Finance Manager - Hot Sauce Pictures

About Hot Sauce Pictures

Hot Sauce Pictures is a scripted television production company based in Belfast, founded by Adam Patterson and Declan Lawn, the creators of Blue Lights and The Salisbury Poisonings. In 2025, they were joined by Creative Director Helen Ziegler, with a shared ambition to build a company that empowers creators to make bold, adventurous, artist-led television.

Hot Sauce is backed by Sony Pictures Television and develops and produces ambitious scripted projects for UK and international audiences.

Overview of the Role

This role sits at the heart of Hot Sauce's finance function as it is built in-house. The primary focus is production finance – budgeting, cost control and reporting across Hot Sauce's productions and associated SPVs, working closely with producers and production accountants.

Alongside this, the role provides the corporate financial reporting Hot Sauce needs to deliver as part of the wider Sony Pictures Television group, from monthly management accounts through to input on budgeting, forecasting and audit.

This is a hands-on role. Depending on the experience of the successful candidate, it may be shaped as a Finance Manager position (with more day-to-day support and oversight from Sony) or a Head of Finance position (taking fuller ownership of audit, FP&A and reporting, with Sony's involvement reducing over time).

Key Responsibilities

Production Finance

• Prepare and manage production budgets alongside producers; track spend against budget and flag potential overspend early
• Maintain cost reports, cash flows, and forecasts across live productions
• Liaise with production accountants to obtain month-end reports and produce monthly production reconciliations
• Manage wrap and final cost reporting at the end of each production
• Incorporate SPVs for new productions, open production bank accounts and arrange signatories/mandates
• Prepare and monitor scripted development budgets, liaising with broadcasters and development funders

Company Finance, Banking & Payroll

• Perform day-to-day bank reconciliations and credit/procurement card reconciliations; manage relationships with Hot Sauce's banking providers
• Manage sales and purchase ledgers; raise and pay invoices in a timely manner
• Raise sales invoices to broadcasters and distributors in line with agreed production milestones
• Process cast/crew and staff payroll, liaising with the payroll provider, releasing payments and issuing starter packs
• Maintain SAP (or equivalent) accounting systems

Corporate Reporting & Sony Liaison

• Work with Sony to produce the monthly Sony reporting package, including corporate prepayments/accruals, bank and balance sheet reconciliations, production reconciliations, and the fixed asset register and depreciation schedule
• Prepare monthly management accounts; manage month-end close and sign off the trial balance
• Contribute to the annual budget and quarterly reforecast submission as part of Sony's FP&A cycle
• Support scenario planning and show modelling, and provide variance commentary on actuals vs forecast
• Provide input into board-level financial reporting packs
• Lead, or closely support (depending on seniority of hire), Hot Sauce's statutory audit, and assist with subsidiary and tax credit audits

Compliance

• Ensure day-to-day VAT, PAYE and IR35 compliance
• Submit Hot Sauce Group VAT reports
• Prepare and submit ONS returns
• Support tax credit claims and related subsidiary audit requirements
• Process, Systems & Team
• Help build and improve finance processes and systems as Hot Sauce's in-house finance function matures
• Provide guidance to production accountants as needed
• Support development staff with financial queries
• Assist the CEO’s/Managing Director/Creative Director with ad hoc operational and corporate matters

Skills & Experience

Essential

• Qualified or part-qualified accountant (ACA, ACCA, CIMA or Accounting Technician) or equivalent experience – exact level flexible depending on seniority of hire
• Experience in production finance or a project-based/media finance environment
• Good working knowledge of UK tax, PAYE, IR35, VAT and accounting standards
• Strong budgeting, cost-tracking and forecasting skills
• Confident communicator, comfortable liaising with producers, founders and a major studio's corporate accounting team
• Self-starter who is organised, detail-oriented and comfortable managing multiple deadlines and productions
• Proficiency in Excel, Word and PowerPoint; working knowledge of Sage or similar

Desirable

• Direct television/production finance experience
• Experience with production accounting tools (e.g. Just TV or similar)
• Experience with UK funding and tax credit reporting (e.g. NI Screen, HMRC)
• Familiarity with industry contracts, union agreements or freelancer payroll
• Experience working within or alongside a US studio corporate structure
• Location & Working Pattern
• Belfast-based, with in-office presence expected. Full-time.