Budget-Friendly Dialogue Cleanup: Most Bang for Your Buck Techniques?

Hey everyone,

I'm James, a sound designer working on an indie feature right now. We shot it on a V-RAPTOR XL with some Orbiter lights, and honestly, the production value looks great, but the budget on the post-audio side is super tight. My dialogue editor hours are extremely limited, and investing in new, expensive plugins isn't really an option for this project.

I'm looking for advice on non-destructive dialogue clean-up techniques from the guide track that give the absolute most bang for the buck. Think 'cleaning' without requiring top-tier plugins or endless, painstaking tweaks. I've been doing some basic EQ cuts and expansion, but the guide tracks still have a fair bit of room tone and some minor mic bumps that eat up precious time.

What are your go-to techniques or subtle adjustments that yield significant improvements without blowing the budget or the clock?