Deciding on a business
This semester in SPB we’re supposed to create a business plan which is to be presented as a part of the ICA in April or May. The business idea can be based on a product, a company idea or on being a freelancer.
As I really want to find employment in a visual effects facility as a roto artist or compositor, the chance of this business idea being more than hypothetical is very slim. To get the most out of the module however, I’ll choose a business that will allow me to mimic being employed in a visual effects facility as closely as possible.
According to Hans Rijpkema at Rhythm & Hues in California, only a little under half of the Rhythm & Hues staff is currently employed on a permanent basis. The rest are brought in depending on the need for people and skills on each individual project. This, from what I’ve heard, is quite common in the visual effects industry today.
The natural choice for me would therefore be to set up as a freelancer and target client companies such as the ones I hope to be employed by in the future. By billing them instead of receiving salaries, I can work for them as a freelance artist while using their offices and equipment.
This is quite good the way I see it as it will reduce expenses at my end. I will have to get some basic equipment for use at home and other than thatI can leave most of what’s left to salary, taxes, pensions and whatever else. I don’t see the real need for an office space in this scenario. If I’m working at a visual effects facility, I’ll have my office there and if I were to go without studio work for a while and having to resort to smaller jobs, I think I’ll be just fine with working from home. Given that I don’t foresee very big expenses in such a freelance business, I will probably be fine as a sole trader.
As of yet I’m not too tied down to any location in particular so I am free to move all over the world for jobs should I wish to. At the moment I would prefer feature film work in an english speaking country which means that the UK, the US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand are highest on my list. Of course, I might have to aim a lot lower than feature film at first to get clients.
Regarding finding a name for the business I think I’ll make it as simple as just going with my actual name. With the kind of work I expect to be doing, all clients will know I am a single person anyway. Given that I also want to seek employment some day, it would be good (hopefully) to have people associating the business with my name.
