There is no single price for an AI commercial. The cost depends on what the finished ad requires: its length, scenes, characters, language versions, sizes and hooks, revisions, music and usage rights, and delivery date. At Sawa Films every project is quoted after a short brief.
The useful budgeting question is what your finished campaign needs. A price means little until you know the story, shots, languages, versions and approvals it covers.
Two Ways to Buy an AI Commercial
Sawa Films offers two routes, described on our AI commercial production page.
Ready-to-post video ads: short vertical ads with an AI presenter speaking Arabic or English, made for social feeds, with three hooks for every ad, requested with a short brief on our video ads page.
Bespoke commercials and brand films: quoted after a short brief, with a written proposal before production starts. This route suits a developed story, a specific visual style or a commercial intended for formats such as TV and YouTube as well as social.
Whichever route you choose, confirm the scope in the quote before comparing it with another studio's.
What Actually Changes the Quote
These are the questions to settle in a brief, drawn from our published production process; they are not a schedule of extra fees.
Length and the number of scenes. Runtime alone is a poor specification. As a hypothetical example, a 30-second spot with a few carefully composed product shots and a 30-second story with several characters and locations ask for different work. List the important scenes, transitions and product details rather than supplying only a duration.
Characters and presenters. One AI presenter, several characters and a recurring face across a series are different briefs; our guide to a consistent AI character for ads explains why a recurring character needs its look settled early. If a real person such as your founder must appear, say so in the brief, because it changes how the ad is made.
How precisely the product must appear. Packaging, color, shape and label detail need clear references. Our process approves product and styling in still frames before motion, and small label text may need to be added in the edit. Tell the studio which details must remain exact so that the quote reflects that work.
Language and dialect versions. Arabic and English may share a visual production while requiring different scripts, voice-over, on-screen copy and end cards. A Saudi, Emirati, Qatari or Kuwaiti dialect, or Modern Standard Arabic, is a further choice; our guide to Arabic AI voice-over for ads compares the options. Include every version in the brief rather than assuming localization means changing a subtitle file.
Sizes and hooks. A vertical ad, a widescreen master, a shorter cut and a square version are separate deliverables, and hooks multiply them: as a hypothetical example, two ads with three hooks each, in two sizes, make 12 finished files. Your quote should list the files you will actually receive.
Revisions. Concept, script and storyboard approval establish what is being made, and changing the central idea after motion has been produced affects several later stages. Ask how many review rounds the quote covers and what counts as a new direction. Our ready-to-post ads include one free revision and, if we still miss the mark, a remake from scratch at no charge.
Music and voice. Ask whether the music is composed, licensed from a library or supplied by you, and whether its licence, and the voice-over's, covers paid advertising on every platform you plan to use. A track cleared only for organic posts becomes a problem the day you start paying to promote the ad.
Usage rights and licensing. Decide where and for how long the ad will run: social feeds, YouTube, TV or cinema, in one country or across the Gulf. Our ready-to-post ads come with full commercial rights on all platforms, paid and organic, with no time limit. For a bespoke commercial, have the intended usage written into the proposal.
Delivery speed. A close launch date compresses the review windows on both sides. Give the studio the go-live date and ask whether an earlier date changes the scope, the number of versions or the quote.
How a Brief Turns Into a Quote
A quote is only as precise as the brief behind it: the studio turns what you send into a list of deliverables and quotes for that list. The clearer the brief, the fewer assumptions sit inside the number.
At Sawa Films, a video ad request on our video ads page asks for the product, how many ads, the length, the style, the size and the date you need them. We reply within 24 hours on WhatsApp with a price and a delivery date, and you approve a script or concept before we produce. For a bespoke commercial or brand film, send a short brief through our contact page and you receive a written proposal before any production starts.
Frostah: Why the Work Goes Beyond Generation
The Frostah case study describes a real client commercial for freeze-dried fruit snacks. Its production involved repeated generations of product hero shots and compositing brand elements where generation was not reliable enough.
That is a useful way to understand a production quote: it pays for the decisions and finishing that turn generated material into a consistent commercial. A visually attractive frame is not automatically an accurate product shot.
The case study does not disclose the client's budget, so it should not be used to estimate what the Frostah film, or any other film, costs.
How to Compare AI & Live-Action Quotes Fairly
AI can change which parts of a production require a physical shoot. It does not remove the need for a concept, direction, editorial judgment, sound or finishing. Our article on AI versus traditional production explores that distinction.
For a useful comparison, send both studios the same requirements. Ask each quote to identify:
- The creative concept, script and storyboard work included.
- The intended runtime, key scenes and product accuracy requirements.
- The number of finished cuts, aspect ratios, hooks and language versions.
- The review stages, included revisions and treatment of scope changes.
- The music and voice-over licences, the usage rights and the delivery specifications.
- The delivery date, approval deadlines and any items quoted separately.
Compare the complete deliverable, not a generation subscription with a finished production service. Also avoid assuming a universal percentage saving: this guide has no matched project budgets that would support one.
When a Live Shoot Is the Better Investment
If the ad depends on a real founder, a customer's testimony or a recognizable presenter, filming that person may serve the brief better. Our generated characters are invented people, not substitutes for authentic customer evidence, and generated imagery cannot prove that a product performed a particular way. Film a product test or a before-and-after for real.
A script built around extended dialogue or subtle acting may also benefit from human performance. Choose the production method around the message, not around the lowest quote.
How Much Time Should You Allow?
Sawa Films currently gives a typical timeline of two to three weeks from brief to delivery for a 30-second bespoke commercial, and four to eight weeks for longer brand films. These are planning estimates from the service page, not a guarantee for every brief, so supply the launch date early and agree when feedback is due. For ready-to-post video ads, the delivery date comes with the quote, before any work starts.
Questions to Settle Before Requesting a Quote
Is a ready-to-post video ad the same product as a bespoke commercial? No. Ready-to-post ads are short vertical presenter-led social ads, each with three hooks. Bespoke production is scoped around a specific story, look and delivery brief.
Will a longer commercial always cost proportionally more? Not necessarily. Sawa quotes bespoke work on its length and complexity, so the number of scenes and the deliverables matter as much as the runtime.
What should I send first? Describe the product, audience, main message, runtime, placements, languages and launch date. Add brand guidelines and product references. A finished script is not required to start the conversation.
Request your video ads, or send Sawa Films a brief for a bespoke commercial, and we will recommend the right route with a scope that makes the quote easy to understand.
Sources
AI commercial production at Sawa Films
Ready-to-post video ads at Sawa Films
