I can think of numerous times that I've sat down with family and friends and tried to explain to them the triumphs, challenges and politics that are visual effects employment. And as soon as they start to wrap their head around it, something crappy will happen that I'm sure makes them question my career path.
Whether I'm employed or unemployed there are always complications that non-members of the industry won't understand. For example, my Dad doesn't like the job instability and doesn't understand the busy one minute then laying off employees the next. 'Carla, last week you were doing unpaid OT and now they've cut the contract short!' On the other hand, he is unbelievably understanding even though I'm sure he'd rather have me living closer to home.
And other questions that always arise are, 'Well why don't you open your own studio?' or 'Can't you just call the Recruiter?' These often lead to heated discussions about why you can't just park out the front of ILM and drop your resume off at front desk and the never-ending hula hoops of bulls**t you'd have to jump through to open up your own studio.
A lot of the time they often think our jobs are the best and easiest in the world. 'You get paid a lot of money to go to work and draw characters all day'. Well sure, that's true for some of the day and the rest of the time is spent dealing with office politics, trying to get a Maya license for 5 minutes or trying not to voice your opinion too much in dailies.
And during a time of unemployment, the concerns come flooding in and it is difficult to re-assure my Dad that I am financially stable and looking for another job. As many of you know, working freelance has it's benefits. The slightly higher pay means that when the contract does end you (sometimes) have enough funds to get you through to the next gig. As long as you didn't blow it all on a jet ski.
So, Dad if you're reading this, I'm doing fine and I'll be home soon. I promise.
