edumovies
edumovies

Process

Six stages, and each one is signed off

Every stage is built on the one approved before it. That is not bureaucracy: it is the arrangement in which you always know what you have agreed to, and in which nobody can reach the end still imagining a different film.

  1. Stage 01

    Brief

    We go through what the product does, who the piece is for, what they already know and what they should do at the end. Anything you already have - screens, decks, help pages, an existing script - is read at this point rather than later.

    What we need from you
    Facts about the product, the audience, and any material we may use.
    What closes the stage
    A written quotation: what the piece covers, how it will be built, what is included at each stage and what it costs.

  2. Stage 02

    Script

    The narration and on-screen text are written from the brief, scene by scene, with nothing in them that you have not told us or approved. Claims about the product are yours to confirm: we do not write a benefit we cannot source.

    What we need from you
    Corrections of fact, and a decision on the voice the piece should speak in.
    What closes the stage
    Your written approval of the script. Everything after this is built on these words.

  3. Stage 03

    Storyboard

    Each scene is drawn as a still frame with its narration line underneath, and the way it will be built is settled here: rebuilt as vector, animated from what you send, or illustrated. This is the cheapest place to change your mind, and the last easy one.

    What we need from you
    A look through the frames, and a decision on anything shown as an alternative.
    What closes the stage
    Your written approval of the storyboard, including how each scene is to be built.

  4. Stage 04

    Animation

    The approved frames are built and timed: movement, transitions, on-screen text, and the audio agreed for the piece. If narration is recorded by a voice artist, the session happens against the approved script, which is why the script is locked first.

    What we need from you
    Nothing, unless we come back with a question. Questions are asked rather than guessed at.
    What closes the stage
    A first cut for review, delivered as a link you can share with the people who have to see it.

  5. Stage 05

    Review

    You watch the cut and send notes. Notes about timing, wording on screen, colour and pace are what this stage is for. Notes that change the script belong to stage 02 and are treated as such: we say so, quote for it, and change nothing until you agree.

    What we need from you
    One consolidated set of notes, gathered from everybody who gets an opinion.
    What closes the stage
    Your written approval of the cut.

  6. Stage 06

    Export

    The approved cut is exported in the formats and frame sizes agreed: the master, any cut-downs, a captioned or silent version, subtitle files where they are part of the order. Project files and artwork are handed over if the quotation says so.

    What we need from you
    Where to send it, and who should receive it.
    What closes the stage
    Delivery by email or a download link, and the invoice settled as the order confirmation sets out.

Revisions

Changes inside a stage, and changes to a stage already closed

These are two different things and we are careful never to confuse them, because one is included and the other is new work.

While the stage is still open

Part of the stage

Rewording a line, reordering two scenes, changing a colour before the storyboard is approved: this is what the stage is for, and how many rounds of it are included is set out in the quotation. Nothing is re-quoted and nothing is argued about.

After the storyboard is approved

The frames come back

Changing the script once frames have been drawn to it means redrawing the frames it touches, and sometimes the ones either side, because a scene has to lead into the next one. We say which frames are affected, quote for them, and change nothing until you have agreed.

After animation has started

Scenes are rebuilt

A scene that is already built, timed and cut to narration cannot be edited like a document: changing the words changes the timing, the timing changes the movement, and if a voice artist has recorded it, the line has to be recorded again. This is the expensive end, and it is expensive for reasons we can show you rather than because we mind being asked.

Nothing is changed before you have seen what it costs

When a note would reopen a stage that has already been approved, we say so as soon as we have read it, explain what is affected and quote for it. Work on the change starts only after you accept that quotation. The number of rounds of change included at each stage is set out in your quotation rather than promised in general here, because a piece with many short scenes and a piece with a few long ones do not need the same thing.

Approvals

Why everything is in writing

An approval is an email saying yes to a specific thing - this script, these frames, this cut. It takes a moment to give and it settles what was agreed for good. We keep them, and we will show you any of them at any point.

It matters most when a project has several people in it. One consolidated set of notes per stage, from the people whose opinion counts, is what keeps a piece from being adjusted for weeks after everyone has stopped enjoying it.

Facts

Where the words come from

Everything the piece says about your product comes from you. We write it, shape it and cut it down, but we do not invent a benefit, a figure or a comparison, and we will query one that cannot be supported - that is what approving a script is for.

This is less about caution than about the piece working. A claim that cannot be backed up is exactly the claim an audience stops at, and it is the one that causes trouble later.

Stage 01

It starts with a brief

Tell us what the product does, who the video is for and what you have to work with. The first stage closes with a written quotation.

Plan your explainer video