How to Choose a Video Production Company for Your City:7 Questions to Ask Before You Hire

Video is one of the most effective ways for a city to reach residents. It can explain a new program, promote local tourism, recruit staff, or show a project’s progress. But the production company you choose shapes the result. A good partner makes the process smooth and the finished work reflects well on your community. A poor fit can mean missed deadlines, confusing approvals, and content that doesn’t connect.

Before you issue an RFP or sign a contract, ask these seven questions.

1. Do they have experience with public sector work and RFP processes?

Working with a city is different from working with a private business. Public projects involve procurement rules, insurance requirements, multiple stakeholders, and public accountability. A company that already knows this process will spend less time learning your requirements and more time making good work.

Ask: Have you responded to municipal RFPs before? Can you share examples of government or public agency projects?

2. Can they show similar projects in their portfolio?

A polished reel is a good start, but look for work that matches your goals. If you need a tourism campaign, look for destination storytelling. If you need resident outreach, look for clear, approachable explainer content.

Ask: Can you walk me through a project similar to ours, including the goal, what you produced, and how it performed?

3. How do they handle accessibility?

Public communications need to reach everyone. Captions, transcripts, readable on-screen text, and accessible file formats help residents with disabilities, and they also help viewers who watch without sound. Many agencies need deliverables that meet accessibility standards.

Ask: Do you provide captions, transcripts, and ADA-friendly deliverables as part of the project? Do you offer multilingual or Spanish-language versions?

4. What does the timeline and approval process look like?

City projects often involve several reviewers, such as a communications director, department heads, and sometimes elected officials. Without a clear approval process, a project can stall in revisions.

Ask: How many review rounds are included? Who do you need sign-off from, and how do you keep the schedule on track?

5. Who owns the footage and final files?

This is easy to overlook and hard to fix later. You’ll likely want to reuse video on your website, social channels, council meetings, and future campaigns, so clarify usage rights before production starts.

Ask: Do we own the final videos and raw footage? Are there licensing limits on music, stock footage, or on-camera talent?

6. How do they price projects?

Pricing models vary. Some companies charge a flat project fee, others bill hourly, and others price per deliverable. None is automatically better, but you should know what’s included so you can compare proposals fairly.

Ask: What’s included in the quote? What would cause the cost to change, such as extra shoot days, additional edits, or travel?

7. Can they handle video, photo, and design under one roof?

A single campaign usually needs more than video. You may also need still photography for the website, graphics for social media, flyers, or signage. Working with one team keeps the look and message consistent and saves you from coordinating several vendors.

Ask: Can you produce the video, photography, and graphic design for this project, and keep the branding consistent across all of it?

Red Flags to Watch For

• Vague proposals that don’t spell out deliverables

• No clear point of contact or project manager

• No examples of work for similar clients

• Reluctance to discuss ownership, timelines, or revisions

• Prices far below or above other bids with no explanation

Final Thoughts

The right production company understands your goals, respects your process, and makes the work easier for your team. Asking these seven questions up front helps you compare options and choose a partner you can count on.

At Polarlight Productions, we create video, photography, and graphic design for cities, public agencies, and organizations. We’re headquartered in Sacramento and serve clients around the world, with offices in the Bay Area and Temecula. If you’re planning a community project, a tourism campaign, or an RFP, we’d be glad to talk.

Ready to start? Contact Polarlight Productions at 925.719.4430 or laura@polarlightproductions.com to request a proposal.