What a realistic video production timeline looks like
A two to three minute brand or explainer video with a short shoot takes about two months from kickoff to delivered files, and this template runs about nine weeks. It gives every client review a window of several days, because those waits are the part of the schedule you don't control.
The first 16 days go to the brief and the script, including five days for the client to read it. Pre-production takes just under two weeks, because the storyboard, locations, casting, and crew all run side by side once the script is locked. The shoot is two days.
Post takes the last five weeks or so: a rough cut, two client review rounds, picture lock, then color, sound, and captions at the same time before final approval and export. If your crew or your client's calendar works differently, drag the bars to match.
Why client review rounds decide the delivery date
Client reviews decide the delivery date because they sit on the critical path and nobody on your team controls them. The editor can't start the fine cut until round 1 comes back, and color and sound can't start until round 2 is done and the picture is locked.
So the script, the storyboard, each cut, and the final approval all get their own bars with the client assigned, and each one is linked to the work that needs it. If round 1 takes ten days instead of five, the fine cut, round 2, picture lock, the mix, and delivery all move five days, and you see the new date that day.
Some tasks have slack. Motion graphics finish about five days before the final approval needs them, and the voiceover is recorded four days before the rough cut starts, so a small slip there costs nothing. A late review round costs every day it runs over. Ask the client for one approver and a due date on each round.
How to adapt this template to your video
For an animated explainer with no shoot, delete the locations, crew, call sheet, shoot, and footage tasks, and keep casting for the voiceover artist. Link motion graphics to the storyboard approval, stretch it, and link the rough cut to it and the voiceover, since animation is now most of the work.
If your contract allows a third review round, add a revision bar and then a review bar after round 2, and link picture lock to the new review. At five days to revise and four to review, that adds about nine days, and the client can see what an extra round costs before asking for one.
Hours are set only on the Editor's edit and finishing tasks, with a 30-hour weekly cap for a freelancer who has other clients. In the week the fine cut and the motion graphics overlap, the Editor is at about 28 hours. Add revision hours or move the graphics earlier and EverGantt marks any task in a week that goes over.
Make it yours
Drag the first task to your real start date and everything linked to it moves along. Rename the roles to your people, then export a PNG, PDF, or SVG when you need to share it. No template fits? Start from a blank plan with the project schedule maker. Saving to the cloud starts at Pro; sharing with teammates is on Team and Business.
