Now I'm new here so I don't know many people or their accomplishments, so I go tot wondering; who here has had any success in doing their own animation? Like their own studio, or ones started with friends. I want to be able to do it myself, but one has to think what the chances may be and who might have done the same thing.
Hi Hero,
Starting an animation studio is extremely hard to do... You need a LOT of experience to back you up in the eyes of clients.
I tried to open a studio a couple years ago with a partner. I am a director with 15 years of experience, and he is a producer with 20+ years... We still could not make it work, but for us, it was for financial reasons. You need to be very patient when it comes to waiting for clients to get financing in place, and/or getting financing yourself. It does not happen overnight, and you need to have the funds to get you through the lull.
More importantly is the experience though, and the credibility in the eyes of clients, as well as broadcasters (who in turn become 3rd party clients as well).
My suggestion... Work for people for a while and make a name for yourself first. Be patient...
Cheers
"Don't want to end up a cartoon in a cartoon graveyard" - Paul Simon
Thanks for the reply, Wade, I appreciate the advice. I'd love to be able to work with other people on different projects to build up a rep, but I'd be just as happy working on my own animations while doing some menial, low-paying job, if necessary.
What kind of studio did you try to open?
From what I have read in these theards starting your own business might be your only option in this hard to enter job market. There is one here who just this year started is own business, there are photos of his place somewhere around here.
I'm new to this forum also. It seems many are looking for an entry point in an industry that can only see accomplishment and not potential.
The idea of starting your own studio is not as far fetched as it may seem at the outset. The industry has suffered through the excesses of binge aninmation and seems to stagger from boom to bust cycles. Needless to say many entangled in this have become cynical and disllusioned (some call this the survivor syndrome).
I tend to look at animation from the larger context of how fast and how large this industry has become in just the last 25 years. The tools are now low enough in cost that the price of entry is no longer an issue. The implication is that a small, highly motivated team working on a shoestring budget can actually be the seed of the next big thing. The virtual media delivery system that now is either in place or is about to be made available is staggering. The amount of new programming required to fill it is also just as staggering. Traditional media mills are not to savvy to the forces of destiny that have just now begun to stir around them or if they are aren't making that much noise about it.
The one centric theme to all good animation is a good story that has wide audience appeal. So simply said, yet so hard to come buy. The next hurdle is finding the right balance of team to make the whole thing come off. Teams don't have to be in the same geographical areas any longer. Story telling can start small, such as doing the story board into manga or the like to test the theme and fine tune it before taking the next step into key framing the graphic novel into an animated series. This is one example of how such a venture could be started. Will it be easy? No. Will it be hard? Yes. Will it payoff? Who knows? Will it be worthwhile? I think so....,
-Splat!
Okay, I didn't get much of the response I was hoping for, so I figure I should change my question. What obstacles should someone expect to come across when they try to open their own studio? What can you reasonably hope to accomplish working by yourself?
Now, about this working at some low paying job while doing your own stuff... well... That could work for the scriptwriting, storyboarding and maybe the drawing stages. But will you be able to make ends meet when it comes to getting the necessary equipment (powerful computer, scanner, etc)? Will you be able to do everything or will need to hire someone to do something you can't, like sound or music?
I have done a few things for TV, and I am still forced to regard animation as just a hobby, and a very expensive one at that.
Well, I have a few of the necessary supplies now - my computer's pretty decent. And I've got quite a nest egg saved up from my discharge from the AF so I can afford all the programs I may need, maybe even a newer computer to handle the stress. I'm hoping to be able to do everything myself, but is not, I've got a friend doing that same thing that may be able to help me out.