Is it worth the candle?

[AN]

The hours a film maker works per minute a person watches your film has interesting
figures to offer......

A TV or screen actor may put in many hundreds of hours work but in return
he will be rewarded with audiences of many millions,
in some cases 100's of millions. If his film runs for an hour or so this
gives him a return 100,000's of people watching him for an hour for each
hour he worked, if 50 mil see his work.

Now take we poor ol amateurs. Let's say you spend 500 hours making a film....this
is probably a very lowish figure as the lone worker has to spend time thinking/writing/seeking
music/locations etc etc. Even if he wins 5 top competitions
on completion, and say, gets a few showings around the clubs etc, his overall
viewing audience is unlikely to exceed 500 or so.
Also, as his film is unlikely to run much over 10 minutes, so our amateur
has to work for over an hour to get one person to sit for only 10 minutes
watching the completed film.

So the pro's audience watching ratio is at least 600,000 times better than
that of the lone amateur's.
And if one doesn't keep getting TOP prizes at all the festivals (and who
does?),the audience numbers watching fall dramatically, making the viewing
hours per hours worked situation very much worse.

So, what a courageous lot we are....or just plain daft? OK, OK, I know all
about self expression etc, but is it really worth the candle for the very
small return we get?

Albert....burning the depressing candle at both ends.

[Ned Cordery]

"AN" <forums@theiac.org.uk> wrote:

The hours a film maker works per minute a person watches your film has interesting
figures to offer......

A TV or screen actor may put in many hundreds of hours work but in return
he will be rewarded with audiences of many millions,
in some cases 100's of millions. If his film runs for an hour or so this
gives him a return 100,000's of people watching him for an hour for each
hour he worked, if 50 mil see his work.

Now take we poor ol amateurs. Let's say you spend 500 hours making a film....this
is probably a very lowish figure as the lone worker has to spend time thinking/writing/seeking
music/locations etc etc. Even if he wins 5 top competitions
on completion, and say, gets a few showings around the clubs etc, his overall
viewing audience is unlikely to exceed 500 or so.
Also, as his film is unlikely to run much over 10 minutes, so our amateur
has to work for over an hour to get one person to sit for only 10 minutes
watching the completed film.

So the pro's audience watching ratio is at least 600,000 times better than
that of the lone amateur's.
And if one doesn't keep getting TOP prizes at all the festivals (and who
does?),the audience numbers watching fall dramatically, making the viewing
hours per hours worked situation very much worse.

So, what a courageous lot we are....or just plain daft? OK, OK, I know
all
about self expression etc, but is it really worth the candle for the very
small return we get?

Albert....burning the depressing candle at both ends.

How much better off we are than the writer who labours over a novel only
to receive rejection slips or the painters whose work is seen only by their
nearest and dearest.

Ned C