Here is perhaps the best tip you’ll get all year… Ward Kimball’s advice for young animators. Thanks to Will Finn for sharing this!
I found the last paragraph to be particularly interesting and relevant. Kimball knows that his point is apt to fly right over an enthusiastic 15 year old’s head, so he tells him to save the letter and read it later in his life. Kimball’s words are directly applicable to the things animation is going through today…
He says, “Of course Hanna Barbera are pretty crude compared to Disney’s. But this is a problem of economics. H&B are filling a need and it is a business just like selling washing machines. We all can’t be part of an organization such as Disney’s with almost untold capital to underwrite full animation. Lots of cartoon co.’s would like to indulge in full animation, but the economic realities of the jungle prevent it. It’s OK to have an idol and a goal but a realistic assessment of what’s going in on the world of animation is very important.”
Kimball knew what he was talking about. He had just witnessed the downsizing of theatrical animation, and saw the competing studio-run operations shut down one by one. The handwriting was on the wall at Disney. He ironically uses the phrase “untold capital”, but he knew that in 1972, Disney was changing too. They wouldn’t be producing as much animation as in the past. On his blog post, Will says that Kimball retired shortly after this letter was written.
But Kimball doesn’t come off as being the least bit angry or disappointed in this letter. He doesn’t bemoan the loss of what once was, he’s exuberant about where a passionate 15 year old could take animation in the future. He told Will to study the fundamentals of art and encouraged him to look beyond what Disney had done and consider the new ideas coming from Bakshi and Crumb. He advised developing a thirst for learning and figuring out how things work. And he summed it all up with the line, “A realistic assessment of what’s going on in the world of animation is very important.”
Beginning with “The Little Mermaid”, big studios dominated. Nickelodeon, Dreamworks, Sony, Cartoon Network, Netflix and Disney created their own cartoon factories and employed thousands of people. Now, one by one, just like in 1972, they are cutting back staff. Yesterday, Netflix announced further cutbacks and said that they would be focusing on content created by third party creators in the future. Many of my Facebook friends were bemoaning the layoffs and predicting doom and gloom. But as Kimball points out, it’s important to figure out “how it works” in the here and now.
The phrase “Third party creators” should be a reason to rejoice for all artists. The whole point of being an artist is to CREATE, not to comfortably do the same thing day after day for the rest of your life. Creation requires risks. Corporate studios are averse to taking risks. Put two and two together and read the press release for what it’s really saying to artists. Layoffs may be hard to manage today, but if you follow Kimball’s advice, they may be the best thing that every happened to you.
A job isn’t like your parents. It isn’t there to take care of you. As Kimball says, it’s “a problem of economics”. If you have “a realistic assessment of what’s going on in the world of animation”, you’ll discern the path to the future. Instead of focusing on pink slips and they way things were in the “golden” past, we should focus on the creative aspects… specifically we should engage in curiosity about all things… THINK! THINK! THINK! and consider different approaches that may not fit the formula of our “idols and goals”.
In short, you need to be an artist, not a cog in a corporate wheel. You might be able to be comfortable in a job for a while, but it isn’t going to last forever. The world changes and evolves and you have to change and evolve with it. Instead of being devoted to a job title, specific technology or studio, be devoted to your art form. Focus on creative curiosity and look for the opportunities that come with change and you will be able to accomplish great things even in the downturns. In fact, the downturns may turn into great opportunities for you as an artist.
For the past decade, Animation Resources has been serving artists working in the fields of animation, cartooning and illustration. Our volunteers and members have pulled together to raise the bar for our art form, and it’s time to celebrate… It’s Members Appreciation time again!
During the month of February, Animation Resources expresses our appreciation for to members with a very special Reference Pack, and we invite you to become a member too. For the next 30 days, we will be sharing reasons why you should join us. Our benefits of membership far exceed the cost of our annual dues.
We understand that it’s a difficult time for professional animators- work is scarce. But wars aren’t won in battle… they’re won in the preparations made in peacetime. Layoffs aren’t the time to rest on your laurels. You can’t afford to lose momentum in your career. You need to work on your skills, take time to learn and experiment, and expose yourself to new ideas so your productivity and creativity will put you at the top of the list for hires once the downturn is over. Animation Resources wants to help you to do that and all we ask is $95 a year. You can afford that.
Animation Resources is making it as easy as we can to help you discover the value of membership in our organization. During Member Appreciation Month, you can join Animation Resources for a three day trial for only a buck! Yes, for three days, you’ll have access to everything our members get in the current Reference Pack… e-books, downloadable videos, documentaries, podcasts and more… all for only a dollar. (Click here for the details on our Dollar Days.) What are you waiting for?
You can find out what our members get at the Member Appreciation Page. It’s easy to join. Just click on this link and you can sign up right now online…
JOIN TODAY!
https://animationresources.org/membership/levels/
Not Convinced Yet? Check out this SAMPLE REFERENCE PACK! It will give you a taste of what Animation Resources members get to download every other month! That’s 560 pages of great high resolution images and nearly an hour of rare animation available to everyone to download for FREE!
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