How to Choose an Animation Company

Choosing an animation production company is a buying decision that looks simple but often isn't. A strong showreel does not tell you whether a studio can deliver consistently at your volume, meet your internal review process, or handle content updates six months after launch. The evaluation criteria that matter most are the ones studios rarely lead with.

What should you check before you even request a quote?

Before requesting a quote, understand what you are actually buying. Most animation vendors sell project-by-project delivery. What enterprise teams usually need is a repeating program - a pipeline of videos produced on consistent brand templates, updated when products or policies change, and delivered on turnarounds short enough to keep internal stakeholders moving.

If a studio's process does not account for version control, brand updates, or multi-stakeholder review cycles, you will feel that gap on your second or third project. Ask how they handle an update to a video that was produced six months ago. The answer tells you whether they are set up for a program or just a one-off.

This is also the right moment to ask whether the studio builds a reusable brand library or starts from scratch on each video. The library model - where the first project funds the design of characters, icons, motion systems, and templates that every future video draws from - is the only way animation scales at enterprise volume without cost spiralling. We cover what that production process looks like in detail in our guide to producing an animated explainer video.

What does a good animation brief ask for?

A production company worth working with will ask you for a lot of information before pricing. If you get a quote based on "a 60-second animated explainer" with no follow-up questions, that is a warning sign. Studios with real enterprise experience ask about:

• The target audience and the action they should take after watching
• Approvals: how many reviewers, what their authority is, and how many rounds of feedback are expected
• Brand assets: what is available, in what format, and who owns access
• Distribution: where the video will live and what file formats are needed
• Timeline: hard deadline or flexible, and whether there are regulatory review windows

A studio that skips these questions will give you a low quote and expand scope from there. The brief stage is where a production partner's process either builds confidence or starts to cost you time.

How do you evaluate an animation company's portfolio?

Look past the visual quality. Three things in the portfolio matter more than style.

Industry match. If you are in financial services and every portfolio piece is a startup product demo, ask whether they have worked on regulated content. Compliance animation has different structural requirements than a brand campaign. The skills overlap but the brief structure is not the same. For a full picture of the animation types available, read the different kinds of video animation for business - it explains the practical differences between 2D character animation, motion graphics, and whiteboard formats so you can match the portfolio to your actual brief type.

Content type match. A studio that excels at brand identity animation is not automatically strong at compliance training video or product walkthroughs. Ask for portfolio examples in the content category you are commissioning.

Volume evidence. Ask how many videos per month this studio delivers to enterprise clients. A boutique team of three animators will struggle to absorb a program of 20-50 videos per year without pushing delivery times out. If volume is part of your requirements, find out how they staff it.

What should the pricing model look like?

Most studios price per project. Each project pays for setup time: design, illustration, animation, sound, and revision rounds. At volume, that per-project setup compounds quickly.

Enterprise teams producing more than 10 animated videos per year should ask whether the studio offers a brand library model. In this approach, the first project funds designing a full asset library - characters, icons, color palettes, motion systems - that every subsequent video draws from. The first piece costs more. Pieces produced from an established library typically cost 40-60% less because the design and setup work is already done.

At Shootsta, the brand library is built in the first engagement and every video that follows draws from it. Teams that manage animation across three or four agencies end up with four visual languages and no shared asset base. That creates consistency problems that compound as the program grows.

Ask any shortlisted studio: what happens to the assets we commission? Are they owned by us? Can we take them to another vendor? A studio that retains ownership of your brand library has structural leverage over your program at renewal time.

Talk to the Shootsta team →

Frequently asked questions

How long does animation production typically take?

A motion graphics piece at 60-90 seconds runs 10-14 working days from brief to delivery. A 2D character animation at the same length takes 4-8 weeks because the illustration and character rigging phases are longer. Both timelines assume prompt feedback from your team. Each round of revisions adds 2-4 working days depending on the scope of the change. Enterprise review cycles with multiple approvers typically add 1-2 weeks to the schedule, so build that in from the start.

What is a fair price for a 60-second animated explainer?

A single 60-second 2D animated explainer produced from scratch runs $8,000-$15,000 for the first piece, which includes designing the character library and brand system. From a pre-built brand library, the cost drops to $4,000-$8,000. Motion graphics at 60 seconds runs $2,000-$5,000 without a template, or $800-$2,500 from a pre-built template. These are production-quality prices for enterprise output. Quotes well below these ranges usually involve offshore production or limited revision rounds - ask what is included before comparing on price alone.

What is the difference between a motion graphics studio and a full animation studio?

A motion graphics studio works with shapes, typography, icons, and data in motion - no characters, no narrative. A full animation studio covers character-based storytelling, illustrated environments, and process-driven explainers. Many enterprise programs need both formats at different points. A studio that cannot do both will push every brief toward its specialty regardless of which format actually fits the content. Ask shortlisted studios to show examples of both, and ask which they do more of in practice.

Does the location of an animation company matter?

For animated content, location matters less than process. Animation is produced digitally and reviewed asynchronously, so a studio in a different timezone can still work well if the feedback and revision process is structured. The practical considerations are time zone overlap for calls, turnaround times given the working hours difference, and whether your internal approvers can meet the studio's review windows. A global studio with a track record on distributed enterprise programs is a better choice than a nearby studio with no enterprise process.

Where to go next

For a breakdown of the main animation formats - character animation, motion graphics, whiteboard, and 3D - and how each fits different business briefs, read the different kinds of video animation for business. For the step-by-step production process from brief to final delivery, read how to produce an animated explainer video.

To scope an animation program for your team, talk to the Shootsta team.