production business plans

Question:

Anyway, lately I've been trying to figure out a way to move away from Los Angeles (likely up to Northern California), while still nurturing my interest in film and video production. It struck me that I might be able to do this by forming a production company that serves a dual purpose: to produce videos for clients (advertisers, corporations, weddings??), and to facilitate the production of my own low-budget DV movies. So, I have a bunch of questions about this possibility, not necessarily in order of importance.

1. What sort of equipment should I look into acquiring? In order to be viable, can I get by with prosumer equipment (I'm picturing the XL1, a DV deck, and a high-end PC equipped with Firewire, Premiere, and AfterEffects, among other things)? I'm also assuming that 3D would be very important in this line of work; can anyone recommend software that would produce professional results out of the box, while still leaving plenty of room to hone my 3D skills?

2. What sort of clients would I want to attract in order to actually turn a profit? What is the usual process of procuring these clients? And what are some of the difficulties a new company may run across in attempting to do so?

3. What are some of the legal requirements of starting my own production company? I realize I can find information elsewhere on starting a small business, but I'm curious to hear any advice related specifically to video production.

4. If anyone else here has done something similar, would you say it was worth it? Did it (eventually) afford you the opportunity to pursue your independent goals? Were you able to make it your full-time job?

Answer:
From my experience, succeeding (and I still am not) with a video production business requires at least two things: 1) business and marketing savvy/experience, and 2) serious investment capital.

Hal Landen of Video University recommends that you concentrate on the marketing *first*--otherwise, he says, if you invest your limited capital in equipment instead of marketing, you will have a hobby, not a business.

All that is true for people who start a video production business in a populated area. The two people I know of who tried to do it in a remote area (Montana, and the Outer Banks), failed or were failing.

I have heard of one photographer who succeeded in making a business of scenery photography in a scenic area. But I would guess this is pretty rare. I started my business with a very similar idea to yours--I liked taping performers and speakers of various kinds, so I thought I'd charge a nominal fee for demo tapes and thus support my hobby. At some point I decided to turn it into a "real business". Not. The level of performers I was able to connect with could afford just about $300 for a demo tape, otherwise they borrowed their friend's camcorder. I did a couple $5,000 demos for professional speakers.

Then I moved into the corporate market, but the competition in Atlanta is fierce and I am very underfunded. At the point the economic slowdown hit, I was building a relatively successful freelance income plus I was starting to take in some corporate jobs, and it looked like after 4 years I was actually starting to make it. Then the bottom dropped out and now I'm working a full-time job. I'm still in business technically, but I'm concentrating on getting my technical ducks in a row and on my marketing materials. I'm also working on a full-length documentary and planning several short ones. It's a lot more fun to me to be making documentaries, than to be marketing.

One good thing came out of it. You fine-tune your skills much better by being forced to produce quality work in the marketplace, than you do as a weekend warrior. I can shoot and edit some pretty fair video. I have also grudgingly, slowly, learned something about business and marketing to where I was actually starting to like it. But my heart's really on the creative side.

So, as one sensitive type to another, I hope this helps. I can't tell you what to do, the perfect business niche may be awaiting you and I'd hate to be the one that kept you from it, but from my experience--and I'll probably make it eventually, but what a frustrating ride!--I'd say find another way to make money and keep video as a serious avocation. I won't demean it by using the phrase "serious hobby", I mean, support your artwork by some other means.

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