Your film moves through a series of structured stages, and at each one, your Director delivers something for you to review and approve. That approval isn't just a formality: it locks in what's been delivered, opens the next stage, and determines what's included at no charge versus what becomes a priced Change Order.
Here's exactly what to look for at each stage, what's always free to revise, and where the line sits.
The Stages
1. Script Review
2. Director's Notes (Pre-Production)
3. Shotlist (optional)
4. Wardrobe & Set Design (optional)
5. Your Film, Milestone by Milestone (First Cut and Final Cut)
6. Approval & Delivery
Approval must come through the production portal, or in writing to [email protected] if the portal's down. Once given, it can't be revoked, so a thoughtful review at each stage keeps your production on schedule and protects the work you've already paid for.
Stage by Stage
1. Script Review
Before production begins, our AI Screenwriter (a human screenwriter working with AI-assisted tools) reviews your script and highlights key adaptation choices. Review your story and plot, scene order and pacing, dialogue, and any creative liberties we've highlighted.
1 Included Revision round. Once approved, your story, plot, scene order, pacing and dialogue lock for the rest of production, so this is the time to raise anything big. If you supplied a finished script in your film's format and length, this review is lighter and formal approval is optional.
2. Director's Notes: Cast, Voices, Locations & Props
Delivered before any generation begins. Review each character's appearance and voice, casting, props, locations, visual style, tone, and overall creative direction.
This is the cheapest, fastest stage to make major changes, because nothing's been generated yet. You have 3 Included Revision rounds here; send each round's notes in one submission. Once approved, your characters' look and voice, locations, props and visual style lock for the rest of production.
3. Wardrobe & Set Design (optional)
If your production includes it, review each character's outfit scene by scene, and each scene's set.
2 Included Revision rounds. Once approved, wardrobe and set design lock scene by scene, and video generation begins.
4. Your Film, Milestone by Milestone
Your film is delivered in milestones, like a set of finished minutes or an episode (shorter films are often a single milestone). For each milestone, you'll review a First Cut when applicable, then a Final Cut.
Always included: dialogue delivery and intonation, action and performance, camera angles and coverage, editing and pacing, audio sync, continuity, color grading, music and sound effects, and captions and credits.
Out of scope: adding new scenes, changing the plot or story beats, or reopening anything locked at an earlier stage, like a character, location, or setting.
1 Included Revision round at First Cut and 1 at Final Cut, regardless of how much footage needs regenerating, as long as it's about the current delivery.
5. Approval & Delivery
When you approve a milestone, it's invoiced, and its full-quality files are released as soon as it's paid. Approved milestones aren't revised further. Your production is complete when your final milestone is approved and paid.
What Counts as an Included Revision
The simple rule: if something in the current delivery didn't turn out the way you hoped, fixing it is always included — regardless of how much needs to be redone.
An action sequence that didn't turn out visually — regenerate it, no charge
Background music that doesn't fit the scene — swap it, no charge
Sound effects that feel off or are missing — fix them, no charge
Footage that rendered incorrectly or has technical issues — redo it, no charge
Shot pacing, dialogue timing, or caption corrections
Color grading or visual style adjustments within the current stage
Changes to characters, locations, or props during Director's Notes, or to shot descriptions before the Shot List is approved
Rounds work in your favor, too: if a revision we deliver doesn't correctly address what you asked for, we'll redo it at no charge, and that redo doesn't use up another round.
What Makes a Revision Out-of-Scope
A revision is Out-of-Scope only when it reopens something you already approved at an earlier stage (a character's appearance or voice, a location, the shot structure, or a locked story element), or when it's new feedback after a stage's Included Revision rounds are used up.
The easiest way to think about it: say you ask for a character's shirt to be blue, and it comes back purple. Getting it to blue is on us, always. What's out of scope is a change of direction: the shirt comes back blue, and then you decide you'd like it red.
Every Out-of-Scope revision becomes a documented Change Order, priced at your existing per-minute rate for the affected minutes and quoted in writing, with any schedule impact, before any work begins. You're never required to approve one.
Feedback Timelines & Tracking
Your review date for each stage is confirmed with you at handoff and shown in your production plan. Timely reviews keep your production on schedule. Silence never counts as approval: if a review comes in late, the schedule shifts and we'll send you a revised plan. And if life gets busy, just tell us, and we'll plan around it.
To count toward your Included Revision rounds, requests must go through the production portal or in writing to [email protected], and we confirm receipt of each one. Please send each stage's notes in one submission. Notes sent through informal channels (like chat messages) may not be tracked.
At a Glance
Stage | Included rounds | Always included | Out-of-Scope |
1. Script Review | 1 | Story, plot, scene order, pacing, dialogue | Reopening the story or plot after approval |
2. Director's Notes | 3 | Redesign a character, change a voice, swap a location, adjust style or palette, change props | Introducing a story element that isn't in your script |
3. Shotlist (optional) | 1 | Reorder or trim shots, refine the scene breakdown | Reopening approved characters, locations, or props |
4. Wardrobe & Set Design (optional) | 2 | Change outfits or sets, scene by scene | Reopening approved characters, locations, or props |
5. Each milestone: First Cut and Final Cut | 1 each | Performance, dialogue delivery, camera, editing, pacing, audio sync, continuity, color, music, sound effects, captions and credits | New scenes, plot changes, reopening locked elements |
6. Approval & Delivery | None | Each milestone's files release when it's paid |
How Payments Line Up With Your Stages
You pay as you go, not all at the end. Your 20% deposit reserves your production slot and start date. Your 30% production payment comes after handoff and script review, just before your production is greenlit. The remaining 50% is paid milestone by milestone: when you approve a milestone, it's invoiced for its share, and its full-quality files are released as soon as it's paid. If your film is a single milestone, the remaining 50% is due when you approve the finished film.
Why Staged Approvals Matter
Keeps production on schedule: timely feedback keeps your Director moving without idle time.
Protects your budget: revisions caught early are always included. The further a change reaches into production, the more footage has to be regenerated, which is what Change Orders exist to price fairly.
Avoids unnecessary rework: locking approved elements stage by stage means every later stage builds on a stable foundation.
Puts decisions where they're cheapest to make: a character redesign is quick and free in Director's Notes. The same change after scenes are rendered around it is a different undertaking entirely.
Questions about a specific stage or revision? Reach out to your production team anytime. We're glad to walk through it together: [email protected]
