This article is to set some expectations for common hurdles that naturally work their way out over time...
Often when I’m working with someone new and they are trying to find their bearings they will ask
'How long does animation take?'
Well.. it depends!
because people don’t have a strong sense of how much time or effort is needed, they won’t feel confident knowing what they can or can’t ask for. And they don’t want to offend or burden me by asking for too much! This is an uncertain position to be in.
The truth is that while yes some kinds of animation take a long time, other kinds I can do quickly and easily. Some because I’m highly skilled or because it’s just so simple to do. And we don't know what kind of animation we are talking about.
It really depends on lots of factors, mostly related to the visual style which will get figured out in pre-production.
It’s much better for both of us to let our imaginations run free with the concepts and ideas keeping the objective or audience in mind!
If we aren’t precious about the visual style - about it looking specifically as you picture in your head, then we will likely discover better ways to communicate the overall meaning through brainstorming.
If something is too visually complicated - that’s my responsibility to tell you, it isn’t your responsibility to know beforehand -we get there when we get there. :)
Why a monthly subscription? what if the animation takes too long to create?
I'm not actively seeking out people who need just one animation.
I'm looking for people or organizations who would benefit from multiple or ongoing videos, that need a creative arm.
In my previous way of doing business, I did fixed rates for videos which places a boundary around what I can contribute.
Working with a subscription allows us to work in a more fluid and flexible way and allows me to contribute holistically without feeling that I am overstepping.
A monthly subscription also allows us to build a rhythm and working relationship together. Without committing to a large upfront cost or charging per video.
If you are working with me for £500 a month over the course of 4 months that's £2000 and you could get multiple videos within that time that might have cost you a fixed rate of £2000 each. If you had asked for any one of them individually.
Costing out videos based on the differing efforts needed to create them is really tedious, hard and when we are negotiating fixed rates any miscalculations of expected timelines or unexpected problems create stressors. It also creates odd pressures on the videos we do create to fulfil multiple functions that would be better suited spread across shorter videos
All of that can be avoided by working with a monthly subscription.
What is the creating process like?
if we are starting from scratch, there are 4 rounds
Pre-Production
Production 1 (Generating)
Production 2 (Integrating & Refining)
Post-Production
Additionally, we are cycling through 5 creative phases each time.
Experimenting / Making / Looking / Deliberating
(& Incubation in between each)
Pre-production
is made up of conversations, ideation back and forth, scriptwriting, initial sketches, and test animations.
I have a lot of experience with creative facilitation
So I'm comfortable leading and following. Your idea might not be clear -no problem.
In pre-production we're trying to get:
A finished script, a visual style, and a coherent vision.
Production 1 (Generating)
This is where the animation and audio start getting created. This is where I take the lead and we have occasional check-ins.
Production 2 (Integrating & Refining)
When the animation and the audio are created separately, when they come together they often don't initially work.
The viewer's brain is processing visual, auditory, emotional, and conceptual information at the same time. And often the visuals or sound need breathing room to let the information actually process. So the audio and visuals often need editing and tweaking. Which is what this phase is for.
Post-production
This is for the bulk of the editing and some minor polishes here and there. Post-production also includes marketing, writing copy designing the video thumbnails the release of the video, sharing, and posting across various social media platforms.
And also reviewing what went well and what could have been better about the previous rounds for next time. Designing new processes to implement.
Best wishes, Josh