Spotlight News

How to claim tax and expenses for your Edinburgh show

Spotlight — Tue, 15 May 2012 12:01:41 GMT

Tax and expenses may not be at the top of the list when you’re planning your Edinburgh Fringe production, but it’s necessary to know about to ensure you don’t get left out of pocket – or lose out on cash you could be claiming back.

For Spotlight members heading to Edinburgh with a show in 2012, we asked James Pickford from TWD Accountants on what tax implications you need to consider this summer.

As an actor, looking at travel expenses and the tax implications can sometimes be a headache. The following article is a brief guideline, not an exhaustive list. There are a number of possible items to claim. Each expense has to be looked at individually.

One cast iron rule of running a business is that you can claim tax relief for expenses incurred. It stands to reason – if you were not allowed to do so your profits would be artificially higher, and so would your tax bill. If you are paying for a business expense it’s not you who gains, it’s the business.

But what if that business expense could be seen to have a degree of personal enjoyment or use? For example, a trip abroad would be seen by many as pleasurable, even if there was an underlying business purpose. The same idea applies to hotel stays or restaurant meals.

What can you claim though? For many actors this is a real issue. Your work quite often entails travel, home and abroad, and of course you have to eat. Can you really claim the whole cost of a plane journey to Edinburgh, hotels and meals thrown in? Or do you have to factor in some sort of personal percentage? Or is the whole lot disallowed if you have any personal enjoyment at all?

And then what happens if you go by car to a casting call an hour from your home, but visit the supermarket on the way back? Is there a personal element involved?

Fortunately, even though it may sound like there is nothing you can claim for, most business travel will qualify. It is generally the case that a business trip is a business trip, and if so, you should be able to claim.

Hopefully my brief notes here can explain the basics, and dispel some of the myths.

Travel

The rule with expenses is you can claim something that is “wholly and exclusively” for business. So if you have to travel to a casting meeting, meet an agent or attend a festival, like Edinburgh, you may be able to make a claim.

The real complications with travel comes when there is an element of personal benefit. It is not uncommon for business trips to be extended by a couple of days’ holiday. In this case the whole of the expense would be disallowed. It is no longer exclusively for work, even if the trip was only taken because of work. This is something to be wary of.

Subsistence and accommodation

Once you have travelled somewhere to work, you may need to stay overnight and perhaps eat. Again the rules are simple but complex at the same time.

The basis of the rule for subsistence is that basic human requirements cannot be claimed as business expenses. The ruling is you would incur the costs of food and shelter anyway, regardless of any business needs. (In a famous case, Caillebotte v Quinn, a judge quite rightly pointed out that someone ate not because he was a carpenter, but because he was a human being.)

However, if a person has to eat away from home, it is likely to be more expensive. HMRC recognise this and will allow a claim for some meals and overnight accommodation.

Where a trip involved one or more overnight stays, the cost of the accommodation can be claimed (as long as it is not close to a regular place of work). What’s more, reasonable subsistence, evening meals and breakfast, can also be claimed.

Car expenses

The most common form of travel is by car. At the same time it’s possibly the most complicated in terms of keeping track of expenses. To help, HMRC allow you to claim a fixed mileage rate. The rules are fairly straightforward.

You claim 40p per business mile for up to 10,000 miles and 25p per mile for anything over that.

This is a flat amount that is meant to cover everything - petrol, insurance, depreciation etc. To claim, simply keep a mileage log and work it out.

Of course, though, it cannot be that simple. The maths is easy but the difficulty comes when deciding what business travel is and what isn’t.

There are reams of guidance on the matter – far too much to outline everything here. Luckily accountants can do the hard work for you. If you want to have a good idea beforehand, consider the following points:

Business travel can start from your home, but only if that’s where your office is. If you have a studio, you cannot claim commuting, and may need to look more closely at costs where you start your journey from home.
You may claim costs of home to work travel if your place of work changes, with no regular pattern.
If there is an incidental element (for instance you visit a supermarket on your way back from a job) it may be disregarded.

When you have worked out what your business mileage is, there is another problem. The 40p rule was calculated some time ago. Given that it is much more expensive now to run a car, this is not always going to cover you. There have been rumours of a change, but for now we are stuck with it.

If you think your car expenses will be more than 40p per mile, then you may be able to claim the actual costs. It’s more work, but it could save you a great deal. However, once you choose that method you have to stick with it – you may only change when you change cars.

Although I’ve tried to condense travel expenses into a brief column, it can only be a flavour of the topic. There are too many variables to summarise accurately. So, as always I will have to finish with the advice to ask if you are in doubt. Accountancy firms like ours specialise in looking at individual cases, and it may be the best way to save you some money.

For more information on tax and expenses for actors, and for details for discounts for Spotlight members, visit www.twdaccounts.co.uk/SPOTLIGHT.

Tags: edinburgh, advice, tips

The Spotlight Podcast: Controlling your career after drama school

Spotlight — Mon, 14 May 2012 11:55:36 GMT

If you’re an actor who has recently completed drama school, what’s the best way to approach the months after graduating? Making your way in the industry as a young graduate can be quite daunting, especially when you’re looking for work immediately after graduating.

For the latest Spotlight podcast, we speak to Jessica Pidsley, who won the Highly Commended award at the 2009 Spotlight Prize. As a recent graduate, Jessica shares her experiences from the months immediately after graduation, along with advice on how to stay positive, network, and why you shouldn’t panic if the roles and auditions don’t immediately arrive.

Jessica is a RADA graduate and was selected as one of Screen International’s Stars Of Tomorrow in 2010. She has performed across stage, screen and radio, while her stand-up show, I Can Make You Thin(k), recently received five-star reviews at the Brighton Fringe.

Don’t miss this valuable advice into how to keep calm and stay focused after graduating – click to subscribe to the Spotlight Podcast via iTunes now.

You can also download the podcast or listen via the player below.

Don’t miss future podcasts containing valuable insights from key industry figures. Click here to subscribe to the Spotlight podcast in iTunes.

You can listen to previous podcasts on Spotlight’s podcast page, with a range of hints and tips from industry professionals available to download.

Tags: podcast, graduates, career, CDS, acting

Spotlight’s weekly news roundup: 11 May

Spotlight — Fri, 11 May 2012 15:36:40 GMT

Welcome to Spotlight’s weekly news roundup where we highlight the news and blogs we’ve enjoyed and want to share with our members and others within the industry. So sit back and catch up on the stories you need to know about.

Acting in the online world

To start this week’s roundup, a little infographic (all the range online these days) courtesy of What’s On Stage and Time Out. This interactive graphic breaks down some West End numbers in an easy-to-digest format.

Staying online with the West End, plenty of industry figures have been abuzz with the mysterious @westendproducer’s Search For a Twitter Star competition. The In The Wings acting blog considers the implications of this West End competition and speaks to some of those involved.

Still on talent shows, if you’ve ever wondered how a show like Britain’s Got Talent manages its social media presence, then The Stage’s interview with Peter Cassidy, Head of Fremantle Media UK Interactive, is a fascinating read.

A Routemaster bus isn’t the most obvious place for a film premiere, but it’s probably where The Silver Goat will get many of its viewers. The London-shot film starring Spotlight members Alexa Brown and Tom Colley has bypassed traditional distribution methods, instead choosing to release via an iPad app instead.

Industry manoeuvrings

After negotiations between Equity and the Independent Theatre Council it’s been announced that minimum rates for performers, stage managers and the creative team have gone up by 2.5%, with a 1% increase on subsistence payments. And if you want to find out more about the work Equity do, In The Wings have an interview with Kristin Mie Hamada from the union’s membership department.

Members of Directors UK, the professional association for directors working with the moving image in the UK, can now save money with Spotlight’s casting services. Directors UK members can now get 10% off bookings at our casting rooms and studios.

Olivier Award-winning director Matthew Warchus (Matilda The Musical) has told The Stage that opening new productions in London rather than Broadway provides a “less pressurised” environment for the show’s creative team.

And if you long for a starring role, then take inspiration from this feature from Backstage.com, which profiles nine famous names in the States who started their careers on Broadway in the ensemble or as standbys, and have gone onto bigger and better things.

Stage experiments

The Brighton Fringe is in full swing with many unique and interesting performances – with so much to take in, Nione Meakin in The Indpendent writes that the “Brighton Fringe remains the place to take risks”.

To pick one example, Susan Elkin in The Stage looks at the work of Filskit Theatre, made up of four Rose Bruford graduates, and profiles their Fringe performance of Snow White. Spotlight will also be at the Fringe next Friday (18 May), with seminars and a drop-in surgery.

Speaking of Graduates, Spotlight’s final year blogger, LAMDA student Joe Gaminara, has just returned from touring Julius Caesar around Paris. It was Joe’s first tour, and his tales of less-than-comfortable B&B beds and unfamiliar stage exits will sound familiar to anybody who’s a regular on the road.

And Shakespeare’s Globe’s Globe To Globe festival has been gaining plenty of column inches, and one of our favourite stories from the global Shakespeare celebration has been the Q Brothers’ Othello: The Remix. The hip-hop artists visited a Birmingham school to show their alternative take on the Bard, before performing at the famous venue.

Before we go, there’s just enough time to remind you that Spotlight Ball tickets are selling fast, and there’s a whole host of West End stars confirmed for the night’s entertainment. Plus, we’ll be at Surviving Actors in Manchester tomorrow with seminars, careers sessions and advice on all things Spotlight-related.

Please note that the Surviving Actors venue has now changed to King’s House Conference Centre, King’s Church, Sidney Street, Manchester.

From all at Spotlight, have a fantastic weekend. You can follow us on Twitter and tell us what you’re up to on Facebook, and Google+.

Tags: theatre, digital, Spotlight

Spotlight Ball confirms West End line-up and competition

Spotlight — Fri, 11 May 2012 10:11:52 GMT

A whole host of West End stars will be spending the night entertaining drama students from across the country at the annual Spotlight Student Ball on the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee weekend.

Lucy May Barker and Chloe Hart (Picture credits: Nick James)

Headlined by Wicked leading lady Louise Dearman, famous faces from stage and screen will be leading the party, as CDS and CDET students celebrate a year of hard work, training and showcases at the Café de Paris on Sunday, 3 June 2012.

Joining Louise (Wicked’s Glinda) at the event will be the following Spotlight members:

Lucy May Barker (Sweeny Todd – Johanna)
Chloe Hart (Hairspray – Tracy Turnblad)
Daniel Koek (South Pacific – Lt Cable)
Kieran Jae (Billy Elliot, Jersey Boys)
John Partridge (EastEnders – Christian)
Hannah Grover (Legally Blonde UK tour – Brooke)

The final performer joining the line-up will be former Arts Ed student Sophie Evans, better known as Dorothy in The Wizard Of Oz at the London Palladium.

With a Best Of British theme and dress code, students also have the chance to win prizes in our Spotlight’s Got Talent competition, introduced by Spotlight member Russell Grant (below).

To enter, students simply have to upload a video of them performing a special talent to the Facebook event page and the videos with the most likes will be invited on stage at the event.

Spotlight’s Got Talent is just part of an unforgettable night that will see students treated to a red carpet entrance and a free glass of bubbly on arrival, as well as exclusive performances from some of the biggest names in theatre, surprises, giveaways and entertainment until the small hours of the morning.

Tickets cost £24 from Pretty Pig Events, and there is a travel bursary available for students who need to travel to London by coach.

Make sure you don’t miss out of this highlight of the student calendar – do your duty for Britain in this Jubilee Year and book your ticket now.

For the latest news on the Spotlight Student Ball, follow @SpotlightBall on Twitter, sign up to our Facebook Event and Like our Spotlight Graduates page on Facebook.

Click here for an interview with Spotlight Ball headliner Louise Dearman, and get involved with the latest fun and games on our YouTube channel.

The Spotlight Students Ball is at the Café de Paris, London, at 8pm on Sunday, 3 June 2012. Tickets cost £24 and can be booked through Pretty Pig Events. Click here to buy your ticket.

Tags: students, Summer Ball, musicals, events

Spotlight heads to Surviving Actors Manchester

Spotlight — Thu, 10 May 2012 11:40:11 GMT

The Spotlight team are in Manchester this Saturday (12 May) offering career advice and seminars, answering your questions about Spotlight and the industry, and offering exclusive Spotlight discounts and goodies as part of Surviving Actors, Manchester.

The event, at The Studio, 51 Lever Street, Manchester, follows on from the success of Surviving Actors, London, in January. Spotlight will once again be offering practical help and advice to members and aspiring members alike at this event in one of Britain’s most creative cities.

Spotlight members can sign up on the day for one-to-one 20 minute career advice sessions with our PR manager and careers expert Emma Dyson. These sessions start at 1.30pm and run throughout the afternoon.

Please note, these sessions will be offered on a first come, first served basis. You can sign up at Spotlight’s stand from 9am – please bring proof of Spotlight membership with you when you register, such as your Spotlight Card or CV.

Emma will also be hosting our Sell Yourself: Perfect Self-Marketing For Actors seminar at 10am. This will cover a range of topics, including networking, CVs, showreels, headshots, audition techniques, and how to approach agents and casting directors.

As part of the seminar, Emma will be answering your questions, making it a must for any actor starting on their career or who is in need of a refresher. To book your place on the seminar, click here.

You will also be able to buy Contacts 2012, the essential handbook for anyone working in the UK entertainment industry, for just £10 (usual price £12.99).

In addition, Spotlight members wanting a new showreel can sign up on the day for a showreel editing session with our professional editors for a special price of £150 (usual price £199).

Our Spotlight team of Emma, Kelly, Kate, Gary and Frances will be at all stall from 9am to 5pm to answer your questions about all aspects of Spotlight membership, whether you’re a member or non-member, as well as offering practical help and support for Spotlight members. In addition, we’ll be stocked with the famous Spotlight tote bag and other Spotlight goodies.

We’ll also be spending the preceding days in Manchester meeting with our valued partners and subscribers around this thriving cultural city. Make sure you’re following @SpotlightUK on Twitter for all the latest news.

We look forward to seeing you this Saturday!

Surviving Actors is on Saturday, 12 May at The Studio, 51 Level Street, Manchester. To register for the event or to pre-book seminars, please visit www.survivingactors.com.

Tags: events, Spotlight, seminar, career advice

Directors UK members to benefit from Spotlight’s casting services

Spotlight — Wed, 09 May 2012 13:34:19 GMT

Spotlight is delighted to announce that Directors UK members can now receive discounts on our rooms and studios hire.

Members of Directors UK are now entitled to 10% off all Spotlight Studio and Room hire until 31 December 2012.

Many high profile projects, such as Game Of Thrones, Anonymous, and the multi-award winning Matilda The Musical have been cast at Spotlight’s Studios and Rooms, and our team can offer specific packages for your needs, whether you’re working on a commercial, television drama or feature film.

Directors UK is the professional association for directors working with the moving image in the UK. It represents almost 4,000 directors working in all areas from feature films and drama to documentaries and entertainment.

Some of the most high profile directors in the country sit on the board of Directors UK, including Paul Greengrass (Bourne Ultimatum, United 93) as President, and recent BAFTA winner Charles Sturridge as its chairman.

The main aims of Directors UK are to protect and enhance directors’ creative rights, negotiate, collect, and manage the rights payment for the use of their work, give a voice of directors at every level of the industry, and to run events, services and benefits for its director members.

Membership is also available for students and directors working in short films, music videos, web media, games and commercials.

We are delighted to welcome Directors UK members into our rooms and studios, and look forward to seeing many more Spotlight members on screen, having been cast at Spotlight.

For more information on Directors UK, including information on membership, and its benefits, please visit www.directors.uk.com.

Please visit our Rooms and Studios pages for more information on Spotlight’s casting spaces. If you’re interested in booking space at Spotlight’s Rooms and Studios, please contact Sara Sehdev or Frances Mordue.

Tags: spotlight, Spotlight Studios, rooms, director, casting

Life of a drama school graduate: Bringing Caesar to Paris

Spotlight — Tue, 08 May 2012 14:05:10 GMT

Each month we’re following the progress of final year drama student Joe Gaminara from LAMDA, as he prepares to leave drama school behind and head into the world of auditions, castings and agents.

This month, Joe has just returned from performing in Paris, where a hectic touring schedule meant croissants and coffee were the order of the day, even if Joe wasn’t entirely sure where his entrances, exits or even his characters were meant to be.

Hello again, and a very happy May to you all. Us Lamdites have just got back from an epic 10-day tour of Paris, bringing Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar to theatres all over the French capital. The nights have been late and mornings early, and I’d be lying if I said that stress levels haven’t fluctuated, but it’s also been very exciting trip.

Any hopes of a relaxed holiday with a few drinks were soon scarpered when we got our vigorous 7am-12am schedule on day one. But at least when we arrived our posters were all over town (above), making us feel quite the celebrities and fulfilling our initial intention of painting the town red.

There were only five stage managers with us to help unload our lorry full of set, plus one nicotine-hooked truck driver, so, as you can imagine, we had our hands full.

Since we performed in six different theatres, all of different size and geography, our average day consisted of getting up at 7am, having a quick croissant and hoping on the metro for a 9am “Get in”. Then it was a tech run, then a matinee, then a Q&A session, then another show and then the “Get out” (by which time it was about midnight).

I’ve never craved an uncomfortable B&B bed so much before. Still I can’t complain, thanks to my victory in a crucial game of rock paper scissors I luckily landed myself a double. Shame for my six-foot-two room mate who got the glorified cot. Hey, who am I to interfere with democracy?

Sleep deprivation aside, the concept of having us, the fragile actors, adopt the role of stage managers for a week definitely had its merits.

Most of us have never toured before, and so it was the first time we were faced with lighting plans, set building and costume maintenance.

At first it was slightly daunting, but once we realised the need for team effort, and were handed our steel boots, luminous jackets and our hard hats, we all got stuck in.

We all very quickly learned a great deal about the amount that stage managers actually do to make our jobs even possible, and definitely developed a new-found respect for what they do. Acting is only one facet of putting on a show.

LAMDA students don hard hats for another Julius Caesar “Get In”

After the shows we came back on stage to answer any audience questions. Luckily these were English (although two of our cast were French so we had translators) and mainly consisted of school kids who were learning English.

As you can imagine we weren’t overwhelmed with erudite pontifications on the subtle themes of the play, but rather a few shy hands went up after receiving probing glares from their teacher, and asked things like “How do you learn your lines?” and “How do you find being a dead body on stage?”

That’s not to say the play wasn’t appreciated though, as one fan made clear, writing on our Facebook page: “Hey you! You're so spontaneous but professional, and you're so true, all of you. Moreover, let me tell you that many of us found you guys completely attractive, what gave us more and more excitement and jubilation to pay attention to your play xxx.” Sweet.

Probably the best thing about the trip was the wealth of experience it gave us for playing in different sized spaces. We had the challenge of adjusting a show from a 200 seater (about the size of the Arcola) to 800 seater (closer to the size of the National’s Olivier).

Before the tour I certainly felt anxious about huge spaces, with their ability to swallow up sound and make you look like an ant from the back row.

But by the end of the tour, I felt I was relishing the vast auditoriums more, enjoying the buzz from the scale of what we were doing, and growing accustomed to adapting to different acoustics and sight lines.

Having said all that, other aspects of touring presented a nightmare. At LAMDA, obviously not everyone can have big parts all the time, so we alternate over the year in terms of the leads.

Unluckily for me, Julius Caesar was my turn to play the functional roles and in the London version I played four different parts (including a six-year-old boy).

But in Paris, we lost two actors (to the US to do showcases), meaning lucky old me landed two extra parts on top of my four… just what I needed!

Rain Man would have had trouble remembering my entrances and exits, not to mention my galaxy of costume changes, whereby in 15-second gaps in-between the action, I would struggle to transform my outfit (let alone my psychological mind-state), in order to casually march back on as someone else.

Now I’m not renowned for my sense of direction, or memory for that matter, so there was quite a challenge for me. Each theatre had different exits in different places, with different codes on different doors, so it was quite a panicked puzzle, especially with no dress rehearsal to work it all out.

But, in the end, I seemed to have got it right (for most of the time). Whether it affected my acting however, is debatable. I couldn’t possibly comment. I just wish I could have taken a ball of string on stage with me to stop me getting lost.

LAMDA students warm up on the stage of one of their many Paris venue for Julius Caesar

Of course the tech team had to adapt too, since the purpose of the trip for them was to learn about the do’s and don’ts of touring. On the whole they were brilliant, and quickly changed sound levels, delegated and re-rigged lights etc.

All seemed to go fine, apart from when we played a tiny theatre the night after playing a huge one, and someone forgot to adjust the smoke machine. Backstage was like the Blitz - you were lucky if you could see your hand, let alone your entrance.

Still the show must go on and all that, and indeed it did, although we must have looked like a bunch of nicotine addicts emerging from a smoking room as we appeared for Act One Scene One coughing.

Still, the point of the tour was to learn and experience these things that can happen to you, and train you to deal with them in the best possible way.

Tags: actors, graduates, theatre

Spotlight’s weekly news roundup: 4 May

Spotlight — Fri, 04 May 2012 16:40:16 GMT

Welcome to Spotlight’s weekly news roundup where we highlight the news and blogs we’ve enjoyed and want to share with our members and others within the industry. So, sit back and catch up on the stories you need to know about.

Healthy dancing

The health of dancers took a huge step forward this week with the NHS opening its first specialist dance injury clinic as part of its new National Institute of Dance Medicine and Science. Dance UK, who have been instrumental in lobbying for this service, estimate injury treatment costs the dance sector on average £900,000 a year and £1 million in lost time. The centre will also host specialist research into dance-related injuries.

Meanwhile, the director of the Royal Ballet, Dame Monica Mason, has urged action on eating disorders within the dance industry at Dance UK’s recent conference on nutrition and eating, amid calls for an more open discussion on the subject. Ballet News also have an in-depth feature on eating disorders within ballet.

Many dancers, musical theatre performers and actors will be affected by the forthcoming Olympics, but will it be in terms of increased audiences or empty seats? What’s On Stage have canvassed a range of views from across the West End, and finds there’s plenty of optimism in theatreland.

While we’re on the subject of the West End, Wicked star Louise Dearman will be headlining this year’s Spotlight Ball, and we grabbed a quick chat with her on everything from witches to drama schools to the Ball itself.

And a reminder that Spotlight Dancers renewals are now open. The deadline for members to renew and confirm their details is Friday, 15 June 2012.

Awards and landmarks

We’d like to offer huge congratulations to Spotlight members James Corden, Tracie Bennett, Stockard Channing, Tom Edden and Andrew Garfield from all at Spotlight for their Tony Award nominations. In a very competitive year on Broadway, it’s fantastic to see so many Spotlighters recognised for their performances in a strong year for British nominees.

Meanwhile, there were further victories for several Spotlight-filled casts at The South Bank Sky Arts Awards. Matilda The Musical, which was cast via the Spotlight Link and at Spotlight Studios, scooped the Theatre Award, We Need To Talk About Kevin, starring Spotlight member Tilda Swinton in the lead role, won the Film Award, Arthur Pita’s The Metamorphosis took the Dance Award, Sherlock won the TV Drama Award, and Fresh Meat took the Comedy Award.

Still on awards news, there were successes for a whole host of Spotlighters at the British Soap Awards. EastEnders won Best British Soap, while Emmerdale’s Danny Miller (below) was celebrating after winning Best Actor for the second year in a row. Spotlight has a big hand in helping to cast these ever-popular soaps, both via The Link and at Spotlight Studios, and the casts are full of Spotlight members. From all here at Spotlight, congratulations to all winners and cast members.

And the cast of Emmerdale will be reaching a milestone in October, with a special live episode for its 40^th anniversary. Coronation Street and EastEnders have already broadcast live shows, but this will be the first time actors in the Dales will be performing live for the cameras.

The business of acting and the future

As any actor knows, self-marketing is a key part of the profession and over at MOO’s ideas site, Spotlight member Sam Hopkins describes how she uses the personalised business cards to help market herself. Spotlight members can also get a free pack of cards if they’ve never used MOO before.

If you’re interesting in the world of children’s castings, CBBC will be going behind the scenes of Shrek The Musical to look at how children are cast in the production, as part of a series called Secret World, which explores the showbiz industry.

Speaking of business, if you’re using the bank holiday to catch up on your finances, James Pickford from TWD Accountants has given us advice on the latest finance and tax news. James’ piece is especially useful if you’ve set up or are thinking of setting up your own theatre or production company.

And if you want to get yourself ready for the future, Wired magazine has a range of views from leading industry figures on how television will evolve over the next decade. The message seems to be clear – expect the capabilities of your television and the way you consume broadcasts is set for a significant shift.

From all at Spotlight, have a fantastic weekend. You can follow us on Twitter and tell us what you’re up to on Facebook, and Google+.

Tags: awards, dance, acting

May tax overview and advice for actors

Spotlight — Thu, 03 May 2012 14:04:18 GMT

Are you thinking of setting up your own company for performing purposes? Perhaps you’ve recently started one? Many Spotlight members involved in theatre, film or other areas find it useful to start their own company. However, the paperwork and tax affairs are a necessary evil, and can be quite confusing.

To guide you through the latest tax and business news, James Pickford from TWD Accountants offers his advice on filing online difficulties and pension funding, plus a quick Q&A with some of your most frequently asked tax questions.

Does tax time make you feel like this? Read on…

Filing Online Difficulties

Most tax and VAT returns now have to be submitted electronically, so if your return is late, even by a minute, the computer spits out a fine. This also applies to filing accounts and annual returns for companies or Limited Liability Partnerships (LLPs) at Companies House.

Filing a tax return or submitting accounts online can be quicker, as there is no delay caused by sending a paper document in the post. You may also be given a longer period to file online - an extra seven days for VAT returns and an extra three months for personal tax returns. However, you do need software to file online, and this may not be freely available or the free version may not work for your particular circumstances.

Partnerships

For example, partnerships must submit a partnership tax return in addition to the personal tax returns for each partner. The partners' tax returns can be submitted online using the HMRC free software, but the partnership tax return cannot.

If you are a member of a partnership (or LLP) you must either submit the partnership return in paper form by 31 October, or acquire some commercial software to use to submit the return online, or ask for help for you to submit the return.

Companies House Accounts

If you run a private company, say for theatre or production purposes, that company’s accounts must be submitted to Companies House within nine months of the company's year end. Say your theatre company's year runs to 30 September 2011, the accounts must reach Companies House by midnight on 30 June 2012, even though this is a Saturday.

Companies House provides free software to submit company accounts online through its website, but this does not always work. If you leave filing your accounts to the last day, and the software, or your internet connection fails, you will get a fine of £150. You can ask us to file your company accounts and annual return on your behalf.

VAT

All VAT returns for periods starting on or after 1 April 2012 must be filed online, and any VAT due must be paid electronically, not by a cheque. Are you ready for this change? It’s best to talk to an accountant if you want some help with filing VAT or other tax returns online.

Employer or Personal Pension Funding?

Pensions can be a confusing area for actors, especially if you’re running your own performing or production company on top of it, or are employed by one. Who should pay contributions into your pension fund: you or your employer? If you control the company you work for, the most tax efficient solution is almost certainly for the company to pay as your employer.

So, your company can set a reasonable level of pension contributions against its profits subject to corporation tax (at 20%, 24% or 25%), and it pays no employers' National Insurance charges on those pension contributions.

A 'reasonable level' is where the salary plus benefits, including pension contributions, form a commercially reasonable remuneration package for the work done. As long as the total package is set at a commercial level or below, the company can receive tax relief for the remuneration payments.

If you pay pension contributions as an employee, you need to extract the funds from your company. If you do this by a salary, this creates an income tax charge in your hands. The company receives tax relief on salary payments but it must pay employers' National Insurance Contributions (NICs) at 13.8%, with no upper limit.

You are also subject to NICs on your salary from your performing or production company at 12%, which then reduces to 2% on salary over £42,475 per year. So unlike pension contributions paid directly by the company, salary payments carry NICs of up to 25.8%.

Your annual allowance caps the amount of your pension contributions which attract tax relief. If this allowance is exceeded by pension contributions paid by you or your employer, you will pay a tax charge at your marginal rate.

The annual allowance is now £50,000 per year, but this is extended by unused allowances brought forward from the previous three tax years. Thus the exact amount of annual allowance will be different for each individual, depending on his or her pattern of pension contributions.

May Q&As

Q. I'm thinking of starting a new theatre or production company. Will it qualify for the NIC exemption?

A. It depends where your business is based. Businesses in the east and south-east of England, or London, don't qualify for the so-called NIC holiday. The south-east region stretches all the way up to the Northamptonshire border, so you need to be quite clear where your principal place of business is.

Secondly it must be a new business, not an existing business that has been transferred to a new company. There are also some excluded sectors so you’ll need to talk through the detailed rules before you apply for the NIC holiday.

Q. Last month the Tax Office wrote to me saying I would no longer receive tax credits, but I did nothing about it. Now my wife is expecting another baby so has reduced her working hours. Can I get my tax credits back?

A. You need to make a new tax credits claim as soon as possible - don't wait until the new baby arrives. Your reduced family income may mean that you qualify for working and child tax credits already, and if you don't, you will at least have submitted a protective claim for 2012/13.

Under the new rules, from 6 April 2012 couples with children must work at least 24 hours per week between them, and one member of the couple must work at least 16 hours per week. There are exceptions if one person is disabled, incapacitated or a carer.

May's key tax dates:

May 19 is the deadline for employers' 2011/12 end of year PAYE returns. There are penalties for non-submission. Also on this date, PAYE / NIC and CIS deductions are due for the month, while May 31 is the deadline for P60 copies to be issued to employees for 2011 / 12.

You can find out more about TWD Accountants’ offers for Spotlight members on our Card Offers section or by visiting www.twdaccounts.co.uk/spotlight.

Tags: tips, advice

Spotlight Q&A: Spotlight Ball headliner Louise Dearman

Spotlight — Wed, 02 May 2012 14:15:02 GMT

Rule Britannia! This year marks the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee and in honour of this, the eighth annual Spotlight Ball is celebrating the best of British and that’s exactly what this year’s line-up of performers consists of.

Headlining this year’s cast is Louise Dearman, who from humble beginnings as a 12-year-old in Joseph at the Palladium has gone on to receive critical acclaim for her portrayals of some of the most challenging and exciting roles in the musical theatre catalogue.

We caught up with Louise to talk about her career to date, the launch of her new album and headlining this year’s Spotlight Ball.

What early experiences led you to being a performer?

I've danced since I was three years old so performing has always been in my blood. I suppose the first time I experienced something that led me to want to pursue performing as a career was when my middle school put together a choir and auditioned for Joseph And His Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat at The London Palladium and got it.

It was the most incredible experience to perform on that stage, and in such a wonderful production. Seeing what goes on backstage, admiring all the cast and feeling the buzz of showbiz made me determined to sing, dance and act professionally.

How much did your three years at Laine Theatre Arts help to shape you as a performer?

I owe everything to Laine Theatre Arts - the training I received there was unbelievable. It’s such a well-disciplined college. You learn your trade and how to do it at the very highest level but alongside that you learn how to behave in the industry, to have respect for your fellow performers, directors, choreographers, and to always be prepared and look your best in an audition situation.

I'm not sure where else I would have trained had I not been accepted to Laine’s. I'm very proud to have my name attached to that college.

What’s your favourite drama school memory?

Wow, that’s tough! We rehearsed for the huge summer show which we performed at The Epsom Playhouse every year and it was such an exciting time.

I'll never forget my final show and the emotion on everyone’s faces as Kerry Ellis and I sang the final big song of the night. There were a LOT of tears. I made some truly wonderful friends at college who still mean an awful lot to this day.

Galinda in Wicked is one of the most iconic roles in musical theatre - what was it like having the opportunity to play this part? Did you enjoy your time in Wicked?

I adored my time in Wicked, it was the highlight of my theatre career to date. The whole experience was wonderful and I feel very lucky to have been a part of such a spectacular piece of musical theatre.

Galinda is such good fun. What I loved most was being able to play the funny, bubbly and ever so slightly tactless side of her, but then show the softer, caring side.

It’s a tough role - one moment I’d be singing top soprano lines and the next belting the tunes out but that’s what I loved about it. Also playing opposite the gorgeous Rachel Tucker as Elphaba was a dream. She's such a good friend and a wonderful performer.

You played Eva Peron in Evita - what challenges did playing such a well-known historical figure present that you didn’t come across when playing a fictional role such as Galinda?

Playing Eva Peron was a million miles away from Galinda! It took a lot of research and digging deep to figure out how I wanted to portray such a controversial woman. It was tough but empowering. Eva was a wonderful role for me to take on because it showed me in a completely different light as an actress.

Your new album Here Comes The Sun is out on May 7th. What can we expect to hear? Any duets?

I’m so thrilled with my Here Comes The Sun. It’s packed full of music I love from artists I have admired over the years. I love that some of my younger fans will be hearing songs from artists they have never heard of whereas more mature fans will know them already.

The arrangements are stunning, some rich with strings and incredibly powerful as well as some very simple, stripped back, mellow tracks. It's everything I wanted it to be.

I sing a stunning version of Time After Time with the divine Steve Balsamo, which is so beautiful. I really hope all my fans enjoy it and hopefully I’ll draw lots of lovely new people in too.

What does the future hold for you?

There is so much more I’d like to achieve. I want to continue to sing and do lots more live gigs, more albums and to eventually play some of the most beautiful venues in the country. The Royal Albert Hall is a box I have to tick!

I'd love to experience the world of television as an actress, particularly comedy. I'm currently writing comedy with my friend Gareth Mason - we're hoping to film our first comedy pilot very soon. I'm also setting up my own events entertainment company. Other than that, I want to continue being happy and loving my job.

Are you looking forward to headlining this year’s Spotlight Ball?

I'm so looking forward to The Spotlight Ball. It’s going to be a glamorous night! I'm looking forward to performing songs from my new album and enjoying watching the other performances.

Finally, what advice do you have for Spotlight members about to graduate?

To any performer about to graduate, I would say always remember why you have chosen to be a part of this business, even when times are hard and you feel like you are auditioning for everything and anything and not getting the roles. Remember that your time will come if you work hard and persevere. You love to perform so make sure that even after a hundred auditions, you are getting that across.

Also, the more prepared you are, the less nervous you'll be: never leave rehearsing a song or learning script until the last minute, you'll only feel panicked. The final thing I’d say would be “Welcome to the crazy world of show business!”

Louise was speaking to Jonathan Vickers. Louise will be headlining the Spotlight Ball on June 3rd 2012 and her album Here Comes The Sun is released on May 7th.

Tickets for the 2012 Spotlight Ball are on sale from Pretty Pig Events. For more information and to book your ticket, please visit www.prettypig.co.uk.

Tags: summer ball, musicals, actress, students