Guides · AI commercials and advertising
How to choose an AI commercial studio: 7 questions before you hire
By Toni RieraArt director and digital retoucher, Toni Riera AI Studio. Published: 19 October 2026.
Short answer
To choose an AI commercial studio, don’t focus on which tools it uses but on how it controls the result: whether it keeps your product accurate in every shot, lets you approve keyframes before animation, has finished commercials for real brands, what the price includes and who owns the rights. These seven questions help you compare proposals.
The seven questions
1. How do you keep my product accurate in every shot?
This is the most important question if your product has a logo, a label or a specific design. Look for an answer with a method: starting from real photos or files, retouching the keyframes and discarding takes where the product changes. Be wary of “with a good prompt”.
2. Can I approve the keyframes before animation?
Approving each shot as a still avoids surprises and costly changes in video. If the studio only shows you the finished video, any correction will be slower.
3. Do you have finished commercials for real brands?
Demos show the style, but also ask for work for real, named clients. And check that the studio clearly tells them apart.
4. Who directs the project?
AI generates; someone has to decide what’s being said, how it looks and when a take isn’t good enough. Ask who handles art direction and who checks the product shot by shot.
5. What does the price include?
Music, sound, voice-over, number of versions and formats, resolution and revision rounds. Two quotes for the same amount can include very different things.
6. Who owns the usage rights?
The final pieces should be yours for commercial use, and the studio should work with tools that allow it. Ask for it in writing.
7. How many revision rounds and what timelines?
A clear schedule (from keyframe approval to delivery) and the included rounds avoid misunderstandings.
Warning signs
- The portfolio only has demos, or doesn’t distinguish demos from client work.
- There’s no approval stage before animation.
- The product in the examples changes from shot to shot: logo, colour or shape.
- The quote doesn’t detail what it includes.
- Nobody mentions usage rights.
My answers at Toni Riera AI Studio
I start from the real product and retouch the keyframes by hand; you approve them before animation; I discard takes where the product changes. I have work for real clients (Havas Play, DDB, Bryan Stepwise) and label demos as demos. Music and sound included, one or two revision rounds depending on the format and commercial usage rights with no limits. A social spot starts at €800.
Frequently asked questions
Is a large production company or a small studio better?
It depends on the project. A large production company brings structure for campaigns with shoots and big teams; a small studio, direct contact with whoever does the work and tighter prices. What matters is that it answers the seven questions well.
How do I know if a portfolio commercial was for a real client?
Ask directly. A serious studio names the client or agency for each piece of work and labels demos as demos.
What should I send to get a quote?
Photos of the product from 3 or 4 angles, references, where it will run, the length and the deadline. With that any studio can give you an estimate.
Send me your product. I’ll set it in motion.
Photos, renders or whatever you have. Within 24–48 h I’ll tell you how I’d turn it into video and what it costs.