Video production: TV commercials, music videos, corporate video

What we do NOT do

Want people who make their living from weddings and corporate parties to shoot your video? Then you've come to the wrong place.

Our specialty is TOP-level work with professionals of their craft. Our competitors' task is to survive in an aggressive environment; ours is to be at the top of the food chain, thanks to experience gained over years of work in film and advertising. It is more profitable to assemble an "expensive" film crew and save money on the right organization of the process than to wreck the shoot through the incompetence of "cheap" employees. We have our own strategy that we use to achieve maximum results within a given budget.

How a video is born

• Stage 1. Getting acquainted

The production part of our team does not sit idle waiting for shoots but works on top-tier platforms in projects of federal channels and well-known advertising agencies, gaining experience instead of warming a chair waiting for a niche project. Every project is individual, and we select suitable, proven specialists for the specific theme.

A film crew can be more than 50 people, so at the stage of creating the idea and brainstorming, only the creative unit is needed. You get a clear understanding of the investment range for your project even before signing the contract. Our goal at this stage is to offer the most rational combination of price and quality for your request.

• Stage 2. The idea

Wonderful! We have a gorgeous idea, and our eyes are already burning to make it real. To begin, we calculate a preliminary estimate within the chosen budget and write the director's script.

How does a director's script differ from a synopsis (a brief description of the idea) of the video? First of all, by its detailed description of every second of the future video. To calculate a detailed cost estimate, we must understand who and what will be in the frame throughout the video. At this stage the main production units are activated: camera, art, props, lighting, sound, actors, makeup, costumes, administration — partially engaged, etc.

From each unit we receive a calculation of its internal estimate, which are then summed up — and, excluding a few more expense lines, the total budget is formed. There is also the post-production period, which includes editing, computer graphics and other possible investments to remember when drawing up the budget.

• Stage 3. Preparation

If for someone shooting a video means grabbing a camera and going, for us the most important stage is preparation. A failed preparation is almost impossible to rescue during the shooting period. Either it is a harsh loss of quality, or an extra shooting shift — and that can be plus 10, 20, 30 or even more percent of the estimate. Conversely, properly organized and competently conducted preparation reduces risks during the shoot to a minimum. It is at this moment that we start attaching the units, signing contracts and distributing finances.

• Stage 3.1 Location scouting

It is important to understand that while the art units are working, together with professional location managers we select the shooting spots. The unit heads must visit the intended shooting locations to rule out any surprises.

• Stage 3.2 Actor casting

You can "burn" more than one day searching for the right type. The main task is to see the actors live and let them "try on" the images of our script's characters. Lucky is the casting director whose project has only two or three main characters — but what if we are shooting a blockbuster? And then there are actors for group and crowd scenes. Or do you think they are all picked up at the metro? There must not be a single stranger on the set.

• Stage 4. The shooting process.

This stage can take from one 12-hour shift to several months or more. Naturally, depending on complexity and the required running time. The average quality output per shift is 15 seconds to 2 minutes. "My video is exactly 2 minutes, great, we'll fit into one shift," you might say — but there are nuances! For example, our locations are in different parts of the city (transfer — an hour, settling in — at least an hour, and so on for every location).

Or we need only the setting sun, or we need to break a set decoration in the frame, rebuild it and break it again — one scene can be shot for a whole day, and it doesn't depend on the quality of the workers. Therefore, by the start of filming we have a precise schedule by which every participant in the shooting process moves. It is in video production that the saying "time is money" is most vividly embodied — here it literally hangs in the air.

• Stage 5. Post-production

After the shoot, the volume of material shot on professional high-resolution equipment easily exceeds several terabytes (perhaps progress will overtake this article, but at the time of writing, this is exactly the case). All the material is handed to the editing director, and the process of cutting it together begins, following the storyboards made during preparation. Then computer graphics, 3D/2D animation, infographics, subtitles, voice-over and other additional options approved at stage 2 can be applied.

• Stage 6. Project launch.

Any work done professionally, with love and desire, deserves its viewer. Just as a video shot without proper preparation will not bring the desired result, a published recording will not deliver without a competently developed advertising strategy. This is handled by OLiT's advertising specialists, and our department provides quality material for promotion. This way, quality and a narrowly specialized approach are preserved in every direction

Cost of video production and other work

Client reviews