WHO’S IN CONTROL???

Current mood: MU MU!!!
Category: MU MU!!! Music

The differences in the business side of different creative pursuits is pretty huge...


With music it's completely normal for the original work to be invented by the artist and/or producer. It's then further developed and improved on by the artist and/or the producer (if he or she is a good producer, that is) and then manipulated and fucked with as per the record companies wishes..


With writing, it's normal for the work to be manipulated and fucked with beyond all recognition by a phalanx of editors. Many of these editors are far less able than the creator of the work. Many have tried and failed to wirte themselves - they don't have the strength, can't hack the discipilne, the years of no recognition or the general poverty of a writing financial life. Many editors hate writers with a passionate jealousy, and all too often are responsible for ruining the soul of a piece in the interests of making it fit a house style or a particular size and shape..


In film, excepting a few situations the work is never sacred

Yes boss, in film it's a fucking free for all, with everyone including 'test' audiences having their two pennies worth as to what stays and what goes. Film is a team job with 8 or 9 or more key pople all feeling they should be in control and have the final say - the one with the biggest mouth or pocket book usually wins the day.

To make a film, you not only have to be a creative genius but also a fucking superb politician and a mover of people.


The exception to all of these, is Fine Art

With Fine Art, no-one fucks with the work. The artists produces it and the dealer sells it - that's it. Sure the dealer will often attempt to manipulate and control the work by offering incentives for certain 'kinds' of work, but they never come and add their own paint on top of the finished work...

It's easy to criticise the art world, but at the least the originator of the work gets to keep his ideas intact and those ideas then sell, or don't sell depending on the whims of the market and/or the taste of the times...


Down the years, I've lost a shitload of business because of an unwillingnness to compromise and/or work as part of a team in all of the above...

But then if I was worried about business and teamwork, I'd work as a trader in the city and not be fucking about with any kind of art - unless I was looking for a pretty picture for the hallway of my summer home...

I'm Paul Pious James Giovanni £rd.

I'm a trainee megalomaniac and my only concern is in producing good work. I work for love not money, which is a pain in the ass most of the time - especially when you have to explain why and how this important to those who are paying the bills...

Currently listening : White Room / Justified & Ancient By The KLF Release date: By 20 February, 1992

11:40 - 20 Comments - 12 Kudos - Add Comment - Edit - Remove

	Treacle	Go to it... Posted by Treacle on Wednesday, February 06, 2008 at 13:32 [Remove] [Reply to this]

	: THE FUTUREPROOF MUSIC BLOG BY PIOUS GIOVANNI :	Posted by : THE FUTUREPROOF MUSIC BLOG BY PIOUS GIOVANNI : on Wednesday, February 06, 2008 at 13:44 [Remove] [Reply to this]

	La Paloma, the Queen of Infinity	kudos. i think working for money is more of a pain in the ass. more m.. more pain in ass. the more you get, the more you need... my name is paloma and i am obnoxious and wonderful creative genius. Posted by La Paloma, the Queen of Infinity on Wednesday, February 06, 2008 at 16:14 [Remove] [Reply to this]

	: THE FUTUREPROOF MUSIC BLOG BY PIOUS GIOVANNI :	I nearly always find that the people who work for money are more dissapointed with things than those who work for love.... I think this is because what they think they're getting, they don't get, because there is no getting it.... I mean working for money doesn't even mean you get a higher standard of living and certainly not a better quality of life... And like you say, you can never have enough money... Posted by : THE FUTUREPROOF MUSIC BLOG BY PIOUS GIOVANNI : on Wednesday, February 06, 2008 at 16:22 [Remove] [Reply to this]

	La Paloma, the Queen of Infinity	that's key...with money, there's no getting it because it is just an idea. with working for love, you actually get something. funny thing is, we mistake love for an idea and money for a "thing" when in reality, love is much more tangible. Posted by La Paloma, the Queen of Infinity on Wednesday, February 06, 2008 at 16:25 [Remove] [Reply to this]

	: THE FUTUREPROOF MUSIC BLOG BY PIOUS GIOVANNI :	You get folk who are slogging their souls into the ground doing things they hate just for the money, who just can't understand how it's possible for others who don't do that to live better and more interesting lives.... Such folk don't seem to understand that they're eating crack day in day out and that it's impairing their judgement... Of course we all have to do things we don't like day in day out for money - such is life... It's the people who ONLY work for the money who have the problem... Posted by : THE FUTUREPROOF MUSIC BLOG BY PIOUS GIOVANNI : on Wednesday, February 06, 2008 at 16:34 [Remove] [Reply to this]

	The Cupid Kinkyboots Fan Club	I know how you feel. I don't get paid much for running The Cupid Kinkyboots Fan Club. Actually I don't get paid anything at all : ( but what the hell, it gives me something to do. It gives me the chance to do something wacky and I meet new friends from everywhere. That's better than money to me. I think money really matters to people who got it or grew up with it. When you have to do without it doesn't matter so much. We should start our own commune, PGPoundSign & Pals. Posted by The Cupid Kinkyboots Fan Club on Wednesday, February 06, 2008 at 16:41 [Remove] [Reply to this]

	: THE FUTUREPROOF MUSIC BLOG BY PIOUS GIOVANNI :	I think money matters alot to many different kinds of people. In fact some of the worst are those who never had it when young and who go chasing it as if it's the Pied Piper - they figure that it solves all their problems... Oh,and fuck the commune idea! I know from experience and observation that communes never work - they either end up as orgies or temples for the smug... And besides I don't like anyone in my face, no matter how much I love them... Posted by : THE FUTUREPROOF MUSIC BLOG BY PIOUS GIOVANNI : on Wednesday, February 06, 2008 at 16:47 [Remove] [Reply to this]

	The Cupid Kinkyboots Fan Club	Well, then tell us about your communist orgy. That sounds interesting ; ) Posted by The Cupid Kinkyboots Fan Club on Wednesday, February 06, 2008 at 16:52 [Remove] [Reply to this]

	: THE FUTUREPROOF MUSIC BLOG BY PIOUS GIOVANNI :	I only had driect experience of the smugness - as per usual all the hot sex passed me by... Posted by : THE FUTUREPROOF MUSIC BLOG BY PIOUS GIOVANNI : on Wednesday, February 06, 2008 at 17:35 [Remove] [Reply to this]

	simon	Having decided years ago to only write for my pleasure, if others like it great, but if an editors involved it doesn't matter what crap I submit they will turn it into a worse turd or take out the very heart of it. That's why I walked from the paid writing jobs I had years ago, I never recognised what they published as mine as being mine!! It's also why I guess I eventually will self publish the novel I wrote almost 10 years ago now, it is far time Going Nowhere Fast appeared somewhere!!! In recent years I have taken the attitude to never get involved in a project that you wouldn't happily do for Love and if you get paid for it well that's a bonus!! Paid jobs have involved modelling with a semi naked woman for a retelling of the adventures of the Snark! A very over paid radio programme and opera performance thing I was consultant for, but I would have done all of them for love! Chasing money only makes people bitter not better.... Posted by simon on Wednesday, February 06, 2008 at 18:13 [Remove] [Reply to this]

	: THE FUTUREPROOF MUSIC BLOG BY PIOUS GIOVANNI :	The question of the difference between an amateur and a professional is one that comes in here... Posted by : THE FUTUREPROOF MUSIC BLOG BY PIOUS GIOVANNI : on Wednesday, February 06, 2008 at 18:25 [Remove] [Reply to this]

	Colossus	Getting paid for what you love doing is what I'm about. The trick is to get to a point in your career where you can have the bargaining posture to cut out ALL of the middlemen. Having said that because of such interferance great artists have created great music. I love Purple Haze but I dread the idea of the original vision being 7 mins long. If not for people like Chas Chandler, Butch Vig and Phill Spector many an artist would lack the neccesary amount of objectivity to reach the mass audiences. Posted by Colossus on Wednesday, February 06, 2008 at 19:19 [Remove] [Reply to this]

	: THE FUTUREPROOF MUSIC BLOG BY PIOUS GIOVANNI :	Producers are essential, but they can often be a member of the band - they don't necessarily have to stand alone... I'm all for getting paid, but I do also like the struglle of being skint and the connection you get from it.. Posted by : THE FUTUREPROOF MUSIC BLOG BY PIOUS GIOVANNI : on Wednesday, February 06, 2008 at 22:16 [Remove] [Reply to this]

	Nonstop Everything	again, i am against anyone fucking w/ my stuff, unless it is at the mastering stage. and then i sit there like a thorn in the side for the entire duration. very right on about film. the politician i lack within made me give up that idea for the moment. i actually don't think i'm old enough to suck balls yet. Posted by Nonstop Everything on Wednesday, February 06, 2008 at 19:36 [Remove] [Reply to this]

	: THE FUTUREPROOF MUSIC BLOG BY PIOUS GIOVANNI :	I'm perfectly happy to accept (and have accepted) good editing, but it's a very rare thing... Posted by : THE FUTUREPROOF MUSIC BLOG BY PIOUS GIOVANNI : on Wednesday, February 06, 2008 at 22:17 [Remove] [Reply to this]

	SPIDER	It depends what you set out to achieve. If you want to communicate something and a process can help that communication process be as clear as possible I say try it. If the vision you have is somewhat personal and you believe your the only one who can view realise it AND remain objective about how it's recieved then your happy I guess. Most artist's make VERY subjective producers in my experience. I refer strictly to the music side of Pauls question. Spider xx Posted by SPIDER on Wednesday, February 06, 2008 at 21:34 [Remove] [Reply to this]

	: THE FUTUREPROOF MUSIC BLOG BY PIOUS GIOVANNI :	It's definately true that creative types in all disciplines can be hopeless judges of their own work, and there's always somthing of the 'defensive' in folk who refuse any intervention, but unitl you find someone who understands your work and ideas COMPLETELY there's no point making the compromise.... Posted by : THE FUTUREPROOF MUSIC BLOG BY PIOUS GIOVANNI : on Wednesday, February 06, 2008 at 22:19 [Remove] [Reply to this]

	Steve | Version Sound	props for re-introducing the word 'phalanx' into my vocabulary. Don't forget about the post-production and maniacal editing process most work for film gets processed through before becoming the final 'marketable' product. sometimes it works out, but often they will use separate facilities for editing and post - which makes it difficult to retain any sort of creative cohesion.... Posted by Steve | Version Sound on Friday, February 08, 2008 at 15:09 [Remove] [Reply to this]

	: THE FUTUREPROOF MUSIC BLOG BY PIOUS GIOVANNI :	How any film maintains cohesion is a mystery to me... The key is getting a regular team of folk all of whom are pulling in the exact same direction - communication is completely key.... Stating the obvious I guess.. Posted by : THE FUTUREPROOF MUSIC BLOG BY PIOUS GIOVANNI : on Friday, February 08, 2008 at 15:20 [Remove] [Reply to this]