Animation

I totally agree and this is the route I am taking because I am tired of pitching and hearing "Great Pitch" but nobody buys. So I am going to just build and share my process and like you say, seek funding along the way. The way I see it, building an audience is the most important thing.

Nice one Mike.

Mike Boas - great mindset shift for a lot of us. I've been doing a lot of research on the topic so thought it was funny that this was the first post I saw getting on the platform today.

Mike Boas, thanks for the link. Confirms my thoughts on the subject. Good read, much appreciated!

Thank you for posting this, Mike Boas, and sharing the article. This is such a powerful perspective and one that more creatives need to hear. The game really has shifted. Building momentum on your own terms isn’t just possible, it’s often the way to get attention in today’s market.

Owning your IP and producing it in stages not only shows initiative, it proves that you understand the long game. If you can show proof of concept, develop a following, or even get early animation tests or storyboards in front of the right audience, you’re already ahead of the pitch.

For anyone looking to take that next step, I highly recommend diving into Stage 32’s animation and producing education (https://www.stage32.com/education/collections/animation and https://www.stage32.com/education/collections/producing-track).

You might also benefit from connecting with animation execs during Pitch Sessions or consulting with a Stage 32 executive for development strategy. They can provide some great insights. If you email Success@Stage32.com, they can point you toward the best Execs with animation experience on the platform.

My tip is to constantly ask yourself 3 questions while developing your pitch and pitch deck.

1. What are you pitching?

2. Who are you pitching to?

3. Why should they care?

What are you pitching goes beyond "My show is a pre-school 2D animation" You need to know your demographic, you need to know your genre, is is sci fi, adventure, horror? Is it a short film or a 10 episode x 22 minute series or a feature? Make it very clear.

Who are you pitching to? If you are trying to actors, a production company, financier? Your pitch is slightly different depending on who you are talking to.

Why should they care? Actors tend to look more at story and characters. They want to be in a good story, they want to play interesting characters. Meaningful characters. Financiers want to know ROI, target audience, budget etc. Producers want to know who is attached, unless they bring their own attachments. They want to know if it's based on IP that already has an audience etc.

This is not to say you exclude things from certain pitches, but you will definitely front load and emphasize different things depending on who you are pitching to. Yes business people want to know you have a good story, but they want to know how much you are asking or and where you plan to distribute so they can figure out if they will get their money back. Get straight to the money.

Actors want to hear the story and about the characters first. Their concern isn't so much the money but they might still want to hear that in a summarized way after.

So always ask yourself those 3 questions constantly.

I read a book that says writing a treatment is one of the things we need to do when selling a script. But I don't know if we have to send our script as well when we send a treatment.

Ifaliana Randriamanalina I personally would not send the script unless they ask for it and personally, I would prefer if they asked to meet with me along with sending the script. Most reputable companies will tell you not to send unsolicited scripts.

Kevin Jackson - thank you for the amazing and thorough feedback. Like most things you have to tailor it to the person you are approaching and essentially make it make sense for them (speak their language). Ifaliana Randriamanalina I met two producers (power couple), and they did ask for a script, along with pitch deck, amongst other things. I do think it depends on the person/company. I'm still new to this area so I'm treading lightly on the feedback I give (blind leading the blind kinda situation). Do you remember where you read that from? Article, book, blog? I would love to glance over it, trying to get as much information as possible.

Alicia Coffey - congratulation on the pre-production for your first kids animation series! Are you creating the music for the series or getting the piece/people in place to create the music?

Hey, Cyrus Sales. I'd like to see more posts about pitching animation projects and animation software.

Maurice Vaughan - thank you for the feedback! I was thinking the same about animation pitching. Any specific software you'd like more content about? Anything in particular with that software whether it's specs, tutorials, comparisons?

You're welcome, Cyrus Sales. Animation software recommendations, tutorials, and tips.

I’d like to see more discussion around the process of animation, animators working out actual performance tests or software issues.

However, I’ve come to accept that most people posting in the animation forum are talking about writing, business deals, or AI.

There’s only two or three of us animators posting on Stage 32, so not enough to generate those discussions. I don’t tend to post tests because I’m often work-for-hire on gigs I can’t post about. And for software questions, I’m in such a big hurry I go to Youtube or Reddit for my answers.

It takes work and time to write up engaging content, and I’d like to put that work into the classes I teach first. Then maybe a Skillshare class down the road.

Does your company deal at all with comic book publishers?

As go-getters, what are we expected to go and get?

Have either of you ever taken pitches on Stage32? And if so, have you ever requested scripts?

Thank you for everyone who attended yesterday!!

What an awesome webinar and Q/A!

Very cool to see Hertzfeldt do more of these curations. And the return of the excitable fluffy dudes!

A minor correction— The Animation Show volumes one and two DID get DVD releases. I’ve got volume one right here in my office.

The Big Snit is one of my favorite cartoons ever, and to see more animation from Bruce Bickford will be intriguing. For those interested, there’s a documentary about him called Monster Road. (On DVD only, but I ordered my copy from the filmmaker’s website.)

Love Hertzfeldt's stuff. Billy's Balloon is pure pathos!

Pat Alexander - this is my first time hearing of Don Hertzfeldt, although I may have seen some of his work unknowingly. I do appreciate you sharing this article. Maurice Vaughan at one point suggested I consider doing anthology, so I feel like this article came just in time to get more information of the process and how other's are approaching it.

Cyrus Sales he's an all timer and innovator in the animation space. he also has a great youtube channel with some of his early short films and b sides: https://www.youtube.com/@don-hertzfeldt/videos

Pat Alexander - thank you for sharing the link to his YouTube channel. Stage32 has done a great job with getting me caught up to speed with different innovators in the animation space. One of the things I love about this platform, a one stop shop on being educated.

I think King of the Hill endured so long because it's funny and people can relate to the characters, Ashley Renee Smith.

Ashley Renee Smith sheesh, 14 seasons is insane. To answer your question, I honestly have no idea what has kept King of the Hill relevant lmao. I personally haven't met a single person that has expressed outward that they are actively watching King of the Hill, but with that being said the article states 4 million people are watching so someone is finding joy in the animation. I have seen snippets online from different seasons and from what I have seen the snippets are relatable like Maurice Vaughan mentioned and funny.

Leonardo Ramirez 2 I wanted to be on this but wasn't able to attend, do you know if there's a recording I can watch?

Hey Cyrus Sales - it’s on the Stage 32 IG page. https://www.instagram.com/reel/DM8iJ-6R765/?igsh=MXJ0emtvYTRrYjZjbA==

Leonardo Ramirez 2 as the young folks say, you are the goat.

Cyrus Sales Back at you buddy.

Hi Maurice,

Thank you for the warm welcome and for sharing these resources — I’ll make sure to check them out, especially the Community Open House recording.

I’m glad to hear that the “characters’ misadventures” caught your attention — that’s exactly the heart of Coastdale, focusing on humor, character dynamics, and quirky situations rather than a continuous storyline.

I appreciate your suggestion about adding a profile picture as well.

Thanks again for your time and encouragement!

Best regards,

Adrien :)

You're welcome, Adrien Le Maître. Once you have a pilot script, logline, and synopsis, you could post them on your profile. Producers search profiles on here for projects. Click the gear symbol in the top right-hand corner and select “Edit profile” in the drop-down menu. Scroll down to “Loglines” and click “Add/edit loglines” to the right of “Loglines.” You can also post your script, logline, and synopsis on your profile this way: www.stage32.com/loglines (near the top where it says “Add a Logline”)

Congrats on launching your project. I am also developing adult animated comedy content.

Looking good

Adrien Le Maître pleasure to get connected - I love the art style. Like Bob Harper - i'm also developing an adult animated comedy content. I saw you were also sharing a storyboard however I did not see it in the post (might have missed it), would love to check it out when you get a chance! Look forward to hearing from you.

One of the thrills I've had in my animation journey was meeting Chuck Jones. Wha's Opera Doc is still one of my all-time fav Bus Bunny cartoons.

Happy birthday bugs.

That's so awesome, Bob Harper! What an amazing experience!

Sheesh 85 years old, time flies. I grew up on Looney Tunes. My favorite character was Tweety bird. I had an oversized purple shirt that I rocked for years.

This is one of my favorite cartoon

Hello Terence Daniels this is definitely unique haven't seen anything like it before. I also have never heard of Allegro non Truppo until your post. I did a quick google search and was able to locate the entire animation. I haven't had a chance to watch the entire thing but did a quick look. We've seen with other animation/cartoons that having dialogue isn't necessary I instantly think of Tom and Jerry but I do think it's important to have a storyline and character arc for the consumer/audience to keep up with. I personally don't find it intimidating, I find it to be a challenge to find different ways for myself and art to stand out and capture my core audience attention.

Sigh...I will read the article soon. I hope it mentions where we can watch them going forward. Is there a cartoon station that play re-runs? Does Boomerang still do that?

Maybe creatives can make sure there's language in their contracts to protect and preserve our work, Ashley Renee Smith, but I'm guessing it'd have to be big-name creatives or really hot projects for that to happen.

They’re not being erased, just put back in the vault while the company figures out how to monetize them somewhere else. The offer-everything-for-one-low-price model is not working for most of these services, and they’re eyeing ad-supported channels for back catalog material.

I would definitely watch these on ad-supported channels. I wonder how much they would make on Youtube.

Ashley Renee Smith -sigh- Kevin Jackson I'll save you the read, no it does not state where the shows are being moved to. It does state that "The move is part of an ongoing focus on adult and family programming at HBO Max and a move away from children’s content." I'm not too sure how to feel about this. I think the nostalgia in me is crying but the business in me understands that if the ratings aren't there there's no point in renewing a license for low ratings. I do hope they are able to find a solution for this.

I'm always encouraged to see animation win globally.

Wow. Mackenzy watches this Ashley Renee Smith. Another one I'll have to add to my list.

Ashley Renee Smith my sister just introduced me into Demon Slayer. I'm not too sure what makes it so popular but it is a common animation in the industry to watch.

I need to catch up on the last season. I might even rewatch it and study it. I like the series, but I am not certain what makes it stand out so much among the fans.