“I’m an artist. I don’t concern myself with such mundane things as financial reality or production costs…" Well, good luck with that. Meanwhile back in the real world, other struggling writers are trying to cut costs to help get empty pocket projects on screens.
The Holy Grail for nascent filmmakers is, of course, a single location, one person script and no FX which can be shot with a single iPhone in ambient light. Big Studio have decided to go another way. It is an important thing to know and understand the difference.
The Big Studios turn out big buck extravaganzas filled A List Star Power, gee whiz FX and loads of eye-popping computer graphics - A hard act to follow for the little guys living in their mothers’ basements and hungry independents. Let’s be honest. As an aspiring writer, it is highly unlikely you will be invited to write for filmmakers with too much money. Unless your script is lightening in a bottle, chances are you will never be invited to write a money-is-no-object project or even be a part of the next big reboot flop.
BUT don’t despair, dry those tears. There is no need for us to hold hands and jump off the bridge just yet. There is always animation.
I recently watched the latest Rick and Morty episodes. For those unfamiliar with this adult rated animated series, Rick is a fully debauched mad scientist and Morty is his Casper Milquetoast grandson who accompanies his grandfather on incredible, politically incorrect (mis)adventure throughout Time, Space and Infinite Dimensions. Rick takes a drink from a flask, burps and proclaims himself the smartest man in the multi-universe and Morty tags along to witness his grandfather’s mayhem and destruction. The story lines are truly imaginary and would be impossible to duplicate with real actors unless you had lots and lots of money to burn.
The point? Animation doesn’t need a multi-billion budget or A List Star Power - It’s just imagination and pixels. It costs just a much to draw a peanut as it does to draw a bar of gold bullion. With animation, the graphic destruction of an entire solar system is no more expensive to produce than a dog eating a bag of chips.
Budgets be damned - Animation offers complete storytelling freedom - Kung Fu pandas, an atomic powered squirrel, fish that can talk, dragons? Not a problem. Write the most messed up stuff you can imagine and forget about production costs. Give animation a think then get some (if you can).
John Hunter with the parallax view