I’m an idea person and if I could just find a way to sell my ideas, I’d be set for life. However, given the fact I haven’t earned a single dime for an idea yet, I finally came to the conclusion that I actually have to produce something tangible.
One of these ideas includes a well thought out story for an animated series. My husband and I have been working on this project for about seven years. Now, neither of us could add “animator,” “animation writer,” “storyboard creator,” “director,” or “producer” to our respective resumés and we’re not networked to the animation industry in any way. The best I can do is draw stick figures and tell a funny, creative story so the question became, how do you get animation produced if you have no relationship to animation or the industry other than a good story or idea?
When we started on this project back in 2007, we thought that to get it produced, we’d have to make a formal pitch bible and sell it to cable or network executives. Obviously a daunting task and thankfully one that’s no longer required. We knew producing a web series was a possibility but didn’t know just how easy that could be until recently. Basically, there is nothing stopping you from producing your animation and getting it aired as soon as you determine a structure for doing so and you fill in the skill and talent gaps which, in this case, include everything but the idea.
These are the first few steps in my process to getting our animation produced and I will cover more in future posts.
1. Determine what your final goal is (airing your animated series or short) and put a date to it. Work backwards from there.
2. Do a SWOT Analysis to determine your personal strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats as they relate to producing your animation. Strange place to start maybe, but I found it helpful to understand what I needed to focus on next, which turned out to be writing. If all you have is an idea so far - that’s probably where you need to start too so here are a few resources:
One of these ideas includes a well thought out story for an animated series. My husband and I have been working on this project for about seven years. Now, neither of us could add “animator,” “animation writer,” “storyboard creator,” “director,” or “producer” to our respective resumés and we’re not networked to the animation industry in any way. The best I can do is draw stick figures and tell a funny, creative story so the question became, how do you get animation produced if you have no relationship to animation or the industry other than a good story or idea?
When we started on this project back in 2007, we thought that to get it produced, we’d have to make a formal pitch bible and sell it to cable or network executives. Obviously a daunting task and thankfully one that’s no longer required. We knew producing a web series was a possibility but didn’t know just how easy that could be until recently. Basically, there is nothing stopping you from producing your animation and getting it aired as soon as you determine a structure for doing so and you fill in the skill and talent gaps which, in this case, include everything but the idea.
These are the first few steps in my process to getting our animation produced and I will cover more in future posts.
1. Determine what your final goal is (airing your animated series or short) and put a date to it. Work backwards from there.
2. Do a SWOT Analysis to determine your personal strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats as they relate to producing your animation. Strange place to start maybe, but I found it helpful to understand what I needed to focus on next, which turned out to be writing. If all you have is an idea so far - that’s probably where you need to start too so here are a few resources:
- Writing for animation: Read How to Write for Animation, and follow the Aspiring TV Writer and Screenwriter Blog which is an amazing treasure trove of trending industry information.
