The document discusses different types of briefs used in creative projects, including negotiated, contractual, formal, informal, commission, tender, and competition briefs. For each brief type, the document outlines characteristics related to communication, time management, and career progression. Overall, the document provides an overview of the key elements and considerations for various brief styles used when commissioning creative works.

1. Briefs are important when doing a project because they give information to clients and different
people about what the project involves. An example is if you were applying to a job the job
applicationshould come with a brief of what they want for you in the job also what they expect. A
brief is important to give a brief for yourself when you are creating something as it tells the client
what you are doing within the project and what is going to be created as result of the project.
Negotiated Brief
Negotiated briefs are very important when it comes to video projects this is because we need to
take talkingtothe clientandsortinganydifferences there might be into consideration. Negotiated
briefs are also important because they are used as a way of negotiating different points with the
clients, this helps gain an understanding from the client in terms of what they want the overall
productto looklike.Usinga negotiatedbrief letsusnegotiatefairlywiththe clientwhich can give us
an ideaof the kindof picture the client is trying to create about the course. For example, the client
may prefer a specific colour scheme for the product, with this I would need to take it into account
but also it would let me get a view of what they want and how the finished product will look.
The communicationforthisbrief isgoodbecause it is all about negotiating so you, as the company,
can get yourviewsandopinionsinandthe clientcando the same.Alsoyou get to negotiate on how
much youwill receive forthe projectandwhatpaymentmethod suits you best. Even though I think
the communicationisgoodforthisbrief I can understandthatthere issome negative pointsinterms
of communication, one of the negative points I can think of is that the client can phone up and
change stuff whenever they want so then this can prolong the project.
At the end of the last paragraph I slightly touched upon the topic of time management for the
reasonI gave I thinkthisbrief canbe quite hard to plan your tasks out and your deadline because it
could change at any moment. It’s like when you’re getting your house decorated by an interior
designeryoucankeepchangingyourmind on the walls and the theme of the room but it just leads
to the designerbeingthere alotlongerthanexpectedplusyouend up losing more money, which is
never good!
RegardingcareerprogressionIthinkthat if the client is impressed with your work and contribution
towardsthe product theywill definitelywanttocome back foryour services.Anotherpositive isthat
if the clientishappyand reviewsyouthenitcouldbring you more business because everyone likes
getting a recommendation when you need help.
Competition Brief
In a competition brief you will find everything that is in your interests all of these are labelled as
beingthe “termsand conditions”.The competition brief will also include the prize/outcome of the
competition,abitof informationaboutthe companythatare doingthe competition.Forcompetition
briefs there is also a set deadline on which the competition will close. This style of brief could be
seen when applying to appear in film festivals. I have chosen to use this as an example because
whentheyopenthe applicationphase theydisplaythe ethosandviewsof the festival.Thishelpsthe
participants know whether there film is right for the festival, it does this because if the festival
portrays certain values that your film doesn’t really cater for it is obvious that your film won’t be
picked to get shown.

2. If we look at the communication side of this brief we will see that it is very minimal. I personally
thinkthat all the communicationwillinclude isaletterof applicationwith a copy of your film then a
letter to the production company that applied saying whether they were successful or not.
I thinkthe time managementforthisbrief wouldbe verybasic because the only tasks you will have
is;advertise the competition, close applications, view the applications, and finally choose winning
film that will be shown. If you were to think of a method to manage the time I would suggest a
production schedule, I have chosen to suggest this because you can say you are going to view 10
applicantsaweekfor5 weeksthensaythe weekafteryouare goingto write to the winner then the
week after you will show the film at the festival.
Thiswouldbe verycareerbeneficialtowardsthe clientsthathave sentintheir submissions because
if an actor or productioncompanylikedittheywill wanttosupportitby eitherstarringin it or giving
the production a budget.
Co-operative Brief
Co-operativebrief iswhereyouworkalongsidesomeone tocreate the brief youwant.Whenyouare
workingwithsome youare classedas co-operatingwiththem and you end up discussing the points
that are displayedonthe brief.A benefitof co-operatingwhencreatingabrief isthatyouare able to
discuss and debate the points that are given and you also get an in depth look at each other’s
feelings on whether to change the brief or not.
I feel like thisbrief is very different to other briefs in terms of communication, I think this because
there are multiple companies involved and each one of them is doing different tasks. This would
make the whole process extremely confusing for me. I also feel like having this many companies
involved it could ruin the whole project. I feel this way because let’s just say if two of these
companieshave adisagreementthen it could withhold the whole production phase and could also
lead to distractions for the rest of the companies and members.
Like otherbriefsIfeel like thisbrief wouldneedtouse aproductionschedule tomanage theirtime.I
feel like thisbrief wouldneeditmore because of the differentcompaniesinvolved.Thismethod will
benefitthe brief andprojectbecause itwill help other companies know what they are meant to be
doingand whatthe others are working on. It will also inform the client of how much progress each
company is making on the project.
In a way I feel likethisbrief will progress each of the companies careers even more because if they
workprofessionallyandefficientlywitheachcompanythenitwill reflect better on them. Also if the
productbecomessuccessful the clientwillmostlikelyuse the same companies again and they could
possibly recommend the companies services to potential clients.
Formal Brief
Formal briefsare more setin stone thanotherstyle of briefs. This is because clients have to stick to
the details in the brief and not change anything. The formal brief should include everything the
clientneedstoknowtobe able to stickto the brief.Thisincludes having all the correct components
and instructionsthe clientshould know. Through having the formal brief it means that the client is

3. more likely going to stick to it and make the company seem more professional and direct with the
approach they have to their client’s views and needs.
PersonallyIdon’tthinkthisstyledbrief isasbadas people make out it to be because there are a lot
stricter briefs where communication is minimal and it’s just says what you need to do in the brief
and leave you to your own thing. There is communication involved in this brief because the client
and company have to reach a final agreement before they proceed onto anything else.
In termsof time managementIthinkthisisexcellingitself because yourlefttoyourowndevices and
youcan workyour fingersto the bone getting it done. From looking at other briefs there’s nothing
like thisone.Thisbrief alsoworkswell intermsof careerprogressionbecause the more determined
you are to get this project done the better it will be and that will then lead to a better review
meaning more clients.
Thistype of brief will benefityourcareerit will impress your client you are currently working for so
thiswill lead to you potentially working for them again. It can also increase business because your
current client could recommend your company to other people they will then use it. This will
therefore make the film more successful making you more creditable as a creator.
Contractual Brief
The contractual brief is a brief that draws up the duties and process that is set by the client and is
given to the company. The brief includes the client’s expectations from the company, the price of
the project,andfinallywhatthe paymentmethodislike if itisgetting paid in instalments. With this
style of brief there are manyadvantagesanddisadvantages.Anexampleof the advantage of using a
contractual brief is that the company know exactly what they have to do to make sure that the
clients’ needs are met and taken care of. This helps the company because in some cases the
companyisstill findingoutthe clients’needsmonths into the project whereas with the contractual
brief itsavesa lotof time andeffort.The disadvantage of the contractual brief isthat if the needs of
the client aren’t met the client then has the power to seek legal advice about it and also take the
companythrougha lawsuit.Notonlyisthisbadenoughforthe companybut if this news gets public
it couldmake the company lose a lot of potential customers and in the worst case scenario it could
actually lead to the closing of the company, but that is only very rare.
Personally I think that any of these briefs I am speaking about have the power to slow the project
down or speed it up, you can see evidence that can make you lean each way. I think this brief un-
intentionallyslowsthe productionandpost-productionstage of the projectdown because you can’t
go off howyou feel andwhatpleasesyoubecause the clienthasavisionof what the overall product
shouldlooklike andif itdoesn’tplease themyoucouldriskyourcompany’sreputation.Ithinkthis is
one of the worst briefs I have spoken about because I believe it is un-necessary pressure.
AnotherreasonwhyIbelieve thatthisisone of the worst briefs is because from an outsider’s point
of viewthe communicationisprettyminimalandIsee communicationbeing one of the key parts of
a project.I see this style of brief as being a way for the client just to say “here’s what I want you to
do if youdon’tsucceedthensee youincourt.” It’ssort of a threateningwayforyou to get a creative
project done because I can’t do anything creative if I feel under pressure but that’s just me some
people might prefer this.

4. In terms of time management I think this is where this brief is better because the client will most
likely be able to set you individual deadlines for each task and then an overall deadline for the
project to be finished by. I think this is a better and more effective way of working on a project. I
thinkthisbecause there’sareallyeasywayof settingout your tasks so you don’t drift of course and
youdon’tget distractedfromyouroverall goal.Thiswayiscalleda projectschedule andall youhave
to do islistall yourtasks that have to be done, assign a colour to each one and then just get a week
by week calendar and assign each colour to the amount of weeks you will spend on the task.
Thisbrief could heavily move your career forward because if the project turns out being very good
the client could come to you for future projects and also they might give the word out about you.
Alsoitcan benefityourcareerbecause withthe type of brief itiswhere you don’t have to negotiate
it will make youlooklike you’renotfussy,you’re nottoodemandingasa companyand youdon’tget
in the way of somebodies creative flow.
Informal Brief
Informal briefsare the complete oppositetothe formal briefs,the difference between them is that
the formal briefs are more professional and appear to be more proper. If you properly look into
informal briefs they are less brief and more of the open conversation style. Through having an
informal brief you are allowing a negotiation to occur between yourself and the client.
I, personally, feel like this brief is going to the extreme on the communication front. Nobody can
produce a proper, impressive project with the communication being this free. Once again it’s the
interiordesignerideaall overagainbutworse thisislike himbeingmidliving room and you walking
ingoing‘nope thisisn’twhatI wanted.’Plusbecause there isn’tanythingformal with your needs on
theycan worm there wayoutof lawsuitand you will be there with a project you never wanted and
they’ll be getting away Scott free!
In regardsto time managementthe productioncoulduse the same method as the contractual brief
with making sure their time is equally spread. During the creating of the project schedule the
company will have to look at what task will take the longest and organise them from longest to
shortest.Anotherwaytohelpwith a project schedule is to assign different members of the team a
differenttasktoget on withthis will make the time more deficient also it would highlight who the
weakest link is within the group. This will benefit your career for future progress because you can
get rid of the people who are weighing the team down.
Like the otherbriefsthiswill progressyourcareerbecause if the clientispleasedtheywillcome back
to yourcompany for more business. Also they will recommend your company to others who are in
need of help.
Commission Brief
Commissionbriefsare the briefsthatare usedwhennetworkstationscommissionaTV show or film.
An example of wouldbe whenFilm4commissioned EastisEast.The creatorsof the filmwould have
been given this style of brief which should have included the details what the commission will
include such as; budget, deadlines, audience etc. So overall the creators will send the network a
documentwhichissetout as a proposal thenthe networkwill decide if theywanttocommissionthe
film/tv show.

5. I thinkthat intermsof communicationthe brief requiresalotof communication.I thinkthisbecause
the independent company will have to do their own research and convey the findings onto the
broadcasting company. This then will help the broadcasting know what to tell the independent
production company what to change and keep within the film/television programme. I think this
makes the brief one of the ones that will require mostly communication.
Thisbrief isverydifferentintermsof time management becauseboth,the independent production
company and the broadcasting company, will use different techniques to apply their time. The
independentproductioncompany will have to religiously update their project schedule because it
will theninformthe broadcastingcompanyaboutwhere theyare atwithinthe project. Another way
the independentproductioncompanycouldinformthe broadcasting company of where they are in
the project is through a project diary. This is where each week you write what you have done and
what wasn’t finished within this week and also what will be taken over to the following week.
In termsof career progression,Ithinkthatif the independentproductioncompany were to produce
a successful filmortelevision programme that earned the broadcasting company it will lead to the
broadcastingcompanywantingtouse them for more business.Anotherbenefit of the independent
company creatinga hit productisthat it will make otherbroadcastingcompanies want to work with
them in the future.
Tender Brief
Tender briefs are the type of brief that you would get given to you when being new to an
organisation or job where you can discuss ideas with other members of a group or team. After
discussingideas you can then go onto leave the company/organisation to decide for themselves if
theywantto accept youas theirclientor not. In myopinion I think that it isn’t worth the risk I think
thisbecause one of the biggestdisadvantagesthatarise in this brief is that you may not be asked to
be the client so you’ve wasted all your time for nothing.
If I were todescribe a hypothetical project that would fit into this brief it would have to be doing a
photographyjobforsome sort of advertisingproject.Thiscouldinclude doingsomething for Salford
CityCouncil. They could approach my company asking me to produce photographs to show Salford
in a positive light.
In regards to the communication part of this brief I think that there is a major lack of
communication. I think this because the only communication that it really is compulsory between
the client and the company is during the pitch the after that there isn’t really any form of contact
that goeson.I thinkthisisn’tverygoodbecause as the clientyouare handingall creative flows over
to the companyand if theywant to theycan easily find a way to do it in a way where you have very
little chances to make decisions.
If we were to talk about time management with this brief the most practical way of time
management will be the same method as the rest of the briefs, this is to produce a production
schedule. I personally believe that this form of time management could minimise communication
even more. I feel this way because, during the production stages of the project the client could
requesttosee howfar the company have gotten so then the company could just hand them a copy
of the productionschedule.Thisminimisescommunicationbecauseyoudon’thave to sit down with

6. the client explaining exactly what you’re up to. This could also be seen as a way to speed up the
productionstage because youwon’thave to take time out of your schedule to discuss what certain
things you are working on with the client.
In termsof career progressionIthinkitislike all of the other projects if you impress the client then
theywill come backto use youfor otherprojectsalsotheycouldrecommend you to other potential
clients.
Competition Brief Example
An example of acompetitionbrief of aclientwho operates under a competition brief would be the
Barnes Film Festival. The film festival is taking place between 2nd
September and 4th
September
2016. This film festival isn’t like others that choose to show the film making talents from colleges
and universities it instead lets anybody under the age of 25 submit their film. To make it fairer for
youto winyour filmbeingshownthe festivalissplitupintodifferent age ranges. To apply you have
to pay £10 for the chance of their film winning and being shown to an audience. The terms and
conditionsforthiscompetition is that the media product has to be around 5-25 minutes long and it
follows the codes and conventions of any genre. The brief also stresses that there must be an
environmental message inyourfilm, the music and sound effects also must have a relevant license
that you can use. Some more terms and conditions include that every actor must have and
understand the purpose of the film, the must also give the director full consent to the film being
screened.
Formal Brief Example
An example of a formal brief is the Salford Royal NHS Foundation; this company aims to be the
safest a cleanest organization within the NHS. Salford Royal NHS Foundation has a team of 6,000
members of staff that provide the local services to Salford and specialist services to Greater
Manchester. Theyhave nowposteda new video wall in the main entrance that plays key messages
on loop of seven days a week. The brief for this project is to create and deliver a high quality four
part film to promote the key messages from the “Right Treatment Right Place” campaign. This is a
formal brief because itisincludesalistof the messagesyoushouldinclude andit lets you know that
you can’t steer away from the needs of the client that are posted within the brief.
Negotiated Brief Example
Once again a client that would operate under this particular brief is the Salford Royal NHS
Foundation. This brief tells us that we have to create a film that influences other social class
demographics to view Salford in a different way. I believe that this is an example of a negotiated
brief because it doesn’t involve a lot of terms and conditions so you can negotiate what the film
would include and how it would be edited together.
Contractual Brief Example
The example of contractual brief I have chosen is to produce a graphic animation film for Salford
Royal NHS Foundation. Looking at the brief for this project I have decided is a contractual brief
because itlistsexactlywhat the client would like the overall product to look like. Whilst doing this
the brief alsotellsusthattheyare opento recommendationssothere is a hint of a negotiated brief

7. in there. Salford Royal NHS Foundation wants the film to be in-between 90-120 seconds, with the
clientwantingthe filmtobe so short I will have to make sure it will catch the audience’s attention.
The brief alsotellsme whatkey messagesIshouldinclude within the film; with the brief telling me
this it makes my job a lot easier because I now have the content for the film.
Thisbrief coverseverysingle aspectof whatisincludedinthe film and where it should appear. One
of the things the brief tells me to do is that any colours used in the film has to be part of the NHS
palette. It also tells me that I need to include the trust’s logo at the beginning and end of the film.
The brief thengoesonto say that at the endof the film I should credit “This film was proudly made
by local studentsfrom Salford City Council for Salford Royal NHS Foundation Trust.” In section 6 of
the brief itgivesme the deadline for the brief, now that I know that the project should be finished
for the 8th
June I will create a production schedule so that I can stay on top of my tasks and I don’t
end up rushing it at the end.