And so, American animation comes even closer to death.....

[Drtooth]

Another nail in the coffin...

I am absolutely sick and frustrated over this idiotic, cowardly profit grabbing. I truly am, both as an unemployed cartoonist and a fan of animation. This is why the banking system and the manufacturing industry are suffering... this corporate apathy that cars even more about their own selfish gains than even the stock holders and supporters.

I think I've complained about this long enough, but I don't know what I can do to see someone make a difference. This chickenhearted lazy expectation of profits just to materialize on a silver platter with no effort is an insult to this country. Mommy and Daddy can't teach their kids how to get a job on their own, they buy up all these stocks, toss their kids into owning networks, and they don't want to be there because it's not MTV. Why are these kids not learning 6 simple words that even they can't screw up..."Do you want fries with that?"

So fellow animators and cartoonist wanna bees... I say, toss away your pencils. Raise your fists in anger, and let's see if we can make a difference somehow....

 

[Boober_Gorg]

Do you really want to be employed in that kind of position, churning out someone else's formulaic, predictable stuff? I sure don't. If I were you, the way I'd make a difference is:
1) stop whining about the industry
2) get off the forum
3) just create my own work for the fun of it, and then promote it.

I'm not tossing away my pencil. I'm also heavily involved in my local chapter of ASIFA, and you should be too, if you really like animation.

When I met Danny Antonucci last year at Platform, he drew his Lupo character in my sketchbook, and then said, "My advice? Get out of the industry. It sucks." It was one of the best days I've had.

 

[Drtooth]

Do you really want to be employed in that kind of position, churning out someone else's formulaic, predictable stuff? I sure don't.

I don't wanna come up with yet another internet flash cartoon no one's gonna watch with either. It's either that or become a freaking accountant, the only thing these people even hire anymore. And there ISN'T a local whatever that is, I've checked.

I'm sorry, but the message should go out that these people are greedy crooks who abuse a system they paid lobbyists to get the government to turn a blind eye to.

 

[Boober_Gorg]

I'm sorry, but the message should go out that these people are greedy crooks who abuse a system they paid lobbyists to get the government to turn a blind eye to.

If that's what stops you from being creative, then I feel sorry for you.

 

[Drtooth]

If that's what stops you from being creative, then I feel sorry for you.

Hey, I'm creative, but it don't mean crap if you can't stand out from the millions of indie comics that go directly into the quarter bin.

All I'm saying, every other country's animation studios are booming. We're getting cartoons from Russia and Ireland. And I am considering leaving the country to try to get work outside.

Let's not beat around the bush, we're losing a creative medium because rich people just don't give a crap about trying anymore. This is why all our capitalist systems are failing...

 

[Redsonga]

Even if your animation is with a sea of others at first I don't see that as a reason for never starting. It's like writing, everyone says 'don't be a writer, you'll die poor' but at the same time the more people they talk out of even trying the less number of people to write against they themselves will have .
So, I don't know, I am really really sad about weekend cartoons getting rarer but I also think that getting them back is not beyond hope ether. Who knows what tomorrow will bring if we actually make the effort to do things

 

[Boober_Gorg]

Hey, I'm creative, but it don't mean crap if you can't stand out from the millions of indie comics that go directly into the quarter bin.

All I'm saying, every other country's animation studios are booming. We're getting cartoons from Russia and Ireland. And I am considering leaving the country to try to get work outside.

Let's not beat around the bush, we're losing a creative medium because rich people just don't give a crap about trying anymore. This is why all our capitalist systems are failing...

If that's what you think, Mr. Frishman, then I advise you watch this video (warning: contains cussing), and pay close attention to the words from 4:28-4:53. Mr. Bakshi says some wise things.

 

[Drtooth]

Hey I've BEEN starting for 4 years. Every night I keep reviewing everything I have and trying to experiment with it. I've drawn 19 versions of one of my background guys last night alone. I;m working on different dialogues. I'm doodling up hundreds of things when I get a chance Of course, starting up also takes... welll... whjat's the word I'm looking for? Oh yeah. MONEY! Lots and LOTS of money! And I can't just ask my parents for some money to go to Kinkos and have them publish my stuff so the local comic book store can take pitty on my attempt to copy Naruto and sell it for a week, like everyone seems to be doing these days. Even if I could, my parents are poor too. Looking for work and getting turned down at EVERY attempt every month for 8 years doesn't help either (I'm starting to think my college education is more of a liability than any help).

That said, there's no way I'm buying one of those digital converter boxes. What's the point in wasting 40 bucks when there's nothing good on anymore. Earl and The Office, I can just as easily watch at NBC's site, or rent on DVD. All these companies seem to be doing is rushing television's obsolescence, so they can buy up the internet and ruin that too.

 

[erniebert1234ss]

Well, it was dead long before this. Rugrats was the beginning of the end for American animation, sad to say.

BJ

 

[frogboy4]

The cartoons don't appear to be leaving as much as network television is paving the way for its own extinction (or at least irrelevance). TV is being so clumsy about all types of programming these days and is actually considering handing off the last hour of prime time to local markets like Fox does. (cringe)

The cartoons are on their own networks. Sure, not all of them play animation as much as they used to (thank MTV for giving them that sort of product model) but they are out there and doing well on Fox primetime, cable networks, home video, the internet and downloadable content for Blu-ray and ipod systems. Projects are being shuffled into new spots. I don't know which ones will thrive, which ones will wither or how it will shape the projects of the future.

I think Tooth has a very legitimate gripe about this. However, I do thing that creative people should try personally experimenting in the new mediums in one way or another to help support their own tastes.

Oh, and if you have the Flash program, a way to record sound and a little domain space (cheaply bought through many providers) you can make your own mini web toons.