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Den Nic

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Hey guys,

Just wondering how different people charge for Post Production services? (And Also so Musical Composing services) (At home people, projects studios, studios, etc.)

Anybody do a black$/min fee? A general estimated based on the amount of time you estimate it will take? Hourly work? Think it is better to separate the music and audio component on the invoice?

Any input would be appreciated :) Thanks Guys

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Super-pro music composition rate is around $1100/minute of music. I wish I could get that.

I recently did production sound, post sound, and music composition for a short film. It was a package deal, but I made sure to pad it for the inevitable. Each department was a different line item on one invoice.

YMMV.

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I have a day rate for myself, and one that also includes my studio. I look at the project and its TRT and specs, weigh my previous experience with the particular director and editor, guess the number of days... and then fudge up or down depending on how much I want the gig.

But it's always with the caveat that changing the specs or delaying approvals may affect the cost. And breaking pix lock after I get the material definitely will cost them.

If I don't have experience with the director or editor, I made an educated guess, tell them a range, and say I'll be able to refine it after I see an edit and OMF of at least one reel or episode. The big variables I'm looking at there are the quality of the production recording; how sensible the edit layout is (boy, does that vary depending on the editor); and in cases where they've laid in music of sfx, how much fixing I'll have to do to make those tracks work.

As you get more experienced, you'll get more accurate with your time estimates. But the principle works even on your first jobs.

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I have a day rate for myself, and one that also includes my studio. I look at the project and its TRT and specs, weigh my previous experience with the particular director and editor, guess the number of days... and then fudge up or down depending on how much I want the gig.

But it's always with the caveat that changing the specs or delaying approvals may affect the cost. And breaking pix lock after I get the material definitely will cost them.

If I don't have experience with the director or editor, I made an educated guess, tell them a range, and say I'll be able to refine it after I see an edit and OMF of at least one reel or episode. The big variables I'm looking at there are the quality of the production recording; how sensible the edit layout is (boy, does that vary depending on the editor); and in cases where they've laid in music of sfx, how much fixing I'll have to do to make those tracks work.

As you get more experienced, you'll get more accurate with your time estimates. But the principle works even on your first jobs.

+1. Show me a cut, then we can talk about time and budget.

phil p

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Just wondering how different people charge for Post Production services? (And Also so Musical Composing services) (At home people, projects studios, studios, etc.)

I have seen quite a few conversations about this (sometimes contentious) over on the Gear Slutz Forum's Post section. I think it's market-driven, budget-driven, and client-driven. A major studio in LA will obviously get a far different rate than a regional ad agency in a medium-market town. One tactic is to study your local market, find out what the rates are, and be as competitive as you can without slicing your throat. (I think the latter is the tough part.)

I think sound mixing and music composing are different businesses, but that's just me. I like how Hans Zimmer works, where he does 10 major films a year and has a half-dozen composers working with him to farm out writing and arranging all the music! And yet... it all still pretty much sounds like Hans Zimmer music.

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