What would you bid for a project similar to this? at DVinfo.net

Kell Smith · December 13th, 2013, 10:32 PM

This is a nicely done piece about a child who was a victim in Sandy Hook. I have a client who wants a video with a similar feel to tell her story for a cause she is fundraising for. It should be similar in terms of number of pictures, added graphics, length and so on. I believe the pics will be already scanned, not completely sure.
What I have at present are several older short interviews with her and her friends and family, and some footage of her event and a speech she gave, and will probably use excerpts from those with pictures over them.
We may need to redo some shooting, and she wants to interview two other friends.
Extra information - I have moved from the area, but might either 1)fly out and shoot for her, or 2) she may have her friends do the shooting and send me the footage. That is probably the way she will go.

EIther way, Let's say she sends me footage to review I'll throw out a number - three hours of footage.

With all that information, and not counting travel expenses and time, what would you estimate in terms of time/bidding hours for this project if it were yours?

Hers is the Sandy Hook piece (be forewarned - grab a Kleenex):

Tim Polster · December 14th, 2013, 09:10 AM

Kell,

You are going to have to answer this one yourself. Only you know how quickly you edit and how much your time is worth.

If you can find out the client's budget range that might help decide if you want to proceed or not. A lot of this type of work is how far you want to go on the detail side. You could just slap some photos up with simple keyframe moves or you can make a bunch of custom this and custom that.

Sadly. often the theme is "I want that but only want to pay this..." You need to know what your time and work are worth. If you do not know for sure, then just pick an hourly rate or a fixed bid, work the job and see if it was worth it. If not then adjust.

It is Your Business, forget what others tell you charge because you are doing the work, not them.

Kell Smith · December 14th, 2013, 07:47 PM

Thank you,
Yeah, I understand that, i was just curious what others would look at in terms of time if it were theirs so i could compare.
I do want something more polished than not, and it will involve a combination of video, pictures, and graphics - as well as storyboarding and planning. So figure on the high end of time.
As for the client, she did not answer specifically about budget, I know she has significant resources to work with if necessary, and her answer was 'whatever it takes to make it right.' So while I can't bid her up into the sky, she does have the abiility to pay for work that she deems valuable.
I have a nasty little habit of underestimating my time, so that's why i was curious how others would bid this. Really what I'm wondering is how long most people think they would take to do this. How many hours of graphics, editing, keyframing, planning and such it would break down to.

Warren Kawamoto · December 15th, 2013, 12:02 PM

Off the top of my head, I would say at least $2000, maybe $3000.

Before you start this project, ask again for a ballpark figure. Is the budget a hundred? Or several thousands? You need to establish some kind of baseline. As I mentioned in another thread, always find out a ballpark figure before you quote anything. I once got contacted to do a project, and I was thinking of quoting them around $2000-$3000. But during discussions, I found out that their ballpark budget was $11,000! In contrast, it could have also gone the other way, you're thinking of quoting $2000 but they're thinking more like $200....ALWAYS get some kind of range of what their budget is before quoting anything!

Kell Smith · December 15th, 2013, 11:47 PM

Thank you Warren,
Looking at the project, what would the breakdown of hours be for you in graphics, editing, storyboarding etc? Guessing?

Kell Smith · December 17th, 2013, 08:24 AM

Bump...Just checking back.

Mike Watson · December 23rd, 2013, 02:54 AM

First, I agree with what everybody else said.

I agree that I'd be in the $2k-3k ballpark.

I would probably not take on a project like this if she were going to hire somebody locally to shoot and then hand off the footage to me. In my experience, that never means they're going to hire a professional, it always means they're going to ask their brother-in-law who is "good with cameras" to use his iPhone. Then, when you edit that into a finished piece and it looks like crap, it's your fault.

December 13th, 2013, 10:32 PM	#1
Kell Smith Major Player Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: USA Posts: 436	What would you bid for a project similar to this? This is a nicely done piece about a child who was a victim in Sandy Hook. I have a client who wants a video with a similar feel to tell her story for a cause she is fundraising for. It should be similar in terms of number of pictures, added graphics, length and so on. I believe the pics will be already scanned, not completely sure. What I have at present are several older short interviews with her and her friends and family, and some footage of her event and a speech she gave, and will probably use excerpts from those with pictures over them. We may need to redo some shooting, and she wants to interview two other friends. Extra information - I have moved from the area, but might either 1)fly out and shoot for her, or 2) she may have her friends do the shooting and send me the footage. That is probably the way she will go. EIther way, Let's say she sends me footage to review I'll throw out a number - three hours of footage. With all that information, and not counting travel expenses and time, what would you estimate in terms of time/bidding hours for this project if it were yours? Hers is the Sandy Hook piece (be forewarned - grab a Kleenex): Sandy Hook: "Evil did not win." - YouTube

December 14th, 2013, 09:10 AM	#2
Tim Polster Inner Circle Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Arlington, TX Posts: 2,231	Re: What would you bid for a project similar to this? Kell, You are going to have to answer this one yourself. Only you know how quickly you edit and how much your time is worth. If you can find out the client's budget range that might help decide if you want to proceed or not. A lot of this type of work is how far you want to go on the detail side. You could just slap some photos up with simple keyframe moves or you can make a bunch of custom this and custom that. Sadly. often the theme is "I want that but only want to pay this..." You need to know what your time and work are worth. If you do not know for sure, then just pick an hourly rate or a fixed bid, work the job and see if it was worth it. If not then adjust. It is Your Business, forget what others tell you charge because you are doing the work, not them.

December 14th, 2013, 07:47 PM	#3
Kell Smith Major Player Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: USA Posts: 436	Re: What would you bid for a project similar to this? Thank you, Yeah, I understand that, i was just curious what others would look at in terms of time if it were theirs so i could compare. I do want something more polished than not, and it will involve a combination of video, pictures, and graphics - as well as storyboarding and planning. So figure on the high end of time. As for the client, she did not answer specifically about budget, I know she has significant resources to work with if necessary, and her answer was 'whatever it takes to make it right.' So while I can't bid her up into the sky, she does have the abiility to pay for work that she deems valuable. I have a nasty little habit of underestimating my time, so that's why i was curious how others would bid this. Really what I'm wondering is how long most people think they would take to do this. How many hours of graphics, editing, keyframing, planning and such it would break down to. Last edited by Kell Smith; December 14th, 2013 at 10:12 PM.

December 15th, 2013, 12:02 PM	#4
Warren Kawamoto Trustee Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Honolulu, HI Posts: 1,435	Re: What would you bid for a project similar to this? Off the top of my head, I would say at least $2000, maybe $3000. Before you start this project, ask again for a ballpark figure. Is the budget a hundred? Or several thousands? You need to establish some kind of baseline. As I mentioned in another thread, always find out a ballpark figure before you quote anything. I once got contacted to do a project, and I was thinking of quoting them around $2000-$3000. But during discussions, I found out that their ballpark budget was $11,000! In contrast, it could have also gone the other way, you're thinking of quoting $2000 but they're thinking more like $200....ALWAYS get some kind of range of what their budget is before quoting anything!

December 15th, 2013, 11:47 PM	#5
Kell Smith Major Player Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: USA Posts: 436	Re: What would you bid for a project similar to this? Thank you Warren, Looking at the project, what would the breakdown of hours be for you in graphics, editing, storyboarding etc? Guessing?

December 17th, 2013, 08:24 AM	#6
Kell Smith Major Player Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: USA Posts: 436	Re: What would you bid for a project similar to this? Bump...Just checking back.

December 23rd, 2013, 02:54 AM	#7
Mike Watson Trustee Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: San Diego, CA Posts: 1,082	Re: What would you bid for a project similar to this? First, I agree with what everybody else said. I agree that I'd be in the $2k-3k ballpark. I would probably not take on a project like this if she were going to hire somebody locally to shoot and then hand off the footage to me. In my experience, that never means they're going to hire a professional, it always means they're going to ask their brother-in-law who is "good with cameras" to use his iPhone. Then, when you edit that into a finished piece and it looks like crap, it's your fault.