I will never forget my first conversation with my now buddy Jon, the legendary animator and grader
extraordinaire. We were discussing our first project together and I had referred him to a previous
animation Tomfoolery had done.
His response is forever branded into my memory. Via email he carefully outlined how he would radically
improve on our current position and add a new life to our work. It wasn’t arrogant- it was fact.
Jon knew his craft and was comfortable with what he could create.
As we became friends he dropped into conversation a one liner: “no matter the budget of
the project I work until I am happy.”
Ah.
Lesson one in craft: time is directly linked to result.
Craft is tangible. It lingers like perfume around a project. Watch Avatar and you’ll see craft.
Hold an iPhone and you’ll perceive craft. Listen to Gangs of Ballet’s Yes/No/Grey and you feel craft.
Craft is knowing that something was lovingly created. Craft comes through in the details.
Bottom line – we find it really, really, really, really hard to just do work. We love craft. Cookie cutter doesn’t suit us very well. Roughly right … nope, not really our gig. Doing good work, that’s our style – stuff we are proud of. Art that makes sense. We love the details. We feast on making the little things right and agonise over what we can’t. You get the picture.
Love what you do
Tom