How the artist and filmmaker Dan Covert built his creative career
"Nothing's going to be happening in isolation," Dan says. Dan. "The most effective method to establish your reputation is through making stuff. If it's lots of effort for you, then it's making things with you which will keep you engaged as a filmmaker."
This is a philosophy that has brought Dan to a remarkable career. It has also seen him be awarded accolades during AFI, SXSW, and evidently the Staff Choices. " Our careers were shaped by this philosophy," Dan tells Dan. "That could appear like absurdity, but it's actually the truth. We're not going to be able to draw interest to this stuff. We've just bought cameras and started learning to create things."
Shortly after the release of his feature film debut " Geoff McFetridge: Drawing A life," which won the Audience Award at this year's SXSW We had the opportunity to talk in conversation with Dan about his process of creating along with his north star creative process. You can watch highlights from the chat above, and listen to the entire discussion.
Your initial job was as a graphic designer. What were the steps you took to transition you from graphic designer to a feature filmmaker?
Dan We established an entity in the year 1996 that was initially an agency for graphic design followed by an animation firm, followed by the production firm. The process has been long. Through the procedure, we made shorts. Many of them were created by staff. chosen by the employees .
We've just begun experimenting and exploring what our sound was within the firm in addition to as directors. The day I reached 40 was an important milestone. I was always thinking, "I'm going to make films at some point." I thought to myself, "Maybe I'm not going to make movies until I'm ready." So I started searching for stories that I could tell and found the film.
16 years may be an extended time for creating something in the industry. What do you think is the best way to continue?
Dan Dan: It's very satisfying to do this. It was a while ago that I didn't think, "Oh, there's going to be a major event that's going to change my career and I'll be going to the Oscars." It's not my focus on that thing. It's all about "Am I having fun at this moment? Do I feel like I am enjoying my trip?"
When a new product is released for sale to the public it's impossible to predict the way people react. This is like asking "Did I do the best thing I could? Am I hanging out working with the people whom I respect and admire? Do we try to be authentic and honest?" My personal style is always the multiple irons on the stove kind of man. I run a business. I am a commercial director. I've been involved in this feature film for a while. I'm pretty experienced and successful practice of art. However, my main focus is being patient and engaging in the activities that I love as well as telling myself "We'll look at where it takes us."
But, I'm not too anxious about the " where they go' portion because it may cause you to pass away. Because ultimately in the end will you care about how you've achieved your goals? That's not the kind of thing you'll be able to remember once you're about 80.
What's your unique north star?
Dan Dan: We are always working to improve our service. However, the problem involves telling stories. Visual art and craft. They're mysterious terms, but they are full of meaning. The same is true for asking "Can you tell a story?" A lot of times, people have an unfinished narrative idea, and they have been able to pull out their story.
The world of commercials and art is essentially opposing forces, however it's different in the sense that they are not at the same level. More about feeling and the ways you communicate that by using stunning cinematography. We all have our unique voice. The thing that keeps me smiling is the character and story.
How do you work to build your brand while not losing the vision you want to achieve for your company?
Dan When I first started, I always thought that it was like "Oh I'm recruited to help with what they want." In time, I realized "No I'm getting hired for help and I'm aware of the things I'm performing." It was a huge shift to look at the needs of the business and their style. It's not a necessarily negative issue, but as more and more my experience as an executive, I've come to understand that people come to you with a personal voice to really examine the problems and tell them "What you as well as your team should be doing is this."
Are there any brands that you're hoping to work with?
Dan The reason I'm saying that is hard because I don't really have an enthusiasm for this sort of stuff. It's similar to "Is it an enjoyable or difficult task?" A few of the jobs which were boring tasks I've ever had to do have resulted in the best results. I made a documentary around a researcher who worked working at Syracuse It's the Type historian's Staff Pick video we did. The guy was trapped in a basement. He came across this font, which Pentagram transformed into the official logo of Syracuse University. This guy is amazing. I would love to meet people like him.
Everyone wants to do jobs within Nike as well as other impressive companies. It's a lot of fun however, I enjoy discovering interesting stories that are unique and also the joy of telling the tales on theatre.
I've never had the opportunity to direct. It was a huge confirmation for me as an artist to have over 300,000 people in two days watch the film we produced. The reaction was "Oh, my God." Do you understand what I'm talking about? This film wasn't made to be an upcoming film. It was created for an assignment for a client, after which we tweaked the film a little and then I observed the viewers.
Dress Code is in place for quite many years. How do you keep going away?
Dan The HTML0 platform serves as the central point for creators all over the world who can view their works. The majority of the work we create falls into the realm of short films Our self-funding comes from using these small balloons for testing and other creators view the balloons. The outcomes are usually surprising. An advertising company may call and say, "Hey, we saw this commercial. Are you able to create the commercial we want?" It's similar to a one to one. If we're working in this manner, it's likely that those who are right for us have noticed and are advancing our work through giving us the chance to speak on our behalf.
Where can you look for inspiration?
Dan Dan: I receive the most motivation to do my work from artwork. Actually, I don't view as much video. I've found it kind tiring and am tempted to copy the things I have seen, consequently, I make efforts to study techniques to be different from the normal way of doing things and also review of feature document commercials or study the fine arts for frames and other techniques for visuals.
What's your favorite tip that you've ever received?
Dan Dan I'm a huge fan for quotes from Steve Martin where he says, "Be so good that you'll be hard-pressed to overlook the fact they're." What I've observed is that I've felt awed by this. The same is true for most people who want to create an item and then, when they've finished when they're certain that the work is finished. It's for me much more about taking the time to establish the basis of the work and also being awe-inspiring for those who are able to see the work.
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