How The Budget Of A $636,010 Web Series Breaks Down

Last year, top YouTuber Freddie Wong launched a Kickstarter campaign for Video Game High School, a proposed web series. The campaign was an instant success, raising hundreds of thousands more than the typical Kickstarter drives headed by the horde of unknown, independent producers.

Still, at the end of the day, the $273,725 raised by VGHS paled in comparison to its production budget, which, after nine episodes, had ballooned to $636,010.71.

Rookie web series producers may look at that number and wonder how one series could possibly cost so much. Luckily for those folks (and creators in general), Wong has released an infographic

on production studio Rocket Jump‘s blog, breaking down the cost of the VGHS series and allowing us to see where the money goes.

Of course, this chart must be taken with a grain of salt. Given the millions of views each episode of VGHS received, Rocket Jump had a lot of leeway with its production budget, which explains how they were able to spend $289 on a throwaway gag. Still, the infographic is useful as an honest judge of production costs from which creators who aren’t flush with cash can build their own budget, cutting out any costs they feel are superfluous. Some services, such as high-quality special effects, are obviously expensive; who knew, however, that filming on location came with such a monetary impediment? The cost of shooting out in the real world makes me understand why so many frugal creators embrace the green screen despite its faults.

For viewers, the infographic represents the importance of supporting worthwhile projects. Making a halfway-decent project is more expensive than you’d think. If you really dig a project, supporting it with money is important. Judging from these stats, the creator you are funding will appreciate it more than you’d think.