Well, I've sold my creative soul for gear and cash. I feel dirty.

GottaBeTheJuice said:
Just thinking of another angle. If they google your name won't this come up?
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We could ask the webmaster to add the line
Disallow: /V6/showpost.php?p=1872745
to the robots.txt file on the server. (So the search engines skip this topic.) :grin:
 
GottaBeTheJuice said:
Just thinking of another angle. If they google your name won't this come up?
Click to expand...


that's fine with me, They already know I hate doing music videos and don't like their music. And I told them The ONLY reason I'm doing it, is because my wife likes them. I have a sincere love for good music and bad music pisses me off. Personally there cool dudes. But since they hired me, I will deliver a great product.
 
I've been doing music for my entire career, and have been in your spot more than a few times. If I can offer anything like a ray of hope it's that I've found in quite a number of those cases the experience of working with music that I disliked (and this includes some very famous artists), I found something to like about it once I did. That experience was very illuminating for me, and taught me a lesson about judging artistic works too quickly and/or harshly. Once 'in the trench' with said 'disliked artist' I began to understand their actual ability and appreciate them for it even if I never exactly become a fan.

Then there's the personal side. If, as you say you do, you like the people, then you can focus on helping *them* get what they want. Unselfishness is a very soul-nourishing place to come from. And you could also focus on your wife's appreciation for it. So do it for them, and for her - not for you.

Perhaps you've experienced this as well, but working for a maniac whose music you do appreciate (I could name-drop here as well, but won't) is no picnic either. A bad interpersonal experience during the process, at least for me, can more than wipe out any appreciation of the work's artistic merit.

I'd rather be 'imprisoned' with a sane and but boring 'cellmate' than a psycho-sociopathic megalomaniac (nope, not this time either) who also happens to be a genius...
 
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Relax - liking the music has nothing to do with making a great video for that same music. Hating it may even help you create a more original video than a 'fan' would have done.

Getting along with the people - which you apparently do - is far more important.
 
I'd just like to learn the trick on getting paid work. I've still yet to break into that. If I put more effort into looking for that instead of writing and shooting my own stuff I guess that would help. So you gotta be glad for that because I'd like to be in your shoes right now considering I'm on unemployment. ;)
 
just make sure that it doesn't become the project where you say to someone looking through your work with you, "well, I didn't like the band anyway, and they were getting on my nerves- I mean what did they want from me? They suck and I can't work miracles, so it came out like this. They didn't understand that rendering and stuff takes time and plenty of videos take 14 weeks to finish. Anyway, here's something I really like..."
 
Patryk_Rebisz said:
That means you undercharged. If you charged properly then whether you like the music or not wouldn't matter.
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Pretty pat answer there. How would it make him look to them if they found out later that he inexplicably doubled his rates, just for them (especially since he says he thinks they're "nice people")? Don't you think they'd be justifiably pissed? I would. Your reputation as a person of integrity is more valuable than any job, especially one you've successfully fended off anyway by playing games with your rates.

You do the work for fair rates for everyone (at least for everyone that's of similar means - so higher rates for large corporations vs out-of-pocket individuals is ok in my book). Unusual circumstances are fair game IMO too - if they want you to fly to Alaska in February and live in a cheesy RV for 3 weeks while you shoot an ice-fishing doc, bid whatever sky-high amount you want if you need to be overcompensated to take it - your "regular" rates don't apply. If they agree, you get to come home with a big fat wallet (and probably some nice frozen fish). If you "lose" the job to a lower bidder, that's fine too, right? Otherwise, if the project is sufficiently abhorrent, just turn it down. I do this as a matter of course on Rap Music projects by saying it's not my area of specialization, which, while (obviously) true, is not the real reason. But nobody's feelings get hurt, and I keep my integrity.

If you choose to accept the job, do the best you can at it. No one ever died, literally or metaphorically, from collaborating on work whose artistic content was not to their liking. And you may be surprised to find at the end of the day that you're glad you did. Happened many times for me.
 
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Ted Spencer said:
Pretty pat answer there. How would it make him look to them if they found out later that he inexplicably doubled his rates, just for them (especially since he says he thinks they're "nice people")? Don't you think they'd be justifiably pissed? I would. Your reputation as a person of integrity is more valuable than any job, especially one you've successfully fended off anyway by playing games with your rates.

You do the work for fair rates for everyone (at least for everyone that's of similar means - so higher rates for large corporations vs out-of-pocket individuals is ok in my book). Unusual circumstances are fair game IMO too - if they want you to fly to Alaska in February and live in a cheesy RV for 3 weeks while you shoot an ice-fishing doc, bid whatever sky-high amount you want if you need to be overcompensated to take it - your "regular" rates don't apply. If they agree, you get to come home with a big fat wallet (and probably some nice frozen fish). If you "lose" the job to a lower bidder, that's fine too, right? Otherwise, if the project is sufficiently abhorrent, just turn it down. I do this as a matter of course on Rap Music projects by saying it's not my area of specialization, which, while (obviously) true, is not the real reason. But nobody's feelings get hurt, and I keep my integrity.

If you choose to accept the job, do the best you can at it. No one ever died, literally or metaphorically, from collaborating on work whose artistic content was not to their liking. And you may be surprised to find at the end of the day that you're glad you did. Happened many times for me.
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i'm not so sure he meant it that way (to raise your rates for one client over the other), but the way i interpreted the statement of "That means you undercharged. If you charged properly then whether you like the music or not wouldn't matter." was that if you have a set rate that you're comfortable with and you love what you do then it doesn't feel like a job so to speak, but more of your passion.

i've had jobs i would rather not do, but because i felt like i was getting paid what i deserved and it was something i enjoy doing then it's a whole lot less painful, in other words it beats flipping burgers or sweeping floors and at the end of the day i've gained even more experience at what i love doing. only when i have done something for free or dirt cheap and it was a situation like the original posters' - then i dreaded and regretted doing it.
 
Hey, think about all the people that go to work every single DARN day to a job they do not like and are not appreciated at. You are on you way to doing something you really enjoy and about to have some more footage for a reel.

Winning combo for you!

"Go on, take the money and Run!" - Steve Miller
 
out of curiosity i just did a general google search for the OP to see if this thread would show up easily by searching...
"Richard J. Johnson music video"...

the fouth hit down the page reads...
"Well, I've sold my creative soul for gear and cash. I feel dirty ...
9 posts - 7 authors - Last post: 5 days ago
If you charged properly then whether you like the music or not wouldn't matter. ... Send a private message to Richard J. Johnson ... You can't change the soundtrack, but you can make a great video still. ...
www.dvxuser.com/V6/showthread.php?p=1879529"

personally i think posting something like this publically looks very unprofessional. if i was buyer and saw this i probably wouldnt hire you...but that just me. it just doesnt sound professional.

sorry to be so hard but you created this thread for feedback....

david
www.davidprobst.com
 
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