On this page
How to use it
- Start the list on the day the client approves the final cut.
- Work down it in order: masters, text, rights, handoff, archive.
- Put a name in the Who column for every row.
- Release the files after the balance is paid, with the handoff email.
- Finish with the job costed, budget against actual, while you still remember why.
The checks that catch real mistakes
Most delivery problems are small and public: a name spelled wrong in a caption, a vertical cut with the logo under the platform's buttons, a music track the license does not cover for paid ads. Each has a row above.
| Check | What goes wrong without it |
|---|---|
| Play the web file end to end | A black frame or a sound drop from the export |
| Caption spell check | A client's own name misspelled, for everyone to see |
| Vertical safe areas | Text hidden under the like and share buttons |
| Loudness | A film much quieter or louder than everything around it |
| Music license | A film muted on a platform, or a claim on a paid ad |
| Payment before release | Chasing a balance on a job the client already has |
File names that make sense in a year
Use one pattern for every file, with the client, project, version, length or ratio, and the spec. A file named `coastal_brandfilm_v3_final_FINAL2.mov` helps nobody. One named `coastalrealty_brandfilm_v3_2m30_uhd_prores422hq.mov` tells the client and your future self what it is.
| Part | Example |
|---|---|
| Client | coastalrealty |
| Project | brandfilm |
| Version | v3 |
| Length or ratio | 2m30 or 9x16 |
| Spec | uhd_prores422hq or 1080_h264 |
How Cutvey does this
In Cutvey the delivery page opens when a cut is approved and the agreed fee is paid in full, with a password, a last day and download counts if you want them. An approved cut can join the delivery with no second upload, and a spec check reads each file's real resolution, frame rate, codec and audio and tells you what does not match, without blocking anything. Captions come from transcripts made on Cutvey's own media box, on a press. Payment-gated delivery and the delivery spec check.
Frequently asked
What formats should I deliver?
What the agreement lists. A master (often ProRes) for the client's archive, an H.264 web file, and the vertical and short versions they bought, each with captions.
How long should I keep a client's files?
As long as your agreement says, and tell the client that number in the delivery email. Keep your own masters somewhere other than the delivery link.
Goes with this stage of a job: Deliver and get paid. More free paperwork on the templates page, and free tools that work in your browser.