Jul 7, 2008
Sometimes you work on a TiniPuppini commercial and that is just the way it is.
I think some folks might be ashamed of this sort of work. But, it was an interesting job, as aftereffects-3D was sort of new, and creating the BG in the software was unusual and interesting for our studio.
The insecure-artist part of me worries that a current boss or colleague might see this and suddenly thing less of me. But, these moments are just as much a part of my life as any other. And the job was fun. It was hilarious to work on, and the small team all laughed and smiled and enjoyed our time together. We even managed to squeeze some innovation out of it! Finding interest in the current project I work on has always been a passion for me. No matter how large or small.
I try to never think “Why didn’t I get hired for that cool project over there? What could I have done differently? Marketed myself as that sort of guy?” That’s the grass is greener on the other side of the fence problem. For me, on each project, I look at the production, and I instead ask myself: “What can I learn on this show? What interesting or new thing do we get to figure out?”
And sometimes the answer is nothing. There is nothing new to learn or do. Which leads to the second round of thought: “If I am going do something I’ve done before, can I do it better? Is there room for efficiency? Is this a time to practice…like doing scales when playing piano?” Even to this, the answer is sometimes no.
So the last round of questions comes up, and I never get past this: “As it’s something I’m already good at or know well, can I work quickly, and buy some spare time to do whatever pleases me?” In this case everybody wins. Production and clients are pleased to have the work turn around fast. You look cool. And you get 1/2 days here and there to play and learn new stuff!
So take that TiniPuppini. You were a good job and we had fun!