Brave Budget

What is the budget of Brave?

"Brave," a animation released in 2012, was directed by Mark Andrews, Brenda Chapman and stars Kelly Macdonald, Emma Thompson. The production budget was $185,000,000, placing it in the blockbuster range for animation productions of its era.

Key Budget Allocation Categories

While specific budget breakdowns are not publicly available, typical cost drivers for a animation production like this include:

• Animation Production Pipeline: The bulk of an animated film's budget funds the multi-year production pipeline: storyboarding, character modeling, rigging, animation, lighting, rendering, and compositing.
• Voice Talent: Celebrity voice casting has become standard for studio animation, with A-list actors earning $5 to 15 million for voice roles.
• Music, Songs & Sound Design: Original songs and orchestral scores are central to animated storytelling. Sound design for animated worlds must be created entirely from scratch.
• Casting: Brave is the first Pixar film starring a female protagonist.

What were the major cost factors in Brave?

Several factors contributed to the overall production costs of "Brave."

• Animation Production Pipeline: Animation Production Pipeline is one of the primary cost drivers in animation productions of this scale.
• Voice Talent: Voice Talent is one of the primary cost drivers in animation productions of this scale.
• Music: Music, Songs & Sound Design is one of the primary cost drivers in animation productions of this scale.

How Does Brave's Budget Compare to Similar Films?

At $185,000,000, Brave sits in the blockbuster range. Here is how it compares to productions with a similar budget:

• The Dark Knight (2008): Budget $185,000,000, Worldwide Gross $1,004,558,444
• 47 Ronin (2013): Budget $175,000,000, Worldwide Gross $151,783,839
• 2012 (2009): Budget $200,000,000, Worldwide Gross $791,217,826
• Alice Through the Looking Glass (2016): Budget $170,000,000, Worldwide Gross $299,457,024
• Alice in Wonderland (2010): Budget $200,000,000, Worldwide Gross $1,025,467,110

The median budget for wide-release animation films in the 2010s ranges from $30 to 80M for mid-budget to $150M+ for tentpoles.

Brave Box Office Performance

"Brave" earned $237,283,207 domestically and $538,983,207 worldwide at the box office. Against a production budget of $185,000,000, the film performed strongly at the box office.

A film typically needs to earn approximately twice its production budget to cover marketing and distribution costs. For "Brave," that break-even threshold was roughly $370,000,000. With worldwide earnings of $538,983,207, the film cleared that threshold comfortably.

• Production Budget: $185,000,000
• Worldwide Gross: $538,983,207
• Net Return: $353,983,207
• ROI: approximately 191.3%

At 191.3%, "Brave" earned roughly $2.91 for every $1 invested in production.

Brave Production History

Brave is the first Pixar film starring a female protagonist. According to Andrews, Witherspoon was on the project for "quite some time. She was getting her Scottish accent down, she was working very hard and it was sounding great but as we were continuing with the movie she had other movies lining up, so unfortunately we were unable to continue with her and had to get a replacement." Instead, in 2011 it was revealed that Merida was to be voiced by Scottish actress Kelly Macdonald.

The score for Brave was composed by Patrick Doyle and performed by the London Symphony Orchestra. The orchestra was conducted by James Shearman. To bring some of Scotland's native flavor to the music, Doyle used traditional Celtic instruments such as bagpipes, a solo fiddle, Celtic harps, flutes and the bodhrán (a tunable, handheld frame drum), with an electronically treated dulcimer and cimbalom to give it a more contemporary feel.

Awards and Recognition

Won 1 Oscar. 20 wins & 48 nominations total

• Annie Award
• Academy Award for Best Animated Feature: Brenda Chapman (85th Academy Awards)
• Academy Award for Best Animated Feature: Mark Andrews (85th Academy Awards)

Critical Reception

Upon release, Brave received mostly positive reviews from critics, although unlike most Pixar films released to that point, praise was not universal. Audiences polled by CinemaScore during the film's opening weekend gave it an average grade of "A" on a scale from A+ to F.