Jim Read: Evil Tease
“It’s a big deal for us to upgrade — we like to make sure we’re not getting ourselves into trouble!” Read laughs. “Especially since After Effects is our primary production tool. We keep it pretty lean on plug-ins, too; we tend to find solutions with the built-in tools and functionality, and it’s a lot more stable that way.”
1741 also relies on Maya for 3D and SynthEyes for 3D tracking. “And our parent company, Trailer Park, is a Final Cut Studio facility, so we plug into that as well,” says Read. “But the Adobe Creative Suite is probably our most widely used tool. Even though we’re doing a lot of animation work, most of our design and thinking is done in Photoshop. I think it’ll always be our most important tool for design.”
Mac Makes It Easy
1741 Films is a mixed Mac and PC studio, though the majority of workstations — about 25 — are Macs. But it’s the overall experience of working on the Mac that makes it his platform of choice.
“The Mac just makes the process a lot more enjoyable,” he says. “It manages memory better, and it feels more natural to use. And in our day-to-day work with Creative Suite, the Mac feels nicer. The interface is intuitive and easy to navigate; it lets us do things a little bit faster because we don’t have to dig through tons of menus and figure out what things mean and where things are. It’s just really easy.”
With the move to multicore processing, the Mac has become a truly viable production machine for 1741’s line of work. “Multicore has been integral to meeting these tight deadlines,” he says. “The stuff we do is so processor-intensive that we need as many processors as possible, and the fastest ones available.”
The Mac seems more reliable as well, he adds. “Our IT guys don’t spend a whole lot of time with us on the Macs, because there’s not that much to do. The PCs are another story!”
Flexibility and Reliability
The range of projects that 1741 Films produces — from feature film motion graphics to broadcast logos to static graphic design and branding — means that Read and his colleagues must remain alert and primed for whatever creative and technical challenges come their way.
“We need to be able to roll with the tools and talent, and be flexible enough to accommodate things that change quickly, like technologies as they evolve or design trends as they emerge,” says Read. “And reliability is the flip side of that. From an engineering standpoint, we need to know that whatever we deliver isn’t going to break, or fall apart, or not work. There are a lot of technical hurdles to make sure that happens.”
Jim Read and Rosalina Merrihue of 1741 Films.
Keeping the working environment positive is also important. “I’m lucky that I have a great crew,” he says. “I rely on them heavily, and they do a fantastic job. But it’s easy to get stressed out — we work long hours, and there are tight deadlines and budgets, so we need to be able to have fun with what we’re doing. And that ties in with the Mac experience too. Sure, we might end up with a project that’s really cool — but if we didn’t enjoy the process, and if the client didn’t enjoy the process, then it’s not really worth doing.”
When they succeed, the satisfaction is palpable. “It’s great when our artists feel like they’ve done something worth putting on their reels, or sharing with friends and the design community,” Read concludes. “But I think the true judge of success is when you get a call from a potential client saying they’ve seen something you’ve done that they really like. When they say, ‘We loved this and we want you on our next project.’ Now that’s fantastic.”
