help me write a budget and quote

W

watson

Well-known member
okay this isn’t a "how much should i charge to do this" because i know what I’m willing to do it for and i know what the budget is. However i need to write up a budget and proposal in order to get the job. I was wondering what type of things you included. The video is a 7min promotional video to try and attractive new students to a college program.

For the budget i have it broken down into pre production, production and post. Then in each section i break it down as much as I can. For example I break post down into editing, DVD encoding, music budget, and voice over talent/recording session.

For the proposal I included an overview, goals, target audiences, production schedule, and a part with what the final produce includes.

So I was wondering what other things I should include. Does anyone have a budget sheet or proposal they could share with me. This is my first real job. I’m a film student who is starting to do freelance work on the side to help pay my bills. I have a lot of experiences behind the camera but not a ton on the business side. Any input would be awesome. Thanks.

Andrew Watson

Ps – Once a price is agreed on, how do you usually go about setting up payments? I have hard people usually take a few payments throughout production. Such as one before shooting, one during editing and a final one when it is finished. Once again any input would be great. Thanks.
 
Re: help me write a budget and quote

Proposals can be all over the place in terms of detail, whats included, etc. Unless you are 100% sure you are going to get the job, you may not want to get too detailed. It ends up being a blueprint for a competitor or the client to do the job without you. Often the client wll have specific requirements as to what is included, especially government work at any level.

Any written proposal becomes part of your contract, so it should include caveats about scheduling, late payments, unavailability of key people, cost overruns, etc. It should also include a copy of the contract you are going to ask them to sign, and specifically mention it and give it an Exhibit/Addendum number. Don't forget to mention copyright ownership and possibly transfer to the client after all invoices are paid in full.

As far as payments, that is part of original negotitions. It should be included in your proposal. It is not something to "arrange later". It is the most important item in the deal.
 
Re: help me write a budget and quote

galt, thanks very much, your post was very helpful. Does anyone happen to have a copy of a contract or know where i can find one that i could take a look at for such things as doing weddings or short corporate videos?
 
Re: help me write a budget and quote

For the price... you can't beat this.
http://www.screenstyle.com/gorillapro.html

It is created by independent film makers. So easy to use too. Alot of little neat things to it. Like Actor contacts.. you can put a movie file of them in there for reference in the index etc... When I need to start budgeting shoots... definitely going to get a copy.
 
Re: help me write a budget and quote

well i guess i got it all worked out casue i got the job. thanks guys
 
watson said:
galt, thanks very much, your post was very helpful. Does anyone happen to have a copy of a contract or know where i can find one that i could take a look at for such things as doing weddings or short corporate videos?
Click to expand...


I would like to see this if anyone has one.
 
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