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ANIMATION WORLD MAGAZINE - ISSUE 5.6 - SEPTEMBER 2000
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The Power Behind Atomic Cartoons Staying Competitive "We'll work night and day, 24 hours a day. We've got the night shift going. We work on the weekends. Whatever it takes. I hope that comes across. We're pushing real hard to be competitive, and to produce a higher quality of cartoon." Atomic is a "full pre-production" house, offering its clients "full service right from the script," Davies says. This includes traditional and Flash animation, as well as designs, storyboards, layouts, mouth positions, exposure sheet timing and design/background color.
Although Atomic is a small operation, Davies sees that as an advantage. "We're not executive top-heavy in our company," he says. "We're right in the trenches with everybody. Our overhead is standard. I don't think there's a lot of mismanagement and waste. If there's any money being wasted, we see it right away. That allows us to be cost-efficient, as well. "But that shouldn't be the prime motivator for anybody coming to us," Davies says. "When a client comes to us, they should expect that they're going to get the experience that we have in producing cartoons. "The four partners each have over a decade of experience. "We have a lot of artistic pride in our studio. That's what separates us from a lot of places. We're not driven solely by money. We're driven first by the content, being that we're an artist-run studio. So the content is the number one motivator. And then the paychecks," Davies adds. Keeping the Spark "When you get out of school, or first get into animation, everybody's got that creative spark. The world is your oyster. You're going to take on the world. Nothing can stop you. You've got that drive and ambition. You're willing to do whatever it takes," Davies says. "Then you've been in the industry for awhile, and you've gotten complacent. You're comfortable. You're in your cubicle and you've been there for ten years, and this is your position and not a care in the world -- until it gets taken away from you. Suddenly you're right back to where you started. And, the spark's gone. "People are going to have to start rekindling that spark -- that same thing that got them to succeed and got them into the industry in the first place. People are going to have to reach down and get that spark back, and go, 'OK. I'd forgotten, but I'm an artist and I'm a creator. I have a talent and a desire, and I'm going to have to start using that desire right now, because nobody's there supporting me with a regular paycheck any more.' "Maybe the Internet's not the answer, but this creative spark is a symbol of what people can accomplish on their own, something that artists may have forgotten (being part of a big company or having the union support for many years). They'd forgotten what it's like to make their own cartoons, to get together with their friends in a basement somewhere, and make their own comic book or their own cartoon.
"We're forced to get the creative spark back. The marketplace isn't the same as it was before. We can't just sit back and have people knock on our doors and say, 'Here's a cartload of work for you.' That's not happening any more. "We've got to generate our own make-work program. To keep people energized. To keep them excited about what they do for a living, instead of sitting at home with no job complaining about it. We've got to keep that drive going and it's not easy for anybody to do that." At Atomic Cartoons, Davies says, "We're trying to get some good service jobs. We're trying to do the best job possible with them. Then when we can squeeze out an hour here or a couple hours there, we're trying to do our own cartoons, as well, to keep that spark going. "That's our prime motivation right now, is to: (1. keep the paychecks coming in, but If you are having trouble watching Dog in a Box with Two Wheels download the latest version of Macromedia Flash Player now. Bob Miller is an animation professional who has written extensively about the industry for Starlog, Comics Scene, Animation Magazine, Animato!, Animation Planet, Comics Buyer's Guide and APATOONS. He served on the first season of Courage, the Cowardly Dog as storyboard supervisor and is currently working at Film Roman storyboarding episodes of The Simpsons.
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