Per Hour or Per minute? at DVinfo.net

Nate Benson · February 19th, 2008, 10:51 AM

I'm shooting a corporate video for a company next friday. It's a last minute deal, shooting next friday, and delivering the final product the following monday. Generally I would assume most people would charge 'per finished' minute. My concern is it will take me literally all weekend to do it with little time for sleep and the special lady friend. So by the hour seems logical to me. However, this is a company that will have more work for me if they like my style and finished product. So if I'm developing a relationship with them I feel that I should charge for shooting and editing by the finished minute, that way it would be constant for future projects.

I'm also fuzzy on the whole 'how much is my time worth' logic of thinking. Yes my time is important, but where to you sacrifice being flexible, and not breaking the bank? The last thing I want is to get laughed out of an office because my invoice is too high.

Mike Cavanaugh · February 19th, 2008, 11:05 AM

Nate - too many unknowns here. Quoting "per finished minute" is OK if:

1) you have enough experience to accurately estimate how long it will take to shoot, edit and deliver - it will always take longer, much longer!
2) you have decent control over the shoot - having a client with "let's try it this way" or "this doesn't look right - lets go to our factory across town" will really screw up your day.
3) the client will not nickle & dime the edit. Numerous changes and versions can really eat up the available time.

Take a look here - http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/showthread.php?t=112733

My advice - find an hourly rate you can live with, give them an estimate with allowances for shooting, editing and one re-edit and charge them hourly beyond the allowances. As far as your sleep cycle and lady - that's the nature of the business, especially if you are just getting started.

Nate Benson · February 19th, 2008, 11:30 AM

Mike,
Thanks for the response. I checked out the link, great information thanks.
as for the unknowns:

1.I do have adequate experience to determine length of the shoot. The project is filming of specific replacement product this company offers. I anticipate having to go through this take down process three times.

2. luckily there is only on place to do the shoot, b/c theres only one place int he plant to do the take down/put up process I'm filming. So I don't need to worry about driving to different locations in the area. The plant is about 40minutes away, so naturally I'll charge for travel on the invoice.

3. It's a last minute project, they're providing a script, I need to shoot it and edit it and publish to dvd. Because it's a last minute project, a 2 1/2 day turnaround I don't anticipate them to nickel & dime me with revisions.

They had already done a video of the process I'll be taping and they brought me in because of a referral from another client. The other video is a straight shot with no graphics or narration. So anything with more than one camera and a few graphics will stun them. I have a game plan of all that. I'm just weary about pricing, and should I charge a little more than normal because it's a rush job?

Like everything, every job brings up a new set of questions.

February 19th, 2008, 10:51 AM	#1
Nate Benson Regular Crew Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Buffalo, New York Posts: 157	Per Hour or Per minute? I'm shooting a corporate video for a company next friday. It's a last minute deal, shooting next friday, and delivering the final product the following monday. Generally I would assume most people would charge 'per finished' minute. My concern is it will take me literally all weekend to do it with little time for sleep and the special lady friend. So by the hour seems logical to me. However, this is a company that will have more work for me if they like my style and finished product. So if I'm developing a relationship with them I feel that I should charge for shooting and editing by the finished minute, that way it would be constant for future projects. I'm also fuzzy on the whole 'how much is my time worth' logic of thinking. Yes my time is important, but where to you sacrifice being flexible, and not breaking the bank? The last thing I want is to get laughed out of an office because my invoice is too high.

February 19th, 2008, 11:05 AM	#2
Mike Cavanaugh Major Player Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: Albany NY Posts: 311	Nate - too many unknowns here. Quoting "per finished minute" is OK if: 1) you have enough experience to accurately estimate how long it will take to shoot, edit and deliver - it will always take longer, much longer! 2) you have decent control over the shoot - having a client with "let's try it this way" or "this doesn't look right - lets go to our factory across town" will really screw up your day. 3) the client will not nickle & dime the edit. Numerous changes and versions can really eat up the available time. Take a look here - http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/showthread.php?t=112733 My advice - find an hourly rate you can live with, give them an estimate with allowances for shooting, editing and one re-edit and charge them hourly beyond the allowances. As far as your sleep cycle and lady - that's the nature of the business, especially if you are just getting started.

February 19th, 2008, 11:30 AM	#3
Nate Benson Regular Crew Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Buffalo, New York Posts: 157	Mike, Thanks for the response. I checked out the link, great information thanks. as for the unknowns: 1.I do have adequate experience to determine length of the shoot. The project is filming of specific replacement product this company offers. I anticipate having to go through this take down process three times. 2. luckily there is only on place to do the shoot, b/c theres only one place int he plant to do the take down/put up process I'm filming. So I don't need to worry about driving to different locations in the area. The plant is about 40minutes away, so naturally I'll charge for travel on the invoice. 3. It's a last minute project, they're providing a script, I need to shoot it and edit it and publish to dvd. Because it's a last minute project, a 2 1/2 day turnaround I don't anticipate them to nickel & dime me with revisions. They had already done a video of the process I'll be taping and they brought me in because of a referral from another client. The other video is a straight shot with no graphics or narration. So anything with more than one camera and a few graphics will stun them. I have a game plan of all that. I'm just weary about pricing, and should I charge a little more than normal because it's a rush job? Like everything, every job brings up a new set of questions.