What Can We Do to Help?

[gfarkwort]

I think that if you want to succeed in Puppetry you have to treat it as a business, and that goes back to the Lyon quote. How much can you take care of inside you business? Constantly making the deals while performing. Because if you really want a job you have to play the politics and know what each deal includes and what you can offer it.

So, its really up to the individual wheather they will succeed or not.

 

[Phantom]

Just as a casual observer and struggling entrepeneur, I think alot of people (and most puppeteers are people, too) work in the business and not on the business. One book that has been suggested to me is The E Myth.

I haven't read it, but it is highly recommended. If anyone here has read it, let me know your opinion on the book. Thanks.

 

[scarylarrywolf]

In relation to this, I think it's important to keep in mind that demand for any type of media is often dictated by the latest technology. When Jim Henson was young television was a new thing and there were many different avenues of televised entertainment yet untapped, puppetry being one of them (at least puppetry without a stage). I would agrue that today's internet is like the television of the 1930's, and people are more attracted to the internet than the TV because it's new.

Jim Henson is noted for embracing new technology and I think he would have loved the net. For us the internet has a lot of advantages in that it is relatively simple to post your own content or start an entertainment website. Plus viewers can access your content more readily than TV and for the same price (free).

This is really more of a blog than a post... I've been kind of depressed for a while because there isn't that great a demand for puppets on TV or in the movies. But I've found some hope in realizing the potential of the internet as a catalyst for my independent aspirations.

 

[Super Scooter]

I'm curious, though. You mentioned that people have access to shows online for free, but how does one make money off of that?

Not to sound greedy, but that is sort of the topic. I just don't understand how it works, I know they must be making money off of the From the Balcony segments on Movies.com, I just don't get how.

 

[Teenager's]

The from the Balcony bits are draws to get more ppl to come to the website, and the more hits a site gets the more advertising money there is.

 

[Buck-Beaver]

I completely agree with Scary Larry, the web is the future. Over the next 2-3 years you're going to see web video, TV, iPods and even mobile video (on cell phones) come together in a big way. A lot of innovative stuff is coming out in the next year that's going to totally transform the TV and film business. It's already started with things like the iTunes Store and TiVo.

Web video is so hot right now that I think anyone that can come up with a truly innovative, entertaining series could make it work financially within 6 months. People are already doing this - I heard Ask A Ninja turned down an offer from Yahoo for $2000 a show. The LoneyGirl people are reportedly making about $10,000 a month through Revver. Right now web video advertising is maxed out and advertisers want to find innovative stuff. The hard part is coming up with something that's really good and really entertaining.

I liked what Phantom said about working in the business vs. working on the business. The business model in entertainment may be changing, but show business is no different now than it was 100 years ago and it will still be the same 100 years from now. It all comes down to creating shows people want to watch. If you have thousands of people watching your show on the web there are ways to monetize it. The trick is to first making something thousands of people want to watch.

If you figure out how to do that consistently you'll be a millionaire.

 

[BEAR]

In relation to this, I think it's important to keep in mind that demand for any type of media is often dictated by the latest technology. When Jim Henson was young television was a new thing and there were many different avenues of televised entertainment yet untapped, puppetry being one of them (at least puppetry without a stage). I would agrue that today's internet is like the television of the 1930's, and people are more attracted to the internet than the TV because it's new.

.

What do you mean? Television wasn't around til the late 40s.

 

[Muppetsdownunder]

I know atleast 2 puppeteers who work as puppeteers full time, they do work in many different aspects of puppetry like running courses teaching puppetry and performing, touring around performing and running lectures and things like that but i guess they are the lucky ones.

 

[D'Snowth]

Hey, Scary Larry Wolf's back!!!

 

[spcglider]

I read a quote a long time ago and i think it was something like:

You don't pay an actor to act. They'll do that at the drop of a hat. You pay an actor to stand around and not break anything IN BETWEEN acting.

The same is probably true for puppeteers. I mean, they're actors emoting through an object, right?

-Gordon