TV Show Production Costs

bmxbud4130

bmxbud4130

Active member
Does anybody have an idea as to how much it costs to produce a show on a regional network?

Something with...
A very specific audience (i.e. think sports, hunting, or automotive shows)
2 cameras on location
Everything from pre-production to post.
Motion graphics open and titles

Any idea what that might cost per episode? Per season? Any ballpark figures at all?

I'm tryin' to think of a good example, and all I can think of is something like Hot Rod TV that used to be on TNN/Spike a couple years back. It wouldn't be quite as high profile as that, but that might give you an idea for the kind of format.
 
$20k to $50k per episode. Too many variables to narrow it down from there with what you have posted. Show length? Talent pay? How many locations? Local or travel with full hotels, food, etc.? Video Format? Union or non-union crew and talent? How elaborate is the graphics package? Music/theme? I could go on and on but you get the point. You need to know EVERYTHING about a show to be able to budget it.

Dan
 
The show would fill a 30 minute slot.
The only talent pay would probably be for the VO.
Some travel with hotels and food involved, but could probably shoot multiple episodes on one trip.
Shot on HD (probably EX3)
Non-union.
Graphics... not sure

I understand there are a lot of variables, and there are a lot of details I'm not sure of yet either. But I'm just trying to round up some ballpark figures. Thanks for your response.
 
Grinner and I agree on the costs but it could be done for less or definitely for a lot more. You have to realize that episodic tv is not really budgeted on single episodes, the only way to make any profit is to plan, plan, plan and amortize your costs over a season order.

When you go to any location to shoot anything, you have to ask, are there clips we can shoot here that would work for other episodes? B-roll we could get on the way to or from the main location? You also make seasonal or multi-show deals with your crew and talent, which can reduce costs. Being a good producer is figuring out how to stretch the most from each dollar spent and make sure that you don't over spend because of poor planning or execution. If you don't make a profit, what is the point of producing a show? It's a business first and and an artistic endeavor second.

Dan
 
I was reading an article on a kids show my daughter watches called Lazy Town and that show cost around $800 grand per episode with annual budget of $15 million. It is produced in Iceland.

"Bing bang" goes on in Iceland's "Lazy Town" - Entertainment News ...
On a quiet Sunday in the "Lazy Town" warehouse, the man many of the world's ... most expensive children's shows to produce at around $1 million per episode. ...
english.sina.com/entertainment/p/2008/1119/199319.html - 33k - Cached - Similar pages
 
I've been wondering 'bout this also. Just saw a talking heads group discussing the money the network's gonna save having Leno in a time slot instead of a drama series. Figures they mentioned were 2 Mil for Leno vs 10 to 15 Mil for a drama series like L&O . . . Is this credible?
 
pixelated said:
I've been wondering 'bout this also. Just saw a talking heads group discussing the money the network's gonna save having Leno in a time slot instead of a drama series. Figures they mentioned were 2 Mil for Leno vs 10 to 15 Mil for a drama series like L&O . . . Is this credible?
Click to expand...

The numbers I have heard in the media is that the Leno move will save NBCUni a minimum of 100 million per season over scripted shows. Sounds feasible, most scripted shows are anywhere from 1-5 million dollars per episode to produce and they show them five nights a week.

Smart move from a business standpoint, a nightmare from an entertainment standpoint. A friend of mine is an editor on a network reality show and has worked in network reality for about five years. He says that the future of television is talk shows and reality. I agree, sadly, scripted drama and comedy are going away, at least in the traditional sense of the word, just as the big four networks are slowly dying as well.

Dan
 
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Scripted dramas go up in cost, mainly due to above the line talent. 1 hour dramas are $3-#5 million each when they are mature. A lot of revenue is made in syndication on those shows compared to reality and talk shows, but depending on whether the network owns that show or not, syndication may mean nothing to them.

Michael
 
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