State of the TVC + Content Industry: Budgets tighter, timelines shorter, briefs more fragmented, yet drive for emotionally resonant, beautifully crafted storytelling remains
Step back and the picture is clear: the Australian production industry is under pressure, but it’s also alive with reinvention. Budgets are tighter, timelines shorter, and briefs more fragmented, yet the drive for emotionally resonant, beautifully crafted storytelling remains. AI is here, collaboration is borderless, and craft still matters. Beneath it all, the belief in creativity – and the people who make it – endures. CB reports…
The Australian commercial production market has always been defined by its ability to do more with less. In 2025, that instinct has hardened.
“It would be remiss not to state the obvious – budgets are tighter, and timelines are shorter,” says Clockwork Films Executive Producer & Partner Katie Trew. “The challenge has become how to maintain creative excellence within these new parameters. What hasn’t decreased is ambition or the collective drive to make meaningful work. We’re seeing a real shift toward smarter, more strategic production models. The focus now is on efficiency without compromise: making every production day count, every dollar work harder, and every idea stretch further.”
Trew’s read is echoed by Optika Director & Executive Producer James Tyrrell, who says the same forces are reshaping not just process, but culture. “The conversation still centres around the usual challenges; tighter budgets, higher expectations, and faster turnarounds but we’re also seeing a real surge in creative problem-solving. Some of the scripts coming through are genuinely sharp and inventive, and the constraints are forcing everyone – agencies, clients, and production alike — to think more strategically about how to get the most out of every dollar. It’s driving a collaborative spirit, where creativity and practicality meet in new ways.”
According to AiCandy Co-Founder & Head of Production Kent Boswell, the past year has been transformative, with agencies and clients approaching production with renewed curiosity and a drive for greater efficiency. Says Boswell: “As timelines shrink and budgets tighten, AI powered and hybrid production workflows are redefining what can be achieved. What once took months is now expected in weeks. In skilled hands, AI filmmaking delivers cinematic, emotionally resonant stories with remarkable speed and precision. It marks a new era where technology and creativity combine to make previously impossible ideas a reality.”
Adds DDB Melbourne Head of Production Sonia McLaverty: “The Australian advertising landscape has definitely felt some shifts over the past year. The election and the US tariffs have had a definite impact, with the first half of the year being slower than ‘normal’ and less work coming through overall. Budgets continue to tighten, and timelines are getting shorter, a trend we’re all feeling across the industry! That said, there’s been some great work coming out of Australia this year. The second half of the year has seen a real pickup in activity, and there’s a stronger sense of optimism across the board, which is great to see. The campaigns we are making are more integrated and connected than ever, with more moving parts, but bigger platforms at the heart of them.”
According to Droga5 ANZ, part of Accenture Song, National Head of Production Romanca Mundrea, it’s been an interesting year on all fronts. “More than ever, clients are expecting agencies to deliver more stretch for their dollar,” she says. “That might mean finding smarter ways to approach production, building in practical efficiencies, or understanding if and where AI can play a role. There’s definitely a stronger focus on value – but not at the expense of creativity or craft.”
VML Executive Producer Rachel Rider adds: “AI. It’s replaced ‘content’ as the advertising buzzword. Client expectations with this new tech are that there should be significant cost and time savings. On the smaller funnel work, that might be the case but on bigger pieces of work, AI allows a lot more scrutiny so we are finding there are more rounds of amends happening and clients wanting to try more options because they can.”
Flint Co-Founder & Executive Producer Rachel Henderson has witnessed a clear return to the craft of photography. “We’re seeing more dedicated stills campaigns, as well as integrated productions where stills and motion are captured side by side,” she says. “But what’s really evolved is how those assets now live and work together. Increasingly, clients are looking for cohesive storytelling across formats: TVCs, hero films, stills, and high-end social, all built from the same creative DNA.”
In Queensland, Taxi Film Production General Manager Kohbe Vela-Smith says the market’s undercurrent of tension has been impossible to ignore. “There’s an inescapable mix of uncertainty and tension in general, fuelled by the loss of certain industry business players up here in Queensland,” she says. “We as a business are not immune to that feeling, but we know we offer a reputable product, our work isn’t beheld to just one market, and we’d rather focus on the future and forging ahead with strength.”
For Light + Shade Executive Producer Matt Bamkin, the story isn’t just about economics – it’s about structure. “Over the past year, advancements in technology and the accessibility of new tools haven’t so much changed the type of work coming through, but rather the way our industry operates,” he says. “We’ve witnessed a significant evolution in the traditional advertising production and post-production workflow.”
Historically, he explains, most projects followed a linear pathway, from client to agency to production company. “That model has become increasingly decentralised and the boundaries between clients, agencies and production companies are blurring, as agencies develop their own production capabilities and clients bring more of their advertising functions in-house. Many now possess varying degrees of in-house creative and production expertise.”
The result is that briefs now arrive in wildly different stages of readiness. “Our production team often engages earlier than before, spending more time in pre stages to assess feasibility and align creative ambitions with budget realities. Likewise, directors and creative post specialists are being brought into the conversation sooner, helping shape ideas before they reach the formal quoting stage.”
Vandal Managing Director Brenden Johnson notes the biggest change over the past year has been the move away from traditional broadcast. He says: “Not too long ago, broadcast and digital were about even, but now broadcast accounts for only around a quarter of what we do – a real significant flip from how things used to be.”
Adds House of Groms Founder & Director Kurt Tilse: “We have definitely noticed a lot more opportunities this year in comparison to the past two. In terms of the type of work we are seeing, a lot of brands are focussing on BVOD, high end social campaigns and OOH media.”
Summing up the evolution of the industry over the past year, Filmgraphics Executive Producer Anna Fawcett says you can see the change on-screen: “Telstra’s work with Bear Meets Eagle has really lifted the creative bar – it’s a reminder that brave, well-crafted ideas still matter. At the same time, there’s a wave of fast, social content that keeps brands relevant, and plenty of middle-of-the-road corporate films that tick boxes but don’t really connect. The standout work proves there’s still huge value in creativity that takes a risk.”
Creative Ambition
With pressure coming from all sides – budgets, timelines, fragmentation – creative ambition isn’t collapsing, it’s morphing.
“While the economic pressure is real, it’s also inspiring innovation – forcing teams to think differently, experiment more boldly, and reimagine what’s possible within leaner frameworks,” says Trew. “Creativity, after all, has always thrived within constraint.”
Tyrrell calls it a constant exercise in expectation management. “The biggest challenge we’ve seen is balancing creative ambition with financial reality. We’re often managing expectations, helping brands and agencies understand what’s achievable within a leaner budget while still protecting the integrity of the idea. It’s meant more open conversations about where money matters most, and more education around the processes that ensure quality doesn’t slip.”
He adds that the modern agency producer has never been more valuable. “As agency structures evolve, we’re finding that teams with an experienced producer on board are far better equipped to get productions moving; they understand the mechanics, they advocate for the right things, and they help create a smoother, more collaborative process when every dollar counts.”
Whilst acknowledging that tighter budgets have impacted the scale of some productions, Mundrea at Droga5 ANZ says they haven’t dampened creative ambition: “If anything, they’ve forced us to think differently – and that’s not a bad thing. We’ve had to find smarter, more innovative ways to get to the same level of impact. The end result is still just as important as it was five years ago; it’s just a different kind of challenge now for all of us.”
Bamkin says the equation isn’t just smaller budgets – it’s bigger expectations. “From our perspective, budgets aren’t necessarily shrinking, but what’s expected within those budgets has increased significantly. It’s very much a case of delivering more for the same. The average project now involves well over 200 individual assets across traditional TV, digital out-of-home and social channels. The sheer volume of deliverables, versions, cutdowns and format variations continues to grow and there’s no sign of that trend slowing down.”
Johnson believes that speed and fragmentation have permanently changed what ‘finished’ looks like. “What’s interesting, though, is that both clients and brands have become more comfortable with work that isn’t always fully polished – as long as it feels authentic, relevant, and quick to market.”
Fawcett sounds a quiet warning: “Tighter budgets and quick turnaround have created versatile filmmakers, but it’s also showing in the work. Storytelling can suffer, and a lot of what comes through ends up feeling either like B-grade comedy or similar lifestyle vignettes. The challenge now is finding ways to keep creativity alive within these constraints.”
Boswell adds: “We’re seeing two distinct but equally exciting movements. On one side, our clients are leaning into visually ambitious, cinematic storytelling that tests the limits of what AI can create. On the other, there’s a wave of fast, idea-led projects that were once too costly or complex to bring to life. Those long-forgotten ‘bottom drawer’ ideas are also finally getting the chance to spring to life. As confidence in AI filmmaking grows, creativity is now no longer defined by what’s possible, but by how far your imagination can take you.”
On taking creative risks, Tilse says: “In this current climate, where attention is the commodity, you would be crazy not to take some calculated risk. AI is certainly going to continue to impact the industry. However, I feel like a big trend we are going to see over the next 12 months is brands and agency partnering with production companies to build out more narrative work and treating owned channels like a media outlet; whether this is a social media video series or short form documentary advertisements.”
On ambition under speed, McLaverty says there’s a strong focus on producing content for social platforms, which naturally demands agility. “For the first time in my career, I turned around an entire shoot, including talent and multiple locations, from brief to live within a week. It was incredibly challenging by any standard, and I really hope that doesn’t become the new norm! That said, it’s been great to see how adaptable and resourceful teams have become. The creativity and problem-solving that come out of those tight turnarounds can be pretty inspiring.”
On split risk appetites, Rider says: “It’s a real mix of both. Smaller clients still have big risk appetites as they seek to do something standout on smaller production and media budgets – our client 1001 has been a great example of this. Larger clients have creative ambition but there are more people on their side that need buy in, so the work doesn’t get up as frequently. We’ve been able to get some great work live in the social and gaming space with KitKat via ‘The Break Chair’ and ‘Commuter Camo’. Hats off to Telstra, Didi and the NZHF client for taking risks.”
On speed with integrity, Henderson adds: “Speed is the new constant. We’re being asked to deliver more assets across more formats in tighter timeframes, with social content often captured alongside stills or adapted from motion. The challenge is designing productions that stay agile without compromising creative integrity. No matter how fast we move, the goal is to keep the work feeling intentional, beautifully made, and creatively strong.”
AI and the new workflow
If 2023 was hype and 2024 was onboarding, 2025 is operational. AI is now part of the workflow.
“The most significant has been AI, which has been a positive new tool,” says Johnson. “We’ve integrated AI into our workflow by automating repetitive, time-consuming tasks, so the team can focus on the creative, high-value elements that truly elevate the final content.”
Fawcett says AI’s impact is tangible. “AI has definitely helped us as a useful tool for developing treatments, storyboards, speeding up research and creating scenes, which otherwise would be cost-prohibitive or impossible. When it is used thoughtfully as part of the creative process, not instead of, it does free up more time and is cost efficient.”
Bamkin notes it’s changing pre-production most of all. “The advent of generative AI has allowed us to visualise creative thinking more effectively and efficiently than ever before. The ability to take what’s written on a page and transform it into the early visual expression of a campaign has been remarkable.”
That same toolkit now extends into post. “AI has also proven invaluable in post-production. Recently, we were tasked with reimagining a campaign for a client using footage originally shot during COVID. There were several shots we needed, but didn’t have the budget to re-shoot, primarily tight details and textures. By feeding the existing footage into a generative model and applying the right prompts, we were able to create those missing moments seamlessly in line with the original material.”
Tyrrell says for Optika, AI is now simply part of the daily rhythm. “The tools are evolving at a rapid pace, and we’ve been integrating them into our workflow on a daily basis. AI is helping us move faster without sacrificing craft. It’s both exciting and slightly nerve-racking to see where this revolution will take commercial production.”
But for him, value remains human. “While AI might be the hottest topic in the room, we’re still most excited about creating work that has a heartbeat; stories grounded in real people, real moments, and genuine emotion.”
Trew agrees, stating: “As technology in production evolves at an unprecedented rate, there’s a clear desire from brands to tell their stories with humanity and authenticity. AI can help us do this – but it’s only as powerful as the people guiding it.”
Commenting on AI in craft, Henderson says: “AI has well and truly entered the room, and we’re embracing it as a creative tool rather than a replacement for craft. Our photographers and directors use various AI platforms to build treatments and previsualisations. It’s become a dynamic sketchbook that helps align the creative vision early and communicate ideas visually from the start. In post, we’re blending AI-assisted workflows into retouching and CGI, allowing the visuals to evolve faster, with quicker clean-ups and compositing, while still keeping the human touch.”
Vela-Smith says: “As a production company, we have certainly dipped our toes into the warm waters of generative AI to explore how it can complement and extend our production offering. But like the drunkest person at the bar, it’s still a bit annoying, a little bit smug, and you’re not sure how much you should actually trust it.”
She adds that client appetite is still uncertain. “In all seriousness, it feels like the dialogue is certainly there about AI as a potential solve, but on the occasions where AI solutions could integrate seamlessly into real-world production, the appetite from clients sometimes fades. That said, we have a generative AI-centric project about to launch very soon and we are super excited (and indeed a bit nervous) to see how it lands and what the general creative response to it is.”
Across the board, there’s agreement on one point. “While AI is an incredibly powerful concept, we still see it as a creative tool, not a replacement for human ingenuity,” says Bamkin.
Boswell underscores the human-first pipeline: “The rapid rise of generative AI and hybrid production workflows has completely redefined what is possible in filmmaking. The leap in capability over the past year has been extraordinary, with cinematic quality now virtually indistinguishable from traditional production. But while these AI tools are available to everyone, it is only in the right creative hands that they become truly powerful.”
On tools and access, Tilse says: “I can’t say a specific tool, as it’s just the general competitive nature of the camera market. It feels like every second week we are being introduced to a new, latest and greatest camera or piece of equipment that enables us to push the boundaries further. If blockbuster Hollywood films are being made on entry level cinema cameras in 2025, there is no excuse to not to be able to create captivating visuals.”
Growth Channels
Ask any production company where the growth is and the answer comes quick: social, branded, and anything that scales.
“We’ve seen a lift in branded content,” says Johnson. “TVCs are still part of the mix, but the real growth is in projects that live across multiple media, social, digital, and increasingly, experiential.”
Vela-Smith agrees. “Taxi is definitely seeing a growth in the branded content space and given our working relationship with Born Bred Talent, we are able to create seamless synergy between production and the influencer space, which agencies and clients have been responding really favourably to.”
Bamkin says: “Across the industry, the volume of assets required per campaign has increased and continues to rise. It’s no longer confined to one area; the demand for content is simply broader and more continuous than ever before.”
Fawcett adds perspective from overseas. “Looking at award-winning global work, I would say social, case studies, and experimental projects are having the most impact.”
Tyrrell sees longer-form storytelling gaining ground. “The biggest growth continues to be in social content, but we’re also seeing a real uptick in longer-form storytelling that lives natively on YouTube. Those projects are exciting because they allow for a deeper narrative; a chance to build tone, character, and emotion in ways that short form doesn’t always allow. It’s a format that lets filmmakers flex a little more creative muscle, while still delivering the authenticity and engagement that audiences and brands are craving.”
Over at Droga5 ANZ, Mundrea is seeing immense growth in ideas coming to life across new channels. She says social continues to go from strength to strength: “It’s now a critical part of almost every campaign – not just an add-on – and it’s where we’re seeing a lot of creative energy and innovation. There is growing interest from clients in non-traditional, experiential approaches, with more openness to ideas that push beyond the expected.”
On format versus idea, Boswell says: “For us, the medium matters less than the message. Whether it’s a brand film, a social moment, or an experiential piece, what drives us is creating work that truly connects with an audience to make them feel something. AI is simply the enabler that allows us to craft those stories faster, smarter, and with greater creative freedom than ever before.”
On rising briefs, Tilse says: “We’ve noticed more branded content and social campaigns come in with more ambitious projects.”
When it comes to social momentum, McLaverty says: “Social has had the biggest growth this year. A lot more briefs are specific to social, across the board. We co-developed Meta’s global playbook on shooting campaigns for Reels and built our own integrated production guide for social content, so this has been a real area of growth for our team.”
On OOH, gaming and experiential, Rider says: “There’s been a renewed push in the OOH space – the work is unskippable, can be localised, and when done well, attention grabbing. For clients like Nestle, it’s deep audience engagement media like gaming and social, with support from PR, that is generating great brand metrics. And then on the flip side to gaming and social, we’re also seeing people crave real experiences, so there’s also been an uptick in engagement through our experiential projects.”
And finally on growth through integration, Henderson adds: “Branded stills, high-end social content, and integrated campaigns have driven the most growth for us, all areas where storytelling and craft sit at the centre. We’ve also seen increasing demand for international shoots, with brands wanting cohesive stills and motion captured within a single, efficient production. Traditional TVCs are fewer but more focused, often supported by stills and social extensions captured by the same team to maintain consistency and creative continuity across every platform.”
Global vs Local
“It’s been mostly domestic work this year, with the global side of the business noticeably quieter,” admits Johnson at Vandal. “International opportunities seem to have slowed… The upside is that it’s allowed us to deepen relationships at home.”
Tyrrell says: “We’ve had the opportunity to collaborate with creative partners in New York and Vancouver, line producing some exciting global brand projects here in Australia and New Zealand.”
Bamkin points to government incentives as a bright spot. “While our core focus has traditionally been on domestic campaigns, one exciting area of growth has come as a direct result of the Queensland and Australian Government’s feature film incentives targeting American studios. These programs have driven a significant increase in feature film activity across Queensland, and we’ve been fortunate to play a role in the advertising components of several of these productions.”
Fawcett notes Filmgraphics’ new alliance. “Filmgraphics has joined forces with a global company to enable us to have access to a range of talented artists and together hopefully find opportunities and solutions to create the best possible creative outcome for our clients.”
Boswell has witnessed an international split: “Since launching, our work has been almost evenly divided between local and international projects, with the US and Europe quickly becoming our strongest markets. Our very first project came from Paris, which was an early sign of how global the appetite for AI-powered filmmaking is. The response from overseas clients has been remarkable as they are curious and excited to explore how this new creative medium can bring their stories to life in fresh and innovative ways. We’re seeing the same thinking locally, as Australian brands increasingly recognise the creative potential of AI filmmaking.”
Commenting on integrated, multi-market sets, Henderson adds: “While most of our work is local, recent months brought exciting global projects. Andreas Smetana shot Xbox out of London (client in the US, shoot in Sydney) and travelled to New York for Dupixent. Toby Dixon shot OPSM across Australia and New Zealand for Milan, and both delivered regional campaigns for Standard Chartered Bank in Thailand and Hong Kong. Our integrated stills-and-motion model continues to appeal to brands seeking cohesive creative across markets.”
Talent and Retention
If the work is fragmenting and the tech is accelerating, who’s actually doing the work?
“There’s a consistent appetite from both agencies and clients to collaborate with emerging directing and producing talent,” says Trew.
“For production companies, talent retention is now about culture as much as opportunity. People stay where they feel creatively challenged, supported, and seen.”
Fawcett observes that directors are becoming multi-skilled, taking on roles such as photographer and DP themselves. “Many are also learning AI tools to streamline workflows and support their creative executions.”
Read the whole report + a lot more articles in the latest issue of Campaign Brief magazine, out next week….
