Crew & Talent Payment Support
United States

Production Payroll
Contact the payroll accountant working on the production. They will handle the review and approval process and coordinate with the show’s Paymaster to reissue the check.

Residuals or Music
Reach out to your applicable Guild.

Current-year checks may be reissued as direct deposit if the production accepts direct deposit, and your direct deposit enrollment is active in my.ep.com before the payment is processed.

Checks issued in a prior year cannot be reissued as direct deposit. For tax and reporting purposes, prior-year checks must be reissued as an exact mirror copy of the original paper check.

The YTD earnings shown at the bottom of your check reflect all wages issued by the specific EP paying entity, such as GEP Talent Services, Entertainment Partners Services, GEP Cencast, GEP Cenex, etc., not just payments for your current production.

The EP company name printed on your check corresponds to the entity responsible for processing your payments.

This also applies to residual payments that are still being processed by the appropriate guild. Visit your guild's portal for the most current payment updates.

Currently, EP does not offer a paperless option for check stubs. All physical check stubs will continue to be mailed. You will be notified if a paperless check stub option becomes available.

To update your address please log in to our employee portal at my.ep.com. You will only be able to update your information after you have successfully connected your Payroll Profile.

1. After connecting your payroll profile. Go to the navigation bar (left hand on desktop, bottom on mobile) and select “My Account”. You will be routed to the "My Profile" page. From here you will be presented with any applicable addresses based on your role and how you have been paid.
2. To the right of the address, you would like to update, select the ‘Edit’ option. A screen will open with your current address on file.
3. You may update your address by selecting the individual fields and making any necessary changes.
4. To submit your changes, select the ‘Save’ button to close out the module.
5. Once you are finished, you should see your changes reflected in the ‘My Profile’ page.

You may also watch this video for more information, MyEP - Change Your Address.

You can only update addresses that are displayed to you in your profile account. You can update your address or residency there! There is no option in the application or at EP to add additional addresses.

Once you select ‘Save’ on an address in myEP, you will see a success message flash at the top of the screen. At that time, your address will be immediately sent to payroll. Any checks sent for the next week will be mailed to the new address.

Talent Agencies have an internal record with EP. Talent agents (only) will need to email AgencyAddressUpdate@ep.com to update their agency’s internal address for their clients.

If a business manager, bookkeeper, or other person is your approved representative and you would like to have them to added to your mailing address on file to receive mail for you, you must submit a completed Crew & Talent Address Change Form to paymentsupport@ep.com.

If you are not able to sign the Crew & Talent Address Change Form due to extenuating circumstances, your approved representative may submit a copy of their appointment as your representative, such as an "Authorization to Release Information" letter or "Power of Attorney (POA)". The documentation of appointment must already be signed by you. They may submit the documentation to paymentsupport@ep.com.

To update your legal Name or Social Security Number in our system, complete our Crew & Talent Inquiries & Corrections Form. Email the completed form and a copy of your SSN card to paymentsupport@ep.com.

Note: To change your name legally, please contact the U.S. Social Security Administration. Changing your name with EP does not change it legally with the U.S. government, even if you provide a marriage certificate.

To update this information, complete and submit our Talent - Residual Set up Change Request. Include a copy of the legal State Corporation of Dissolution documentation with the state seal you received at the time your corporation was officially dissolved.

Your email address is your username to log into MyEP. If you want to change the email address you use to log into MyEP, you need to disconnect your Payroll Profile from your existing email account. You will then create a new MyEP account by registering with your new email. Lastly you will need to connect your payroll profile to the new email.

Here are the steps:

1. Log into MyEP with your current email/username. Go to the navigation bar and select “My Account”. Go to My Profile>Settings.
2. Select “Disconnect your EP Payroll Profile.

After disconnecting your payroll profile from the undesired email account, you will need to register and/or login with your new email address on my.ep.com. Once you login with your new email address you will need to connect your payroll profile to be able to access your Payroll information.

The beneficiary must send a completed Crew & Talent Address Change Form to paymentsupport@ep.com.

Employees can view up to three years of Pay History information by logging into our employee portal at my.ep.com. Employees need to connect their EP payroll profile first to enable access to their pay information.

Earnings Reports
After connecting your profile:

1. Go to the navigation bar (left hand on desktop; bottom on mobile) and select MyPay and Pay History.
2. You can select the pay information you would like to be included in the export and then select the button on the top right labeled Export.

Paystub Copies
For PDFs of paystubs issued from November 2021 to today.

1. Click on the checkbox next to the pay stub you wish to download. An option called Actions should be visible on the screen.
2. Click on it and select “Download.”

You may request Earnings reports and paystub information older than three years by using our Crew & Talent Inquiries & Corrections Form.

Log in to your myEP account to view up to three years of pay history information.

If you haven't done so already, you will need to connect your EP payroll profile to your myEP account to enable pay information access.

To download a paystub, click the checkbox next to the paystub you wish to download. Actions options will appear on screen. Click to select "Download".

For paystub information older than three years, submit a completed Crew & Talent Inquiries & Corrections Form.

In general, checks are processed the following week after the work is done, either on Wednesday or Thursday after EP receives all the necessary paperwork and approvals from the production accountant on the show. If you want to verify if a check has already been processed, you may login to our employee portal at my.ep.com.

1. Go to My Pay and click Pay History.
2. Click the View link or click on the Actions link and choose View Pay Information. The pay information dialog box displays.

If a check is not reflected in the portal, please contact your production company first to confirm if the necessary paperwork has been submitted. The production company will contact EP to address the issue.

Crew & Talent
While most checks are received within 7-10 business days after being mailed by the production company, there are times when it may take longer, particularly during holiday periods. If you want to verify if a check has already been processed, you may login to our employee portal at my.ep.com.

1. Go to My Pay and click Pay History.
2. Click the View link or click on the Actions link and choose View Pay Information. The pay information dialog box displays.

Direct Deposit
If you have already set up direct deposit and the production you are working under is currently active for direct deposit, funds should be credited/received no later than 48hrs from the check issue date. If you want to verify if a check was processed as direct deposit, you may login to our employee portal at my.ep.com.

1. Go to My Pay and click Pay History.
2. Click the View link or click on the Actions link and choose View Pay Information. The pay information dialog box displays.

Verify that a check has already been processed by logging in to your account at my.ep.com.

1. Go to My Pay and click Pay History.
2. Click the View link or click on the Actions link and choose View Pay Information. The pay information dialog box displays.

Crew & Talent
If the check was issued more than 15-30 business days prior to the current day, contact your production company to confirm a check has been released and that they have your correct address on file. The production company will contact EP to start the void and reissue process with their paymaster.

Residuals/Music
If the check was issued more than 90 business days prior to the current day, contact your union to confirm a payment has been logged in their system and released. All checks are mailed by the union to the address they have on file, regardless of the address printed on the checks by EP. Please ensure your most recent address is on file with your union. For SAG-AFTRA members, check their Residuals Tracker Portal at https://www.sagaftra.org/residuals-portal.

If your union states the check was released by mail and you have not received it within ten business days from the time they mailed it, then request your union to submit a Stop Pay Reissue from EP’s residuals department.

No, in most instances the checks go to the production company for accounting purposes as well as to track the handling of the checks. In other instances, clients may be set up to offer Direct Deposit.

If you want to verify if a check has already been processed, you may login to our employee portal at my.ep.com.

1. Go to My Pay and click Pay History.
2. Click the View link or click on the Actions link and choose View Pay Information. The pay information dialog box displays.

Stale Dated
At EP, checks go stale once it is 300 days past its cut date, and still show as outstanding. Once they are 300 days past their cut date, they can no longer be cashed or reissued via our payroll system. If the employee attempts to cash them, the bank will reject the deposit and charge the employee a fee.

Other Reasons
Employees should contact the EP Treasury Department by phone at (818) 955-4300 or by email at treasury@ep.com.

If you feel someone has fraudulently cashed your check, you can file a Forgery Claim. You will be sent an Affidavit of Forgery that must be filled out, signed, notarized, and returned to EP. We will then forward the affidavits to EP’s bank, which will investigate and render a determination on the validity of the claim. If the claim is deemed valid, the bank will issue a credit to EP, and then EP will issue you a replacement check. The entire validation/replacement process takes between 90 to 120 days.

To start the process, please complete our Crew & Talent Inquiries and Corrections form.

Crew & Talent
If the check was been issued more than 15-30 business days from the current day, contact your production company to confirm the check was released. If necessary, the production company will contact EP to start the void and reissue process with the assigned Paymaster.

Residuals/Music
Contact your union to see if a payment has been logged and released to you, and confirm that they have your most recent address on file. If your union confirms the check was mailed to you and you have not received it within ten business days from the time they mailed it, then submit a completed Crew & Talent Stop Pay/Reissue form to paymentsupport@ep.com.

First, check with your union to see if a payment has been logged and released to you, and ensure they have your most recent address on file. If the union confirms that the check was mailed to you and you don’t receive it within ten business days from the date of mailing, submit a completed Crew & Talent Stop Pay Reissue form.

To dispute an error made on your production check, contact the production accountant at the show. They will review the documentation submitted to EP and request any necessary correction via the assigned show paymaster.

The name of the employee is included on the checks to identify the employee(s) who performed the work for Pension, Health & Welfare contributions purposes. Corporations will receive a 1099 NEC to report non-employee compensation at the end of the year.

The best way to ensure you receive accurate information is to check your union or guild’s payment portal. Your union or guild must verify payments, amounts, and all personal data is correct for each individual talent.

The union is the distributor of checks. Since our records do not cross-reference with theirs, the address in our system may not reflect the same. Please contact the union to confirm.

Residuals are taxed as supplemental income. The IRS considers these earnings as additional payments made outside of regular work wages and taxed at a higher rate.

Generally, this means that EP has not received the necessary documents from the union alerting that the check recipient is deceased and/or there is no beneficiary record set up in our system. Contact the union to find out the necessary requirements to handle payments for deceased individuals. You may then complete and submit a Talent - Residual Set up Change Request form to start the process with EP. Once EP receives approval from the union, a beneficiary record can be set up in our system.

The number of times you receive a residual is indicated in the contract you signed with the production. Please refer to your contract for details.

You will need to complete and submit the Employment Verification Request form and email it to uigroup@ep.com.

Verbal verification
We can verbally verify employment, but we cannot provide wages over the phone. Please call (818) 955-4449 to speak to someone in the Wage Verification team.

Home/Car loan or mortgage
A completed Employment Verification Request Form must be submitted to uigroup@ep.com or by fax at (818) 848-0254 for processing.

Employees must contact their nearest unemployment office to initiate a claim. Employees can file by phone or online. You will need your last check stub available when initiating a claim.

Your unemployment state information can be found on the bottom portion of your last check stub. You may review your payment history and paystubs by login into our employee portal at my.ep.com. If you’re not already signed up, you will need to create an account. You can also contact our Employment Verification team at (818) 955-4449.

You may review your payment history by logging into our employee portal at my.ep.com. If you’re not already signed up, you will need to create an account. You can also request your wages for unemployment purposes by submitting a completed Employment Verification Request form to uigroup@ep.com.

Background Actors
No. Background actors work on a day-to-day basis and are not eligible for severance.

Production Workers
Email severance@ep.com to determine if you are eligible.

Tax levies, wage garnishments, and child support deductions are initiated when EP is served by an official party (the IRS, State Department of Taxation, District Attorney, etc.).

EP mails a copy of the garnishment to the address on file at least 10 days prior to garnishing wages. You can also call our garnishment team directly at (818)955-4441 or email them at garnishments@ep.com.

If you believe you have satisfied your obligation, please contact the agency in question and request that a release be forwarded to garnishments@ep.com.

Funds are sent for deposit the following week after the payroll check date.

Parents may visit www.childreninfilm.com for a list of banks that offer Coogan Accounts. Examples include: Wells Fargo Bank, Union Bank, and First Entertainment Credit Union.

Please send all Minor's Trust documentation to minorstrust@ep.com.

States such as California, Louisiana, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina and Pennsylvania have mandatory Minor’s Trust laws requiring that all unemancipated minors have 15 percent of their gross earnings deducted and placed in approved trust accounts.

Productions employing minors are responsible for obtaining the required work permits to employ a minor. Please reach out to the employment state's Division of Labor Standards Enforcement for more information on how to obtain a work permit.

EP presents all corrections to the production for which you worked for approval. If the production determines that the work state was correct at the time of your employment, you may contact them directly to discuss the matter further. If the production is to agree with your request, the production is the one to contact us to initiate the correction to adjust the work state.

EP verifies all social security numbers with the Social Security administration. If the social security number does not match the Social Security Administrations records, EP will reject the request. We ask that you contact the Social Security Administration to rectify the issue. The Social Security Administration will provide documentation of the valid social security number on file. Once this document is presented to EP, we will update the social in our system.

For EP to correct previously reported wages to government agencies for resident state purposes, we require that you present proof of the correct resident state you’re resided in at the time of employment. EP will accept utility bills, renter’s agreements and mortgage statements that show the location address within the correct state’s jurisdiction. Once the documentation is received, we will present the corrections request to the production for which you worked for approval. If the production determines that the resident state was correct at the time of your employment, you may contact them directly to discuss the matter further. If the production is to agree with your request, the production is the one to contact us to initiate the correction to adjust the resident state.

EP verifies all names with the Social Security administration. If the name does not match the Social Security Administrations records, EP will reject the request. We ask that you contact the Social Security Administration to rectify the issue. The Social Security Administration will provide documentation of the name on file. Once this document is presented to EP, we will update the name our system.

EP will reject certain request due to missing and or incomplete information. Your initial request will be returned along with instructions on what is needed to process your request. Once EP receives the request and all information is provided, EP will update your information.

According to IRS Publication 505, the Form W-4 (Employee’s Withholding Allowance Certificate) claiming exemption from withholding is valid for only one calendar year.

To continue your exempt status, a new Federal (and/or State) withholding certificate/form is needed no later than February 15th of every year. If new withholding form(s) are not received by this deadline, your exempt status will revert to “single” with no withholding allowances or dependents. When submitting your updated W4 form, please allow at least one week processing time. There may be checks issued with regular withholding up and to the date that the exempt status is entered into our system. We will NOT be able to adjust any tax withholdings retroactively. Exempt status will only be effective moving forward.

This message indicates that you were listed as tax exempt in the system at the end of the year, which may have occurred earlier during your onboarding, when starting a new show. It's not uncommon for this designation to appear due to how employment status is initially processed.

Tax withholding settings are tied to your individual profile; they are not specific to any one production. Therefore, updates made for one show apply across all your shows. If you used SmartStart to submit your Start paperwork, you can log in to review your prior Start packets and view the information you provided at the time of onboarding.

To update a Form W-4 and/or your State Withholding form, please visit the State Tax Forms page to find the form you need.

For Crew
To make changes after you have already submitted your Start, you will need to upload a digital W-4:

1. Log into SmartStart.
2. Navigate to the active Project.
3. Click Upload in the Documents section.
4. Select W-4 (Federal or State), attach your updated W-4, and check the box to “Notify Paymaster.”
5. Click Save to complete the upload.

Alternatively, you may email your production office or provide them a paper W-4.

For the Production Office
If a crew member provides a paper W-4 or emails a digital copy to you, follow the steps above to update their W-4 through SmartStart. You can search for the crew member by clicking on the All tab.

Residuals Earners
If you are a Residuals earner no longer working on a production, please email your completed form to paymentsupport@ep.com.

Claiming exempt status on your tax withholding forms does not render your paycheck tax-free. While it may exempt you from federal income tax withholding, certain statutory deductions including State Disability Insurance (SDI), Social Security, and Medicare are still required and will continue to be withheld from your earnings.

In 2020, the IRS revised the IRS Form W-4, eliminating the previous method for claiming exempt status. To elect exempt under the updated form, enter or write the word “exempt” in the blank space located directly below Step 4(c). This designation affirms that you meet the IRS criteria for exemption from federal income tax withholding. Please note that a new Form W-4 must be submitted each year to maintain exempt status, and eligibility is subject to IRS guidelines. For detailed instructions, refer to Page 2 of the Form W-4, which outlines the criteria and filing process for claiming exempt status.

For Crew
If you are currently working on a production and need to make changes to your W-4 after you have already submitted your Start paperwork, you will need to upload a digital W-4 to SmartStart and check the box “Notify Paymaster.”

For Background Actors
If you are a background actor currently working for Central Casting and need to make changes to your W-4, please email your completed forms to CPInquiries@ep.com.

If you are not currently working
No action is required. You may submit your updated forms when onboarding for your next production.

If you reside in a taxable state that does not issue a dedicated state withholding form, you may submit a Federal Form W-4 labeled for the applicable state to update your tax withholding elections. This will allow our payroll team to apply your preferences accurately even in the absence of state-specific documentation.

Yes. On both federal and state tax forms, you may request “Additional Withholding.” This is a specific whole-dollar amount you may request to be withheld from each paycheck beyond your standard tax calculation. If you request this, EP will calculate your regular tax deductions as usual and then add on the additional amount you’ve requested.

For federal withholding, you’ll find this option on Step 4C of IRS Form W-4.

Adjusting your withholding this way may reduce the chances of owing taxes when you file your return.

No. Form W-4 is only considered valid when all of Section 1 is completed, which includes your full nine-digit SSN. Submitting only the last four digits will result in an incomplete form that will be rejected or delayed.

No. The Form W-4 is a federal withholding form used by the IRS to determine how much federal income tax to deduct from your paycheck. Most states with income tax have their own state-specific withholding forms, which are separate from the W-4. If you live or work in a taxable state, you'll typically need to submit a state withholding form in addition to your federal W-4. If your work spans multiple states, you may need to complete a form for each applicable state.

In 2020, the IRS redesigned the Form W-4 and changed how dependents are claimed. Instead of entering a number of dependents, you are now asked to input a dollar amount in Step 3 of the Form. You can enter any whole dollar amount. The recommended guidelines are $2,000 for each eligible child under age 17 and $500 for other qualifying dependents. This amount helps determine your eligibility for the Child Tax Credit and Credit for Other Dependents.

EP support representatives are not authorized to provide tax advice, including how your work may be categorized for tax purposes. For guidance specific to your situation, please consult a qualified tax advisor.

You are only required to submit withholding forms for states in which you wish to specify non-standard withholding.

“Non-standard withholding” typically refers to any election that differs from the default, such as claiming dependents, adjusting marital status, or requesting additional withholding amounts.

If you begin working in a new state and do not submit a state-specific withholding form, your withholding will default to Single/Zero (S/0). If you would like to adjust your withholding in a specific state, you can submit that state’s withholding form to your production. If you are not currently working, please submit the form when you start your next production. Most state forms can be found on their respective Department of Revenue websites or here.