PSA: Always get the contract BEFORE the shoot day

I've been doing non-union work for 3 years now and the single best piece of advice I can give new actors: never show up to set without having reviewed and signed the contract beforehand. I've had two gigs where they tried to slip in buy-out clauses, one where the 'day rate' was actually a flat rate for unlimited usage, and one where the contract had a non-compete that would have prevented me from working for 6 months. Ask for the contract 48 hours before the shoot. If they won't send it, that's your answer.