Discussion: feasability of setting up a studio

# 1 20-04-2003 , 10:46 AM

Subscriber
Join Date: Nov 2002

Location: London

Posts: 288

Discussion: feasability of setting up a studio

I was just wondering over breakfast this morning, what the pitfalls of someone actually setting up a studio from scratch would be...Of course it would be a difficult proposition - u need to have financial backing let alone the skills to create demand for ur service. And then of course u have to think about competition. Would it be a feasible option to actually set-up a studio? As we all know there are many cg artists out there struggling to find employment on an occasional basis let alone on a long term one.

There is certainly untapped talent out there.

Recently my brother and his friend moved out to Botswana to set up a film company. They noticed a niche there...and as an up and coming country, Botswana has seen them contracted with film projects, adverts (shown across South Africa), and documentaries. Had they set up a company here, they probably wouldnt have got off the ground so quickly if at all. So u see there are possibilities in the media sector. I guess u just need to find that niche. Would setting up a new studio need to follow along the same lines in order to survive i.e.would a new studio have to go looking for demand before it came looking for them? Thinking about that now its probably the case.

So, if we use a hypothetical situation...i.e. if we here were to set up our own studio...what would be our chances of not only survival, but also growth or progression? What would we need for success? Could we survive?

discuss...

Quote

# 2 20-04-2003 , 08:23 PM

Registered User
Join Date: Sep 2002

Location: Minnesota, USA

Posts: 3,709

It all depends on demand user added image

Call the local tv stations, ad agencies etc. to see what thier regular demand for what you offer would be.

That will give you a good handle on the demand in your location of choice.

Once you have found that there is a demand, then send out your studios' promo-pack including what you offer, your reel (VHS), and how you can be more cost-efective than "the other guy".

That's how I would start user added image

Israel "Izzy" Long
Motion and Title Design for Broadcast-Film-DS
izzylong.com

Quote

# 3 20-04-2003 , 11:21 PM

Moderator
Join Date: Sep 2002

Location: London, UK

Posts: 3,198

I'll reserve a seat in this conversation because I think I have something important to say here but I'm just too drunk to put it on words right now...

to be edited.... :p

Kari
- My Website
- My IMDB

Do a lot, Fail a lot and Learn a lot!

Quote

# 4 21-04-2003 , 12:32 AM

Subscriber
Join Date: Nov 2002

Location: London

Posts: 288

lol kbrown

Yeah I hope as many ppl as possible have an input...drunk or otherwise hehe. The main reason for my posting this thread is because Im wondering if it would be a viable option in the near future. I know its a difficult proposition to undertake, but as things stand, jobs in this sector arent easy to come by. And to be honest, teaching isnt something that appeals to me.

Izzy mate I think ur spot on about cost effectiveness. I imagine its the only way to start. Of course u would need the quality as well. And in my opinion, there is that quality around. Perhaps just not the experience.

I wonder if anyone else has thought about starting up their own company (in the media sector) be it web design or whatever. Have u actually thought about how ud cope? Physically, financially etc...

Quote

# 5 21-04-2003 , 01:02 AM

Moderator
Join Date: Oct 2002

Location: London, UK

Posts: 2,800

This is a really cool topic to discuss. In the course that I am on at the moment at uni people have talked about this very idea for the same reasons: untapped talent. It would be fantastic to be able to run your own studio etc etc and in theory it all seems not to unobtainable.

However the grim reality is that other larger more estabilshed companies will almost always win through simply cause of money (and that sucks!). although I think that after quite a few years of being in the industry going freelance and then eventually starting up a company is a definate possibility. One thing to think about though is why do you want to start the company? I guess for most of us it would be to use Maya 24/7 and get paid to do it, but again the reailty is that you would probably spend most of your time chasing contracts and filling out tax returns rather than getting creative and having fun! user added image

I know this all sounds a bit pessimistic user added image

but here's one thing for you to think about: I met this guy where I used to live in brighton and i was a web programmer at the time. He told me about his company that he started https://www.opticalarena.com and asked me to freelance for him. I guess he doesnt make a huge deal out of it but he's doing what he enjoys and is his own boss! But when there's no work then he's a bit screwed really! But he shares studio space with two other self employed people in the same industry so costs are shared and that makes it easier I guess. This little story proves it's possible but it's definatley not an easy road!

Ok I'll stop my rambling now and let someone sensible take over!! user added image

Alan

Technical Director - Framestore

Currently working on: Your Highness

IMDB

Quote

# 6 21-04-2003 , 06:43 AM

Subscriber
Join Date: Nov 2002

Location: London

Posts: 288

Originally posted by Pure_Morning
other larger more estabilshed companies will almost always win through simply cause of money

Originally Posted by

Actually while ur not wrong, I think reputation plays a bigger role. I mean I can use an extreme example and say that ILM would definately get the nod ahead of everyone else and u can see what Im getting at. Obviously, the thing with these major studios, is that they can sometimes afford to pick and choose what work they undertake. Any fledgling studio wouldnt have such a luxury. As Izzy said before, you have basically got to offer the same labour at a better rate to have any hope of getting contracts ahead of other more reputable studios. Even then it would not be guaranteed.

One thing to think about though is why do you want to start the company?

Originally Posted by

Well I personally see it not only as an entrypoint into the industry but also as a means to implement a different approach. I have focused on become a professional cg artist/animator for one or two years now. There are alot of artists out there with alot more experience and talent that isnt being utilised. Certainly u have to take into account the ratio of artists to jobs and that does make grim reading. But then to me it seems a logical option to take this route. Why not create the jobs? There doesnt yet appear to be a studio that caters for talented inexperienced artists. Surely someone will exploit that fact sooner rather than later...

Quote

Discussion: feasability of setting up a studio

Posting Rules Forum Rules

Similar Threads

Topics

Free Courses

Full Courses

VFX News