12 replies to this topic

[ghekkomanic]

Taking the plunge and would appreciate any feedback - am thick skinned so please be honest, as long as it's constructive.

http://cargocollecti...om/thevideoshop

This is somewhat hastily assembled, I want to work on the logo and tweak the site, as well as forward to a proper URL I've bought. These changes should happen over next couple of weeks.

Cheers!

[vozzz]

I think you'll do fine =)

[Aaron Scott]

What vozzz said. Your reel is extremely strong, with tons of awesome brand recognition to boot. I wouldn't worry (as long as you have the connections to actually find the jobs).

[JamesDohertyEsq]

What a load of shite, can't believe Vimeo allow that on their site..

Nah just messing, really good. Think the last bit of In The Loop is a tiny bit too fast to register (and having seen it I know the shots are nice) but other than that top job. Now to slander you in public so you don't go taking up all the freelance work I've been conning my way into..

[vozzz]

@James: exactly what i was thinking... We should colaborate to cover more ground....

I think i should start a post about all these old pro's quiting their full time jobs and taking away jobs from us hard working coning freelancers and how it is affecting out industry. Disgraceful! Unionise!

[AromaKat]

The first thing you will find out coming out of the dvd/blu-ray menu world is that you have been 3-5x underpaid for all those years.

There is a weird stigma about motion menu workers, but your reel is cut perfectly to keep it exciting and you shouldn't have any troubles finding work in broadcast. Those looked like some kick-ass menus anyway.

[ghekkomanic]

Thanks all. I really was not expecting such positive feedback.

@James I deliberately picked a track for edit I knew you wouldn't copy, AND kept it under a minute so you COULDN'T SAY ANYTHING ; )

And the last thing I would want to do is steal your freelance work, rather get the same gigs so we can hit the pub after.

@AromaKat thank you, I spent a lot of time doing DVD menus and was advised to leave them off or re-render without text on so they looked like general motion graphics. Obviously now budgets don't really allow for much creativity but look back on this time fondly.

[vozzz]

yay, pub after hitting render, he's one of us

[JamesDohertyEsq]

The sooner we get After Effects on iPhone and can press render from the pub, the better.

[boy.finley]

Not very often you see a reel that cutty with such a high hit ratio, nice one mate!

[foughtthelaw]

very solid reel. I'm in a similar boat myself, having been at an ad agency for 7 years. I find this encouraging and inspiring. good for you taking the plunge!

[vozzz]

I feel like saying something negative about freelance, or i feel the market get overcrowded with pro's...

So here it goes: Freelancing, is full of risks. There are clients who dont pay on time, there are clients who try to screw you over, there are clients who dont pay you at all, there are clients, who try to get you to work overtime with no extra pay, there are jobs which drag out waay longer than expected.

tread with caution.

[ghekkomanic]

@boy.finley @foughtthelaw thanks guys

@vozzz thanks, while I'll happily lap up any praise this is the sort of advice I was after. I agree there are risks. I didn't take the plunge without first giving it a lot of thought. I've employed staff, [cough] @James [cough] who have gone on to do brilliantly freelancing. Working on exciting creative projects, and choosing which companies to try and get in with so they can develop as designers. However I know it's not all gravy - I'm actually still chasing payment for a job going back to November I did in my spare time, and I know not all freelance work is exciting creative projects. You might spend two months at a company and have nothing for your reel at the end of it. I'm obviously hoping that won't be the case so much, but I'd still rather do that than deal with the work politics and distractions I have to endure as a manager of a design department currently. The more time I can spend just doing the work rather than going to endless meetings, interviews, talking things to death instead of just doing them - the better! And having to justify creative decisions to people who aren't the client - exhausting and unnecessary.

Will definitely tread with caution - I hear it's a minefield out there!