Sponsor (Oct-Dec 1964)

SPON-SOR TVEEK No Bids on Spot Production— S&F Executive ' New York — Arguing that "it s essential that we spend whatever s necessary in commercial producion to obtain the best results," 'hilip Feld, vice president, radio ind tv department. Street & Finley, Inc., last week called for an pd to the bidding system in de■;iding which production house to ise for tv commercials. Feld said that the bid system probably evolved in the early days )f tv when both agency and client vere new to film production and :ould not conceive of a better way if obtaining a yardstick for projluction cost. j Speaking before the ANA workshop on commercial production, ,Feld declared that the bid system is unique in obtaining creative talbnt. "For example," he said, "I have never known a client to ask an art director to get competitive prices from a still photographer. You trust the art director's judg NBC-TV Racks Up Sales Of $3 Million in Week New York — NBC-TV reports banner daytime sales for the week ending Nov. 13, plus the complete sellout of the East-West Shrine football game. The daytime buys, involving eight sponsors and six shows, totaled more than $3 million. Programs included Concentration, Say When, What's This Song?, Jeopardy, Truth or Consequences and You Don't Say. I Also, with a one-quarter sponsorship purchased by the General Motors Corp., on behalf of the A. C. Spark Plug and Oldsmobile divisions, the Jan. 2 Shrine football game is SRO. The GM order was placed through D. P. Brother and Co. Other sponsors of the game include R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. (Wm. Esty Co.) one-quarter sponsorship, and Savings and Loan Foundation (McCann Erickson, Inc.) one-half sponsorship. November 30, 1964 ment to obtain the best man, at a fair price, to obtain the best result. Why not treat the tv department with the same confidence?" Feld said that proponents of the bid system generally argue that it's a good yardstick, and if the film production company needs the work, they will do it at a cheaper price. Still another argument in favor of the bid system, according to Feld, is that "you get the creative effort and thinking of an assortment of people." Feld countered these arguments by saying, "If we know all the facts, we don't need a yardstick." He added: "I don't believe that it should be the position of a client or agency that they take advantage of a situation which would enable them to pay less than the fair market for a product." The agency vice president also said that we often hear "that we don't necessarily award the job to the low bidder." If price is not going to be the criterion, he said, why ask for competitive bids? Finally, Feld pointed out that having received the bids, all you have is a lump sum figure. "You still don't know why you are paying X dollars for the specific job." F e 1 d' s alternative proposal "would give the agency producer the authority to deal with a single source but require that he obtain the necessary facts to enable both him and the client to understand and render an intelligent judgment on value received." Feld Gives Breakdown on Production Costs New York — In his talk before the ANA tv commercial workshop (see story on this page), Philip Feld, vice president of the radio-tv department. Street & Finney, Inc., gave the following breakdown of estimated production costs for tv spots: Studio — Should run about $300 per day for shooting and 50 percent of that rate for construction and striking. Equipment — Average rental for one-day shooting about $200. Special equipment involves extra charge. Crew and Pre Production Shooting Charges — Average director is paid $200 per day, assistant director $60 per day. Cameraman (top 10 in N.Y.) averages $200, assistant cameraman at $70. Grips, props and electricians normally paid $60 for first man, $50 to $55 for second. Three man sound crew costs about $165 per day. Makeup and hair dresser range from $55 to $150. Wardrobe mistress costs $50. StyHst and home economist about $100 per day each. Sets — Scenic designer averages between $125 to $150 per day. Carpenters and painters cost $55 with a general minimum of two painters on set. Prop and material costs subject to special demands of job. Film — Rule of thumb is a cost of $150 per 1000 feet B&W. Average one-minute spot uses about 3000 feet of live sound, 2000 for silent footage. Opticals — Cost varies tremendously. Average optical negative without complicated devices should run about $500, but can go as high as $4000 per spot. Animation can run from $60 to $200 per foot. Editing — Average oneminute spot should cost about $300. Sound — If job does not have complicated effects, sound transfer and recording charges for voice-over or straight on-camera dialogue should not exceed $300 per commercial. 17