creative-brief

Creative Brief

Convert a vague client ask ("we need a cool animated explainer") into a structured, sign-off-ready creative brief, and generate the exact clarifying questions to send when the client cannot articulate what they want.

When to use

Use when starting any motion project, when a client request lacks the detail needed to scope or quote, when a brief needs to be drafted for client approval, or when a "make it cool" request must be translated into concrete direction. A locked brief is the contract for creative intent; everything downstream (estimate, scope, revisions, delivery) depends on it.

Core principle

A brief is not a wish list — it is a decision document. Every project decision should trace back to one line in the brief. The job is to interrogate eleven dimensions until each has a concrete, written answer, then lock it with a sign-off line. Vague answers are not acceptable; convert each one into a specific, testable statement.

Decision tree — how far to take the brief

The judgment is how much rigour this brief needs and what to do with each gap. Don't over-process a one-day social cutdown; don't under-process a broadcast campaign.

Is the creative intent already clear and agreed in writing?
├─ YES → write a 1-page lightweight brief, confirm, proceed. Don't re-interrogate.
└─ NO → run full 11-dimension interrogation.
        │
        For each dimension, classify the answer:
        ├─ Concrete & testable        → record it, move on.
        ├─ Vague ("cool", "modern")   → run vague-translator → offer bounded choice.
        ├─ Blank                      → pull matching clarifying question (by gap).
        └─ Contradictory / 3 messages → force-rank, surface the conflict to the
                                        decision-maker, do NOT average them.
        │
        Can you proceed without the answer?
        ├─ Cosmetic gap        → write best assumption, flag [ASSUMPTION — confirm].
        └─ Scope/cost-defining → BLOCK. No budget, no air date, no single message,
           gap (budget,           no named placements = stop and resolve before
           date, message,         design. These set the price and the spec.
           distribution)

Rule of thumb: gaps that change the price or the spec are blockers; gaps that only change execution detail become flagged assumptions.

The 11 interrogation dimensions

Capture a concrete answer for each. If the client cannot answer, send the matching clarifying question (see references/clarifying-questions.md).

1. Business goal — what the business needs to change (awareness, sign-ups, sales, comprehension). Must be measurable, not "engagement."
2. Audience — who watches, where their head is at, their objection. Specific persona, not "everyone."
3. Core message — the ONE thing a viewer must remember. One sentence. If there are three, the brief is not done.
4. Tone / feel — 3-5 adjectives plus a "but not" (e.g. "playful but not childish"). Tie to reference frames.
5. Mandatories — brand assets, logo lockup rules, colour/font system, legal disclaimers, super/endcard, clearcast/regulatory needs.
6. Deliverables — exact count, durations, and versions (e.g. 1× 30s hero, 3× 6s cutdowns, 1× static endframe).
7. Distribution — exact placements (IG Reels, paid YouTube pre-roll, trade-show loop, broadcast). This drives spec and aspect ratios.
8. References — 2-4 links with a note on what to steal from each ("the pacing here, not the colour"). Also anti-references.
9. Timeline — final air date working backwards through delivery, revisions, animation, design, script/board, kickoff.
10. Budget — a real number or a band. "No budget yet" is a red flag to resolve before design starts.
11. Success metric — how success is judged 30 days post-launch. Defines "done well," not just "done."

Question bank by gap (which question fixes which hole)

Match the gap to the single highest-leverage question. Full send-ready bank in references/clarifying-questions.md.

Gap in the ask	The one question that closes it
No measurable goal	"If this works, what number on a dashboard moves?"
Audience = "everyone"	"Who must act first? That's the audience."
Three messages	"Rank these 1-3; the brief carries #1, the rest become later assets."
Tone with no guardrail	"Pick 3-5 words — then the important one: what must it NOT feel like?"
Vague tone ("modern")	Run vague-translator → "Closer to A (calm/slow) or B (punchy/fast)?"
No mandatories listed	"Send logo files, brand guide, fonts, colours, and any legal super."
Fuzzy deliverables	"Exactly how many videos, what durations, which ratios/versions?"
"Social" (no platform)	"Which exact placements — Reels, TikTok, pre-roll, web hero, TV?"
No / endless references	"Send 2-4 you love (one line each on what to steal) + 1 you hate."
No date	"What's the hard air date, and who gives the final yes?"
No budget	"Projects like this run X-Y — which end are we?"
No success metric	"30 days out, what makes this a win?"

Workflow

1. Intake. Read the raw client ask. Extract whatever maps to the 11 dimensions; mark the rest as gaps.
2. Triage gaps. For each blank or vague dimension, pull the matching clarifying question. Group them into one consolidated email — never drip-feed questions across days.
3. Draft the brief. Fill the template below. Where the client was vague, write the best assumption and flag it [ASSUMPTION — confirm].
4. Pressure-test. Check the message is singular, the tone has a "but not," deliverables have counts and durations, and distribution maps to real specs.
5. Send for sign-off. Include the sign-off block. No design work begins until it is returned approved.

The brief template

PROJECT BRIEF — [Project name]                     Date: ___  Version: ___
Client: ___   Main contact (decision-maker): ___   Prepared by: ___

1. BUSINESS GOAL
   We are making this so that: [measurable change]

2. AUDIENCE
   Primary: [persona, context, mindset, key objection]

3. CORE MESSAGE (the one thing)
   After watching, the viewer thinks/does: [one sentence]

4. TONE / FEEL
   It feels: [adj, adj, adj] — but NOT [adj, adj]

5. MANDATORIES
   Logo: [lockup + rules]   Colour/Type: [system]
   Legal/super/endcard: [required text]   Regulatory: [Y/N — body]

6. DELIVERABLES
   [count × duration × ratio × format]  (full list in delivery section)

7. DISTRIBUTION
   Placements: [exact channels + paid/organic]

8. REFERENCES
   • [link] — take: [what to steal]
   • Anti-ref: [link] — avoid: [what]

9. TIMELINE (back from air date)
   Air: ___  Final delivery: ___  Rev rounds: ___  Animation: ___
   Design/boards: ___  Script: ___  Kickoff: ___

10. BUDGET
    [number or band] — covers: [scope]

11. SUCCESS METRIC
    30 days out, success = [metric + target]

ASSUMPTIONS TO CONFIRM
   • [ASSUMPTION] ...

SIGN-OFF
   This brief is the agreed creative intent. Changes after sign-off are
   handled as change requests.
   Approved by: __________  Title: ______  Date: ______

Handling "I don't know what I want"

Do not ask the client to design. Offer bounded choices instead of open questions:

• Replace "What tone do you want?" with "Closer to A (calm, premium, slow) or B (punchy, bold, fast)?"
• Replace "Any references?" with "Of these three styles, which is nearest — and what's wrong with it?"
• Force a single message: "If the viewer forgets everything but one line, which line?"
• Anchor budget with a band: "Projects like this usually land between X and Y — which end are we?"

Convert every vague adjective using the translator in references/vague-translator.md ("clean" → which of: minimal layout / lots of negative space / limited palette / slow easing?).

Worked examples

GOOD — a core-message line that closes decisions:

After watching, the viewer thinks: "Invoicing that takes 30 seconds."

One sentence, one idea, testable. Every scene can be checked against it; pacing, copy, and the endcard all trace back to this line. Full start-to-finish brief in references/worked-example.md.

ANTI-PATTERN — the "kitchen-sink" brief that guarantees revisions:

Goal: drive engagement and awareness and sign-ups. Audience: everyone who'd love our product. Message: we're innovative, affordable, easy to use, and trusted. Tone: modern, cool, fun but professional. Make it pop.

Why it fails: no measurable goal, no real audience, four competing messages, a tone with no guardrail, and an untranslated "pop." Nothing here can be approved or disproven, so round 1 becomes a discovery session on the client's dime. The fix is the entire workflow above: force one goal, one audience, one message, one "but not," and translate "pop" into a bounded choice before any design.

Common mistakes

Symptom	Why it happens	Fix
Brief reads like a wish list	Captured the client's words verbatim instead of decisions	Convert every line to a concrete, testable statement
Round 1 turns into "what do you actually want?"	Started design with blockers unresolved	Block on goal/budget/date/message/platform before design
Tone keeps drifting in reviews	No "but not" guardrail set	Add the guardrail adjective; it prevents ~80% of tone revisions
Three messages, muddy film	Averaged competing messages instead of ranking	Force-rank; carry #1, park the rest as future assets
Spec/quote keeps changing	Distribution left as "social"	Pin exact placements — they define ratio, length, and price
Client "approves" then reopens it	No sign-off block / decision-maker unclear	Identify the single decision-maker; lock with the sign-off line
References pull in five directions	Endless refs, no "take" notes	Cap at 4, require a "what to steal" note + 1 anti-reference

Deliverable spec — what a good brief contains

The output is a one-page document (the filled template) plus, when gaps exist, one consolidated clarifying email. A good brief:

• Fits roughly one page — long enough to decide, short enough to read.
• Has a concrete, testable answer in every one of the 11 dimensions (or a flagged [ASSUMPTION]).
• Carries exactly one core message and a tone with a "but not."
• Lists deliverables with counts, durations, and ratios, and distribution as named placements.
• Names the single decision-maker and ends with the sign-off block.

Before you finish — checklist

• Core message is ONE sentence (not two, not three).
• Tone has a "but not" guardrail.
• Goal is measurable; success metric has a target and a timeframe.
• Budget is a real number or an agreed band (no "TBD").
• Air date set; schedule runs backwards from it.
• Deliverables have counts + durations + ratios; distribution is named placements.
• References capped at 4, each with a "take," plus 1 anti-reference.
• Every vague adjective was translated to a concrete choice.
• Assumptions flagged [ASSUMPTION — confirm]; decision-maker named; sign-off block present.

Related frameworks

The brief sets intent; two sibling skills turn that intent into motion direction — reference them, don't restate them here:

• motion-art-direction — once tone is locked (dimension 4), pick a named Motion Personality preset there and cite it in the brief so everyone animates to the same numeric feel.
• animation-principles — the Three Pillars (intent → tone → craft) are the upstream version of this brief's logic; the Primary/Secondary/Ambient motion layers and the 1/3 Rule belong in execution, not the brief — don't pull them in here.

Quick reference

Symptom	Move
"Make it pop / cool / modern"	Run the vague-translator; offer 2 bounded options
Three core messages	Force-rank; brief carries one, others become future assets
No budget given	Anchor with a band before any design
"Everyone" is the audience	Ask who must act first; that is the audience
No air date	Set delivery date first, schedule backwards
Endless references	Cap at 4 + require a "take" note + 1 anti-reference
Tone with no "but not"	Add the guardrail adjective; it prevents 80% of revisions

Reference files

• references/clarifying-questions.md — the full bank of send-ready clarifying questions, one set per dimension, plus the consolidated intake email template.
• references/vague-translator.md — vague-adjective → concrete-question lookup table and the bounded-choice question patterns.
• references/worked-example.md — a real vague ask turned into a completed brief, start to finish.