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What would you charge for this work?
I took a gig for less than I believe the value is worth but what I desired to happen has happened…being offered more full time, steady work. I need to give a solid number to them for what I want going forward and to be comparative, I would LOVE to know what you would have charged for this:
-3 months, traveling shooting and editing 30 second-1 minute clips for facebook, instagram and creating 5 minute videos for youtube all adding short text animations and captions.
-Using mostly your own cameras, computer and equipment, but also some of theirs
-Traveling has been on and off with a few days at home here and there and when on the road it’s more part time hours but pretty much on call with plans changing a lotIf you would just let me know a ball park of what you would charge or range of what you think this kind of work is worth, I would greatly appreciate it!
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3 Replies
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20 g’s plus expenses. It’s irrelevant.
You’re going to get numbers of all kinds asking a question like this. They don’t matter. What matters is how YOU generate YOUR day rate and hourly rates. There’s extensive info here in this forum on how to do that, if you dig a little.
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Hi Mandy,
Did you already do this gig and are now wanting to compare rates or are you still cost estimating? I have been in that situation many times where I had to throw out a figure for their estimating purposes and then live with it if they chose me. The first thing I would want to know is how many days are in a work week, because if there are no breaks or easy travel days, it is possible for you to be swamped 90 days in a row, so on average, would it be X amount of killer days, then perhaps X amount of travel/easy days, and then X amount of hours editing in your hotel room? Once I could estimate that I would put a price on it, with an aggravation factor and knowing that some days may be 14 hours and other days I may have time to go see the tourist sights. Often in hotels, it’s hard to upload video files so you may need to find a 24 hour Kinkos, etc., at 2AM, so plan for the hardest case scenario.
It sounds like this is content for their SEO and there are a lot of young kids (code for cheap) who can do an adequate job of this, don’t mind staying up all night editing in their hotel room, being abused. I often have to find crew for clients around the country and I would say, based on your description, that someone in their twenties who can decently shoot and edit, would find a $2000 a week guarantee for 12 weeks in a row a windfall. A real pro would want much more but today’s video market has low rates. You also must compare this to how much you would make if you stayed home and did your normal fare with your regular clients. Also, if you go away for three months some of your regular clients will find a new Best Filmmaker Forever and you end up losing them. This happens to us DPs who get on a TV show for a few months, we lose our steady clients to competitors. You could too.
As has been discussed on this forum, it also depends on who the client is and if they have a decent budget, in which case you can charge more. I once negotiated a two week trip for a travel video in Finland in the Arctic Circle and had quoted a flat rate, meaning no overtime. When I got there I learned that they had 23 hours of daylight at that time of year and I was being run into the ground, so after a few days I said “We have to renegotiate…” So it’s best to lay down a memorandum of what is expected of each party, especially up front money for travel costs.
But don’t underestimate how slow, if not impossible, it is to upload video from a hotel room. They don’t have big pipelines for that. You should bring an ethernet cable and ask at the front desk if they have a “business center” where you can plug into their ethernet jack. Or find a Kinkos. Even Starbucks are slow depending on how many wifi users are there. And don’t commit to a per diem for your meals. Say you’ll “eat reasonably” because you will need room service and may be in expensive cities.
Good luck
Ned Miller
Chicago Videographer
http://www.nedmiller.com -
Thanks for your perspective!
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