He worked on commercials, television programs, and whatever
project he could network himself on set for, steadily moving into props
assistant and set dressing. Eventually, a friend sponsored him for union
membership.
Ivey's first big feature was
Random Hearts, serving as key
swing in set dressing. Over
time, his career has gravitated
toward props assistant, prop
master, and art direction. His
résumé has grown to include
work on features such as
Election, Book of Shadows: Blair
Witch 2, Hollow Man, The
Replacements, Rules of
Engagement, Hannibal, Along
Came a Spider, and Gods and
Generals, and television series
including The Agency, America's
Most Wanted, The District, and
The West Wing, and numerous
commercials.
Job Overview
Working under the direction of the producer, director, or production
designer, the storyboard artist illustrates a sequence of scenes to help
everyone involved in the production grasp the same visual image. The
storyboard artist may also be called upon to sketch the production
designer's ideas for various sets and locations. "A storyboard is very
similar to drawing a comic strip or book," says artist Mike Harris. "You
take a sequence of events and make them visually exciting."
"There are two kinds of storyboards. The first is what I would call a
presentation storyboard. This is generally quite finished and quite slick.
It may even be in color. It is to either sell the concept to the client or, in
the case of a movie, to sell the concept to the people who are banking the
project. The second type of storyboard is what I call a production story-
board--so that everyone on the crew is on the same page--and is less
finished." It may be no more than a rough pencil sketch.
JOB TITLE: STORYBOARD ARTIST
"Be prepared to
eliminate all your future
plans. Working in the
film industry, particu-
larly freelance, you can't
really have a planned social life. If someone
calls, nine times out of ten you better take
that work or they won't call you again. You
have to be willing and open to work any
time, anywhere, any hours, and do just about
anything, within reason."--Jason Ivey
"Listen! [When you listen], you
learn how things actually work, in terms of
money and other aspects of the business."
--Jason Ivey
CAREER TIPS
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