Video Production

Film is a powerful mode of communication: it combines images, actions, and sounds to convey a message to the audience in a unique way. Whether you are seeking to broadcast information to the outside world or to your own employees, corporate videos are an effective media choice.

Corporate videos are used in a wide range of applications, including new-hire training sessions, product demonstrations, job safety education, loops for trade shows, or three-minute marketing segments introducing prospective clients to your company's services.

Choosing a production company
Many video production companies show samples of their work on their web sites, as well as provide “show reels” upon request. Evaluating these examples is a good starting point in comparing vendors. Are the productions modern and edgy, or do they adhere to a more staid and straightforward approach?

Find out what services each company offers: there are a range of services you may need, and not every production company offers all of them. Ask questions like these:

• Do they have their own stage facilities, teleprompters, and camera equipment, or sublet space and lease equipment?
• Will they travel to scout and shoot on location?
• Can they connect you with freelance acting and voice-over talent?
• Can they help you buy stock footage?
• Do they have writers who will help develop your script?

Video production companies should also provide references to current clients who you can contact to ask about their experience.

How much will you pay?
Because the range of projects they can deliver, video production companies need at least a ballpark idea of your budget before they commit to the project. Knowing your rough budget will help them create a fairly accurate quote.

Several factors will impact your price:

• how long your video will be
• whether you already have a script
• if they'll need to use freelance acting and/or voiceover talent
• where the filming will take place
• if you need full-motion graphics or animation
• use of multi-camera shoots

Based on these factors and your budget, the video production company should present realistic options: you might not be able to afford the twenty minute animation you wanted, but you could have animated graphics between scenes, for example.

Corporate video production can be pricey. Still, it can be an investment that pays off. The trick is finding how to work efficiently with your resources.

An industry estimate calls for a budget of $1,000 to $1,200 per finished minute of video, less for longer videos. A promotional video could easily fall between $30,000 and $60,000. Training programs, such as a half-hour safety video, cost towards the upper end of that range.

Stock footage isn't cheap – it can cost between $20 and $50 per second – but using stock footage may be less expensive than using originally filmed material.

The production process

Once you choose a company to work with, the video production process has three main stages.

• Pre-Production: Careful attention in this planning stage can save time and money later. There is give and take in creative control: you can come to the video production company with a complete vision, from sets to dialogue, or you can covey your vision of how you want your audience to react to the video and let the producer present you with some options. This phase may also include creation of storyboards to outline the script and auditions for on-camera talent.
• Filming: Actors are on the set and cameras are rolling. Depending on your project, you might need a five to seven person crew, including a director, producer, prompter tech, script supervisor, boom operator, and grip.
• Post-Production: Everything is pieced together in this phase as the producers edit down your footage and insert graphics and stock footage. The rendering process brings all of these elements together into a viewable format. If you want changes after seeing the rough cut, the final product will need to be rendered all over again. Because of this, multiple rounds of edits can be very time-consuming.

The time from signing a contract to final delivery depends on what kind of video you make, how many other projects the video production company is juggling, and your desired completion date. Typical time for a half-hour training video could be two weeks in pre-production, one day of filming and three weeks of post-production.

The ultimate format of the video will also impact both your budget and the timetable. You can choose between DVD, CD-ROM, a You Tube broadcast, or streaming video on your company web site. VHS is on the way out, and streaming flash video is on the way in but more expensive.

Budgeting tips
Your best defense from going over budget is planning. To be sure, unforeseen costs can crop up during a video's production. Here are a few factors you can keep in mind to maximize efficiency and prevent your project costs from spiraling out of control:

• Good pre-production work: Knowing your target audience and sticking to your original script will save time during the actual filming process. Get your dialogue squared away before the cameras start rolling.
• Minimize the extras: Motion graphics and animation are expense to produce. Also, the method of filming alters the cost of production. Clearly, camera setups with multicamera switching capabilities cost more than using one camera for a simple head shot. However, keep in mind that multicamera filming makes the video more interesting.
• Use previously filmed material: Your video production company can splice in film you already have or use stock footage, thereby minimizing how much new filming needs to take place.

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