Ivor’s Academy is a non-profit organisation that represents a diverse community of musicians, the musicians union connects thirty two thousand individuals across all sectors which provides opportunities and service for all those involved. Therefore this project stood out to me due to the wider audience it considers and how it would be seen by a lot of younger creators who are experiencing similar things to what I am currently going through in my own practice.
This project is for The Ivors Academy & Musicians Union against buyouts with regards to our ‘intellectual property’. Using a buyout contract when commissioning musicians work is becoming increasingly asked for by a client, this is the transfer of royalties from the creator to the buyer in exchange for an upfront fee. In the moment this large upfront fee may seem appealing however it is only a short-term solution since if you maintained rights over royalties you would have regular payments which are useful if you find yourself in a time where you are not able to find work. Additionally over the years, according to Ivor’s information, the amount that is paid for an upfront fee has decreased and sometimes does not even cover the costs of the creation of the piece.
In the Ivor’s brief they have written that ‘We want to empower music creators to know their rights, read their contracts, not be afraid to say no and ask for more.’ In my opinion this statement is extremely important since if you did just this your life as a creative could change dramatically. Written down like that it also seems extremely simple to be able to do, however gaining this much confidence in the world of your practice is difficult since it requires knowledge and understanding. Contracts can be scary and confusing (I also know this from my own recent experience), there are a lot of words on the page, complex ideas and confusing language, therefore this awareness campaign provides musicians the ability to be part of a community which is able to be a guiding figure and teacher to help with these things.
The audience for this campaign are young upcoming musicians and those who might be moving around the industry and going into new sectors within their practice. Therefore my piece for this project needs to be interesting to the younger main portion of the audience but also still appeal to anyone else who is seeking help, as well as being attention grabbing it needs to be helpful at any stage in anyone’s career. Throughout their brief there is a large emphasis on empowerment, therefore the animation needs to be strong and inspiring as well as informative.
They provided us with a brand identity for the campaign, however the client said that there didn’t need to be a direct visual link to this as it can also be used as an inspiration for our work. They also laid emphasis on the diversity that needs to be shown if any people are involved in our work. It is clear that we need to consider the audience as our main influence in this piece since it is about them and communicating something to them.
COVID has meant that the industry has come to a halt, coming out of this, Ivors is focusing on making this workplace beneficial to the young musician and a place which is not as scary and daunting. This will provide those who seek help with a community where they are supported and taught how to make the most of their work which can build their practice and inspire it further.