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Hero video vs. brand film: what you get at $4,500 vs. $10,000
Buy a hero video if you need one clear piece that explains your company on your website. Buy a brand film if you need a bigger story that has to carry a launch, a rebrand or a major campaign. With us, a hero video starts at $4,500 and a brand film at $10,000. The extra money buys more shoot days, more planning and more kinds of finished video, not just a longer running time.
Most companies should start with the hero video. It does the most important job, and it’s easier to build up from one than to scale back a brand film that was bigger than the need.
What you get at each price
| Hero video | Brand film | |
|---|---|---|
| Starts at | $4,500 | $10,000 |
| Shoot days | One day, one location | Two or more days |
| Planning | Prep call, planning, coordinating the shoot day | Storyboarding and location scouting as well |
| On camera | A lit interview plus b-roll | Built around the story |
| Finished video | About two minutes, with licensed music | Main film plus social cutdowns |
| Graphics | Kept simple | Custom animation |
| Revisions | Two rounds | Set in your quote |
| Delivery | 10–14 days as standard | Set in your quote |
| Best for | Your website’s main video | A launch, a rebrand or a major campaign |
What a hero video does
A hero video has one job: when someone lands on your website, it tells them what you do and why they should trust you. It usually sits near the top of the homepage.
To do that well it has to be clear before it’s clever. A strong hero video is usually built on one good interview with someone who can really explain the business, covered with footage of the work. Two minutes is plenty; if someone wants more, your other pages can do it.
One practical note: put it on your site carefully. Google measures how quickly the main content of a page loads, known as Largest Contentful Paint, and a heavy autoplaying file can slow your page down. Load the video when someone clicks and show a still image until then. That’s how we built this site.
What a brand film does
A brand film is about what your company stands for. It might follow customers, your people or a piece of your history, and it’s made to be felt as much as understood. It’s what you play at the top of an all-hands meeting, at a launch event or in a campaign.
The extra cost comes from work you won’t see on screen. A storyboard is drawn before the shoot. Locations are scouted. There are at least two shoot days, so the story can move between places and people. Custom animation is built for it, and social cutdowns come out of it, so one project feeds a campaign.
If you can’t name the moment when your brand film will be seen, wait. A brand film without a launch or a campaign behind it tends to sit on a page, doing the job of a hero video at twice the price.
Which one do you need?
Answer these honestly:
- Does your website explain you clearly right now? If not, start with a hero video.
- Is there a specific launch, rebrand or campaign on the calendar? If yes, a brand film may be right.
- Will the story need more than one location or several people? More than a day’s worth points to a brand film.
- Will the video run in paid campaigns or on a big screen? A brand film usually holds up better there.
- Is the budget under $10,000? Then a well-made hero video beats a stretched brand film every time.
There’s a third option too. If you’re capturing something that’s already happening, like an event, a production day from $1,500 plus a highlight edit from $1,000 is enough. That’s why most projects start at $2,500. Our pricing page explains the gap between that and a hero video.
How to get more from either one
Plan the cutdowns first. If you’ll want vertical versions, say so before the shoot. Vertical cuts from an existing edit start at $350.
Pick the right person for the interview. The most senior person isn’t always the best on camera. Choose the one who talks about the work with real energy.
Agree on who approves. Two revision rounds are plenty when one person gathers the feedback. They run out fast when five people send notes separately.
Make captions part of the plan. Plenty of people watch with the sound off, and the W3C’s captions guidance explains why they also matter for accessibility.
Check who owns it. Ask about ownership of the footage and the finished video, and about the music license. The US Copyright Office explains why paying for work doesn’t automatically mean owning it. Any good production company will spell this out.
The short version
If you need your website to explain you, it’s a hero video, from $4,500. If you need a story that carries a moment in your company’s life, it’s a brand film, from $10,000. If you tell us the goal and the date, we’ll tell you which one you need, even when it’s the cheaper one. See our corporate video production page for what’s involved.
Brandon Ascari
Founder of Ascari Digital, a video production company in Cherry Hill, New Jersey. Brandon holds an MFA, has more than ten years in production, and taught video production at Seton Hall University. His crew produces for Google, Sony and Informa Connect and runs its own YouTube channels.