X-Doug_Graham
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Nov 24, 2003, 9:09 AM
Post #3 of 5
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: I am taking a television production class and have an assignment to create mt own videography company. Any help and information is welcome. Advice on equipment and licensing information is especially wanted.
1. Decide what kind of videography your company is going to do. Commercials? Special effects? Corporate? Training? Legal video? Weddings and events? Will you offer shooting services only, or post production as well? Will you have a shooting studio, or do everything on location? If you do post production, will you offer fancy graphics and animation design?
2. Visit a videography company in your area that does that kind of work. Interview them. (Most major cities will have a number of video production companies, large and small. There will almost certainly be at least a cable station with a small production department. Your Yellow Pages is a good place to start.)
3. Write up a simple business plan. What equipment do you need, will you buy or lease it, how many employees (could be just you)? How will you pay the startup costs? Cash, bank loan, SBA, relatives and friends, stock offering? What market will you go after, and what will be your pricing structure? (You have to be able to pay off your loans, maintain or replace your gear, cover your overhead expenses, and pay yourself and your employees a salary, and still have a profit left over to grow the business). Who is your competition? How will you market your services?
Licensing: There are no national requirements. Your locality may require a business license. Check with your city or county government offices. You may need to obtain film permits to shoot video in public areas in your locality. Check with your state film commission. You may need proof of liability insurance to shoot in many places.
Depending on the time your teacher has given you for the project, this could be a fairly quick, broad overview, or a detailed exercise with a lot of research and thought and planning. It's pretty obvious to me that your teacher wants to drive home the point that videography is a lot more than just grabbing a camcorder and shooting things. It could be a lot of fun...and also serve as the start of a plan you'll use later to actually start your own business.
Regards,
Doug Graham
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