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Is it that hard to start a successful studio?

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Is it that hard to start a successful studio?

In class the other day, we all had to introduce ourselves and I was the only one who said I wanted to open up my own studio, that was my goal for being at art school. Everyone else just wanted to "get better". They all looked at me funny when I said that, atleast I think they did. But I dunno, its kinda weird to me that no one else ive seen actually wants to start their own animation studio one day... I mean, is it really that hard? Is it just not fun? Requires lotsa money? How did people before even manage to start theirs?

I have alot of confidence in myself, and so when I say something, it goes! : D Haha. But really, is their something I should be scared about? Any success stories out there? Failures? What should I avoid, etc. Just looking for some useful info!!

There are a couple other people here who have worn those shoes and can help you, and will be chiming in, but I think there's an objective answer and a subjective answer to this question.

My supposition is that you'd have to care about it more than anything else in your life to see it through. It also depends on who you are. Some people drive to their mailbox finding too much effort in the 14 step walk. Others paint chapels, or take care of mentally-challenge orphans.

I think a large part of your initial success is staying informed, and really drawing from your life experience. If you've never dealt with a true challenge before, you'll be annihilated, regardless of how you feel about your personality. There's the chance though, that failure or not, -attempting- this could be the thing that provides you with that chutz, or that character.

I'd never be one to squash ambitions, though. New experiences are what life is all about...best of fortunes...

Just a guess, but you expressed a commercial desire in an art class. Sometimes that generates funny looks...

Don't worry about it - go after what you want, and let the funny looks fall where they may...;)

If your main goal is to start an animation studio and not to be an artist, then maybe going to buisness school would be better suited to your goal. You can always take art classes so you are familiar with the animation process. I'm not saying artists can't run a studio, but you will need to know more of the buisness side of things than the art side of things if you are running a studio. Good luck to you.

Aloha,
the Ape

...we must all face a choice, between what is right... and what is easy."

Well, I'm one of the few folks posting here that has, indeed, started a studio. I co-founded an animation studio in Vancouver, ran it with two other partners for about 2 years and then I left it to pursue freelance on my own.
This was about 10 years ago--and they were happy times and they were frustrating times.

Firstly, if you want to do this, do it for yourself.
Secondly, understand that starting a studio will place you at the whims of others so you MUST be comfortable with compromise.
I left my studio because I realized I wasn't doing it for myself and I wasn't willing to compromise on some things.

Is it hard?
Oh yea.
Its started with a few people realizing they could pbring in work that was paying them more than they personally needed. A few phone calls, a few clients willing to take a chance, and even a few that had to be persuaded to take a chance on us and contracts started coming in. We supplied work to their needs and liking and got more work as a result, we gained a reputation for doing stuff..........it built from there. I knew jack-shit about business then, I let my partners handle quite a bit of that......I was more a "factory" guy--churning out the artwork.
We did about a quarter million in business the first year, and we had about 6 employees outside of the three partners. The work was varied, and fun. We'd go from action adventure shows one job to a comedy cartoon the next, to a sweet pre-school show to adventure again, often in a manner of weeks, and with no lag-time between.
Artistically, it was a zenith time for me personally, I was churning out work that all our clients loved (well, 99% of them) and I was having the time of my life creating.
I had a few things to prove and got the chance to prove it.
Towards the end of the second year, we had about 12 employees at our peak, and I think we edged up near about $400K that year. Had I stayed, I think we could have hit a million bucks in contracts inside of two additional years.
But to get there meant holding onto talent that just wasn't being paid enough, dealing with artists and their sometimes messed-up proclivites and priorites. Having to choose between projects that looked "fun" against projects that were just lame-ass shit, but paid a lot more, dealing with overhead, health, family issues.......life changes......... The two senior partners ( me and another fellow) were also the two most experienced talents. Together we turned out 50-60% of the work in the studio, day in/out. Remember, I said we had up to TWELVE other people working there, yet two of us still had to produceover 50% of the output. There was something wrong there.

The resentments, the hassles, the dramas...............I came to realize it was not worth it for me. The studio in question no longer exists as a business entity today.

Now, I know two other guys that tried the same thing about 10 years before we did. They went through the same stuff, worse in fact--but they bore it out. These two guys now head the largest animation studio on the west coast of Canada. Their personal worth is in the lower several millions--their studio does tens of millions of dollars in business each year--so much so that they own their own building.
They earned it all too.

The stresses, the tears, the triumphs are all theirs, but its next to impossible to imagine what the journey can be like.

If you are serious about doing this, learn EVERYTHING about everything. Become paranoid about what you don't know.
Those that say youj cannot do it, smile at them when you internalize telling them to "eff-off". Be prepared to shoulder the bruden, even if you are paying others to shoulder your part, because its YOUR responsibility to see things get done. You can never let your guard down, until the thing can safely run on its own.
The glamour of a studio is a veneer, and a pretty shallow one at that. The early years will be fraught with things that can gut and sink the whole thing inside of a single working day!
You'll probably see little financial reward out of it for a long time, and even then, what you do see will have to go back into the business, at least for the time being.

But.........if the dream holds you............it'll be one of the biggest ( and potentially most rewarding) undertakings of your life.

"We all grow older, we do not have to grow up"--Archie Goodwin ( 1937-1998)

Well, thanks for all the kind words everyone :) To answer the 'are you really serious about this questions', it is YES. Im more than serious that I want to one start making my own animated movies or TV shows. I have so many ideas, and sure everyone else does too, but I really feel confident in myself.

Im an artist too. I love all art forms, even the art of starting a business. :p Sure, my main goal here is to start an animation studio, but this isnt a studio for the sake of making money by animating stuff for other people (btw, im not money hungry, and I dont wish to become rich one day). I want to animate -my- own stories and characters. Like Disney. I want to be the Director, the scriptwriter, the story boardest, the character designer, the animator, etc for most of my stories. A one women studio, lol. Nah, I want others to work with aswell. Friends preferably. And the fact that im a chick doesnt make it less likely this will happen, its the fact that im a chick that makes it the more reason to start an successful studio! How many other woman have anyway? I dont mind being the first :3

I guess I was expecting to hear that it is going to be hard, but I dont let that discourage me. Im putting so many things in my life that I feel are important just for this one goal. Its hard already! Ya know? XP And I just started college too. But im not about to do all this training, waste all my money, time and energy just to become a better artist like everyone else wants to be. I want bigger. :D Heh. I might sound silly, because im sure alot of people fail at this, but I like challenges anyway.

"Just a guess, but you expressed a commercial desire in an art class. Sometimes that generates funny looks..."

Hm, really, thats interesting. I didnt know it was such a weird thing for art students, especially since their mostly animation and gaming majors.

And the fact that im a chick doesnt make it less likely this will happen, its the fact that im a chick that makes it the more reason to start an successful studio! How many other woman have anyway? I dont mind being the first :3

You are not the first.
I can think offhand of at least two or three other women who head up successful studios, and I know there's a lot more than that.
Gender has NOTHING to do with this--its all about perseverance and talent.

"We all grow older, we do not have to grow up"--Archie Goodwin ( 1937-1998)

Hm, really, thats interesting. I didnt know it was such a weird thing for art students, especially since their mostly animation and gaming majors.

It's very weird for art students, less so for animation majors, and even less so for gaming. But every one of those students is pursuing artistic endeavors, and therefore considers him- or herself an artist first and foremost. That brings with it a certain mindset which frequently includes disdain for business. It's unfortunate, because some folks never realize that if they work in a studio, they're engaged in commercial art, and commerce is the driving force.

You also have a very big dream, and many people just don't think that big. And then you went and said it OUT LOUD, making it a reality and a goal. That scares some folks. Personally, I admire your attitude and your goals. Go get 'em!

Yah, you've no shortage of enthusiasm...channel that as much as possible...and if it isn't overwhelming to do so, aim ridiculously high so when the unexpected...expects itself =) you still wind up at a satisfying place.

I totally agree with Ken Davis.
I have my own animation company.
If anyone ask me, I say 'reconsider'.

Good luck.

i find people come and go in the studio business. it takes atleast 3 years to get a studio up, running and doing well.

i am in my second year, i had a terribly difficult first year, the second year has brought revenues and im hoping to grow and then solidify in the third year.

i wouldnt recommend this to anyone and i wouldnt have it any other way for myself.

Very interesting thread. I spent over a year reading case studies of other small startup animation studios, especially looking for the founders' statements about why they either prospered or failed (interestingly, many studios fail because they became too successful too fast and then imploded). During that year I also studied how to write business plans. And I read biographies of successful entrepreneurs (recommended: Howard Schultz's book "Pour Your Heart Into Into It" about how he built Starbucks; VERY inspiring!) and also built up my networks of freelancers and potential employees.

I also never had the goal of getting rich quick. I wanted to create great animation, for clients and for myself. I admired Aardman's policy right from the beginning, of devoting 30 percent of all overhead to original projects. A studio is a business that must pay bills and salaries, and if you plan to run it "for art's sake" without any concept of making money from it, it ain't gonna last a week.

To get to my point, after a year of preparation I started that studio, all self-financed. Couldn't find an investor or partner, and no bank would lend me a penny. My studio was more successful more quickly than I could have ever dreamed. We had big-name clients from the sixth week of operation, and I was sinking every spare penny into original productions and flying around the world to conferences like MIPCOM and so on to try to sell them. Things were going so well that I upped the proportion of funding that went into our pitches and pilots.

And then it all came crashing down! Almost exactly two years after we'd started, we went through the Asian financial crisis (I'm in Asia-Pacific), SARS, an international slowdown in television production, with all the big name clients slashing budgets, and the entire advertising industry throughout Asia imploding...all of these all at the same time! If you have a small studio, you WILL rely on doing TV commercials for your bread and butter, since the margins are much higher than for any other kind of project. I don't care how idealistic you are, if you don't get commercial clients and you're not independently wealthy, your studio won't be viable.

I thought I'd weather it out. I'd been getting nibbles on some of our pitches and pilots (don't underestimate the difficulty of being a newcomer independent trying to sell content to the big boys), and we had no work coming in, so I emptied my family's life savings into keeping the studio going (I figured it was just a temporary dip in business). Six months later, I had the choice between paying for my kids' school fees or paying my employees.

I loved my studio. I loved the place, the way we'd all designed everything, including the customized furniture. I loved the view out the window. Most of all I loved working with an immensely talented team whose talents and personalities fit together like a perfect jigsaw puzzle, who I felt were like family to me, and it had always made me feel good inside that I was supporting numerous families of various nationalities. But I had to give it up.

Now I'm an independent producer and freelancer. The work has returned, though my blue chip clients never did increase their budgets and work with cut-rate slave labor shops in Vietnam instead. Some of my former staff work for me freelance now, on a per-project basis. It's not as fun, it's lonely not being surrounded by my wonderful artists and animators every day. And the work comes out more slowly. But the ups and downs aren't as turbulent, I worry a lot less, sleep better at night.

Sometimes I ask myself (and my wife asks me!) why don't I just go get a job as a shoe salesman, or do a no-brainer like open a Krispy Kreme franchise somewhere, or simply find a job in someone else's animation studio, where I can just concentrate on the art and the production and not worry about paying the bills. But somehow I just can't. I love making animation, and I'm driven to do it my way, even if my way is a path strewn with burning coals and nails and bottomless pits. The little chips of diamonds and rubies on the path keep me going forward.

We all have different stories, just thought I'd share mine. I suggest that anyone who dreams of starting a studio should read as many stories as possible.

Damn, that was a good story. :)

Well Ken Davis, I actually have never herd of any women who own big time companies. Maybe they own some, but ive never herd of them like ive herd of of John Lasseter, or Walt Disney. Of course gender has nothing to do with it, im just saying is that I think males dominate the animation industry, and I feel that females dont. So yeah, thats all im sayin there X3

You also have a very big dream, and many people just don't think that big. And then you went and said it OUT LOUD, making it a reality and a goal. That scares some folks. Personally, I admire your attitude and your goals. Go get 'em!

Thanks :) This is actually interesting for me to hear (or rather read in this case). Haha. Yeah, I think it scared the teacher too though, since he was like "Oh, making animated movies...wow.. uh". I was a little surprised by everyones reaction, heh.

Interesting stories though. Its everything I expected it to be. Challenging! : D Ill try and check out that Starbucks founders book. It seems interesting, and very well inspiring. I can never have too much inspiration. :) But I guess your right, I should read more stories. The more I read the more I can know to expect, what challenges I will face, what mistakes not make, and how I might want to handle them all. Good stuff :3 But I guess I know what you mean Billingsgate, even though I havnt made animation yet. Im too driven to get my stories and characters out there that I really just cannot see myself doing anything else. Not even part-time jobs like fast food cashiers. I just cant do those. I have to drraaawww! I have to write! XD

Haven't made animation meaning...as your own entity, like as a business? Or you haven't ever animated -period-?

Thanks for sharing billingsgate.

oOAllyOo, I don't think it's necessarily hard to start a studio, but I do think it's difficult to keep it going - and make it successful. Having an animation studio has been a childhood dream, and I've opted to operate a virtual studio instead of a physical one. It allows me the freedom to work on my own projects as well as freelance. I don't have to worry about covering studio overhead or paying employees, but it is a continuous challenge to find new and interesting projects.

I also think you should do more research about women in the animation industry. There are several woman-related organizations out there, including Women In Animation.

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I havnt animated period :P Ive done the usual flip book stuff for fun, but the real nitty gritty stuff I havnt yet been able to try.

Hm, I guess you make a good point Sharvonique, that its the keeping it going part that might be difficult. I guess its money thats a primary issue huh? A virtual studio though. Thats cool, perhaps youll have the same challnges. But yeah, ill try and look up famous women animators, because ive never herd of any (so much for being famous).

Well, there's Faith and Emily Hubley, Joanna Priestly, Candy Kugel (sp?), Nancy Beiman - and that's just off the top of my head...

I'm curious why the gender has anything to do with anything. Focusing on gender or race or anything else is an unnecessary distraction. A good studio needs two things:

1) Good animators
2) Good management

It also needs to stand out for its quality, or its prices, or its content...not the gender of its management.

In my experience, the animation business is full of women, though more on the management side than the art and technical side. Most of the producers I've worked with have been women, most of the animation directors have been men. But so what???

Please, do dream of opening an animation studio in order to further the art and the business, not to make a political point about "women animators".

The gender discussion arose from oOAllyOo's statement about wanting to be the first woman to start an animation studio. We are just expanding her knowledge about women in the animation industry.

Gender doesn't have anything to do with starting a studio or not, but animation is largely a male-dominated field. It's not about making a political point about women animators, but about adding a different voice and perspective to the animation industry. There's even a panel happening tonight to discuss this very topic.

"WHERE THE GIRLS AREN'T"

A study by the Annenberg School of Communication commissioned by See Jane (http://www.seejane.org) examined the one hundred and one top-grossing G-rated films of the last fifteen years, most of which were animated, and found that the vast majority of characters in these films were male.

On October 12, the Animation Guild and See Jane will host a panel discussion, entitled "Where The Girls Aren't." Panelists will examine See Jane research with respect to gender imbalance and stereotyping in kids' animation. Animation Guild statistics show that only 16% of people working in creative or rendering jobs in animation are women.

Panelists include: Geena Davis, actress and See Jane founder; Brenda
Chapman, story artist and director, currently at Pixar; Dean De
Blois, co-writer and co-director of 'Lilo and Stitch'; Jenny Lerew,
story artist, DreamWorks; and Fred Seibert, Executive Producer,
Frederator Studios.

Date: Thursday, October 12

Time: 7:00 PM

Location: Buena Vista Branch Library, 300 North Buena Vista St.,
Burbank, CA. (Please note that this is the branch north of Olive near
Disney, not the main branch on Glenoaks.)

Animation Guild president Kevin Koch will moderate, with additional
panelists to be confirmed.

THIS EVENT IS FREE AND OPEN TO THE PUBLIC.

For further information, contact the Animation Guild at (818) 766-7151 or info@animationguild.org.

This event is not sponsored by or associated with the Burbank Public Library.

www.animationguild.org

Sharvonique Studios
www.sharvonique.com

Animated By Sharvonique Blog
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