the reasons why....

today i came across a quote by Oprah...its a nice one....it kind of reminded me, of a thought i once had about my profession.she says "Real integrity is doing the right thing, knowing that nobody's going to know whether you did it or not." Let me explain why this thought connects to my profession.I've been working in the Visual FX industry for the past 7 odd years and in my fresher days i got the opportunity to work under the guidance of some very talented people who showed me the way....taught me the skills i have today and also inspired certain professional ethics, which have sunk so deep into my character that they are second nature to me now.Its hard for me to not do the things they have taught me.Now in the beginning..i would execute a composite just so that my supervisor was happy and once i had his approval i used to go home a happy man.But as years past by and i got better at what i did...i wondered to myself...what am i working for...is it the money?....is it the glory? now to answer these questions.....the money in this industry is quite satisfactory....not enough to make up for the time spend away from your loved ones...all the 24hrs and 48 hrs and 72hrs, one puts into a certain job it requires.Compositing involves working on either a sequence or a specific shot till the requirement is fulfilled and most of the times...the deadlines are, lets just say "weird".....Now there is glory....once in a while...when the director likes what you've done to his film...he sometimes appreciates ure effort...but even though these things play in your mind....the question still remains....is this all worth it....?Let me give u some facts...India has a long way to go in terms of visual fx.We are still just scratching the surface...and so the clients we handle mostly don't turn out to be very post production non-savvy...which in turn means that the clients don't really have much of a clue about compositing and visual fx.There are clients who do not involve the fx house even in their ongoing vfx shoots and just land up at our doorsteps with the final rushes!Having said that, even if a compositor does execute a great composite which is supposed to look so seamless that even the director who was there on the shoot, cant make out what is done.....he loses out on the appreciation simply because the client doesn't know any better....he is just very happy that his vision was made a reality.Which means that no matter how many nights and days you spend to finish a shot....the clients mostly wont even notice ure work!!!funny but true...so how does one psyche oneself to keep going?the money makes up for it? that would be a no....
I once asked a friend and colleague of mine..what do u work for?he arrogantly answered back...."for the limelight".....this guy was a graphics artist who was very good at delivering print work for various clients....packaging in advertising is a very in your face ...visually attractive side which cannot be mistaken for realism.....well what ever works for the guy....he had his reasons all figured out....so what was mine?
now to answer this question I'd like to use the analogy of a compositor and a comic book hero!!
well let me explain, before u think I'm an pompous prick who loves to call myself a super hero!
well I'm talking about a certain kind who has to have 2 identities so that his loved ones aren't harmed...well one guy does the work, the other person serves the purpose of the cover up.u all know the story....well the comparison begins when the real person cant claim the credit or glory of doing all the great things the Hero has done.The definition of a compositor is a person who is supposed to be invisible.The moment a viewer knows that something is done in the shot/sequence...the compositor has failed....his work is expected to be so seamless....does any of this make sense now?So the real hero can never even think of showing off his work to a layman even if he wants to show the world that he is good at his work.I say i get a kick, for being in the shadows....there is a certain satisfaction when i see my shot being watched in a theatre and the crowd has no clue that something was super imposed or cut and pasted or that that breath taking explosion was put together in a tiny room in Bandra!!i love the shadows....i need the shadows....if the layman remain layman no more....my job is not justified....its a little like Batman!!So who do i work for again?i work for my colleagues and for anybody who is savvy enough to understand the time and effort i have put into the shot...not the viewer....not the client..they unfortunately are the ignorant ones...but without them ...there would be no me.....so i guess i get cheap thrills when i play my sequence and nobody knows what the hell I've done in it even though it is under their noses....sleight of hand is a lovely concept!!
well whatever it takes to keep me going....and this reason keeps my clock ticking....