Channel Frederator Blog

“Animation should be an art, but you have made it a trade!” -Winsor McCay

“Before my brother Jerry and I started It’s JerryTime! a little less than a year ago I had never really done much character animation or graphic storytelling. I came from a background of broadcast motion graphics…flying logos, promos, commercials, etc. If our experience over the course of this year is indicative of what the future could hold for a new generation of animators - it’s going to be an exciting time.

It seems to me that for the first time, animators have access to a vast audience without having to sacrifice the rights to their creations. They won’t be mutually exclusive, as are all but a select few today. Coupled with that, cheap means of production and an entirely new way to interact with an audience is giving the animator an opportunity to create a bond with their audience that has only rarely been formed, even by biggest of media companies.

For those independent artists who can maintain the rights to their creations, the potential is unlimited. If they can produce something that resonates with an audience, they have all the tools they need to grow their creation across not just new and traditional media (broadcast, internet, mobile, merchandise, etc), but new venues which are being created as we speak. The new ways of reaching an audience will create new opportunities.

If they have foresight, they will gain the creative freedom of not having to compromise their vision. There could be no executives to green-light projects, no products to place, no advertisers to satisfy. Consequently, entirely new types of entertainment might begin to be seen, potentially targeting audiences that have never been targeted before. Animation that doesn’t cater to the lowest common denominator will emerge, and the art that has been taken out of today’s commercially viable animation might even start creeping back in.

Winsor would be so happy.

Orrin Zucker

Orrin Zucker is the animator/director of It’s JerryTime! (www.itsjerrytime.com). His brother Jerry is the writer/composer of the quasi-monthly animated shorts. Together they co-created the first video podcast to be nominated for an Emmy, as well as the Winner of the New Media Award at the Ottawa Animation Festival 2006. Orrin also owns Boston based Ozone inc, an award winning broadcast design firm.

For our upcoming Channel Frederator awards party, we asked a bunch of animation folks to contribute to our program by answering the question, “Why Are You Excited About the Future of Cartoons?” And Orrin’s essay was born.