The Mission
The mission of Animated Insights: The Blog is to provide a place for lively “animated” discussion and insights about writing for a variety of fields, as well as at times talking about non-artists in animation as it is relevant. The original areas on it was founded was to expand on my goal of educating writers and other non-animation professionals and also interacting with and learning from them. Though this site will discuss many facets of writing, the emphasis will always include animation and scriptwriting as that was where I got my start, and I retain such a strong passion for the animation industry. Also, in terms of my professional writing career, I got my start talking about the animated world I loved so much so I wish to continue talking about what I love.
The very first thing I want to make clear is that I absolutely respect artists. They bring to life incredible worlds that sometimes can’t be possible any other way. I wasn’t gifted with great drawing abilities, but I love animation. As far back as my teen years, I knew I wanted to write for it.
The thing was, growing up I thought being an artist, writer, or actor was the only jobs in animation, more specifically that writers and actors were the ONLY non-artist jobs in animation. Let me tell you, that’s totally false. There’s still the need for people behind the scenes to control the flow of all this creative work, from production assistants and coordinators, to checkers and timers, and voice and casting directors. Also, despite getting a degree in live-action television, it didn’t occur to me the amount of post-production personnel needed in animation too.
Through a writer friend I made as a teen, and some of her friends in turn, I got connected for my first animation job as a Production Assistant on Jumanji for what is now Sony Pictures Family Entertainment. There, I began to see firsthand all the possibilities, and soon became a Production Supervisor (Coordinator) on Extreme Ghostbusters. In my heart, though, I knew I wanted to be a writer. So after a year of working at Sony, I left working firsthand in animation to attend the University of California Los Angeles Extension and get a Professional Certificate in Screenwriting.
Yet, I never strayed completely from the field. I consulted on creating the official starmap for Voltron: The Third Dimension. In 2000, I joined the convention circuit, making my debut moderating a panel on “Careers in Animation” for San Diego ComiCon. Also, through a class in animation scriptwriting I took at UCLA Extension, I began to see that longevity in the industry could often hinge on being more than just one thing. I began to miss the industry, but had a couple quarters left of my education.
That feeling led to me approaching a site called Suite101.com in early 2001 about starting a monthly column on Animation Writing and Production, geared to spreading the word about the possibilities for non-artists in the field. They responded positively and for almost a year, I wrote 400-800 word articles for them on the business. The goal is to have them all archived at this site, along with new information from time to time.
In late 2001, after the completion of my education at University of California Los Angeles Extension, I took the position of a Production Coordinator on Nickelodeon’s Invader Zim. This began to seriously cramp the time I could devote to Suite101. That, coupled with a change of direction at Suite101.com in early 2002, led me to part ways with the site. Little did I know that not much later, Invader Zim would have its order cut back and I’d find myself unemployed after only six months on the show. At that point, I resumed doing my monthly column with a site geared specifically to the animation industry called Digital Media FX, and continue to write about the possibilities even as I’ve struggled to find them and begin my graduate studies at California State University, Fullerton, in Mass Communications.
I will not put rose-colored glasses on it; the animation industry in 2003 was a very tough place. Along the way, I remained determined to keep my foot in it as I have and to bring you what the possibilities are so you can be ready to face the challenges now or prepare for the future, if this is truly where your passion leads. There are no times like the lean ones to test your devotion, it seems.
But even in the lean times, miracles do happen. In early 2003, Japanese company Milky Cartoon Ltd. hired me to write three scripts and co-write two 11-minute scripts (the latter with my longtime personal and sometimes creative partner, Kevin Paul Shaw Broden) for a series slated to debut in Japan called “Midnight Horror School”. It’s was an incredible experience and the fulfillment of a longtime dream. If for some reason writing for animation never happens again, I’m incredibly grateful that it came true after not giving up for so many years… my goal, however, is to stay involved in the business as long as I am able in whatever form I can. I truly believe I was born to be in the animation business, which these days has evolved into so much more than just television shows.
It is very much my dream to continue to publicize and promote the opportunities for non-artists in animation, so that others may be informed, of both the joys and the dangers. In the wake of the passing of my mentor from Eastern Washington University, Dr. David Terwische, whose guidance (though in live-action work) strengthened me as both a writer and able to cope with a changing industry, this passion burns stronger than ever. That’s why I created this site as part of that overall goal. In case there isn’t any other outlet where I can further this message, there will always be a home base, as well as a home page for any related forums
My goals right now are to provide new information on this blog and as appropriate, appear on panels ComiCon or other venues yearly as they will accept me and they welcome me. I also hope to be more active in the social networking space as well. In 2010, the mission expanded to bring my fan-to-pro past full circle as AOL retired my Shannon Muir’s Voltron Pages the same weekend I appeared at LosCon in 2009 (but they are still available via http://www.duelingmodems.com/~shan). In 2011, Animated Insights: The Blog formally expanded to discuss the writing life in general but with maintaining an included emphasis on screenwriting and animation. In 2012, the separate site I used to maintain devoted to non-artists in animation folded and most of its content republished on the pages of the blog, being easier both for people searching information and for my maintenance to go to one place.
I look forward to the journey.
– Shannon Muir
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