Guides

By Syntax Motion, Vienna. Updated: 16 October 2026

What we get asked in first calls, written down. These pages are meant to be useful before you commission anything, including when you commission somebody else. Where something is a legal question we say so and say where the limits of our answer are.

All guides

AI in advertisingWhere AI is used in image, video, text and voice, with chances, risks and a checklist. AI labelling in advertisingWhat Article 50 of the EU AI Act has required since August 2026, plus the platform rules. Copyright in AI videoWhether an AI film is protected, who holds the rights and what the tool terms allow. Testimonial video and AIWhat is possible with a real customer voice and where the deception begins. Choosing an AI video agencyQuestions for the first call, warning signs in an offer and how to compare properly. AI commercial examplesCampaigns by Coca-Cola, Toys"R"Us, McDonald's, Heinz and Lacalut, with sources and lessons. AI video or traditional shootTool, agency and shoot compared, with the cases where AI is the wrong answer.

Cost and budget

The cost question comes up in almost every first call. These pages compare conventional production, hybrid and AI with sources.

What a commercial costsPrice ranges and cost drivers for conventional, hybrid and AI production. What a brand film costsThe same comparison for brand films, with market sources from Austria and Germany. Brand film examplesOur own films with the story behind them, and where the method reached its limit. PricingWhat moves the price with us, from 1,000 € net.

Our services

The guides explain the subject, the service pages describe what we actually do.

AI commercialCommercials and ad films without a shoot day, in every format. Brand filmsBrand and founder films for website, trade fair and sales. Explainer video60 to 120 seconds answering a single question. UGC videoAds in the style of real user clips, with a clear line to deception. Avatar videoDigital presenters for training, product and social media, multilingual. Product videoYour product at the centre, built from your own photography. Training videoOnboarding, software and mandatory topics, multilingual and updatable. Social adsShort advertising in portrait format, in variants built for testing. Recruiting videoWhere AI helps and where only real people will do. Video production in ViennaWhat working with a Vienna agency means, on site or remote. Glossary37 terms from AI video production, from aspect ratio to upscaling.

How these guides are made

They are written at Syntax Motion, an AI video agency in Vienna with seven people. Who stands behind them, with names and faces, is on about us. The topics come out of first calls: what do marketing people actually ask before commissioning an AI production?

We hold to three rules:

Every external fact with a source. Statutes, studies and other brands' campaigns are linked to the primary source, not to an article about the source. The retrieval date is stated with it.
Every legal piece with a date. The legal position on AI changes fast. So every legal guide carries a date, and none of them replaces legal advice.
Limits belong in the text. Where AI is worse than a shoot, we write it down, even when it speaks against our own offer. An agency page on which everything is possible is no help in deciding.

Figures from our own work are marked as such. When we write that at least five discarded shots go into one that is used, that is our experience from running projects, not a market study.

Missing a topic, or did we get something wrong? Write to contact@syntaxmotion.com. We add corrections and note them on the article.

From the workshop

In the blog we write about the work itself: how many attempts one shot costs, how we test new models and why we turn down briefs. The guides explain the subject, the blog shows the workshop.

Read on: How a project runs • About us • Contact

Frequently asked questions

What are these guides for?

For the questions that come before a commission: what is allowed, what costs what, how to recognise a capable agency. They are written to be useful even if you end up choosing someone else.

What is the difference to the blog?

The guides cover subjects that will read the same in a year. The blog reports from the workshop: what is happening in our projects right now and what goes wrong in them.

Are the legal pieces binding advice?

No. They summarise the state of play for practitioners and name the sources. For a binding assessment of a specific campaign, ask a lawyer.

Do these apply outside the EU?

The EU AI Act applies to content placed on the EU market, including advertising aimed at European audiences from elsewhere. Other rules differ by country, and we say so where it matters.

A specific question about your project?

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