Hoggworks Studios » Archive » Taking it Seriously.

Here at Hoggworks Studios, we take the making of puppets very seriously. We put a lot of effort into it, and in fact we’re looking forward to devoting our creative and professional lives to the medium. We slave over our puppets, agonize over the performances, over the writing, and everything else down the line. We know we’re always improving, and we hope that everything we do will make the thing we did previous seem smaller.

We want to look back and see not just a progression, but such a stark progression that our previous work never reflects what we’re capable of now.

As we look online at the work of other puppeteers, surfing here and there, from the Muppet Central Forums to Puppet Hub to Flickr searches, we stumble upon some really great work, and some work that is being made by people who are clearly new at the puppetry game, but who appear to be putting in real effort. And then we stumble across things like monochrom, and Loren Feldman’s puppet shows.

This latter character irks us — irks me specifically, and here I break from the royal we to descend into the specific, into the I, because I am irked by these productions. I, speaking as a puppeteer, as a person who would modestly suggest that am putting in the effort, am annoyed by this type of work. These people are buying low-end puppets (which there’s nothing wrong with), and filming a show. Now, certainly, I’d never suggest that a person should dedicate themselves to the profession as a lifelong endeavor before putting puppet to hand: that’s not how I got into it. I decided to make dotBoom as a puppet show rather on a whim, made some puppets, and started recording. But I am a person — here’s where I sound terribly vain, and while I do apologize if it is offputting, I can’t apologize for the vanity, because it’s as sincere a statement as you’re going to get from me — who puts in the effort to get good at something. I’ve heard it said that the difference between a person who plays chess and a grand master isn’t the quantity of time spent playing, but the quality of the time spent playing.

To put it another way, it’s less important the amount of time you spend studying a subject, then it is how you spend your time studying.

I take it all very seriously, and I respect others who do, too. I wouldn’t say that we’re doing things perfectly here, and there are a huge number of ways I want us to improve our craft, both from a technical standpoint and a creative one. There are some insanely talented puppet builders and performers out there, and I am both inspired by their work and driven to match and exceed it, if I’m able.

This isn’t about skill so much as it is approach. There’s a seriousness in a person’s approach to something, and it can be found in people of all skill levels. What annoys me, personally, is when people don’t have that approach, and just blow in with the breeze, acting like they’re on equal standing with the people who do this every day, as though their simple presence earns them the same consideration as a person who lives and breathes the stuff.

Monochrom is an art collective, and they do a sock puppet theatre. It’s been featured a number of times on BoingBoing, and, so far as I’m able to tell, is only there because it’s “deep.” I personally find the writing to be pretty subpar, and obvious — less a considered discourse on the evils of the Marxist agenda than the kind of thought you get when you’re in your first year philosophy course, and, hey, haven’t you ever thought about this, man? I can’t believe nobody’s ever thought about it before! — but the writing isn’t my issue, really. My issue is with the puppetry. You can have subpar writing, as long as you’re going for something, rather than simply wallowing in the mediocre. You can have subpar puppetry, too, so long as it’s an intermiate stage, if your skill level is where you are today, not where you’re going to be tomorrow.

Perhaps I’m railing against the people who think that just because it’s the effort you’re making, it’s good enough. I know someone (probably more someones than I’m aware) who sincerely holds the view that just because an expression of creativity is personal, that means it’s objectively good, and, more than that, beyond reproach or critique. That’s the kind of talk you engage in when you aren’t trying to do better.

To be clear, much of the work that I’ve put out over the course of my professional life (writing, web, art, puppets), has sucked. It’s been horrible. I’ve written five novels in my life, and only the last two are any I’d consider anywhere near good, and I don’t consider any of them to be jewels. As Ernest Hemmingway said:

The first draft of anything is shit.

Much of the work we’ve done at Hoggworks, even, has been subpar. Looking back on the first season of dotBoom, I see in the first half of it absolute horror. I cringe at just about every aspect of the production, from the puppet design and construction, to the filming, to the editing, to the performances. It’s sincerely hard to watch. I wish that what we did for the season finale had been the first episode, and I wish that we’d made the season finale orders of magnitude better, too.

The fact that the early work sucks isn’t a deterrent, though, and it doesn’t make me feel like a failure. Those crappy works were incredibly valuable to me, as they gave me experience, and allowed me to see very precisely what worked, and what didn’t. It’s a learning tool, because I make a conscious effort to analyze my past efforts as best I can, taking the best possible lessons from them. When I approach a new project, I make a deliberate attempt to stand on the shoulders of those previous efforts (if I might mangle a metaphor), and do better. I do this knowing that the project I embark upon will be used to illuminate the improvements in subsequent projects.

Maybe I’m being oversensitive. Maybe a person goofing off isn’t a big deal. Maybe that I’m the abberation for pushing myself so hard, for being so over-critical. Maybe these people who irk me are just trying to have fun, and aren’t simply projecting an air of superiority for their minimal efforts.

Maybe nobody cares. After all, Loren Feldman’s work is becoming increasingly popular. Much of the most popular work online in places like Youtube have the lowest production values, because the content is striking a chord with the viewers, irrespective of the polish or intent of the creators.

I don’t actually care if nobody else cares, because I do. It’s important to me to take it so seriously, and to improve continuously. It matters. And puppetry is an artform, and it should be respected as such. No matter how much of a curmudgeon or a killjoy it may make me seem to say it, if you don’t take this seriously but are presenting it in a way that suggests you are, all you’re doing is insulting those people who do take it seriously.

I spent a good number of years in the web industry, programming websites and games (and I still do). I’ve had to deal, many times, with a pair of kids in a basement underbidding major, credible companies because they downloaded a Photoshop trial and cracked it, and now consider themselves, armed with that and a text editor, real designers and developers. To those clients we (at the company I was at at the time) lost, getting charged only a couple thousand instead of fifty or more, was worth it, despite the fact that they were purchasing something that was made without seriousness or sufficient knowledge and often required them to come back with a restricted budget to the bigger design firms, to fix it.

Perhaps it’s that I’ve now been in two industries where the tools that the professionals use are readily available, and that amateurs are encouraged to create using those tools, that I’m over-sensitive. I could make the obvious argument that just because you can go to the store and buy a scalpel doesn’t make you a doctor, and if you pointed to your ownership of a car and knowledge of the way to put gas in it as evidence of your being a mechanic, you’d be laughed at. So many industries require accredation, and while I don’t think that a piece of paper is what makes you professional, it does certainly suggest that you’ve been serious enough about making the effort that you’ve dedicated X number of years to learning the craft, and it’s that devotion, that seriousness of intent, which is the main factor, I think. You can coast through and earn a degree, just as you can perform a job for decades without more than a cursory understanding of it, but the main differentiating factor, in my view, is the way you approach it.

Approach it with respect. Take it seriously. The whole of the craft is elevated when you do.

Puppet Envy | 1938 Media

[...] So this prick puppeteer calls me out on the craft. I don’t know who the hell this guy is, or if he realizes just exactly who he’s calling out, but let me just say this. I am an artist. The art of puppetry is but one of my mediums. I consider myself a puppeteer for the people, of the people. I am deeply angered and hurt by these false accusations of conduct unbecoming to a professional puppeteer. [...]

Nov 11, 2008 @ 3:53 pm

Carsten Cumbrowski

It’s about the story and not about the puppets… …and what you want to accomplish with your story.

The puppets become the means for a purpose and never should become the purpose itself, because the result will be bad puppetry and bad story-telling, reaching no or the wrong audience.

Loren Feldman does the stuff right for his purpose and who he wants to reach. Simply put… it works.

I don’t know anything about your puppetry, so I cannot make a statement about it. However, your emphasis on the puppets itself is too strong IMHO, which potentially harms the things that should be most important to you.. your audience and your relationship with them.

Nov 11, 2008 @ 11:06 pm

Shel Israel's Shriveled Dick

I’m a puppet and my dick is still bigger than yours.

Nov 11, 2008 @ 11:51 pm

Kyle Dylan Conner

I never even heard of Hoggworks until Loren mentioned you…

Change your name. Sounds like you got the whole wizard thing goin’ on.

Nov 12, 2008 @ 5:27 am

Brian Hogg

Carsten,

I agree that it isn’t solely about the puppets, and I don’t believe that I said that was the case. My point is and was about the respect paid to each part of the process.

I think it’s cool that Mr. Feldman’s using puppets, even though I think he could be using them significantly better. I wouldn’t attempt to censor him (as some have suggested is my intent on his own site), because I don’t believe in that. I’m simply saying that if he’s going to be using puppets in his productions, it would behoove him to learn how to use those puppets. This appears — unless he’s got skills he’s hiding from people — to be something he hasn’t yet done.

I find it somewhat ludicrous that you’d suggest that I, as a puppeteer, shouldn’t focus on puppets as much as I do. I understand that you’re saying I shouldn’t ignore the rest, but of course I should pay close attention to the puppets. I should pay close attention to everything, and give every single piece of the process the respect it deserves.

I am confused about the specifics of your second point: I assume that you’re saying that if I ignore everything and only focus on the puppets themselves that I will have less of a production than if I keep everything in mind, which is something I completely agree with. However, you say that if I focus on the puppets it will lead to bad puppetry, which I don’t understand. Is that what you meant?

Nov 12, 2008 @ 6:48 am

Simon

I would just focus on getting your website finished if I where you. You are undoubtedly getting a load of traffic from Loren’s site that you would not normally receive, and your website is not in a state as to take advantage of this opportunity. Step back, look at the bigger picture and focus on what ‘really’ matters.

Nov 12, 2008 @ 7:44 am

Hey Simon,

I am working on getting the site up, which I’m doing in between other deadlines (I’m pretty backed up with the paying gigs at the moment). I do wonder how many people who are coming to the site to confirm their thoughts that, yes, I’m a douchebag, will actually sift through the site, and will want to hire me for anything, but it’s absolutely a point well taken.

Nov 12, 2008 @ 7:47 am

david

Wow, bit of an elitist are we?

Nov 12, 2008 @ 8:28 am

Not at all. I fail to see how it can be considered elitist to think that you should try to become better at something.

And when did “elite” become a bad thing? Elite is a good thing! You want people to be the best they can be, right?

Nov 12, 2008 @ 8:35 am

Puppetfan

I agree with mr Hogg that its very important to look at the entire picture when doing anything for that matter.

And since i like to think the best of people, i would also think that it was his love for the trade that drove him to write this article, not some vendetta against mr Loren or some intended publicity stunt.

A public blog may not have been the right approach to getting the oppinion accross to mr Loren, though. (maybe a personal letter or an email would be better? seeing as its not as public and would appear more friendly intended.)

That said, Lorens response to this was very difficult to take seriously. There were no arguments, only poor insults. And even though I think attacking mr Loren publicly in a blog was not the right approach, I do agree that he should be able to take and understand constructive criticism. Its an important part of learning. Especially when it comes from someone, whom you could practically call a colleague.

Nov 12, 2008 @ 9:17 am

It was absolutely for the love of the trade. You don’t go into something, hoping to be able to go into it forever, if you don’t love it.

As far as this being a personal attack against Mr. Feldman, one best sent in a personal e-mail? It wasn’t a personal attack. I was pointing to his work, along with the work of others, and used them to illustrate a point. Then I stretched that point to fit across multiple industries. The amount of time dedicated specifically to Mr. Feldman is quite slim, if you look. I spent more time talking about Monochrom, and I hasten to point out that they haven’t released a vitriolic, spittle-infused response, and tried to rally thousands against me.

It’s unfortunate that Mr. Feldman can’t accept constructive criticism, and must, apparently, retreat into a cocoon of supporters, actively blocking me from posting a comment on his blog.

For what it’s worth, I sent him an e-mail last night, seeing if he really WAS as upset as he claims to be, restating my position in softer tones, but he has yet to respond.

Nov 12, 2008 @ 9:35 am

The Rant Puppets » Blog Archive » Puppet Wars

[...] Hoggworks, we wrote a post about taking the craft seriously. Loren Feldman got very [...]

Nov 12, 2008 @ 11:27 am

Hogwash

You can’t hold Loren’s dick when it comes to being the puppet master.

Go away please. Loren owns you. You clown.

Nov 12, 2008 @ 1:16 pm

revtomfury

he compares himself to jim henson…can he really believe that? it has to be an act.

also he keeps calling your puppets fancy but then says they suck…are they fancy or do they suck? i would think that there is no way then can be both.

brian maybe you should make a wrestler puppet for the back and forths with this guy because his video kinda came off like a old school ecw wrestling promo might be fun to go all wrestler back on him

Nov 12, 2008 @ 1:29 pm

@Hogwash,

I’m not sure why I’d want to hold Loren’s dick. Am I meant to do something with it (stick it in your ear, perhaps)?

I’m also not sure how Loren owns me. He made a VERY petulant, very angry response to my legitimate criticisms, and when I made a cogent, good-natured, and actually funny response video, he seemingly became unable to handle any criticism at all, did his best to block me, and ran away.

I know it can be difficult for a person to handle criticism, but come on, Loren could’ve at least been brave enough to continue the conversation. If I am so meager and so small, if he does, as you say, own me, what would he have to lose?

Myself, I’m always looking at ways to improve myself, and even as Loren threw his invective at me, I wondered what, if anything, I could take away from it. Could I make it a learning experience?

The answer was, unfortunately, no: I couldn’t really learn anything about my craft, though Loren does represent an interesting test of patience, and it really was interesting to see how easy it was to best him verbally, and how utterly unprepared for that he appeared to be.

But we’re way off-topic here, aren’t we? This post was about finding ways to take the craft more seriously. The post was about self-improvement, and we don’t seem to be talking about that anymore. Let’s get back to that, shall we?

Nov 12, 2008 @ 1:46 pm

@revtomfury From what I understand, it may not have been a gag, which is crazy. Also, he may actually have believed his claim about Jim Henson.

I wasn’t sure about the fancy comment either, though I suppose some could consider a thing being fancy, or unnecessarily fancy, to be a negative. I do wonder if he had actually heard of Hoggworks prior to this little exchange, and had actually found himself liking what we do. In that case (if it’s true, which I have no specific evidence of), perhaps he felt an extra sting when I criticized him. I do, after all, have the bona fides.

(I don’t think I have enough bona fides, and I do, as ever, work to expand and improve them)

Nov 12, 2008 @ 1:48 pm

why is the shel puppet not wearing a shirt? is there a story behind that?

Nov 12, 2008 @ 2:03 pm

There is, yes. Shel Israel and Robert Scoble wrote a book on blogging called “Naked Conversations.” Mr. Feldman took exceptional offense at the book, for reasons I admit I’m not terribly clear on, but the end result (I’m sure I’m missing a bunch of salient items) is a naked Shel Israel puppet.

Nov 12, 2008 @ 2:09 pm

it looks odd.
maybe he should put some nipples on it.
after all nipples = funny

Nov 12, 2008 @ 2:23 pm

ps does the man eat rocks? that voice!

Nov 12, 2008 @ 2:24 pm

Pat Hawks

It seems obvious to me that Loren Feldman did this as a favor to you. You know, to expose people to what real puppetry is, and that’s cool.
No doubt this incident has brought you an audience that wouldn’t be exposed to you any other way (I’ve certainly never heard of you before).
Feldman will continue to do his thing, you do yours.

Nov 12, 2008 @ 2:32 pm

I doubt it was a favor, considering how sincerely angry I hear he was, but I appreciate the complement, thank you.

Nov 12, 2008 @ 2:39 pm

Re: Brian Hogg’s response to Pat Hawks.

It’s clear that you just don’t get it do you? Loren is being ironic, it’s a joke. Watch the video again, if you can without hiding behind the couch. It’s a funny video. You simply gave him the perfect excuse. This approach to comedic promotion, whether it be self promotion, or clients is what he is good at. He’s gnarly and creates a reaction. Take full advantage of the attention you are getting before you slip back into the fog.

P.S. Where is you come back video… we’ll tell you whether it’s funny or not!

Nov 13, 2008 @ 5:00 am

Simon,

My first instinct was that he meant it as a joke, because, clearly, it HAS to be a joke, right? He says flat out he thinks he’s done more for puppetry than anybody since Henson. Gag, right?

I actually thought his video was pretty funny, given it was a joke. So I responded in kind, with a funny (but significantly more light-hearted) video. Once I did THAT, though, he blocked me from posting comments on his site, and actually deleted a couple responses I’d already made, including one that was just a pingback to this site, which is my response:

http://rantpuppets.com/?p=52

Also, I sent him an e-mail directly to see if he was actually upset, because if he wasn’t upset, he was carrying the gag for a while on Twitter, but he didn’t respond to me. And he blocked me on Twitter, first insulting me, then saying I didn’t get the joke. Which I know is part of his schtick, but it’s lame. Insult the person, and if they say “thank you” then you call them a toadie, and if they say “stop it” you say they’re an idiot for not understanding your high-falluting humor, then call them a toadie.

Also, I’ve heard from people who know Loren, and apparently he really WAS very angry. What I heard is that they’ve never seen him so angry. They say it’s a genuine response, and that when he says stuff like “I’ve done more for puppetry than anybody since Henson,” he believes it. Which is scary.

Lastly, I’m not sure what I should be taking advantage of. I offered a cogent, constructive bit of criticism, he insulted me and got a handful of people (it hasn’t been an avalanche of attention or anything, it’s not like he has a sizeable fanbase) insulting me on his site, and a few doing so here. What is there to capitalize on? We make puppets and we make puppet videos, both of which we do significantly better than Mr. Feldman, and with more care and consideration. We’re going to focus on that, rather than flattering the ego of some guy who can’t handle any type of criticism.

Nov 13, 2008 @ 6:36 am

Hoggworks Studios » Archive » Puppet War

[...] still paying attention to us) with Loren Feldman, over at 1938 media. I referenced him in my post Taking it Seriously, where I talked about how irked I am by people who float on in and expect the same consideration [...]

Nov 13, 2008 @ 6:53 am

Hi Brian,
I just watched the first minute of your video with a totally open mind, not siding in any what with this debate, but just being straight down the line honest, here’s some constructive criticism.

You can hear the nervousness in your voice. The high pitch voice of the character is the voice that a 5 year old child uses when it puts a sock on its hand for the first time.
There is no momentum to your rant. and you lost my attention… no, had me embarrassed to watch further after the first few seconds.

You keep pausing for thought, without any significant puppet movement to maintain the viewers attention. Maybe try having the puppet look around, to the side etc, develop a character that adults can identify with. (The puppet putting its hand to its mouth doesn’t work. It’s just not funny or character defining). Children are more sophisticated than you think and respond well to the same humor as adults. Take a proper analytical look a Sesame Street and you’ll see what I mean.
From a cinematic point of view, try to keep your puppet within the camera frame.

Good luck, and keep practicing.

Nov 13, 2008 @ 7:52 am

@Simon

I watched the rant again to check what u said, and let me say:

About the high pitch voice. Its the same voice that puppet has always had, and frankly i dont think there was any fright to detect in it.

To this: “You keep pausing for thought, without any significant puppet movement to maintain the viewers attention.” Dont see it anywhere.

About the hand in front of the mouth not beeing funny: Dont really think its meant to be funny. Gestures are usually made to paint a picture with body language. AND: while mr hogg may not be worlds greatest at using hand gestures with puppets, ive seen his abilities with it improve throughout many of his videos, which means that hes constantly improving on his abilities. exactly like he emphasizes in the article.

For the puppet in frame thing. Having the puppet close to the camera and moving it around makes the visual of the rant dynamic and exciting. A rant with a motionless character constantly in center frame is boring to look at.

So… dont agree at all.
sry to say.

Nov 14, 2008 @ 2:22 am

Massive Hogg

NEEEEEERDS!

Wait, your name is Brian Hogg? That is ridiculous.

Nov 14, 2008 @ 1:00 pm

Are you saying that the situation is ridiculous, or my name is?

Nov 14, 2008 @ 1:11 pm

Fred Simon

You’re a great puppetsmith but, what makes puppetry is the puppeteering and yours is subpar. Pathetic acting from another nerdy loser.

Nov 14, 2008 @ 4:33 pm

Gres S.

I’m so glad to see that people are not resorting to petty name calling or baseless accusat… oh wait, people are.

I thought this was about an issue of one man who IS a puppeteer and puppet builder speaking his mind in an online posting about something he has an opinion about. End of story. I saw no personal attacks.

I am admittedly siding on the Hoggworks side of things and not on mr “Loren Feldman 1938 media” (said as fast as possible)’s side.

I would gladly take a calmly and well thought out statement that keeps to its point and does not have to resort to profanity or personal attacks to deliver its message over such a profanity laced message every day of the week. If it is a schtick, he does it well. I was convinced he WAS angry in a very genuine way.

In Summary: on your original posting, well stated Mr. Hogg and keep up the puppetry. I look forward to the ever growing polish you are sure to achieve based on the improvements I have seen so far in your work already done as a result of your passion and heart that is displayed every time a puppet goes on your hand.

Ask Palpatine rules and when will we see dotBoom season 2? I am looking forward to it.

Nov 15, 2008 @ 1:19 am

Paul D.

What about the puppets? I mean, don’t you think this antagonistic name calling and these petty rivalries are affecting their ability to perform? Just because you put your slimy hands up their rear end and call yourself a “puppeteer” does not give you the right to give them performance anxiety. As the true actors in the craft, I am sure they are under a lot of pressure as it is without having to participate in some needless competion with other socks. Puppets have feelings too. Unite puppets, UNITE!

Nov 17, 2008 @ 12:02 pm

Ron

Would someone please think about the puppets!
They have feelings, and they are all caught in the middle of this horrible conflict. : )

Nov 19, 2008 @ 6:48 pm

the real slim shady

you just sound like a bitter old windbag dude. I’ve worked with people like you in a different profession, literally been the person who just walzed right in and did a job other people felt like they went through hell to learn and be great at. The trouble was, a lot of those people weren’t that great. As a self taught artist I brought raw talent to the equasion and ended up making an excellent career out of it, all along the way recognizing people like you and your perchant for bitterness and harsh jealousy. A bit of advice? Just do what you do and stay focused on your craft, a and don’t begrudge other’s success. It makes you look like a douche.

Dec 04, 2008 @ 10:07 pm

maddy

Bragging about your immense raw talent and displaying your own penchant for thoughtless generalisation — as well as your inability to spell ‘waltzed’, ‘penchant’ and ‘equation’ — on the other hand, does not make you look like a douche *at all*.

Brian is self-taught in both of his professions, and is quite successful in both (certainly enough so that he doesn’t need to brag about his ’success’ in another man’s blog).

Also, “bitter old windbag”? He’s 31. We’ve been doing this for two years. We’re not exactly old pros at the profession whining about the crazy new kids and reminiscing about how great everything was back in the day when we were kings of the industry.

Dec 05, 2008 @ 8:18 am

uh, right. mis-spelling shit on a blog definitely invalidates any salient points, automatically. Moving on.
The bottom line, to me, is that your boy just isn’t funny or entertaining, which to me, is the point anyone web-surfing who comes across this ridiculous little feud, is going to walk away with. That he thinks that he’s qualitatively ‘better’ then other people using puppets, only serves to highlight the obvious. The net effect of your “artistry”, albeit more technically adept, comes across as flaacid. IMO you could learn some things from those you criticize. That’s one mis-speller’s opinion. Sorry.

Dec 07, 2008 @ 9:16 am

Mis-spelling definitely doesn’t invalidate salient points made, no, however it DOES suggest a lack of consideration in making said points. And if you’re not going to take the time to make sure your points are being conveyed accurately in terms of spelling and grammar, many people (though certainly not all) will wonder how much effort went into the points in the first place. That’s not a thing specific to you, of course; it’s an across-the-board thing, I think.

As to your point, however, my being funny and/or entertaining is a completely subjective consideration, and I fully realize that. What to one person is gold is, to another person, complete crap, and the reverse is true. I know that there are many people who would look at the puppetry I pointed to and say (as you seem to be) that they’re worlds above what we’re putting out, and that’s fine. I understand that. What I’m doing here is expressing my opinion about the approach to the craft. I think a person should take all aspects of the craft seriously. This is, I should hasten to point out, advice you yourself offered in your first comment, and it is, though you seemed to miss it, the point of the blog post.

It’s interesting that you would suggest that my suggesting I’m qualitatively better (which I’m not; I’m simply saying that I’m being thoughtful and considered about the puppetry, and that said thoughtfulness is a positive quality, one that others should seek), especially considering the implication there is that because I say I am better, I’m not, as though the claim negates itself. I say this is interesting because in your previous post you displayed all of the bravado and ego you accused me of, and by the logic you yourself just put down, you have proved yourself to not be better than those other people.

As to your earlier point, hey, just because you get through schooling doesn’t mean that you’re any good in a creative sense; the minimum is that it means you were good enough to get through school. (If you’re talking about a task that requires schooling; judging by your e-mail and your handle, I’m guessing you’re a DJ or a Rapper, and while there are music theory classes, and degrees one can take for music and playing instruments, there aren’t, to my knowledge, and degreed courses in scratching, DJing, or rapping [not that this implies you don't need to know things to be a good DJ or rapper, as I know that you do; I only mean to say that there's no formal route that I'm aware of])

Also, there’s no jealousy in my post. As I’ve asked before, why would I be jealous of another person’s success? What does it matter to me if these people are successful, if anyone is? What matters to me is that I do the best that I can. I personally believe you should give your all, and take it seriously. I don’t think that a person succeeding more than me (and I can generate, happily, a long list of people who are well more successful than I) is cause to begrudge them anything. I feel, in fact, quite the opposite: when I come across people who are more skilled than I, who are more creative, and who have had greater successes, it inspires me to do better myself. I want to rise to the challenge that their success and their abilities represent, because I want to be as good as this person or that person. There is absolutely no jealousy to be found.

As to your “raw talent” comment, I will say this: Aptitude is a good thing, and should be nourished. The thing that transforms aptitude (which seems to be the thing you mean when you say raw talent) into talent is effort. To become good at anything, work is required. Natural genius is a myth. Certainly, there are people who can pick up new skills easily, and I would occasionally flatter myself to consider me one of those people, but the reality is that you become good through concerted effort. When I decided to make a puppet show (dotBoom), I had no knowledge of how to build puppets, how to build the sets, how to film, direct, or edit video. I don’t think I’m a good puppeteer because I have a website and I say “I’m a puppeteer!” I became a good puppeteer because of a year and a half of consistent, concerted effort. I did the work, built dozens of puppets in a short time, each time trying consciously to learn from the mistakes of each build, so that I could get better. This is the same with every other aspect of the process: the first episodes of the show aren’t great in comparison to the latter, but that’s because I continually strived to get better. The kicker is, of course, that I didn’t get as good as I wanted to, because I will never get as good as I want to, because I will always want to be better than I am.

If you are a respected professional, sir, it’s not because you had some aptitude for the task. That aptitude could certainly get you the initial bit of attention from folks, but it’s what came next, the effort you doubtless put in to get better, that would earn you continued attention, and solidify respect — or fear — of your peers.

To echo my wife’s comments, you’d do well to find out a bit about me before concluding that you know the entire history of me. I am a person who is nearly entirely self-taught, and who does indeed do well because of the skills I’ve picked up on my own. I am a respected web developer, despite any degrees or accreditation (and have taught and written a book on my points of expertise), and the puppetry has been all self-taught (such as anyone can be self-taught, I suppose; if you read a book on a subject and become better informed, you are informing yourself, certainly, but you can also say that the author is educating you). If the point was not made clearly enough in my post or in my follow-up comments, allow me to correct the oversight:

I do not for a moment think that formal education or standard accreditation is the only mark of professionalism or quality. Being a person who has neither of those things, it would be disingenuous in the extreme of me to hold such a view, to let myself through the doors before closing them behind me. Most of my peers have been self-taught, and I respect them greatly. Why do I respect them? Because they put the effort in to become knowledgeable, to become experts in their field. That’s the thing that earns respect, and that’s the thing that is the delineation, from my perspective. What this post was about was the apparent cultural trend in which people show up and are expected to be given the same level of consideration as those who have been giving their all for years, irrespective of their level of effort, and the disturbing trend to give said people that level of respect. In the course of illustrating a trend, I’m going to point to examples of it, in order to strengthen my case. As I say, I don’t think you need a degree to be respected, but you DO need to put in the effort. You need to take it seriously.

This isn’t about jealous, sir. This is about professional pride. I respect the crafts, and I don’t think it’s too high a standard to ask other people to respect it, too.

Dec 07, 2008 @ 10:25 am

I think you protest way too much, Shakespeare. People who let themselves be derailed by putting down others aren’t professionals, they’re insecure. And IMO, they’re taking things way too seriously. Not everyone has to walk your walk, your way. There’s room for all different flavors and permutations. My hope for you is that you don’t end up being internet puppetry’s Kanye West. I have no beef here.

I’m not concerned with the books you’ve written, nor do I seek a debate. This pissing contest is yours alone. My words were meant as positive advice, but it’s clear you believe you’re coming from a righteous place. So be it.

One final note. Did it ever dawn on you that this other guy doesn’t give a shit about being a puppeteer? That in fact his gig might be something else entirely?

Peace.

Dec 07, 2008 @ 11:28 am

It’s hard to consider what you’re writing as positive advice when said advice begins with “you just sound like a bitter old windbag dude.”

I never said everyone had to do as I do. I went out of my way to point to it being how I personally feel; why does that point seem to be so elusive? This is how I feel, and it’s why I was talking about it. I’m not sure what you mean about being puppetry’s Kanye West. I assume you’re referring to his coming on stage during an awards show to complain that he didn’t win because his video cost a million, right? I ask because he’s also been involved with the Jim Henson Company, and there’s some form of Kanye West puppet show coming out.

My mentioning the book was to highlight that I was self-taught and did well, and so think that there’s nothing wrong with being self-taught (as seemed to be your opinion, based on your response defending your own position as a self-taught wunderkind).

It has dawned on me that he doesn’t care, yes, and I do realize that many of Mr. Feldman’s fans don’t care, either. What I did in the original post was point to specific people to make a general point. It’s not about Mr. Feldman in particular, it’s about the trend that he somewhat seems to represent, in general.

That doesn’t seem a very difficult point to get: I take this seriously, and think others should too. I don’t think this because I believe there’s only one path to being good or worthwhile, I think this because when you take the thing seriously, the end product is better.

Dec 07, 2008 @ 11:40 am

I’m willing to bet your sparring partner at 1938 media takes his craft very seriously – but he’s a comedian first. Jimi and Dylan were both horrible singers, technically speaking, yet they were successful in music. South Park’s cartooning and animation style is downright primitive, yet… hm, are you starting to connect the dots at all?

Dec 07, 2008 @ 12:06 pm

Kory

Ok, I read just about every post. First of all, this is the first I have ever heared of these guys. Second; Mr. Feldman’s work looks like south park, funny but the chessy animation. Where as Hogg’s is something close to The Muppets Show. As trying my best to have a clear mind about this, I think Hogg’s is right about taking it seriously about your work, hobbie, ect. Also some people like Feldman wants his stuff to be whatever he wants it to be, cool. What I’m trying to get at is everyone has there own style. As for the fans just posting “You suck.” ect, ect with no vailid point, 4 words STFU. As much as I love muppets, and puppets, I love anime over some crappy cartoons like south park(theres a show 4th grades telling thier teacher to fuck himself.) I look at the story more over the animation, er puppetery. in this case Hogg’s work and story, rather script is funnier than fledman’s. That’s my opinion, and you don’t like it kiss my Canadian white ass.

Feb 01, 2009 @ 12:07 pm

Bullshit!

Jimi, Dylan understand music to break rules.

You better believe South Park’s understand modern cartoon tech.

1938 media is not in this league. You can ask them what rules are they breaking and they won’t know. That’s not art, that’s ignorance. Crass arrogant pretentious bullshit artist ignorance.

I sick and tired of people being proud of their ignorance. They are fooling them selves and the idiots who follow them.

expression alone is not art. it’s bullshit.

Apr 13, 2009 @ 10:20 pm

Shows we've made and Projects we've done. View All

Bankers’ Puppet Theatre

Ask the Optimist!

Rant Puppets

The Stephen Colbert Puppet Challenge

Gideon Talks

dotBoom

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Taking it Seriously.

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Taking it Seriously.

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