over 12,000 financial institutions to automatically import bank transactions and reconcile expenses.
- Global search and keyboard shortcuts — Use
⌘Kto instantly search across projects and⌘I,⌘Sand other shortcuts for fast budgeting. - Project organization — Group projects into folders, switch between workspaces, and manage multiple productions from a single dashboard.
- Production banking — Deposit funds, handle wire transfers, payroll runs, and vendor payments through Saturation Pay.
Who is it for?
- Independent filmmakers — Use the free Creator plan to budget a single film with industry-standard tools.
- Freelance producers — Manage multiple productions with the Pro plan, including unlimited projects and cost reports.
- Production companies — Collaborate with teams using shared workspaces, role-based approval routing, and purchase order management.
- Studios and networks — Deploy the Enterprise plan for dedicated support, SSO, API access, and custom integrations.
What can you do with Saturation?
- Create and share budgets — Start from a template or blank sheet, invite collaborators, and share a live budget link instead of static files.
- Track expenses in real time — Use expense cards, import bank feeds via Plaid, and automatically categorize transactions to see actuals vs. budget.
- Generate cost reports — Produce industry-standard cost reports and track estimated final cost (EFC) throughout production.
- Manage production finances — Deposit funds, pay bills, run payroll, and handle wire transfers all within the platform.
Pricing
Saturation offers a freemium model with a 14-day free trial on all plans. The Creator plan is free for up to 1 active project. Pro costs $32/month (billed annually) for unlimited projects, 10,000 account items, and expense management. Team costs $79/month (billed annually) for 3 seats, 100,000 account items, and priority support. Enterprise has custom pricing with unlimited account items, SSO, dedicated server, and API access.
FAQ
Can Saturation replace Movie Magic Budgeting?
Yes. Saturation is a modern cloud alternative to legacy desktop software like Movie Magic Budgeting, Showbiz, and Hot Budget. Users can import directly from Movie Magic and collaborate in real time without file sharing.
How long does it take to migrate?
Migration from spreadsheets or legacy systems is straightforward. Saturation offers budget templates and direct import from Movie Magic. Most teams can start budgeting within minutes.
What types of productions does Saturation support?
Saturation is built for feature films, TV series, commercials, music videos, documentaries, and short films. It is used by independent filmmakers and major studios alike.
Is Saturation secure?
Yes. Saturation is trusted by over 8,000 producers managing $2.7 billion in production budgets. It uses cloud security and is a member of the MovieLabs Industry Forum, supporting industry interoperability standards.
