You wouldn’t cook in a dirty kitchen, so why would you create projects in a dirty folder? Allow me to take you on a magical journey, deep into our project folder tree.
(Disclaimer: Since I am on the video team, I will be giving examples of how we organize our video projects. However, this type of organizational structure is relevant to all creative endeavors. Also, you will notice throughout this blog post that my math is bad.)
Here is what our root project folder structure looks like:
Admin : Pre-production guides, budget, and anything that goes on paper
Assets : Anything that is not video or audio goes in this folder
Audio : Anything sound related
Output : Final product and work in progress renders
Project Files : Where we organize our software project files. Since we mostly use just three programs, it makes more sense to put them all under one folder.
- ae — After Effects project files
- c4d — Cinema4d
- pr — Premiere project files
- Each folder also contains a sub-folder called “repo,” short for repository. This is where older versions of each project file live.
Video : This is where the nectar is extracted — raw camera footage and pre-renders
Your project folder tree can be organized anyway you like. The only two requirements are, A) it fits your production needs and, B) it helps you work more efficiently. In other words, don’t just throw all your stuff into one folder. It will make it hard to find all your assets while you’re making your creative sauce, and that will make it harder for you to give birth to your super sweet project.
