A commercial production budget typically breaks into five categories: pre-production (casting, locations, permits), production (crew, gear, talent fees), post-production (editing, color, VFX), music and sound licensing, and a contingency buffer for the unexpected. Unlike a personal project budget, a commercial budget usually starts with a number already set by the client. So the real skill isn’t about building the budget, but rather building the right idea inside it.
On certain levels, developing a production budget is the same regardless of the type of film, whether you’re diving into a personal project or developing branded content for a client. We’ve already tackled a few notes on developing a production budget on the personal side, but after speaking with producers Sarah Schutzki (Feral Creative) and Zanah Thirus (at the time a producer at a Chicago-based agency), we decided the commercial side deserved its own article.
While some technical strategies are the same (spreadsheets, information gathering, etc.) it turns out many of the soft skills are completely different, or at least more fragile. Which makes sense, because this project is not your baby. It’s someone else’s. Which brings with it a whole list of complications and strategies.
And, to be honest, sometimes it’s a thankless job.
“I think producers get a lot of flak for simply doing their job,” Zanah told us. “We’re not magic makers, although we may make things look like magic. We have to keep everything afloat and our hands are tied more than they’re loose.”
If the idea of keeping a project afloat while your hands are tied sounds difficult, that’s because it is. But, as we learned from these two veteran producers, you can do things to set yourself up for success, to minimize hiccups and keep your client happy.
If you’re looking for a more process-oriented budgeting walkthrough, check out our first post. This time around we’re diving into the budgeting process from a commercial standpoint, which leans a bit more into the diplomatic side because, well, welcome to the ad world.
Is your idea too expensive?
As we mentioned in the first post, all budgets start with the creative side because you need to define your parameters before you can start to budget a production. On the commercial side, though, it’s a bit more tricky. In most cases, you have a budget for the client already, so there’s a fine line between a great idea and an unproducable idea. It doesn’t matter how much your client will like the idea if you can’t afford it.
“Your creative team can have an exceptional idea for a Cannes Lion-winning spot, but if you don’t have the budget it doesn’t matter,” Zanah says. “We’re not going to get a $750,000 spot for $150,000. It just not possible. Before we present ideas to clients we need to figure out production first. I’m always pushing my team to not make promises we can’t deliver.”
Of course, there are plenty of internal discussions to be had, but you need to strike the balance between quality and reality. In the end, your client will thank you for presenting an idea that can actually be pulled off.
“Before we present ideas to clients we need to figure out production first. I’m always pushing my team to not make promises we can’t deliver.”
What’s non-negotiable?
We actually addressed this note on the personal side, but it’s definitely worth reiterating because clients (especially large brands) generally have a whole list of non-negotiables before production even begins and that’s something you need to be aware of.
“I need to understand what all of the deliverables are,” Sarah says. “The budget will change a lot if we’re delivering a 30-second spot or a five-minute short film. It drastically affects what we need to shoot, how much travel will be, and how many crew members we’ll need.”
But, beyond simple deliverables, there’s a whole side that the brand is worrying about as well. They have marketing goals for their content and numbers to hit as well, so before you begin to build out a budget, start by reaching out to your client and finding out what their non-negotiable items are — that way you can anticipate additional costs.
“It depends on the client, but there are usually things that are non-negotiable,” Zanah says. “They may have a deal with a sports team and they have to feature the logo no matter what the cost is. Even little things like ‘her shirt needs to be red’ could end up being a major cost down the road if we have to rotoscope a shirt to make it red instead of blue.”
As we mentioned in the first post, it’s also important to nail down your negotiables too, but for brand work it’s more important to know your non-negotiables because sometimes their demands are specific and just plain odd, at least from the outside looking in, which means it’s just that much more important to outline in your budget.
The core budget categories
Before you can talk soft skills, you need a skeleton to hang them on. Most commercial budgets break down into five categories:
- Pre-production. Casting, location scouting and permits, wardrobe and set design, and any prep days for the crew.
- Production. Crew day rates, camera and lighting packages, talent fees (and usage fees, if the talent is recognizable), and location costs for the shoot days themselves.
- Post-production. Editing, color grading, visual effects, and sound design and mix.
- Music and sound licensing. Often treated as an afterthought, but it shouldn’t be. We cover more of this later in the article.
- Contingency. A buffer for the unexpected, typically 10–15% of the total budget, depending on the complexity and risk profile of the shoot.
That last category is the one Sarah touched on without naming a number: “I’m very big on cushions,” she says. “It’s really important to give yourself some wiggle room.” A 10–15% cushion is the industry rule of thumb, which is enough to absorb a surprise without eating into quality elsewhere.
Where music fits in the budget
Music is one of the easiest line items to either underbudget or budget too late, and both mistakes cost you. Underbudget it, and you end up trying to clear a track that’s way outside what’s left in the budget once everyone else has been paid. Budget for it too late, and you risk falling in love with a temp track during the edit that was never actually clearable, forcing a scramble to find (or worse, sound-alike) a replacement right before delivery.
The fix is to treat music as a line item from the start, not an afterthought bolted on in post. That means knowing roughly what usage you’ll need (broadcast, social-only, paid media above a certain spend threshold) before you lock picture, because licensing cost scales with how and where the spot runs, not just which song you pick.
This is also where working with a rights-managed platform pays off, because you’re not negotiating blind. As Stephen Cozzarelli, Head of Production at Bryght Young Things, put it:
“Musicbed has an extensive library that feels curated — not just a pile of tracks. I appreciate that we can give them our budget, usage requirements, and general direction, and they’ll help narrow things down. There’s nothing worse than finding the perfect song only to discover it’s way outside your budget. Musicbed simplifies that process.”
That’s the practical version of “plan for the unplannable” as it applies to music specifically: give yourself a range, not a single dream track, until usage and rights are confirmed.
Present solutions, not problems.
As for building out the budget, the process is a bit more streamlined in the commercial world. According to Zanah, many agencies have templates built from years of doing projects and the client is already planning for costs on the distribution and marketing side — one less thing on your plate. But regardless, you will encounter problems. It’s the nature of the business.
But, here’s the trick: make the problems your problems. Not the client’s or your team’s.
“I’ve tried to avoid delivering difficult news,” Sarah says. “I do that by making sure I really understand what the creative is that we’re executing, understanding what the best-case and worst-case scenarios are for the project.”
Once you’ve defined your non-negotiable and negotiable budget items, you know how to solve problems before you even approach your client or team with them.
“I like to go to my team with solutions, not problems,” Zanah says. “If you have this concept and you have this idea, give me a script so I can build a range of costs before we present them to the client. It’s just a matter of process, I would say. Just make sure you’re not jumping the gun.”
By putting all of your ducks in a row, you can solve problems through a well-executed budget and present solutions to your client — better yet, solve the problem before they even knew about it.
Plan for the unplannable.
Most problems pop up because you didn’t see something coming. That’s the nature of problems. But, as a producer building out a budget, you can plan for the unknown by simply anticipating that it will always happen. Always.
“I’m very big on cushions,” Sarah says. “It’s really important to give yourself some wiggle room. Sure, sometimes it’s not possible. But, if you’re submitting a bid, get as many quotes as possible and confirm as many rates as possible. Then, once you have an accurate number, you can bump up some of your budgets just in case something goes up or down. I’d much rather have a surplus than a shortage. As long as it’s within reason, the client will get that money back in the end anyway.”
This strategy is budgeting 101 for any industry, but by “hiding” money in your budget you’re not only protecting yourself for unseen costs, you’re making it available in different areas of the budget when a different problem arises. Like Sarah said, in the end your client wins.
You can’t be everyone’s best friend.
Honestly, this section probably defines a producer’s job more than anything we’ve talked about to this point. When your duty is to keep a project afloat with your hands tied, sacrifices are going to be made. It’s just the way it is.
“If you’re not willing to be the ‘bad guy’ this is not the job for you,” Zanah says. “We have to have difficult conversations and bring things back to reality. Many times when I’m in a room full of creatives I’m the one to raise a flag and say, ‘Hey, we’re dealing with $400,000, not $4 million.’ So, you could be looked at as a buzzkill. You could be looked at as someone who bursts the bubble, but again it’s part of the job.”
This is the key part of being a producer and managing a production budget — and one of the key parts of filmmaking as a whole. Every crew member should be there to serve the project, but the producer carries that burden with them throughout the entire process.
Frequently asked questions
A commercial budget typically covers five categories: pre-production (casting, locations, permits), production (crew, gear, talent), post-production (editing, color, VFX), music and sound licensing, and a contingency buffer, usually 10–15% of the total.
A common industry range is 10–15% of the total budget, though the right number depends on how complex and unpredictable the shoot is. Producers often refer to this as a “cushion” as it protects against unforeseen costs without cutting into other categories.
As early as possible, ideally before the edit locks. Music budgeted late tends to either blow the remaining budget or force a rushed swap when a temp track can’t be cleared in time or falls outside what’s left to spend.
A commercial budget usually starts with a fixed number the client has already set, so the producer’s job shifts from “what can I afford” to “what can I deliver at a high enough quality inside a number I don’t control”, which brings in more client diplomacy and expectation-setting than a personal project typically requires.
Producers tend to think of themselves outside of the creative, but ultimately they’re the heartbeat of the creative. The driving force for making sure things happen. It’s up to you to build an accurate budget, look at the entire project, and make sure your project lives to see the light of day.
“I think producers are really the backbone of any project,” Sarah says. “ You can have a great idea, but if you don’t know how to execute it, it remains a great idea.”
This means making difficult, unpopular decisions. But, once you think about it, that’s filmmaking at its purest — someone completely dedicated to serving the final product and nothing else.
None of this makes the job easier, but it does make it more predictable. And predictability is what a client is actually paying for when they hire a producer they trust. Treating music as a planned line item instead of a last-minute scramble is one of the simplest ways to protect a budget that’s already tight everywhere else, which is exactly the kind of problem a rights-managed platform like Musicbed is built to take off your plate.
