Animation Guild | We are 839 Digital Magazine
Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/1203639
32 KEYFRAME F E AT U R E KK: I try to talk to my coworkers about their opinions on taking a test. People are very wary [of] making people work and we all want to be considerate of other people's time. If you're in a supervisor position, talk to people that you're supervising and [don't just go] along with what you're comfortable with or what you're used to for testing. PM: Once you're [a] supervising director, you get more pressure. We're really middle management. But we're also artists and we have a foot in both camps. I think it can be scary to talk to your showrunner and say, "I think this test is too much. I don't want to make people do this." But I think we'd all be surprised if we did talk to our bosses, they'll perhaps say, "Really? Okay. Well, we'll fix that." I think they're probably more open to it than we realize. By getting the concerns out in the open we can talk about [testing] and not be so intimidated by it. BJ: You've got to be considerate. I notice that people who are running shows are very passionate people who have a story to tell. And oftentimes, it almost becomes myopic. They are so focused on their story and their craft that they forget there are these people all working for them, with them. Oftentimes, there is this idea that the "ends justify the means." Whatever it takes to make the show good without realizing that you also have to be considerate to the people that work for you. And if you treat them just as tools, as just the hand that draws, then all you get is the bare minimum. PS: You have to trust them. Right? BJ: You have to trust them. When you're a showrunner or a creator, it's your personal project, but the thing is you have to delegate. The showrunner doesn't have to be in the room and judge every test. Leave it to the directors. And people like us, we need to speak up more as well. EI: Another thing is if [you] are young and you think you want to have your own show, maybe think about it as like, "I'm probably going to need to know people who could help me do this." As opposed to, "I'm going to pitch this idea and it's just going to be me making this thing." It's not realistic to what the position is. It's managing people. That's your job now. PM: How do you test for [management skills]? You can't test for that. BJ: I've been experimenting with this because I am in the process of picking directors right now. There's no way to test a director because it's about managing. So I schedule lunches with all my director candidates at least three times just to see their personality. We would talk about films we like and what we don't like, to make sure [our] sensibilities are similar. It's testing for a leadership position. I've seen how they behave, I've seen how they talk, I've seen their Twitter. That's part of the judgment because you'll be working with these people [all] day. WHAT METHODS DO YOU TYPICALLY USE TO HIRE SOMEONE FOR YOUR SHOW? BJ: If they have samples, [or] if I have worked with them before, then it's easy to decide. I do test very rarely just because from my personal experience, we don't see much more [in a test] than what we've seen in the portfolio. So testing is always the last resort for me. EI: Even if I've worked with them before, I'd always meet with people first. I'd have a meeting to tell them about the show and tell them about what I would want them to do in that role. My rule was generally, if I've never worked with you before, or I don't have a good enough understanding that your experience level is right for this yet, I'm going to have to give you a [paid] test. It'll be a short test, I just need to know what your skills are and if you fit for this. It's worked out in most cases. PM: When I'm staffing up, especially for storyboarders and directors, I look at it as casting. With an adult show, it's a very different style of boarding and posing than it would be for Looney Tunes. I'd look through portfolios. Some I'd recognize and some I wouldn't. A lot of portfolios would be people submitting online who have no experience, and there's a lot of amazing Kris Mukai