Invoicing and payments: from a finished timesheet to artists paid

47 sec

Automated sales invoicing, Xero and QuickBooks sync, and protected artist payouts

For UK talent and supporting artist agencies, billing productions and paying cast is often the most bottlenecked, error-prone phase of the business. Manually transcribing hours from paper chits into spreadsheets, retyping invoices into accounting software, and calculating net artist payouts with commission deductions can take days.

RosterDeck automates the complete financial cycle in under a minute: converting verified timesheets into numbered invoices priced from the job’s rate card, generating client PDFs, syncing sales invoices and individual artist bills directly to Xero or QuickBooks, and matching incoming production payments before releasing cast payouts.

Step-by-step walkthrough: what happens in this demo

Every action in this walkthrough corresponds directly to RosterDeck’s live production features. Click any timestamp to jump to that moment.

Step 10:00

Raise the invoice from verified shoot dates

Completed dates appear in the invoicing section ready for the invoice to be issued.

Select the completed shoot dates you wish to bill. A shoot date only unlocks "Ready to invoice" one the timesheet is complete and approved. Selecting the dates automatically pulls all basic hours, overtime increments, and supplements priced from the job’s locked rate card into itemised artist lines.

Key takeaway: Invoices can be issued once the timesheet is complete and approved.

Step 20:07

Issue, number and send the production invoice

Issuing freezes the figures, applies sequential numbering, and generates a PDF invoice.

Clicking "Issue" takes the next sequential invoice number in your agency’s custom series and permanently freezes all rates, hours, and line items. The invoice itemises pay, overtime, and supplements for every artist, calculates VAT at your agency’s chosen rate, and produces a PDF invoice with a live email preview dialogue before dispatch to the production contact.

Key takeaway: Freezes financial records against accidental changes and creates an PDF invoice in seconds.

Step 30:15

Sync sales invoice and artist bills to Xero or QuickBooks

One click creates the production sales invoice and individual artist bills in your accounting software.

With a single click, RosterDeck pushes the entire transaction to your connected accounting platform (Xero or QuickBooks Online). It creates an authorised Sales Invoice for the production company and simultaneously creates individual Draft Bills for every artist on the job. Each artist bill has agency commission already deducted.

Key takeaway: Accounts receivable and accounts payable are synchronised with your accounting software.

Step 40:26

Match incoming payments with confirmation safeguards

RosterDeck detects matching incoming production payments and proposes matches for agent confirmation.

RosterDeck monitors incoming bank feeds and accounting records for payments matching issued invoices. When production settles an invoice, RosterDeck proposes the match and waits for confirmation. Crucially, RosterDeck never auto-settles invoices without review: because marking an invoice paid unlocks artist payouts, an agent must confirm the match, ensuring client funds are safely received.

Key takeaway: Prevents premature artist payouts by requiring human confirmation on incoming client payments.

Step 50:34

Pay artists and reconcile in one click

Artists become payable only when the invoice is settled; reconcile paid status seamlessly from Xero.

Artists only become payable once the production invoice covering their shoot date is marked PAID in full, ensuring agencies never advance uncollected funds. Agencies can pay artists via Xero batch payments or export standard bank payment files (Bacs / Faster Payments) for online banking. Clicking "Already paid" syncs payment status back from Xero, recording reconciled bills in RosterDeck. RosterDeck never holds or directly transmits client funds.

Key takeaway: Protects agency cash flow, automates commission retention, and reconciles artist payments in one click.

Platform rules & operational safeguards

Built specifically around UK film, television, and commercial casting standards.

Queries and Approval

Chit Approval

Artists can approve or query their individual chits.

Xero & QuickBooks

Two-Sided Accounting Sync

One click pushes an authorised sales invoice for production and individual draft bills for each artist directly into your accounting software.

Financial Safety

Protected Cash Flow Safeguards

Artists only unlock as payable once the production invoice is settled in full. Inbound payment matches require agent approval.

Net Calculations

Automated Commission Retention

Agency commission is deducted automatically from artist bills based on agency settings, ensuring clean artist payouts and precise VAT accounting.

Frequently asked questions

Common questions about how this workflow operates in RosterDeck.

Yes. RosterDeck connects directly with both Xero and QuickBooks Online via secure OAuth. It creates authorised sales invoices for production and individual draft bills for each artist, complete with self-managed artist bank details.

In RosterDeck, artists only become payable once the production invoice covering their work date has been marked PAID in full. This prevents agencies from advancing uncollected funds.

Artists manage their own bank account details securely through their personal artist portal. When RosterDeck generates artist bills in Xero or QuickBooks, bank details are included automatically.

No. RosterDeck does not handle, hold, or transmit funds. All payments are executed securely through your own business bank accounts or your accounting software’s batch payment workflows.