How long does an explainer video take, from script to delivery?

From script to final delivery: what needs to happen?

From script to final delivery, allow time for script approval, storyboard and visual direction, voiceover, animation, review and export checks. A written script is not the same as a production-ready script. Before an agency quotes a deadline, confirm which of those decisions are already approved and how long your reviewers need.

Published full-project timelines provide context, but they do not tell you how much time remains after script approval. MotionCube describes four to six weeks from brief to final render. UK studio Kenzo describes six to ten weeks from confirmed brief to final delivery for a custom 60–90 second film. These are provider-specific examples, not a US market benchmark or an FDM delivery promise.

Your schedule depends on what is already approved, the amount of original design and animation, reviewer availability and the final deliverables. A straightforward edit from approved material can be a different job entirely. Share the real publication date, not just the date you would like to see a first cut.

Sources: MotionCube: Published production timelineKenzo Studio: Custom animated explainer timelines

What happens between the brief and the final video?

There are several outputs before the finished film: an agreed brief, a script or narrative outline, visual direction, a first full cut and final delivery files. At FDM, these decisions are staged so a late review does not become the first time someone considers the core message.

The schedule below is an illustrative six-week planning exercise for a modest custom explainer. It is not a standard FDM package. It assumes available assets, a responsive decision-maker and a scope that the production team has confirmed fits. Some tasks can overlap after their dependencies are settled; unresolved decisions should not be hidden by calling everything “in progress”.

Sources: FDM: FDM production process

Does an approved script make the project faster?

It can remove a writing stage, but only if the script has been checked against the intended film. Confirm the narration length, product claims and screen actions. A paragraph that reads well may still describe a screen the team cannot access or an action the product does not support.

Ask for a remaining-work schedule rather than subtracting a fixed number of days from a full-production estimate. List the storyboard, original graphics, voiceover, animation, review rounds and delivery versions still required. For distributed teams, put feedback deadlines in a shared timezone and name one person who consolidates comments. This is a planning recommendation, not a standard FDM turnaround.

How long does it take to make an explainer video with AI?

There is no dependable single turnaround for an AI-assisted explainer. Separate the time to generate a draft or asset from the time to deliver an approved film. AI may shorten an asset-making step without shortening the product review or the wait for a decision-maker. Ask for a schedule based on your material, not the speed of a tool demonstration.

Adobe’s Firefly documentation describes generating images and videos and then editing content. That supports a distinction between generation and finishing; it does not establish a complete explainer-production deadline. In planning, identify the exact task being assisted, such as an exploratory visual or draft sequence, and allow for selection and correction of the output.

Keep time for product and claims checks, accurate screen actions, narration approval, caption correction and final placement checks. A generated interface that looks convincing but changes a permission or invents a feature needs correction, not faster approval. For health or finance content, the client’s authorised subject reviewers still need to assess the relevant claims.

Ask the producer to mark each stage as unchanged, reduced or newly required, and explain why. An approved script with supplied graphics is a different starting point from a new story requiring generated scenes. Request a date for the first reviewable cut and a separate date for final delivery, with reviewer availability included. Our AI-versus-custom guide helps decide which approach fits; neither approach earns a universal speed guarantee.

Sources: Adobe: Generate and edit images and videos in FireflyFDM: AI versus custom SaaS explainer video

The calendar includes your review time

If a supplier needs two days to revise but your reviewer is unavailable for a week, the next milestone moves by more than two days. Put approval windows in the shared schedule, including specialist review where the content needs it. Do not assume a doctor, product manager or compliance reviewer can turn around a full film on the day it arrives.

In FDM’s 487-comments story, the client had an edit in mind that the brief had not made visible. It was a problem of unshared creative expectations, not evidence for a particular production timeline. The scheduling lesson is to agree the story and visual direction before detailed editing, when a correction can affect fewer finished scenes.

Sources: FDM: The client who left 487 comments

Can you make an explainer video in one or two weeks?

Possibly, for a sufficiently limited scope and a team with availability. That is a question to test against the material, not a promise to make from runtime alone. An approved script, supplied graphics and a simple execution are different from an unresolved story with original illustration, new voiceover and several stakeholders.

If the launch date cannot move, reduce the first deliverable. A short, accurate use-case film may be possible before a larger overview. A clear screen-led walkthrough may be more realistic than a new illustrated world. Ask the producer to identify what must be locked by which day and what cannot fit. Paying a rush fee cannot make an unavailable approver available.

What usually needs a new schedule?

Treat a changed audience, new product claim, different visual style or additional language as a planning decision, not simply another comment. The effect depends on when it arrives. A script change can alter narration length, screen selection, graphics and timing together. The team should explain the consequence before proceeding.

Do not book publication for the exact minute the master is due. Allow a check on the actual destination: website player, presentation system or social platform. Confirm captions, thumbnail, aspect ratio and links. A technically correct file can still be the wrong version for the placement.

• Missing product access or source footage
• A new decision-maker entering late
• Conflicting feedback without a final owner
• New claims after narration is approved
• Extra formats or languages added at handover

What can you do before kickoff to save time?

Collect the brand files, source material, product access and approved claims. Choose one person who can consolidate feedback and name the people who must approve specialist details. Put their availability beside the production milestones. Ask what happens if either side misses a date.

Finally, define “done”. A master film, caption file, thumbnail and two cutdowns are four delivery requirements, not one vague finish line. A dated schedule should state when each will be reviewed and handed over. That is more useful than agreeing to “as soon as possible” and hoping both sides mean the same thing.