For Funds and Movie Enthusiasts

We can make a a 2d cartoon of 20 minutes with a budget of $80,000-120,000 and the art style could be anyone ranging english, japanese or asian.

We can make a 3d animations of 20 minutes each at $110,000-200,000.

Vips..

We can work with you.. you can always get back to us..we can help you produce not only the basic animations but also the complete pre productions as well and as well as basic concept creation.

Aldric

Well thanks for your help, really appreciate it.

Flash would certainly be faster and easier to produce as traditional animation needs frame by frame drawing. Generally speaking, depending on the kind of look you want to achieve, either medium would be more suitable. For eg, Mondo Media’s Happy Tree Friends were produced in Flash and that was perfect for the genre. However, something like Spirit the Stallion could only be produced through traditional 2D combined with 3D.

Actually you really ought to be asking these people regarding the 2nd question.

Aldric

About the timescale…. Let’s say the complexity for the animation was something along the lines of Quantum leap but for children, so quite basic but striking visuals to keep children watching and say the competence of the animation team was professional i.e. they had done similar animations and were a well known company such as Cosgrove hall. How long do you reckon it would take per episode? I’d be looking at handing over the full project from production to post production.

Thanks once again,
Vips

How long would it take to create a 20 minute 2D animation?
Answer: I can’t answer this as it really depends on the complexity of the animation required, the competency of the animation team and the budget allocated.

If I was to produce 20 episodes all 20 mins each how much would you say the average cost would be for a production of this scale?
Answer: Again, you need to benchmark this against a production you’ve seen before. But generally speaking, the budget per 2D animation episode hovers between $100,000 to $150,000 depending on medium (flash or traditional 2D), art style, complexity, storyboards, VO, music etc.

and finally I am looking at producing a flash website that has a “virtual world” flash game. How long would it take and cost to produce a general flash game that gives users the ability create an avatar and navigate around the game and have about 5/6 functions (not too complex) that they can carry out?

Answer: I can’t answer this as it’s not a similiar industry where I come from.

Hope I helped some.

How long would it take to create a 20 minute 2D animation?

If I was to produce 20 episodes all 20 mins each how much would you say the average cost would be for a production of this scale?

and finally I am looking at producing a flash website that has a “virtual world” flash game. How long would it take and cost to produce a general flash game that gives users the ability create an avatar and navigate around the game and have about 5/6 functions (not too complex) that they can carry out?

I would greatfully appreciate it if you could give me any insight into these questions as I have contacted a few animation studios here (in the UK) and none have replied.

Thanks in advance,
Vips

Nobody can really answer that, because it fluctuates from project to project

Aldric

Thanks for the post, I put it in Fav’s because I plan to write it down, and use it to plan my future.

I’ve written an article to answer your question at http://blog.media-freaks.com/if-you-can-write-but-cannot-draw-or-animate ]]> http://blog.media-freaks.com/8-steps-to-producing-a-cartoon-series/comment-page-1/#comment-3920 kelly john Fri, 08 Aug 2008 13:48:48 +0000 http://blog.media-freaks.com/8-steps-to-producing-a-cartoon-series/#comment-3920 pls i need help in producing a cartoon.i can write but cant draw.how do i start? pls i need help in producing a cartoon.i can write but cant draw.how do i start? ]]> http://blog.media-freaks.com/8-steps-to-producing-a-cartoon-series/comment-page-1/#comment-1655 Aldric Chang Thu, 24 Apr 2008 07:31:53 +0000 http://blog.media-freaks.com/8-steps-to-producing-a-cartoon-series/#comment-1655 Hi, You need to re-read the article. I did not say that. Hi,

You need to re-read the article. I did not say that.

You are half-right. Free is a waste of time if you are without reputation and just starting out. Most people would not believe in you even if you really do have the best concept and artwork in town. However, anything is possible when you have a strong track record and solid reputation behind you. Do you think Steven Spielberg will have to try very hard to seek funding for any of his shows?

And yes, a good teaser would certainly increase your chances of success. People are visual – they make decisions best when they can see where you are going. However, you are right that it can also kill a deal if it is done shabbily and does not do justice to your concept.

Regarding legal issues, you might want to read this Q&A I did for another subscriber here. It also contains some information on fund seeking. Certainly hiring an entertainment lawyer is the best way to keep things clear, but it is an expensive route. In the Q&A I provide some cheaper alternatives you can DIY, though not as effective. Good agents will work in your interest and protect you, but it is still better to do your own due dilligence instead of being too dependant on them for protection issues. Agents help to sell, not protect. Lawyers help to protect and sue, not sell.

Some distributors prefer to focus on certain genres, and you can actually study this by visiting their sites or looking through their brochures.

Music albums are quite different from live-action films or animation. For music albums, the product spread usually starts and ends there. For animation especially, there is usually potential to branch into licensing and merchandising. This means that somebody who’s funding your animation may want to see more than letter of intents to sell at retail. Of course it would help. But the extent of the help may be minimal unless you have a LOI from Walmart or some mega video chain. What financiers want to see ultimately is the potential of the property – what kind of L&M it can likely branch into and whether it could become a hit.

Having good talent names attached helps too I guess. But I think most important is marketing potential – eg well known literary or best selling author, IP licensing – toys, games and other merchandising, meeting demand of (a) current trends (eg interest in dinosaurs) etc. So if time is spent on developing such a package, it may yield good ROI. So the trick is also to target the correct distributor(s) and tailor a package for them – do they give out info on what they look for or where can one find this? Regarding a feature, would you say another way around it is to approach retail outlets and get a letter of intent to stock your DVDs, for example, from them also ? I know a few musicians have tried this approach with success.

Thanks again.

It is definitely a good idea to have something to bring to a distributor – but it does not have to be a full script. The fact is – they probably do not have the time to read it all and you also do not want to have your script exposed to the wrong person. What you need is the character bible. I am going to write an article on what goes into a character bible soon, so do check back on my blog in the next few days.

Now, the distributor will not give you a presale. A presale means somebody purchased the program. First, distributors help to sell, not buy. So they can only get you a presale – and any sales are likely to be from a broadcaster. Also, the truth is, presales are almost non-existent in today’s market. You need at least a few episodes before a distributor can do anything for you.

What a distributor can give you when you have your character bible is a letter of intent (to distribute) and some projections of how well the show may do if executed well. However, these projections usually mean nothing until your show is done and the distributor has something concrete in his hands. The letter of intent may mean something if it is from a well-known distributor. It will boost confidence in investors or animation studios to know that there is a heavyweight distributor who’s interested to distribute for you if the show gets made. Basically this gives you more leverage in getting people to be interested, and also more bargaining power.

The fact about financiers is – they want as much as you can give them before they want to commit to anything. Sales, reputation, good concept, good artwork, good scriptwriter, good track record, good distribution, good everything! But these things take time to build and find.

If developing a feature for the retail DVD market – is it practical to take a full script and storyboard (some artwork) to a distributor first to get a presale agreement – and then approach an animation studio, giving them some share in the IP? Or is it easier to approach film financiers once you have a presales agreement?

James