Content Cabinet
The short answer
A brand film is a short film, usually 60 seconds to 5 minutes, about why a company exists rather than what it sells. It is made to be remembered and shared, not to drive an immediate sale. Google India's Reunion is a well-known example: three and a half minutes about two old friends separated by Partition, with Google Search in the background. It has 16.7 million views.
In India, most serious brand films cost ₹3 lakh to ₹15 lakh, according to Balladi Studios' 2026 price guide, and take four to ten weeks.
A brand film, an ad and a corporate video are different jobs
| Brand film | Ad film | Corporate video | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Job | Make people feel something about the company | Get people to buy or act now | Explain the company to people who need the facts |
| Length | 60 seconds to 5 minutes | 10 to 60 seconds | 2 to 5 minutes |
| The product | Late, small or absent | Front and centre | Shown with features |
| Lives on | Website, YouTube, events, the founder's feed | Paid media | Website, sales decks, investor and hiring pages |
| Success looks like | People remember it and pass it on | Clicks, sales, recall | Fewer questions in sales calls |
Six examples, and what each one does
Google Search: Reunion (2013)
An old man tells his granddaughter about Yusuf, his childhood best friend in Lahore, and the sweet shop they used to raid. She uses Google Search to find the friend and bring them together. Search is how the story moves forward, never what the story is about.
Vicks: One in a Million, #TouchOfCare (2018)
A purpose film built around a real family. The brand earns its place by standing for care, then gets out of the way.
Cadbury: Not Just A Cadbury Ad (2021)
A Diwali campaign that used Shah Rukh Khan to promote small local shops instead of the chocolate. A brand film can do good in public and still be about the brand.
Airbnb: Breaking Down Walls (2014)
A son takes his father, once a guard on the west side of the Berlin Wall, back to Berlin. Their host turns out to be the man who guarded the other side. Seventy-six seconds about belonging, which is what Airbnb wanted to own.
Dropbox: For All Things Worth Saving (2021)
It opens with "Remember the sound of your sister's laugh?" and turns files into memories. A software company can make a brand film too; the trick is finding what the files mean to people.
One of ours: Aiming Higher, for StudioK (2026)
A manifesto film for StudioK's founder residency in Bengaluru about why so many of India's brightest people settle for less than they could build. One of eight films we made for the residency's opening.
What makes a brand film work
- One feeling. Reunion is about friendship. Breaking Down Walls is about belonging. If you need two words, you have two films.
- The product arrives late, if at all. In Reunion, Search appears only as the tool the granddaughter uses.
- Real people or real stories. Vicks built its film on a true story.
- A line people repeat. "For all things worth saving" works as a film title and a brand line.
- Sound does half the work. Plan the voice and the music as carefully as the pictures; Reunion and Breaking Down Walls are both carried by a single narrator.
When not to make one
- Before you know who your customer is. A brand film cannot fix an unclear position.
- When you need leads this quarter. Make an explainer or a demo instead.
- When your leadership cannot agree on the one feeling. The film will try to say everything and land nothing.
What a brand film costs in India
| Tier | Typical budget | What it gets you |
|---|---|---|
| Entry | About ₹3 lakh | A credible website hero film: tight script, limited locations, strong edit |
| Mid | About ₹8 lakh | Premium look, proper art direction, talent, custom music |
| High | About ₹15 lakh | Production close to a digital TV commercial, multiple locations |
| National TV with celebrity | ₹25 lakh to ₹2 crore+ | Celebrity talent, broadcast rights, multi-city shoots |
Balladi Studios puts the timeline at four to eight weeks for the ₹3 lakh and ₹8 lakh tiers, and six to ten weeks at ₹15 lakh. Add 18% GST to any quote that excludes it.
Questions people ask
What is the difference between a brand film and an ad?
An ad asks people to buy or act now and puts the product front and centre. A brand film is about why the company exists, keeps the product late or small, and is made to be remembered and shared.
How long should a brand film be?
Most run 60 seconds to 3 minutes. Reunion runs 3 minutes 32 seconds; Airbnb's Breaking Down Walls runs 76 seconds.
How much does a brand film cost in India?
Most serious brand films cost ₹3 lakh to ₹15 lakh, according to Balladi Studios' 2026 guide. National TV films with celebrities start around ₹25 lakh.
Where should a brand film be used?
On your website, YouTube and the founder's channels, at events and in investor and hiring conversations. It is rarely the best use of performance ad money.
Is a corporate video the same as a brand film?
No. A corporate video explains the company and its facts; a brand film makes people feel something about why the company exists.