Video Production Time: How Long Does it Take and Can AI Help

What is the general timeline for producing videos?

Video production can be broadly divided into five main phases: strategy and preparation, creative development, pre-production, production, and post-production.

Each phase plays a crucial role in ensuring a smooth and efficient workflow, and the time investment required for each phase can vary depending on the complexity and scope of the project.

1. Strategy and preparation (up to 1 week)

Okay, let's kick things off with the strategy and prep work for your video project. This initial phase is all about getting everyone on the same page and making sure we have a solid plan before diving into the creative stuff.

First up, you have to set up an intake meeting where you can lay out your vision, goals, and target audience for the video. Don't hold back - the more details, the better!

Next, dig deeper into the logistics. Are we shooting on location or in a studio? Going for a narrative style or interview-based? Need any actors, voice talent, or other specialists? Hashing out these details now saves a ton of headaches later on. This phase can take up to a week, but it's time well spent to ensure everyone’s rowing in the same direction.

2. Creative development (up to 1 week)

Now for the fun part - bringing that creative vision to life! This is where you flex your imaginative muscles and come up with a killer concept to make your video pop. Nailing the creative approach can make or break the whole shebang.

Depending on the project, you might present a few different creative directions to explore. Maybe you’ll pitch a training video with a reality TV show vibe or an interview series with a gritty, documentary-esque feel. The possibilities are endless!

Once you land on 'the one,' you’ll spend some quality time fleshing it out into a full-blown concept. For something really out there, this stage could take a week or more.

3. Pre-production (1 - 2 weeks)

With the creative concept locked and loaded, you enter the pre-production phase—aka getting all your ducks in a row before shooting starts. This multi-step process will keep you busy for a week or two.

First up, scriptwriting. Even for interview-based projects, having a solid script ensures you capture all the key messaging. And if there are legal hoops to jump through, that'll add some extra days to the process.

Next, you'll start putting together all the visual elements. Do you have any slick graphics or motion graphics in mind? Your design team will mock up style frames to set the visual tone. Hiring actors or on-air talent? You'll spend some time auditioning to find the perfect fit.

Then it's location scouting if you’re filming on-site. Permits, scheduling, creating shot lists—you'll handle all those nitty-gritty logistics to ensure everything runs like a well-oiled machine when the cameras start rolling.

A week or two is just a general idea, it can take a lot more than that. With all those pre-pro pieces in place, we're ready for production.

4. Production (1 day - 1 week)

We've made it to the production phase, where all that planning and prep finally pays off. Depending on the scope of your video, this could be a single day in the studio or a multi-day/multi-location shoot.

For a simple interview or narration video, you may just need a day to capture all the footage. But if you're going big with a complex narrative or hitting multiple shoot locations, budgeting a full week is wise in this phase. This is the least you need to have plenty of wiggle room to get all the coverage we need without feeling rushed.

No matter how many days you've scheduled, you'll have to make sure to run a tight ship once those cameras start rolling.

You, the client, will ideally be present for filming to ensure you're nailing the vision. Your crew will be locked in, from the director calling the shots to the audio crew capturing pristine sound. And, of course, any on-camera talent will need to be performance-ready.

With a solid production plan and everyone working in sync, you'll be cranking out quality footage—but yes, it takes time. But as they say, that's a wrap...for now! The next hurdle, which takes the most time, is post-production.

5. Post-production (2 - 3 weeks)

This is where the videography magic truly happens! In the post-production phase, you'll take all that raw footage and meticulously create your polished final video.

You’ll start by processing and organizing all the clips and media assets from the shoot. Depending on how much footage you capture and the resolution quality, this processing stage could take several days.

Then, the real task begins with editing! An editor will carefully review every clip to construct the narrative flow and timing. They'll weave in graphics, B-roll shots, animations—whatever widgets are needed to improve the storytelling.

But we're just getting warmed up. The edit will go through multiple revision rounds as you collaboratively fine-tune details like pacing, visuals, messaging, etc. Until it's perfect, you'll be swapping notes and tweaking per your feedback.

For projects requiring voice-over narration, you'll have to handle all the VO casting, recording, and audio syncing during this phase too.

Once the picture lock is achieved, you'll begin the glamor shots: color grading to enhance the visuals with some cinematic pop, plus stylistic sound design and audio mixing. By this stage, you'll have spent 2-3 weeks maximizing every aspect to create an ultra-engaging final product.

So here’s what a general video production timeline will look like:

The total time required to produce a video can range from approximately 5 weeks to 8 weeks.

Note:These are general estimates, and the actual timeline can vary depending on the complexity of the project, the number of revisions required, and any unforeseen challenges that may arise during the production process. It can take much longer.

Recommended read: Different ways to use AI to generate videos

Why does making videos take time?

As we've covered, video production is a multi-faceted process involving many complex steps and decision points. It's no wonder it feels like such a time-consuming process! Even for a relatively simple video, there's a staggering amount of work that goes on behind the scenes.

The traditional method of DIY video creation highlights just how labor-intensive it can be. First, you have to purchase a video editing tool and spend time learning how to use it. That's already a decent investment of time and effort before you've even started the actual video work!

From there, the to-do list just keeps growing. You have to write a script or storyboard to map out the video narrative. Gather or create visuals like images, graphics, B-roll footage. Figure out if you need animated text overlays or motion graphics. Pick out music and sound effects for the audio elements.

Then, you'll need to piece it all together in your editing software—including the visuals, laying down the audio tracks, adding transitions and special effects where needed. Chances are you'll run into some technical snags or creative roadblocks along the way too.

Even once your masterpiece is "done," you still need to complete the final steps for different video channels. You may need to resize or reformat the video for online platforms, social media, email marketing, and so on.

Simply put, there are a mind-boggling number of creative and technical considerations involved. The biggest reasons videos take time are the sheer amount of decision-making required and the potential for endless revisions and tweaks.

Recommended read: How to make high quality videos on a budget