How much does video and animation production cost?
Let’s start with the question we get asked the most! For video, the answer depends on several things, for example:
● Whether we’re filming in one location or several
● How long we need to allow for filming and how large a crew we need
● How complex the edited video is – especially if it involves animated elements
● Whether we’re producing a single video or several related videos
For animation, the costs will depend on:
● The style and complexity of animation (for example 2D versus 3D)
● Whether we are working with existing assets such as characters or whether these need to be created from scratch
● The duration of the final animation
Most importantly, we work with clients who have a range of budgets, so whatever your requirements we can find a solution.
Contact us today and we can talk through your options before providing a detailed proposal and cost breakdown.
What does the video production process involve?
Every project is different, but broadly speaking the production process can be broken down into three phases:
Pre-production: This is when we work with you to learn all about your business and together define what it is you need from video. Some of the questions we might explore are: Who is your target audience? What platforms do you want to publish on? What are the key messages you want to communicate?
From there we’ll create a video outline and/or detailed script, confirm budgets and arrange any filming dates with you.
Production: AKA ‘filming’. This is bit most people think of when they talk about creating videos. Our crew will capture all the required footage – such as interviews, event footage or product demonstrations. We might film at your premises, at our studio or at some other locations relevant to the video messages.
Post-production: Once we’ve captured all the footage we’ll get to work on the edit, crafting the footage into a coherent narrative and adding graphics, titles and music as appropriate. You’ll have chance to review one or more drafts and give feedback before everything is finalised.
How large is your crew for filming?
This depends on the type of job. For simple talking heads interviews or case studies we can provide a ‘self-shooting’ videographer, who will work alone to capture all the necessary footage.
However our preference is for a two- or three-man crew, consisting of a producer/director to oversee the filming and conduct interviews, plus
one or two camera operators to concentrate on the visual and technical aspects. This ensures the key messages of the video are covered more effectively.
For more complex filming requirements we may also recommend extra crew members, such as additional camera operators, a sound recordist, or a drone operator. These will all be costed separately in our quote.
How much input do you require from us?
As a starting point we’ll arrange a face-to-face meeting or ask you to fill out a short questionnaire to help us understand the project requirements. From there you can have as much or as little input into the scripting, filming and editing as you’d like. In any case we’ll keep you informed at every step of the process.
For animation, we generally agree the key messages with you and then we work on a draft script and a suggested visual style for review. However we’re also happy to work from a full script or storyboard provided to us.
What about graphics and branding?
Alongside the filming we’ll create any motion graphics required for the video. These could range from a simple animated logo to a series of stylish infographics. We always use graphics in a way that complements rather than complicates the message of the video.
Do you add voiceovers and music?
Not every project requires a voiceover, but when it does we can provide you with a range of different voiceover samples to choose from and we’ll take care of the rest.
When a background music track is required we can source a suitable track from a royalty-free music library and provide a license for usage in the finished video.
Can you add subtitles to your videos?
Adding subtitles is an increasingly common request and we’re able to offer two options. We can either add subtitles directly to the video (so they always appear no matter when or how the video is accessed) or we can provide a separate subtitle file that can be uploaded to YouTube and other platforms alongside the video. This allows you to toggle the subtitles on and off, and to have several subtitle files in different languages for one video. We’ve provided video subtitles in over a dozen languages.
What kind of equipment do you use?
We film everything on professional broadcast-quality 4K video cameras and use additional kit – such as radio mics, lighting kit, or green screen – where appropriate. We continually invest in new kit and software to keep up-to-date with the rapidly changing standards of the industry.
In what format will I receive my video files?
We usually supply our finished videos in the most commonly used formats, typically .mp4 or .mov. However we’re happy to convert these into pretty much any other format free of charge.
