Shadowing Practice: The Indie Animation Conundrum - Learn English Speaking with Video

Choose a practice mode

Each mode opens a full-screen practice room.

350 sentences

If sentences are too short or too long, click Edit to adjust them.

Indy.

The history of pictographic storytelling can be dated back to the dawn of man itself,

when Homo Neanderthalus first began smearing fecal matter on cavern wall - Got you, fucko.

I might be white, but this isn't that kind of video essay.

Animation is an expensive process, and animators are artists, which is a fancy way of saying poor.

Seven bucks?

Are you fucking serious?

Traditional animation cannot be made without funding from larger studios, who typically give the artists a ton of money, but in exchange, they claim their soul.

And the general public suffers as a result, because they are getting a watered -down, retold version of the artist's creative vision.

They aren't seeing what the artist was trying to convey, even if it may challenge their beliefs or offend their sensibilities.

They are watching what a boardroom thinks they want, and that never works because the general public is stupid and never knows what it wants.

Indie animation, on the other hand, typically involves a very small self -funded team who makes money by e -banking on Twitter,

selling merchandise, or accepting money from a corporation, with the creators behind the projects getting full creative control

because there are no evil businessmen smoking cigars in a boardroom meddling with the artist's creative vision.

We, the audience, receive these moving pixels and MP3 files in its pure, unfiltered, intended way directly from the creator.

And a lot of the time, that leads to it being not very good, or at least is not as good as it can be.

Because sometimes when an artist has no one to tell them no, they develop what some refer to as an ego,

but I rather refer to as artist infallibility dumb syndrome, or AIDS for short.

Indie animation is extremely important.

It allows for more people to tell more stories in more creative ways, and allows the general public to glimpse into worlds that don't exist,

and become lost in the magic of storytelling, in ways that could never be done in the corporate animation scene,

because the focus test groups they use are turbo normies

that can't focus on anything that isn't tung tung tung se social media trends, baby no money music type beats, and moist critical.

And we as the audience should be supporting these indie creators who are taking huge risks to follow their dreams

and offer us a glimpse into not just their own soul, but ours as well.

But just because it's indie doesn't mean it's exempt from criticism.

It simply being someone's passion doesn't make it worth my precious time.

Just because a lot of work went into something doesn't mean it's immediately good.

My wife's boyfriend puts a lot of work into getting my wife pregnant, but that doesn't suddenly make me the father of her 12 children.

I also need to make it clear that although the waters of indie animation are wide, dark, and deep.

My main criticisms lie with those that are attempting to become serialized television.

If you're out here making silly animations because you like it, here's a lollipop.

Go out, fine little guy.

But if you are considering becoming a storyteller and packaging and shipping your product to the masses for consumption,

then get ready, buddy, because I have my fedora ready, and I will whine and complain about it if it's subpar.

Now, I need to disclose my bias.

I don't mind paying to consume art, but just as I click agree to the terms

and conditions on whatever site I'm spending my Flaysbucks on to view the animation, Please, please let me in, please, please!

The artist is signing an invisible contract with me that the money I spend should give me an enjoyable time in return.

So whether it be on a streaming service, a physical piece of media, or even YouTube, I will be watching it with my brain on.

An indie show is speaking, listen, and learn.

It can be a short, a pilot, an entire series, I don't care.

If the project is bad, or even worse, boring, or even worcester, annoying, I will be critical of it.

Because although it is art, it is a product I bought and paid for with my money and my time.

And time is the most valuable currency in existence,

because you can spend it all on merchandise that will end up in the landfill in five years.

Like this VHS for Lehecken Lost Media Indie project I found while dumpster diving behind Hot Topic.

Hopefully it doesn't make me have a hyper -realistic panic attack with hyper -realistic blood.

Oh no!

I am the main character who breaks the fourth wall, haha!

I am stuck inside an indie pilot that is a sponsor for NordVPN!

Oh, the cybercriminals are trying to hack my computer and steal all of my dap NFT!

I feel a hyper -realistic panic attack coming on.

If only there was a way to prevent this with an all -in -one digital security app

that depending on your plan

and operating system can get you access to multiple essential security features like the world's most advanced vpn

and next -gen antivirus all with one subscription with this treasure

i summon nordvpn upgrade your online protection with an

all -in -one security app get an exclusive nordvpn deal plus four months extra at nordvp NordVPN .com slash Flaysfire.

It's risk -free with Nord's 30 -day money -back guarantee.

Dude, check this out!

Hello on NordVPN!

He also has a privacy -first built -in next -gen antivirus offering protection against malware, dangerous websites, and ads.

Upgrade your online protection with an all -in -one security app.

Get an exclusive NordVPN deal plus four months extra at NordVPN .com slash Flaysfire.

It's risk -free with Nord's 30 -day money -back guarantee.

My name's Nord.

A large issue with indie animation is that although it is a fact that they are all inherently different, they feel incredibly similar.

Oh, God, I'm so pregnant.

I'm pregnant with an idea.

And that is the idea of inspiration.

Taking ideas and elements from things and using them to create something new.

Nothing is original, every thought has been thunk, every brap has been stunk.

It doesn't matter where your inspirations come from, as long as you have something unique and interesting to say.

I take no issue with inspiration, be it light or heavy, but I do take issue with your work pretending to be something that it's not,

and using the name of an inspiration to sell a product.

A lot of indie creators talk at great lengths about what inspired their stories, the themes, the characters, the setting,

the vibes, and it sounds good if you're uncritical, But if you pay attention,

it seems they were viewing their inspirations with Instagram reels in one hand and YouTube shorts in the other.

Has Been Hotel and Hell of a Boss are both shows created

and written by Vivzipop that is very strongly inspired by Christian religious mythology.

Specifically, Dante's Inferno written by Dante Alighieri and the Bible written by God.

And this is an example of a subtle integration of inspiration.

Subtle in the idea that Vivzy does many interviews and explains exactly what shapes her stories and characters, but doesn't always talk about the biblical inspirations.

It's very apparent in the work itself, though.

It takes place in heaven and hell.

There are demons and angels.

There are different rings of hell for different sins.

Apart from that, it's all fanfic OC content.

That's it.

Fuck this.

Hello, husband hotel crew.

I am homosexual.

Let's have le kissy kissy smooch smooch time.

But these inspirations are very strongly felt through the entirety of both series.

100

It's just clear that Vivzy put no thought into how these inspirations would result in her world working,

101

and just copy -pasted them into her story because.. it's heaven and hell, gotta have some of the Bible lore in there somewhere.

102

And as a result, the inspiration, though prominent, seems shallow and says nothing about the source material, other than a light amount of Reddit atheism analysis.

103

Gooseworks, the creator of the amazing

104

Digital Circus and connoisseur of handheld carpentry equipment, has stated, Digital Circus is very inspired by I have no mouth and I must scream,

105

but instead of Am being a living embodiment of hate, he's a fun -loving, wacky little guy.

106

I see the superficial elements, the humans being tortured by an AI, an AI entity being upset it doesn't know its purpose,

107

being trapped forever in a computer, isolation and its effects on the human mind, what it means to exist.

108

But I would say this is a very surface level of inspiration, not an interpretation nor retelling of the story, and Goose never claimed as such,

109

but because those load -bearing words were uttered,

110

very inspired by, it gives the audience certain expectations in regards to what extent those inspirations shape the narrative.

111

And I would say the most egregious example of inspiration invocation

112

from an indie creator comes from the YouTube shorts farmer Dano Cal Draws.

113

True Turf is an indie pilot that follows his blue self -insert Riggie the Runkey.

114

Whatcha gonna do now, monkey tail?

115

Mommy, is that a monkey with a rabbit's tail?

116

You're a very hoppy -looking rabbit and - Whoa!

117

Sir, is that a monkey tail?

118

Riggie.

119

Riggie Runkey.

120

Runkey?

121

Well, I've never heard of a - What?!

122

Are you some sort of a - a Rabkey?

123

No. A - a money.

124

A Mabbit!

125

Not Runkey!

126

My sister's a Mabbit.

127

Runkey?

128

Hold on, Runkey?

129

Where does the - REELEASE MEEEEEEEEEEE! that is apparently inspired by...

130

Ahem.

131

Gravity Falls, Toonturf Online, Undertale, in terms of feeling things when characters die, Paper Mario for the style, Breaking Bad, and Dexter.

132

That is simply buzzword soup with a side of bullshit sauce.

133

I'm totally forgetting a bunch of inspirations,

134

but basically Toonturf is actually just gonna be a massive Frankensteined monster of my favorite things that makes no sense,

135

but then again, that's pretty much every creative endeavor, right?

136

Yeah, it looks like

137

Paper Mario, But the comparisons to Breaking Bad end at the fact that the cute cartoon characters sell the drugs?

138

Want some cane?

139

Huh?

140

The cane, you know?

141

You know, the green pipe, the funny puff?

142

What are you talking about?

143

This.

144

What?

145

What?

146

This.

147

This and the Dexter inspiration is because Riggie's eyes start bleeding a hyper realistic blood and he legheph kills people awesome style

148

On the surface you may think Toon Turf is just a dumb kid show and let me tell you

149

No, it gets dark

150

Although me saying that leaves people to the other assumption that it could also just be another cheap cash grab at Oh,

151

look at this thing that looks cute, but it's actually scary

152

None of these elements are used in the actual project

153

they are simply surface -level observations of much deeper LeMulti fandom media that Dana watched on YouTube shorts.

154

Jesse will eventually show up to defend his private domicile.

155

But again, it comes back to the way the creators use these inspirations as a form of marketing for their project.

156

Because by saying the name of things people like, that means they will like my thing as well.

157

And my thing is good because those things are good.

158

But it's another thing entirely to make claims that those aforementioned inspirations play a large role in your creation.

159

Because no matter your intention, when making those statements, you are marketing your creation based on the merits of another.

160

And that is going to influence the experience when viewing your work, be it positively or negatively, depending on how it's executed.

161

But those are all broader inspirations, the big in -your -face ones.

162

And those don't make

163

or break a project as far as I'm concerned a far

164

more pressing issue facing the indie animation sphere both plagues and forms its core.

165

The writing.

166

The thing that nobody cares about, but is the most integral element when it comes to storytelling.

167

The prerequisite and biggest barrier of creating an animated series is being able to draw.

168

And that is an amazing feat on its own, but it's not the only thing that goes into a show.

169

You still need to be able to write character arcs, dialogue, and a story.

170

You've put your heart and soul into learning to give life to images on a screen through countless hours of practice.

171

You can do the same in regards to the text that makes those images come to life.

172

And if you don't know how to write or you don't want to learn, you need to be able to delegate that to someone who does.

173

Because although a script isn't able to be turned into a Goonable plushie, What?

174

It's just as important for making your story function.

175

All it takes is one popular indie creator to write in a certain way, and then another creator sees that creation,

176

they create their own, and another, and another, and another, until although a vast amount of different projects are created,

177

at their core, they feel the same.

178

I think where the similarities between all of these projects are most prominent are in two very specific but integral areas.

179

The dialogue and the pacing.

180

Both of which can make the most beautiful animated moving images

181

Time to take a piss!

182

Completely unwatchable.

183

It's only a pilot so far, but they have enough merchandise to fund a small nation,

184

so I think it's fair to say this will be the first episode.

185

And it's just not very good.

186

And the issues with Game of Versus writing, pacing, and dialogue are all exemplified in I'm a Learnasaurus, kid.

187

That's what I do.

188

I learn.

189

Kit, a character we don't know, has a realistic depiction of a panic attack

190

because of something in her past that we don't know anything about involving characters we have no connection to.

191

And then Gobbles, the Lernosaurus, a character we also don't know, tells her directly that everything is alright and she's done nothing wrong ever.

192

None of this is your fault.

193

None of anything you ever did is your fault.

194

All you ever wanted to do was save people.

195

And Kit explains to Gobbles the Lernosaurus and the audience that he is now courageous and uplifting, despite being nervous before.

196

And without any on -screen development, Gobbles says directly to Kit, and therefore the audience, I'm a Lernosaurus, Kit.

197

That's what I do.

198

I learn.

199

And the problem is fixed.

200

Welcome to the pool.

201

There is no emotional weight, because we don't know these characters.

202

Gameiverse.

203

In collaboration with Glitch Productions, YouTuber Rubber Ross wrote his name in the pages of speedrunning

204

history by having the fastest resolution to a character arc ever depicted on screen.

205

The audience has known the characters for 30 minutes, the characters have known each other for 5 microseconds,

206

and the emotional scene is resolved in under a minute.

207

But how did they do it?

208

An unpatched glitch known as the Lernosaurus technique.

209

The Lernosaurus technique allows any and all development to be done off screen.

210

Because the Lernosaurus is a Lernosaurus.

211

They learn.

212

It's what they do.

213

If you as a writer don't want to delve into Le Sad Backstory as a plot point, that is fine.

214

But you can't then just throw it in half -heartedly and expect it to carry - any emotional weight.

215

It is eating into the precious little runtime available and amounts to the emotional value of a piggy bank.

216

Okay.

217

Ooh, that's a prize.

218

Literally four pennies.

219

One writing trope in particular

220

that seems to exemplify this feeling of similarity between these different shows is the realistic depiction of a panic attack.

221

As much as I find the trope played out at this point,

222

it still can be well done and enhance the character's depth and or the audience's attachment to them.

223

However, it is interesting to see its prevalence within indie animation.

224

And I understand why it's done.

225

The writers write what they know.

226

But it's clear there is something influencing the simulacrum situation around different indie projects, with both the dialogue and the pacing.

227

There has to be a link that connects them all.

228

And if writers write what they know, what do they know?

229

The realistic depiction of a panic attack is the key to the mystery.

230

Children's media.

231

Cartoons and kids' movies.

232

There are some amazing films and television aimed at children that are very well written, but they are still made for children.

233

Their dialogue is less complex, and the way it's conveyed is simpler and therefore unnatural,

234

because the audience is younger and therefore less experienced understanding what they consume.

235

The stories are more constrained, because they are targeted to an audience that is still developing critical thinking,

236

And they are paced extremely fast because children have shorter attention spans.

237

Within recent years, there has been many a children's media that depicts an on -screen panic and or anxiety attack.

238

But it also happens in other forms of media.

239

So how could I possibly know it comes from kiddie stuff?

240

Because they all happen in similar ways.

241

Character begins to hyperventilate.

242

Another character lays their hands upon them.

243

Panic attack over.

244

And this is not a condemnation of the tropes, inclusion, or existence but it is an indication

245

that the writers behind a lot of popular indie animated shows are influenced heavily

246

and primarily by entertainment aimed at a younger demographic.

247

None of the things I listed as proof are definitive on their own, but when all present at once,

248

it paints a pretty clear picture of what the writer was influenced by.

249

Pacing and writing, both skills that come from the same place as drawing.

250

Practice, and you practice both skills by reading, by watching, by doing.

251

And more importantly, pushing yourself out of your comfort zone media -wise.

252

The more you as a creator know, the better.

253

As much as I love sitting in my cup chair, if all I did was watch my wife get plowed all day,

254

that's all I would be able to write about.

255

And if you're influenced by only one specific style of thing, then that is going to warp the way you express yourself creatively.

256

Boy, you'd think I was in the North Tower with the amount of indie pilots that are flying at me.

257

Pilots are not a bad thing.

258

It's a great way for a creator to pitch their work to a publisher.

259

But they have evolved past the days of starving artists begging on their hands

260

and knees with a 10 -minute low -quality rendition of their

261

idea to a room filled with bored corporate executives who don't care and just want to do cocaine.

262

Dude, I brought in a jerk!

263

They are now fully animated, voice acted, and entire merch line ready -to -go episode ones to be promoted and sold to an audience.

264

That being said, it's still a totally fine practice to treat a pilot in this way.

265

The attention economy is brutal.

266

You gotta do what you gotta do.

267

But that doesn't mean every time you gotta pee, you gotta poo.

268

To quote the Joker, Every poo -poo is pee -pee time.

269

But not every pee -pee is poo -poo time.

270

And that makes a lot of sense if we look at it in the context of an indie pilot.

271

So many pilots get this wrong and end up pooping their pants when they only needed to pee.

272

The words, it's only a pilot, are uttered very frequently in the indie space when a new indie production hits the scene,

273

and it drives me up the fucking wall.

274

Because it's used as a defense of subpar product.

275

If you have any criticism or critiques or anything to say negatively in regards to a pilot,

276

you will be swarmed by a mass of Reddit scrimblo bimblos who say you lack joy and whimsy.

277

And I just need to spell it out.

278

A pilot is meant to sell a series.

279

Although entertaining, you are watching an advertisement.

280

Its mere existence invites critique.

281

The pilot episode is critically important in a show's creation because it allows for raw, unfiltered feedback.

282

First introductions are everything.

283

If I meet someone and my first move is to rip out their spine, they are going to wheelchair away,

284

having a negative impression of me in their head.

285

It is the same with an indie pilot.

286

If it starts off weak, my expectation for the series will be very low.

287

That doesn't mean my views can't be changed,

288

but a lot more effort is required to prove to me that the full show is worth my attention.

289

And when you're selling a product, especially if it's in its prototype phase, feedback is an extremely valuable resource.

290

Holy shit, I'm a...

291

And it helps no one to pretend that no issues exist within a pilot.. when they clearly do,

292

because these issues more than likely stem from inexperience.

293

It's not a crime to be inexperienced, because you can learn, like the Lernosaurus.

294

That's what I do.

295

I learn.

296

All of these creations ironically suffer from being indie, that is to say, independent.

297

There is no oversight from a governing body, no force deciding what should be done with these projects or how the creator should behave.

298

And that, surprisingly, and somewhat paradoxically, leads to too much creative freedom.

299

This is where the No Man comes in.

300

Did somebody say No Man?

301

A No Man is like the evil, fucked version of a Yes Man.

302

These indie projects would benefit immensely by having someone either on the team,

303

or that the creator trusts implicitly to look at the ideas and say straight to everyone's faces,

304

No. The beauty of the no man is that you don't need to listen to him.

305

He simply plants the idea that what you are doing creatively might not be the best option.

306

When you are an artist, you take pride in your work.

307

And sometimes that pride can lead you to believing that you know everything.

308

That what you are doing is the best possible decision.

309

And with those blinders on, you develop tunnel vision.

310

When the no man says no, you need to consider why he is saying no. If after you consider the reasoning behind his decision,

311

and you conclude that he was wrong with a better counter -argument, then that is a good idea and should be included in your creation.

312

Much like the twist in every

313

Polish game ever, the no man exists only in le head.

314

He is a skill you manifest through the practice of humility,

315

looking at your work with the ability and willingness to change it if it leads to a better overall creation.

316

Now with all that being said, I can read your thoughts dear viewer.

317

And tucked just behind the desire to goon to WFAPS, and just beside what you want for dinner, I can see you thinking,

318

Place Fire, you're only talking about a few of these shows.

319

There are so many out there you should have mentioned.

320

Why didn't you talk about Glideon, you forgot it, you forgot it, you forgot it, you forgot it, you forgot it, you forgot it,

321