Do stuff

I know a lot of animators are feeling uneasy right now. Myself included. I've spent so many years in college learning and practicing this craft. Only to be so close to graduating and the industry is imploding. Me and my classmates legitimately dont know what to do. We just thought it was worth it to go to college for something we're passionate about, espeically if we're basically garenteed a job afterwords. But it's not garanteed. I feel like I was lied to my entire life. Work hard, study, go to college, belive in yourself and you will succeed or at the very least, the bare minimum of a decent job.

I think constantly about what I'm going to do the rest of my life. It's so stressful looking for jobs in animation right now. People want you to do an entire short film by yourself in a month for $100. That's less than a dollar an hour. And I'm all for accepting jobs that don't pay much or don't pay at all. I even accepted a job that pays $100 a week/per video and do free work for other animators all the time. It's the principle of taking advantage of someone I don't appreciate. At least working with other animators, they appreciate you so much for contributing to their project and they CREDIT YOU. So many times people don't credit me and it's not just about credit. That's my livelyhood. My name on credits could get me a job that keeps me safe and happy. That small act, lets me know you appreciate me and want me to succeed.

I have been fantasizing about either getting monetized on youtube, or owning a small cafe as a plan B. Thing is, those dreams are great to have but it would take years to get to that point. I really don't want to discourage people especially young animators or artists. But I want to be real and honest about my experience. I really could have learned animation online for $50 and a lot of practice, instead of going $50,000 in debt with no garantee of a job. I would NEVER give up on my dream of making cartoons. After all of this, I still haven't because it's not just a dream, it's something I do naturally. Even if I get deppressed and stop for a little bit, I always crawl back out of passion and excitement to create things.

I really believe that as animators we need to create things we love. Of course! I didn't think of that! You don't need permission from some executive to create the thing you want. Yeah a team will help you create more of what you want, but maybe trust yourself to create something to express yourself. In this industry of corporate brain rot, we need to go back to the roots of animation. Animation is such an emotional medium. Funny, sad, scary, excited, painful, happy, romantic, bouncy, silly etc. It's a type of art that relies on believability and emotion. Believing even if only for a moment, that the drawing is alive. In a way, it is. Someone used their life to create that. In every frame, there's hours of work. Tears, laughter, frustration, excitement and even sadness behind every drawing.

What we need to do is create. If anything, you can make yourself feel proud of what you made even if you dont like the result. In this world of uncertainty, go back to what you know. I draw naturally, anytime I pick up a pen I can't help but draw a sily monkey crying his eyes out. I need to lean into that and share it and so do you! WE NEED YOUR ART! Every animator that has a voice, or a pen, needs to create! That's how we change the industry. People will realize what fans of animation want to see. We want to see real expression and passion behind the screen. Yes, we can tell. We can tell when something's made purely for money. And when something's made out of genuine love.

I want to see more animation from people who love animation. Not executives who want an easy paycheck so they can take themselves on a vacation. It's disrespectful to animation. Some of the things we can do other than create, are:

1. watch independent animations

2. comment on them

3. share them

   That's it! Saving the world of animation within 10 minutes.

Ok I'm done rambling about this I just really want people to create things that they believe in. I believe in you. You can do this. We can do this.