Hello there
Every now and then, I'm showing you a thing from behind the scenes in the ongoing production movements of The Rocky Robot Show.
Like just before Christmas when I showed you the pitch reel, which was a short introductory bespoke animation where the characters essentially pitch the show themselves. There's several versions of this video, each one tailored to shows that the receiving companies have already made (admittedly with Rocky essentially slating them).
Periodically the validity of this has been an ongoing conversation, to go alongside the long and ongoing production by the one man animation department (hello).
Maybe because It's not at all the done thing in a professional pitch. You'll hear plenty of argument that pitches and telly business stuff should all be done straight down the line without any mucking about. The nature of The Rocky Robot Show though, being a show about trying to make a successful show, felt far too apt to not have the characters pitch it themselves. It's completely in line with Rocky that he would insist that he does it, and that he knows how to get a telly show made, that it began to override any common sense with it. Speaking for myself, I'd rather do the pitch "in character" and risk it , than get some drawn out boring development deal by playing it cynical and safe.
Evidently, (before anybody else says it), this has always been the "problem with me".
For I'd just rather have the story to tell. Same as I am much happier with the story of how I ruined the audition to be pirates on a kids telly programme, than I would have been playing the pirate on a kids telly programme. Weird isn't it?
Regardless, this document I am showing you today is a gesture towards professionalism as part of the pitch pack. Jon and I wrote it an age ago, and I've been saying I will sort the formatting of it for all that time. Jon has been pestering, badgering and bullying me to do it, and - as I don't negotiate with terrorists - I didn't.
Oh, but this week though, Jon is coming up to my house to do some work stuff for a few days, and I had an awful dread that he wouldn't shut up about it whilst he was here. I also thought I might be physically in danger, because - as I say - he has been very aggressive about it (threatening wedgies and saying he will give me a dead arm), so I stayed up all night and got something done.
- My genuine bit starts now -
Just a sincere bit - I totally need help with it. I am not a graphic designer on any level, and don't really know what the right buttons are to press on Photoshop, but am trying my best to do a crash course of trial by error. So, in the document below, we are looking for actual feedback, not in the content, but in the design.
Oh, and I'm also not looking for somebody to say "I'll do that for you!", I still want to do it myself, but if anyone has the know-how as to what I've done wrong in this document, then I am all ears for advice on how to fix it.
- No more genuine bit now -
So, Jon - for his part - thinks it's fine as it is (I will also accept that feedback, but I don't feel like it is). That said, I've told you what Jon is like, so he will probably say it is fine and then when he gets here he will hit me and say "OF COURSE IT'S NOT", before holding down the switch after the kettle has boiled so the element burns out.
When you think about it - It's really ironic that he plays Chip and I play Rocky, because we are both the opposite of them in real life. I'm more sweet and Jon is more abrasive and horrible.
Right, here's the thing I did. I deserve extra points because Photoshop kept crashing as well, and I lost a lot of the changes I'd made on two occasions. I'm not sure I should add that to the pitch pack as a note though. Might look a bit desperate.

All of it could do with looking at, but I particularly don't like the look of that bit at the bottom - I very much don't know what to do about fonts.
There we have it, a little behind the scenes businessy thing, and a hidden S.O.S as well (as you'll see from the old trick of hiding messages using the first letter of each paragraph...)
Have an amazing day please and here's sending you loads of love and gratitude for your ongoing support during this very difficult Patreon month!
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Peter Robinson
2022-02-22 22:44:53 +0000 UTC