Don't Pitch to Buyers, Pitch to the Audience - Part One

In March, I gave a talk at Animatic T.O, a monthly lecture series about animation started by Barry Sanders and now continued by Andrew Murray as Barry has moved to Halifax.  What follows is an expansion of that talk with the opportunity to offer links.

The whole notion of pitching is an odd one that only exists due to economic circumstances.  People working in media that are inexpensive can go straight to the finished product.  A painter doesn't have to describe the colour palette and the composition of a work, he or she just paints it and shows the final image.  A singer doesn't describe how a song will sound, he or she just sings it.  Animation and other film creators are stuck pitching because creating the finished work is too expensive and time consuming to allow a person to make it without help.

Unfortunately, a pitch is a poor substitute for the finished product for a variety of reasons.  The ability to pitch is a wholly separate skill from the creation of ideas.  Extraverts have an advantage in pitching over introverts, but either type of person can have good ideas.  Furthermore, there are so many variables between an idea and the finished product that a great idea can result in disappointment.  Too much depends on the budget, the schedule, the crew, input from investors and chance.  We are all familiar with movies that look like they will be great before they're released but end up as failures.

There is another odd aspect to pitching.  The person with the ideas doesn't get paid to pitch, but the person without ideas gets paid to listen.  Yet without people willing to pitch for free, the listener has no job.  It's sort of backwards.

Often, the people taking pitches have no history of creating anything.  They have never written, drawn, performed or directed anything for an audience, yet they are the ones sitting in judgment of someone who most likely has.  If the people taking pitches were genuinely creative, they would be creating their own projects for the company and would not have to listen to ideas from anyone else.

Most ideas never reach an audience because the potential buyer says no.   Anyone who has pitched knows that rejections vastly outnumber positive responses.  Should an idea be accepted, it rarely goes into full production.  Usually there is the interim step of development, where the buyer pays the creator a small sum to refine the project further.  The money is not enough to live on, so the creator has to split his or her attention between a day job to pay the bills and refining the idea.

Should an idea go into production, the creator will most likely lose ownership of it and will have to negotiate screen credit, a role in the production, and financial compensation.  This is all complicated by what's known as Hollywood accounting, where projects that are earning money never seem to make a profit.

With the exception of Hollywood accounting, which is a legal form of theft, there aren't any bad guys.  While a creator sees a work as polished and developed, the buyers see it as raw material to be shaped to their own needs.  Buyers have no reservations about changing a work in ways that they think will make it more successful.  As animation requires a hefty investment, they are simply trying to reduce their risk and increase their profits.  Unfortunately, this usually means bending a work towards something that is already successful, meaning that it imitates something else, and the changes are possibly ones that the creator disagrees with.

Steven Pressfield is the author of the novel The Legend of Bagger Vance.  He was hired to write the screenplay, but when Robert Redford got involved with the film, Pressfield was fired so that another screenwriter could be brought in.  Pressfield understood.  In his book, The Authentic Swing, he writes, "The original writer is a pain in the ass.  He has ideas.  He has a point of view.  And the worst part is he believes he possess the moral authority to give voice to these ideas.  You have to get rid of the original writer."

Furthermore, "The writer is not allowed to complain.  You made the deal, dude.  You cashed the check.  Be grateful and shut up."

The key phrase here is "moral authority."  Creators feel that they, more than anyone else, have the right to shape the material.  After all, they created it.  Business people, having taken ownership and invested money, feel that they should be in control.  By selling the rights, the seller has given up the legal right to have a say.  We may agree that the creator has "moral authority," but the owners and the legal system recognize no such thing.

Once a creator gives up ownership, there's more at stake than "moral authority."  When a project is finished, the creator can't continue to work with the characters or other elements without permission from the owners.  I heard an interview with Pete Williams, the creator of the animated MTV series Undergrads, on the Guys with Pencils podcast.  Williams is attempting to revive the series, but because MTV owns it, he has to negotiate to get permission.  Even though the show was his idea, MTV has the right to charge Williams a license fee for trying to revive something he created but they own.  It's strange when you need permission and have to pay to work on something that was your idea to begin with.

If the owners decide to revive a project in the future, they're under no obligation to get the creator involved.  While I don't know specifics, Van Partible, the creator of Johnny Bravo, was not involved with seasons 2 or 3 of the show he created.  In superhero comics, it's fairly standard for the creators of a series to be replaced by new writers and artists in order to maintain sales.

While a creator may have a good personal relationship with the buyer, there's no guarantee that the buyer will remain in place.  Company managements change, companies merge or get sold.  It's possible that nobody involved with the original purchase will be around by the time a project is completed.  This is why it is so important to negotiate a creator's legal relationship with the buyer.  As Sam Goldwyn said, a verbal contract isn't worth the paper it's printed on.

Does pitching have an upside?  Yes it does.  Pitching gives you the opportunity to meet people in positions of authority.  While a creator is probably surrounded by a community of other writers or artists, they're less likely to have relationships with business people.  Enlarging your network is always a positive thing.  Pitching may lead to job opportunities if the people you are pitching to are impressed by you, even if they don't like your idea.

But if you really care about your idea, I believe you shouldn't pitch it to buyers.  If you get someone interested, it will be altered beyond your control and at best, you will have to share ownership and will most likely lose it completely,

To be continued.

How to blow a job interview in 9 easy steps

Interview, a short animated film by Mikkel Okholm and Mikkel Brons-Frandsen

By the time you get to being interviewed for a job, most animation and visual effects companies probably already want to hire you. Why? Because the thing that counts for most in getting hired is your demo reel. They are not hiring you for your good looks or charming conversation - they are hiring you for your skill and talent in digital media.

That said, interviews do matter. They are important mostly because this is the point at which many otherwise excellent candidates blow it, and throw a great opportunity away. How does this happen? Below are some of the most common reasons why candidates screw it up and fail to get hired. Read on and learn from other people's mistakes.


1. Turn up late

You'd be amazed how many people do this. Even at Bucks, we have candidates regularly scheduled for interview who don't turn up, or else turn up late. Why are people late? Often, they haven't figured out how long the journey might take. Or, they didn't leave enough time for getting lost. The problem is - first impressions count. I once turned up for a studio pitch in Los Angeles and my writing partner was 20 minutes late for the meeting on the studio lot, because he got lost on the way there. Needless to say, the studio executive did not buy our idea.

Rule 1 - turn up on time

Ah, the glamour

2. Show little or no interest in the job

A few years ago I was looking for animators at Cinesite for a talking dog movie - not the most glamorous of assignments, but decent bread-and-butter work, and a chance to get really, really good at animating lipsync. One of the animators we interviewed said yes, he wouldn't mind doing talking dogs for a while - as long as he could move on to more interesting work afterwards. Needless to say, we didn't hire him. Why would I hire someone who is doing me a favour by showing up?

Rule 2 - Only interview if you really want the job. Even if you don't, learn to fake it.

3. Fail to do any research about the company

I have interviewed candidates who appeared to know nothing, or next to nothing, about what the company actually did for a living, or what projects we had done. You can’t ask intelligent questions if you don't know in detail what the employer does. At the very least, you should check out the company's web site before the interview. And don’t ask questions that you should be able to answer with a quick Google search.

Years ago, when I applied to Blue Sky Studios for a job, I was just about to leave for the airport when I realised I had not watched their last film, Ice Age. Frantically, I speed-watched the film all the way through, just about got to the end, and ran for the airport. When I arrived at the interview in New York, I was interviewed by almost the entire animation department. Needless to say, they all wanted to know what I thought of their shots in Ice Age. What were my favourite bits? Did I like the film? I got the job.

Best of all, try to find out who might be interviewing you, and look up what they have done. A quick IMDB search will tell you who has worked on what. There is nothing like a bit of gentle flattery ("I really liked the work you did on Fast and The Furious 12") to make sure the meeting goes well. Everyone likes to be complemented on their work. And, knowing who your interviewer is shows that you have done your homework.

Rule 3. Do your research

4. Talk about yourself at great length

As with dating, so it is with job interviews. No-one wants to hear someone bore on about themselves and their achievements. Listen carefully, speak when spoken to, and don't ramble. Interviews are not the place for lengthy anecdotes, however amusing.

Rule 4 - don't be a bore


5. Be rude. 

Recently I interviewed a candidate at Bucks who kept me waiting at the reception desk for almost ten minutes while she finished her very important phone call. Needless to say, she did not get offered a place on our course. Why would I want to spend three years teaching someone who is so carelessly and obviously rude?

Rule 5 - Manners makyth man


6.  Criticise your current (or past) employer.

Badmouthing your boss is a common and disastrous interview offense. Employers know that if you publicly criticise your current employer, you are hardly likely to be discreet about your next position. Even if you really hate where you work, or used to work, try to find something positive about the experience. After all, you must have learned something useful, however unpleasant the job.

Rule 6 - don't air your dirty laundry in public


7. Claim credit for things you didn’t do.

Never ever put work you did not do yourself on your demo reel. If you worked on a joint project, only show the shots that you did yourself. If you shared a shot with others, explain what you did (and did not do) in detail. Don't ever pass off someone else's work as your own. Our industry is a small one - you will get found out.

Rule 7 - Be honest about your work


8. Ask how much you will get paid.

An interview is rarely the place to talk about money, and you should never raise it yourself. Money is the next stage, once the company has decided they like you, and will typically be handled by someone in Human Resources. You may, however, get asked by your employer at your interview how much you were paid in your last job. Remember that you don't have to answer this question if you don't want to (especially if you weren't paid much). You can always be vague or evasive. Say "oh, the market rate", or ""I don't remember exactly - I'll have to check and get back to you".

Rule 8 - don't raise the subject of money at your interview

Dream on

9. Tell your future employer your dream is to direct Hollywood movies

We all have dreams, but an interview for a roto tracking position or a running job is not the place to air them in detail. Entry level jobs involve menial drudgery, making tea and doing repetitive tasks. If you tell your future employer you want to be Steven Spielberg, they will think you are an unrealistic dreamer. Much better by far to tell them your dream is to be a well-rounded visual effects artist. This is a practical goal that they can actually help you achieve.

When I taught at CalArts back in the late 1990s, one of my most talented students blew a great opportunity at Warner Bros by doing exactly this at an interview for an entry-level position, saying he really, really wanted to direct. The producer who interviewed him was simply annoyed - everyone in Hollywood wants to direct. The job was a production internship - doing the boring stuff that no-one else wanted to do. Needless to say, my student did not get the job.

Rule 9 - Be modest.


This isn't an exhaustive list, of course. There are as many ways to mess up an interview as there are stars in the sky. But these are some of the most common errors. Learn from the mistakes of others and don't repeat them.

----Alex

(Editor's Note: For more practical advice on careers, read about what our graduates had to say at the recent Graduate Panel. Check out this post on how to set up an small business. Also learn about your first client project, read out our post on Portfolio Careers, and read this piece on Survival as a Freelancer. Study the nuts and bolts of freelance life by reading our guide to invoicing clients, and our guide to freelancers and taxes.  For more on careers in general, check out our guide to animation careers here, and also take a look at this map of digital studios - a great place to start your search for work in the business. Finally see our article on the jobs page at awn.com )

A Couple of Animation Workflow Videos

The 1st video is from Laurent Caneiro over at Dreamworks. He shows off his workflow comparison between his reference footage and shots.

This next video is by Disney animator Daniel Peixe. He goes through one of his shots on Frozen and his workflow how he quickly went about it in 2D and the comparison to what he ended up with in 3D.

ShotProgressionSven from Daniel Peixe on Vimeo.

Great stuff all the way around and some really fun insight to workflows!
Enjoy!
JP

Can our students at Bucks make you a short animated film?

Here at Bucks we often get asked this question: Can your students make me a short animated film? The answer is a loud and enthusiastic yes. We love making animated films, and we love doing "live briefs" for outside clients. We have even set up a small film co-operative at www.nano-films.com especially to create short films. In practice, there are two ways we can go about making you a film. The best road to travel depends on the answer to this basic question: Do you have a budget?



If the answer to this question is yes, then go directly to www.nano-films.com and check out what we have done for other clients. We have made films for as little as £1,000, and even if you have a very, very tight budget we can still make you something exciting and special. Our current undergraduates and recent graduates are super-talented and they like taking on small freelance jobs to develop their portfolios and become fully-fledged professionals. We will make you something you will be proud of.

If the answer is no, then it gets a little more complex. We can still make something great, but now we need a bit more assistance from you. This is because the tutors at Bucks (that's me) will have to sell your project to our students, get them excited about it, and motivate them to complete a project for which they will receive no payment. What this means in practice is this: the project must be a really good one. In particular, we will be looking for answers to the following:  

1. What is the story you want to tell? It helps a lot if you have a story in mind. We can help you flesh one out, but having a fairly detailed idea in of what your story is, is an important starting point. 
2. How long is it? Remember that animation is slow, expensive, and time-consuming. Anything over 2-3 minutes is probably too long.
3. Who is it for? If it's for charity, that's a big plus. We will gladly help out a good cause but we don't want to work on freebies for, say, Goldman Sachs. They can afford to pay.
4. What style do you want? Everyone likes Toy Story, but we can't deliver Pixar quality on a shoestring budget. If you can show us a relatively simple style of animation that you like, this helps point us in the right direction. Links to YouTube videos are ideal.
5. When do you need it done by? Everyone needs a deadline.

Timing is also important. Most of our students start casting around for ideas for short film productions in September or October, with production generally finishing in the Spring of the following year.

If you would like a short film made here at Bucks, email me at alexander.williams@bucks.ac.uk, making sure to answer as many of the questions above as you can. We'll do our level best to help you out and create something truly excellent.

To see more about Nano Films, check out our website.

---Alex

(Editor's Note: To see some of the impressive work done by our students and recent graduates here at Bucks, check out the work of Jens Kopke,  Ben Gray's Moonbeam, and the architectural visualisations of Sabah Masood. Also take a look at the work of Andy Thomas, see our latest commercial project for Rocketseed, our short film done for a global aid agency, and take a look at the excellent work of designer Monika Dzikowicz, architectural visualisation specialist Krsytof Michalski, Alex Whitfield and the 3D artwork of Mike Swan.)

Sheridan Summer Workshop

BAFTA offers scholarships worth £10,000 for post-graduate courses in film, television or games

BAFTA has now opened applications for its scholarship programmes. The BAFTA Scholarship Programme, which assists talented UK nationals in need of financial support to study a post-graduate course in film, television or games in the UK, is now accepting applications for the forthcoming academic year. The deadline for applications is Monday 16 June.

What is on offer?

Each BAFTA Scholar will receive:

1. Up to £10,000 towards their course fees for a year
2. Mentoring support from BAFTA members
3. Free access to BAFTA events around the UK. 

In addition, three of the chosen scholars will receive the Prince William Scholarship in Film, Television and Games, supported by BAFTA and Warner Bros.

President of BAFTA

These scholarships are awarded in the name of HRH The Duke of Cambridge in his role as President of BAFTA. The recipients will have their fees funded by Warner Bros. and will additionally receive a short funded work placement within the Warner Bros. group of companies, access to a Warner Bros. mentor, and invitations to a series of industry masterclasses.

Further information on eligible courses, and how to apply, can all be found here.

---Alex

(Editor's Note: For more on scholarships, see this post on the National Scholarship Programme, check out our guide to tuition fees, and read about previous BAFTA scholarships here.)

Viral Tap wants your videos - £1,000 prize!

Stephen Partridge, who runs the Media Production Department at Bucks, has brought in an exciting competition for all our talented students at Bucks, from a former colleague who is working on a new show for ITV2 titled Viral Tap.

Viral Tap is an panel show presented by Caroline Flack, which will showcase entertaining clips sent in by contributors. Viral Tap will be putting a weekly call out for clips and also wants weekly contributions to be filmed by members of the public - that means you and me.



Below is a copy of their flyer which sets out all the details.

The show is presented by Caroline Flack, and they are offering a £1,000 prize for the best videos. To find out more, go to www.itv.com/viraltap.

Caroline Flack

Here at Bucks we believe that entering competitions is good practice for a successful freelance career. Even if you don't win, the knowledge you gain along the way is invaluable for the next time you try. Every time you enter a competition you raise your game and get a little better at it. Before you know it, you will be entering and winning.

---Alex

(Editor's Note: for more on recent animation competitions, check out this competition from Aardman Animation,  and this competition from Sofa.com)