How long does it take to make a video?
By Clarisse Poh, Head of Planning
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It depends. Every video is unique and comes with its own set of challenges. A corporate video can take between one to three months from commission to delivery. A commercial can take between two to six months. It all depends on the length, scale and genre to determine the time it takes to make a video.
But we’re all about answers here so I’ll give you some mid-range examples for two common videos we get asked to make. The examples offer very high production values. If you want to look into the variables in more depth please have a look at our ebook, So You Want To Make a Corporate Video?, at the link below.
Question: How long does it take to make a 3-min case study video?
Answer: 2 months
Assuming it’s a three minutes film with three interviewees and generic b-rolls, shot over a two-day period, the schedule would look like this:
Commission Process (Week 1 & 2)
| Description | Production Time |
| Agency briefing | 1 day |
| Proposal submission | 2 – 3 days |
| Budget approval | 3 days |
| Kick-off meeting + deliver timeline | 1 day |
Development (Week 3 & 4)
| Description | Production Time |
| Concept development + amends (2 rounds) | 2 days |
| Concept approval (2 rounds) | 4 days (Client) |
| Visual style development + amends (2 rounds) | 4 days |
| Visual style approval (2 rounds) | 4 days (Client) |
| Script development + amends (2 rounds) | 2 days |
| Script approval (3 rounds) | 5 days (Client) |
Production (Week 5 & 6)
| Description | Production Time |
| Shoot logistics | 4 days |
| Filming | 2 days |
| Data Wrangling | 1 day |
Post-production (Week 7 & 8)
| Description | Production Time |
| Story editing | 1 day |
| Video editing + amends (2 rounds) | 5 days |
| Video approval (3 rounds) | 5 days |
# On average, clients are given 24 – 48 hours per approval round to review and feedback on each deliverable.
Question: How long does it take to make a 90-sec infographic video?
Answer: 2.5 months
Assuming it’s a 90 seconds film developed entirely from scratch, starting from concept, script, visuals and execution, the schedule would look like this:
Commission Process (Week 1 – 3)
| Description | Production Time |
| Agency briefing | 1 day |
| Proposal submission | 2 – 3 days |
| Discussion on infographic type + approval | 5 days |
| Budget approval | 3 days |
| Kick-off meeting + deliver timeline | 1 day |
Content Development (Week 4 – 6)
| Description | Production Time |
| Content sheet development + amends (1 round) | 3 days |
| Content sheet approval (1 round) | 2 days (Client) |
| Script development + amends (2 rounds) | 4 days |
| Script approval (2 rounds) | 5 days (Client) |
Creative Development (Week 5 – 7)
| Description | Production Time |
| Style development + amends (2 rounds) | 3 days |
| Style approval (2 rounds) | 5 days (client) |
| Storyboard development + amends (2 rounds) | 5 days |
| Storyboard approval (3 rounds) | 6 days (client) |
Post-production (Week 8 – 10)
| Description | Production Time |
| Preparation of assets | 1 day |
| Graphic preparation and design | 2 days |
| Video animation + amends (2 rounds) | 8 days |
| Video approval (3 rounds) | 5 days (Client) |
# On average, clients are given 24 – 48 hours per approval round to review and feedback on each deliverable.
Knowing what impacts your schedule can help you pinpoint potential pitfalls. For more information on effective schedule management and common industry bad practices, download our e-book here.
