October 1, 2020

5 Influencing Factors in VR Video Production Costs

Virtual reality video production is a growing trend that has an estimated user base of nearly 200M people and growing. What’s more, the demand for virtual reality video and application experiences is expected to grow significantly in the next few years.

Unfortunately, the cost of a virtual reality video production is hard to decipher because there are so many different variables involved in determining the total cost to produce an immersive video experience. A typical VR video experience can range anywhere from $10,000 to $200,000 or more to production which makes it hard to budget, but we’ve broken down the top 5 influencing factors in VR video production costs below.

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1. Complexity of the Environment & Characters

A simple environment with few or no characters will naturally have less involved in the production than a complex environment with several characters.

Some of the most complex VR video environments include extensive graphics and complex designs that allow for heavily immersive experiences. Simple environments can be produced for $15K whereas complex environments and virtual characters can add to costs which can be as high as $200K or more.

2. Immersive Level & Experience

The most engaging virtual reality video experiences require advanced technical skills to produce in order for the immersion to be as realistic and engaging as possible.

The addition of realistic, immersive environments will add to the total VR video production costs. These types of experiences require the video virtual view to regulate and move with the viewer as well as to provide an immersive interactive experience that requires advanced development and understanding of various software applications that are used to produce this style of content.

3. Technical Skills of the Production Crew

A fully immersive VR video will require potentially hundreds of hours from various crew members in order for the production to be a success. One of the greater influencing factors in VR video production costs is the technical skills that you’re paying for when you hire a VR video production crew. These professionals include:

3D design professionals
3D animators
3D developers
Sound engineers
Project managers
Hardware specialists
Software specialists

Consider the fact that even a basic virtual reality project can involve hundreds of hours of work by these professionals at an hourly rate of $50 or more on average — this quickly adds up.

4. Content Style

A virtual reality experience can be delivered in various manners. You often hear the terms 360-degree video and virtual reality used interchangeably but the two are different in the sense that 360-degree video is simply a panoramic view of the area or set.

Likewise, virtual reality includes the ability to view in 360-degrees but the equal ability to interact and move in the scene. With virtual reality programs, you can open doors, pick up items from a room, and physically look into and around areas of a room. Of course, doing all of this requires advanced technical programming and an infusion of money.

5. Distribution

How will your VR video experience be distributed to your audience? Will you deliver cross-platform application opportunities that allow users to interact with both the Playstation and the Oculus Rift headset? Will the exhibit only take place on some other form of headgear?

Development is a huge factor in VR video production costs and the amount of development required to produce virtual videos for more than one style of virtual reality gear will most certainly add hours and dollars to the total production cost. Going back to production hours at a rate of $50 or more per hour per professional, even the addition of 50 hours of work adds $2500 to a project. The complex distribution will add complex needs for development further influencing VR video production costs.