Pierre Speaks - Heavy Metal 2000 or F.A.K.K.2

So after the Ice Storm of 88, I started to work on Heavy Metal: 2000.

I mentioned before how I was making good money doing layout & posing. How "I foolishly thought that I had made it. That from now on, it would always be like that".

Sadly things don't work like that.

To work on Heavy Metal, I was hired as a clean-up artist. So that meant taking a pay cut. On Heavy Metal I was offered $600 per week at the time.

It brought me back to reality somewhat and taught me that things don't always go up. That even if you have been making $1200 per week for some time, there is no guarantee that you won't get back to making $400 per week at some point.

Originally the film was called Heavy Metal: F.A.K.K.2.

What does F.A.K.K.2 means??? Nothing.

Someone simply thought it sounded cool.

Actually it was decided that it would be some sort of acronym that designate a dead planet. A planet that is on quarantine for some reason. We were supposed to come up with what the F.A.K.K.2 acronym meant.... but at some point it was decided to call it Heavy Metal: 2000 instead.

Working on that project was a big deal at the time. Everyone wanted to work on it. So the competition was fierce.

The last time that an animated feature film was made in Montreal at the time had been the previous Heavy Metal film some 15 years earlier.

So it was a rare opportunity.

So many people applied to work on that project.

And that is when I fully realized that there was something in animation studios not unlike what you see in other companies.........office politics.

I had seen various examples of office politics in the past. Heck when the guy on Pirate hired his Papyrus buddies was a perfect example of that. But I did not fully realize the implication behind that.

You know like how sometimes you "think" you know something, but then at some point you go through some paragdim shift that makes you realise that you knew nothing.... but now you know.

It was like that.

I vaguely knew about the office politics before. But now I knew exactly what it could lead to and how important it was.

That is why I almost did not get the job on Heavy Metal.... someone in charge wanted some of their buddies to get the job.

So when I did get the job.... some people weren't happy about it.

The first producer that I had met was not happy, because I went over her head and got in touch directly with one of the Heavy Metal producers. She did not want me to get the job, but also, I broke the "chain of command". I went over her head to get the job. Will have to make a blog about the "chain of command" at some point.

And obviously the people who had been promised the job were not happy that I had "stolen" their job. That I had "stolen" their opportunity.

Remember the scene in Astro City: Confessions where the busboys want to beat up Brian because he "stole" their chance??

It was like that.

No... no.... no one tried to beat me up.

But they weren't happy and would do little tricks on me. Sometimes my art supplies would "dissapear" and stuff like that. One day, when I came in to work.... someone had literally broken my drawing table.

That was the last straw.

I went to talk to the producer who did not want to hire me to begin with and told her that enough was enough.

And to my surprise she agreed.

She was not happy about that either since the studio would have to pay for that and buy me a new drawing table. So that was the last time that stuff like that would happen. Things went more smoothly after that.

Also people in the studio got to know me.

I will let you in on a little secret.

People often don't like me at first sight. It happens.

But once they get to know me.... they realize that their preconceived notions of who they think I am are wrong.

Heck there was this guy on Bob Morane who first hated my guts. But now he is a good friend.

But even once people got to know me.... the office politics took on a new form.

But that will be for another blog. ;)

Until next time.