Customer Reviews

Producing Animation (Focal Press Visual Effects and Animation)

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

I am an animation artist who has also worked as a producer and production manager. PRODUCING ANIMATION attempts to explain an under-researched topic, but also helps perpetuate the idea that you need to have five managers for every artist on an animated picture. Top heavy management and overproduced films that are in production before their story is set are the true reasons for the skyrocketing costs of animation in the past few years. There are some horror stories here, such as the 'executive' who thought he could rewrite dialogue...after the picture had been animated. The authors also decry an 'artistic supervisor' (could that possibly be a director?) who (oh dear) wanted to make changes. The executive got his changes. The artist, they imply, did not. They also claim that artists have to be told by production people when to give up their artwork so that they can meet the production schedule. So the blame for production delays is invariably placed on the artists, who are a 'rag tag team', not highly trained professionals. Portions of the book are useful: blueprints for schedules (nothing about 'complexity of the film' setting the neat little figures back though.) Anyone who wishes to produce animated films and who does not have any idea what the artists do on the project (and sadly that describes a good many producers) would do well to read the sections on the PRODUCTION PLAN and PRODUCTION CREW.

There is one helpful quote at the beginning of this book from Warner Television executive Ken Duer. "...it would only make sense to let the directors direct and be creatively responsible for the project and let the producers manage and create a 'stage' for creative artists so that the artists can do what they do best."

They didn't need to write any more about the 'function of the producer' after that. But it was amusing to see the authors attempt to justify the existence of a 'line producer' whose job descriptions are duplicated by the associate producer; and they actually admit that the associate-executive-in-charge-of-assistant-to-the producer titles are more a product of 'what an agent or representative is able to negotiate for their clients, wholly independent of their actual ability.'

Artists, buy this book and read it. Know who you are dealing with. Producers, read it and learn, but have some respect for the artists. They are, after all, the ones actually producing something.

Contrary to some of the reviews posted on this book, this book is NOT the death of art NOR is it a book designed to "beget executive monkeys". In fact, at the 2001 World Animation Celebration (sadly, there was no WAC this year!), the book was singled out as THE resource on the topic of producing animated entertainment. Much better and more specific to the field than buying a book on film or TV producing and adapting the concepts. Just because the book is more practical, business-minded and analytical than it is artistically oriented does not mean that it isn't relevant to the field. More to the point, it is ESSENTIAL to the field. THESE PEOPLE KNOW WHAT THEY'RE TALKING ABOUT.

To the artistic types who seem to be bashing this book on the basis of it not being written from a creative-end point of view, I'd just like to say that without a producer, your idea is just that, an idea. If you want your property to be seen by someone besides friends, family and the occasional festival judge, grow up and realize that the "business of the business" is inseperable from the art of animation. It's kind of like the old "if a tree falls, in the woods..." cliche.

If you want a book that discusses the actual PROCESS of animation, this isn't the book for you. But then again, it doesn't puport to be a book on how to animate.

Okay, you bought every book out there on how to create animation and you have a project you're trying to produce. Well, up until now you would have to track down [costly] freelance producers to put together your budgets and schedules and lose a big percentage of your creation to people who don't hand out trade secrets for free.

Not anymore! This book is packed with charts and diagrams of animation production that can be fit to whatever type of project you are planning on pitching. To the purist this book would seem to be the end of the world. Just because the book describes top heavy management doesn't mean we are obligated to follow [along]. "Producing Animation" lists every job out there, so we can pick and choose which ones are redundant and need to be streamlined.

This book has no place in a purists library. If all you want to do is have your work viewed at experimental film festivals keep working with your small group of volunteers. But those of us who need a resource to take our ideas to TV or the theater need look no further, because as of yet there is nothing else.

Thanks to Catherine and Zahra, you've probably taken much flack for putting this info out there for animators to buy.

This book is simply the re-hashing of the kind of idiotic guess-work that has put the state of the American (and worldwide) animation industry in the disastrous state it now finds itself.

Reading this, the uninformed reader will probably be impressed with the amount of "stuff" that supposedly goes into making cartoons ... but in actual fact, once finished, the reader will sadly be no more prepared to do it successfully than today's "producers" - who simply draw huge salaries and then send the contracts overseas to real producers who do the work for far less money - since the remaining budget precludes the use of American and Canadian animators.

Just flipping through the table of contents, one will readily recognize the weight given to non-animation functions. The director, for instance, gets a few pages of mention ... while the legal department gets a whole chapter.

The frightening thing about this book is that it may well solidify the tragic mind-set that prevails in animation production today. The fact is, this book is dangerous. Avoid it.

Ignore the more ill informed and negative reviews for this book. If your actually interested in budgeting and managing the production process then this is the best book on that subject that I've come across. Admittedly the selection is small.
This book is not about the art of animation, its about producing (the clue is in the title, producing for animation).
There seems to be a lot of bitterness in this industry from animators that have never had to project manage and don't understand the concepts of within budget and within the deadline. I've seen first hand what happens when a project doesn't have processes in place and is overly creatively led, it will drag on and on and on. Animated films are commercial products at the end of the day and ultimately have to be treated as such. That means following processes whilst in production, if you don't like that fundamental fact do another job.

I have read this book and absolutely CANNOT recommend it on any level. The writers of this book collectively have very little actual experience, and their limited view of the film making process comes across as naive and ignorant. Completely bypassing the creative process with pseudo-pop psychology verging on the arrogant, this book should all but prove why the animation industry is in it's current lull. Barely hiding their contempt for the artists in the industry, they openly lay blame not on their own ineptness in understanding the film making process, but the artists whom they believe do not fully understand "their place" in the business. Mind you, most of the artists in the business have played a part in every aspect of the business and can more than be relied upon to provide elaborate, accurate, and experienced information as to how best to give the best for the most economical. It's a shame the writers don't give credit for their careers to those who made it remotely possible: the ARTISTS.

I've only recently come to the world of animation, and have devoured nearly every book on the subject, most of which have focused on the "how-to's" of drawing, etc.

But, I've haven't found anything that says, "Ok, so once you decide that you're going to create an animated film, and have your production tools and story in hand, here's how you make it happen." Until now. "Producing Animation" is the missing link in the evolution of books on the topic.

Other reviewers, most of them apparently animators and other creatives, take issue with the book's emphasis on production management and the life-long battle of the "creatives" vs. "the suits." I can completely understand that argument, and have seen it first hand in the live action film and television business. It's always been there, and it isn't about to change anytime soon.

What I found valuable about this book however, I found from the standpoint of someone who wants to be a one-man animation studio. Someone who is simultaneously the writer, the animator, the designer, as well as the director and producer. If I have any quarrels with management, I'll be quarreling with myself. (I'm the guy in the corner muttering to himself. Just leave me be, I'll be done in a minute :

For me, the valuable information here was in the practical how-to's of production and scheduling, the generous use of charts and forms, and the chapter on distribution and licensing. While some of it was much more applicable to a corporate environment where you have a team of managers supervising a team of animators, it still gave me a perspective on how to run an efficient production cycle, even if I'm the only one doing it.

I have no allusions of being the next Disney or Pixar, but I do have plans to produce quality animation now that the tools for doing so have created a level playing field for all who are interested in the art, and not just the big guys with the big bucks.

I consider this book a valuable tool for anyone who's either interested in hands-on animation production, or in the inner-workings of the business process.

I highly recommend this book!

"Producing Animation" is a must read for anyone who is involved with or contemplating working in the production side of animation. The book covers the spectrum from the small, one-off animator through someone actively working on large scale projects in the industry.

"Producing Animation" is written in an informative way with many examples and a few case studies that illustrate the points that the book makes. The style is conversational.

The book is liberally illustrated with pictures, diagrams, and visual aids to support the words.

It is also beautifully produced. The layout, the editing, and the content are exceptional.

This is the best book on animation production that I have ever read.

Well done!

In service,

Rich
[...]

A little less than a year ago, someone had written a book about working as a producer or working toward being a producer. My feeling then, as well as now, that there was very little substance.

Much of what I felt was missing is present in this book, PRODUCING ANIMATION. And, I think there's an easy distinction to be made and why this book is invaluable. A producer or anyone involved in "production" has the intimate responsibility of supplying funds, capital and/ or the talent. A producing agent does NOT tell (or shouldn't) the director or the artist how to employ their skill.

Inside this book as in these titles Directing the Documentary, Fifth Edition and The Complete Film Production Handbook, Fourth Edition, you have an explicit and comprehensive breakdown of a producing agents' responsibility. And, the distinction between this book and the other two books is that this book has several indispensable chapters on producing 2D and 3D films.

Book Highlights:

Ch. 2: THe Animation Producer
Ch. 3: How To Identify and Sell Projects
Ch. 5. The Development Process
Ch. 6. The Production Plan
Ch. 7. The Production Team
Ch. 9. Production
Ch. 10. Post Production
Ch. 11. Tracking Production
Ch. 12. Distribution, Marketing, Licensing & More

This is a great book to own, if your seriously considering entering the animation field.

I would be extremely frustrated if I were the authors reading the negative reviews about this book. Catherine Winder and Zahra Dowlatabadi have provided a comprehensive primer for the aspiring animation producer, covering many of the topics which this demanding profession encompasses.

The text explains the ins and outs of production plans, your core team, how to deal with overseas subcontractors, accounting, and how to manage the demanding animation pipeline that is prone to missed deadlines and quality control issues. If you've ever dreamed of making your own "King of the Hill" or even a "Jib Jab" short, I can highly recommend this book to set you off on the right foot. That does not mean you cannot also be an artist, but that topic is better served by another book.