Hey man, thanks for the input. The film was originally 2 minutes longer! Believe it or not. There was an entire scene shot that I got rid of. (You can see it here if you'd like:
http://www.theplan-film.com/#!videos/c9qb the bottom right video)
As for your questions:
How much was your budget?
It was approximately 7,000$ - Most of the budget was spent on fuel and food and the time to get things right. It was shot in four days.
Where did you get your crew from?
The core crew where friends that I studied with at film school. Probably the biggest asset you can gain from film school is progressing with other people that are all filmmakers and always work together.
As for the art department (Art director, set dresser and assistant art directors) I got from an interior design collage. They where all in need of a project to complete their studies, so they worked on the film and got their degree in return.
The rest (Actors, makeup and others) I got by making calls and asking recommendations from the people I know. I met with many actors until I found out the right ones.
Did you pay them?
I payed about half the crew and payed the cast. The core crew; Producer, Assistant Director, Cinematographer and the entire art department didn't get payed. PA's got switched every day so they didn't get payed either, each one came and pitched in. Everyone else got payed.
I've made a couple of shorts and the thing that I found really helpful to understand is; make a proper breakdown of you shooting script. You need to be realistic about how much you can shoot in a day's-work. It's always possible to shoot 90 shots a day, but will those shots be good? Will you have time to get the acting the way you like? Will your crew have enough time to light and set up the shots? Will you have time to do everything well, instead of just getting it done?
If you know how much you can properly shoot in a day, you'll be much smarter about your budget. Everyone starts with no money and a lack of experience and the way to learn is to just do it... responsibly.
Again, thanks for the input and kind words. Hope these answers can help you with your short - good luck!