How to write a video brief that gets great work

The short answer

A strong video production brief states what the video must achieve, who it is for, where it will be seen, what you need delivered, when you need it and roughly what you can spend. It adds references with a note on what you like about each, and any fixed constraints such as products, talent or brand rules. It fits on one page, and it leaves the creative solution to the production team.

That last point matters. A brief describes the problem and the boundaries; the treatment that comes back describes the solution. When a brief tries to be a script, it removes the part of the work you are paying a production company to do. If you want to see how the brief feeds everything after it, read the content production process.

The anatomy of a one-page brief

Not every section deserves the same space. Objective, audience and deliverables carry the most weight, because they decide the shape of the shoot. Style and references matter, but they follow from the rest.

What to write in each section

Objective

Write one sentence that begins "This video exists to". Launch a collection, explain a product, build desire for a property, recruit, or give paid social a set of ads to test. If you have two objectives, you probably need two videos, or one shoot planned to produce both. Add how you will judge success: views are rarely the right measure for a premium brand; enquiries, saves, watch time or sell-through often are.

Audience

Describe the viewer as a person, not a demographic. What do they already know about you? What would make them trust you more? A collector who has bought from you for years needs a different film from a first-time buyer who found you on Instagram.

Message

One sentence the viewer should be able to repeat. Not a list of features. Premium brands are especially prone to asking a film to say everything about craft, heritage, materials and service at once. Pick the idea that matters most and let the rest live elsewhere.

Deliverables

This is the section most briefs underwrite, and it is the one that most affects the budget. List every asset you will need in the months after the shoot, even small ones.

• The hero piece, with an approximate running time.
• Cut-downs for paid media and pre-roll.
• Vertical edits for Reels, TikTok and Shorts. Our guide to video aspect ratios lists what each platform needs.
• Stills for web, social, press and retail.
• Silent loops for the website and product pages.
• Text-free masters and subtitle files for other markets.

References

Three to five references are plenty. For each, write a line on what you admire: the light, the pace, the casting, the sound, the way the product is handled. "We like this" tells a director nothing; "we like how slowly the camera moves and how little is explained" tells them a great deal.

Constraints

Launch date and any fixed dates before it, budget range, brand guidelines, products that must appear, talent already contracted, locations you have access to, and markets where the video will run. Usage matters here: paid media in several countries is a different production from organic social in one.

What good looks like

Compare two versions of the same objective line.

• Weak: "A premium video showcasing our new collection that tells our brand story and drives sales."
• Strong: "A sixty-second film for existing clients that makes the new collection feel like a continuation of the pieces they already own, cut down for paid social to reach lookalike audiences. Success is appointment bookings in the launch month."

The second is longer, but every word helps. It names the audience, the feeling, the format, the channel and the measure. A production company can write a treatment from it on the first attempt. Weak briefs are not short; they are vague. They use words such as premium, elegant and aspirational that every luxury brand would claim, and leave the production team to guess what they mean in practice.

The brief checklist

Mistakes that weaken a brief

• Too many objectives. A film asked to launch, explain, recruit and entertain will do none of them well.
• No budget range. Without it, a production company has to guess, and the first treatment is often for a film you cannot afford or one that undersells what you could.
• Deliverables added after the shoot. Vertical edits and stills that were not planned often cannot be made from footage framed for landscape.
• References without reasons. The same reference can mean the colour to one person and the pace to another.
• Too many approvers. Name one person who gives final sign-off. Feedback from a committee flattens a film.
• A script disguised as a brief. If you already know every shot, say so and brief for execution. Otherwise leave room for ideas.

What happens after you send it

A good production company will come back with questions before it comes back with a price. Expect to discuss the objective, the deliverables list and the budget range. From there, you should receive a treatment or creative approach, a production plan and a scoped quote that lists days, crew, talent, post-production and usage rights separately. Our guides to brand film cost and the pre-production checklist explain what comes next. For product-led work, see our product videography service.