Animation online: Our future on the 'Net.

Germania, I agree with you. The future of animation is in the internet. I have a site where I am working in animation series (I just have created one), I am still learning, but trying. I hope to be ready, when that happens. And of course It would be nice that there were more places to promote your animations.

If you have time, take a look www.geoticies.com/tucanalweb

Have a nice day.:)

outsourcing is the trend nowadays

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The RedMachine Inc.

Free?

I was with you until you said free.

I knew years ago that Flash and the internet would be PART of the future for animators, but I think we can all agree that we can't live on FREE.

We need to find business models of animation studios who are successful online OR find independent animators that have successfully distributed their work with a "pay per click" compensation package and follow suit.

True, it isn't new. There are many websites that will pay you for the clicks you get, and there are companies that will pay you if your work is downloaded to a mobile phone as well.

Putting your site on YouTube or NewGrounds is okay if you want to get your short or animated series seen by an executive maybe... but I think an animated series that has generated a pay per click income for you might be noticed faster.

Any one here had any success?

I think the ticket is in leading them offline to some purchase, like cards or shirts or something. The other ticket is in getting advertising dollars somehow.

I've set up a free podcast for my content at Itunes, and that's pretty easy to do. Just sitting there by itself, I get a few new views, and that's okay. but on its own not much else will happen. However, I managed to get on an audio podcast with an established podcast with a regular update and got a nice spike in traffic. Turns out the guy writes for a free motorcycle publication that gets reasonable distribution across the western states and beyond. This got me to rethink my strategy a little.

For several years I've been putting out about two animations a year. I'm not too impressed with 'em either--other priorities like family and day job really slow animation. So I lack regular returning traffic--"Man, this guy's had the same crap on here for two years!!".

My solution in anticipation of this article coming out is to re-engage with a comic I started a few years ago and do a weekly update. I dont' expect to sell much of anything at this point, but if traffic picks up I might get a few shirts or something sold.

What I think I need is non-virtual visibility. Yeah--in the real world. This profile will help, and I'm doing post cards to mail out to folks. I also am working on a set of cards to sell this summer during the biker rally here. I don't plan to have a booth, but I'll be selling at a few stores in town. If it goes well, I might make a few hundred bucks or more. Next year I'll add to my product line and maybe have a booth or try to work with vendors.

Meanwhile, if I get ahead of myself in the comic by a month or two, I can get busy on animating again, switching back and forth as needed.

I'm not too optimistic about making money from my website or animation or comic online at this point, however. I think the real deal is real time, real goods sales.

But who knows.:D

The net provides an incredible outlet for animation - even if you're not that good at it :p - but as more and more video comes on the net, which we're already seeing, I think we'll see a marginalization of animation. The early days when a Homestarrunner could dominate the moving web will come to a screeching halt. Regardless, the net remains the best medium for animators. Take my animations. They're ok, but about ten thousand people have seen them simply because I've posted them on a website. I can't imagine what kind of effort it would take for me to get an audience of 10,000 in the real world. I don't even want to think about it. So yes, I think animation's dominance on the web will wane as video becomes easier and easier to post and manipulate, but the web will nonetheless remain the place to do animation.

I think the ticket is in leading them offline to some purchase, like cards or shirts or something. The other ticket is in getting advertising dollars somehow.

One model I find of particular interest is Mondo Mini Shows' "Happy Tree Friends" who've been putting together Flash animations on the 'Net and then on the backside produced DVDs of those animations available for purchase.

I think online animation can be VERY successful for independents. I don't know about offline attention... that's for the big boys (Disney, Apple, Warner Bros.). I am a believer in "Pay Per Click" for independents.

I agree with Big Hache with Mondo Media... they've ALWAYS had a winning strategy for their online content, but it's always been based on a "pay per click" strategy. Before they did the DVD thing with Happy Tree Friends, they created content and sold the rights to host it on websites that wanted more content. They also featured their content on AtomShockwave, which pays per click.

That's how Google became the web powerhouse they are, guys. "Pay Per Click". (This is for those of you that don't know) You know when you run a Google or Yahoo search, the highlighted blue links and the links on the side are "pay per click" ads. The advertisers only pay Google when someone actually clicks on their links. I think independents should take a look at that and arrange their content similarly.

Only post your content on sites that pay you per click. Post your content on as many pay per click sites that you can (Atom Films, iFilm, dovetail.tv). There are multiple podcasting distributors out there as well that pay per download. I think AWN did an article about it recently.

SHHHHH... here would be the ideal situation... if the cost of the clicks on Google were cheaper than what we would get paid from a web host... but I don't think that is the case, and if it were, it wouldn't be for long.

there are youtube-ish sites for animation. one is animation corner
http://www.animationcorner.com/index.php

Animation going online I think is good for exposure and an outlet, but I also have doubts about the commercial profitability of that outlet.

If one were to have a Web site for their studio, and maybe a sample or two of animation, and then have animations commercially available through iTunes or something, that might have more favor. Even if only because of what Web users know of and expect of iTunes as a brand, whereas some other animation Web site may not receive the same consideration.

I could even be way off with that, but that's part of the fun of marketing.

Would online animation work if they take the podcasting route?

I'm sure it could. It's just like any product, you have to have an audience/customer and they have to be willing to buy. Disney has some of their shorts availabe for $1.99 or whatever it is. You could have a per download price or a monthly subscription.

One model I find of particular interest is Mondo Mini Shows' "Happy Tree Friends" who've been putting together Flash animations on the 'Net and then on the backside produced DVDs of those animations available for purchase. There are resources available for self-publishing DVDs that can aid with this approach. I've just been researching this myself so I don't have any actual hands-on doing this yet.

The net is definitely the future. You make of it what you will.
I haven't found a truly profitable model. But I am hoping there isn't just one. I've had fun watching JibJab and the others find their niche. It's a wild open plane and I hope it stays that way for a while. I've gained some status just by putting up my work like Germain suggested. Knd of dropped the ball the last year or so, but hope to catch up. Branched out into other areas, but hope to get back into it. Nothing to stop newbies from establishing a name. Jump in every one!