How to commission an animation (without losing your mind)

There are lots of agencies out there. How do you find one that gets you, one that’s easy to work with, affordable, and can deliver something beautiful, strategic and effective?

Shop around.

Google. Ask for recommendations. Shortlist the agencies whose work you love. Then talk to them.

Invest a bit of time upfront to meet multiple agencies and get a feel for their vibe, process, and approach.

Truth is, most agencies can deliver a great animation, so it often comes down to who you enjoy working with. You’ll be spending a fair bit of time together, so choose people who make the process feel smooth and fun.

A strong brief is the foundation of a successful animation. Here’s what to include:

Duration

This is the single biggest factor affecting cost. The longer the animation, the more scenes to design and animate and the more budget you’ll need.

A good rule of thumb: 100 words = 1 minute of animation.

Test it. Read your draft script out loud and time it. Then add time for intros, outros and transitions, which can add 20–50% to your runtime.

Three minutes is the upper limit for most viewers’ attention spans. If you’re hitting 5+ minutes, you might’ve accidentally written a feature film. It happens. Be ruthless with your editing, animation works best when it’s short and sweet.

Style

Does your brand already have a visual style – illustration, graphics, iconography, typography, colour palette, and general look and feel? If not, you’ll need to define one.

Start gathering references. Show your agency animations, stills or visual styles you like (and don’t like). Be specific:

• “I love the soft colours in this, but the pacing is too slow.”
• “This feels too corporate, we want something more human and warm.”
• “This animation uses photography really well, but the soundtrack is too upbeat.”

More context = better results. Most agencies will start with a moodboarding phase to explore style options with you.

Voiceover

Whose voice should tell the story? Your CEO? A service user? A professional actor?

Think about tone, clarity, authenticity. If you’re hiring an actor, remember this can add cost, but the right voice can elevate the whole piece.

Also consider:

• Monologue, dialogue or multiple voices?
• Gender, accent, age?
• Do you need translations or multiple versions?

Sound Effects & Music

Good animation doesn’t just look good, it sounds good too.

Most animations include music, ambient sound and effects to bring the story to life. Your agency will help with this, but if you’ve got strong feelings about style (e.g. no ukulele music, please), now’s the time to say so. There is an option to buy a stock music track, licence a track, or to commission an original piece if required.

With a creative brief defined, you need to ensure you know the specific deliverables you are after.

Number of treatments

Do you have a defined house style and so just one treatment will be ample, or are you looking for a range to choose from? Make sure to specify as each treatment will add cost. It is also useful to about your brand assets, and if they have moving image guidelines, assets, fonts, or colour palettes we should use.

Co-creation and testing

Do you want your audience to be involved in the creative process, reviewing the script of contributing content for inclusion? Or perhaps, you would like to test the storyboard or a sample clip with your audience for feedback?

These processes can add to the authenticity and impact of the final animation, so include them in the scope of work if budget allows.

Subtitles / captions

Are you planning to share this on social media? Then yes, you’ll want subtitles.

Also consider closed captions for accessibility, and translated subtitles if you’re working internationally.

Formats

Where will the video/animation be used? Is it for projection at an event, or used on social media, or both? The use case for each asset will affect the size and export settings, and so knowing each intended use is really important.

Versions and edits

Will you need a shorter version for social? Need a different call-to-action? A version with different branding?

Mention this upfront, it’s easier (and cheaper) to plan for at the beginning than retro-fit later.