Understanding Creepy
ebergerly
Posts: 3,255
As I look thru the store I can't help but notice that there has always been (well, for the short amount of time I've been looking) a huge emphasis on creepy stuff. Zombies, swords, monsters, and all kinds of creepy stuff. So I'm wondering, for someone who is thinking of becoming a PA, is that where the market lies? I assume that the only reason why there's so much of it for sale is that people REALLY want to buy it. Do people really enjoy that kind of stuff? I've always assumed that if you're a hobbiest like me you tend to have hobbies that are fun and relaxing and somewhat pleasurable. And I've never understood how creepy and disgusting stuff is pleasurable. I always thought that nice happy beautiful stuff is pleasurable. I guess it's the same question I have about video games where all you do is shoot people and slit their throats. And from what I've seen that makes up 90% of the most popular video games.
Anyway I'd appreciate if someone can clue me in on how much of a PA's work would involve doing stuff like that. Thanks.
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PA's make what they enjoy making.
When i started there was really not much of a market for monster types of characters, it was a very small niche.
It is still not the biggest money maker, but the market has grown, and it is what I enjoy making, so I keep going.
Of course you do have to remember the time of year. September/October do tend to have a larger percentage of creepy stuff. By Mid November it is tending to maybe creep over to winter holiday type stuff. (ie Solstice/Christmas/Yule/Hanukkah/Yalda/Ashura/Bodhi/Kwanzaa and any others I may have forgotten/not know.)
It's Halloween season so there's more creepy stuff in the store currently.
But as Rawn said, PAs make what they want to make, what they're passionate about. That's always the best decision.
if you can't understand how someone else can have tastes other than your own, then there is no use trying to explain. I am 53 and enjoy the horror genre, be it movies, game, 3d whatever. I also am a gamer and LOVE first person shoooters, then again I shoot at a range in real life also. While I like nice happy beautiful stuff, that is also pretty boring most of the time.
That being said, I don't purchase much of the horror stuff in the store, mostly sci fi and pinup items. So as pointed out and from someone that does 3D modeling commercially, do what you want and are passionate about. because if it becomes less fun and more work like, you will fizzle out and lose interest sooner than later.
Of course people have different tastes than mine. That's obvious, and very understandable. But that's not my point. My point is that if you are going to be a PA, you have to produce stuff that people will buy. And if any company produces stuff that nobody buys, no matter how much they enjoy doing it, they aren't going to make money.
So the question becomes, if you're going to be a PA, are you willing or able to make stuff that lots of people are interested in? And more importantly, do you really understand exactly what it is that interests most people? That's all I'm asking. What is it about creepy stuff that people enjoy?
It's kind of like the reason why Apple became so insanely successful. They figured out exactly what people would really enjoy, and made a market and produced stuff that tapped into that desire to be entertained on their own personal device. So yeah, there's a lot of use in trying to explain and understand. It may be the difference between being successful and unsuccessful.
Maybe explore psych research?
https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/in-excess/201510/why-do-we-watching-scary-films
Why Do We Like Watching Scary Films?
A brief look at psychological horror at the cinema
Posted Oct 29, 2015
It's not always about what the maximum number of people will buy, though how well a product sells is important. Even though you may not be a fan of creepy content, some PAs like to make it and have found enough people that do like it that it's worth the time and effort to continue making it. Also, as Chohole pointed out, you're going to see more of that stuff during the fall season leading up to Halloween, since Zombies, Vampires and other such things are associated with that holiday.
I dunno, I recall seeing it here all summer. And assuming it's the same as the fact that 90% of popular video games are just shoot-em-up and slit throats, I think it's more than just a seasonal thing.
You're post comes across as judgemental. I have refused to by the work of a number of vendors because they have publicly advanced stances that are judgemental and in some cases hypocritical. Public relations can be a nightmare.
One of my hobbies years ago was trains. I liked watching real life trains and having model trains and listening to them on the radio. And I got a lot of judgemental comments about it. "You like watching trains? And you sit there for hours waiting for trains to come?". But I didn't take it as judgemental because I knew in the end they had a good point. It was kind of dumb. And really boring for most people. So I could certainly understand their perspective. So understanding goes both ways.
And now one of my hobbies is writing computer software. "So you sit in front of the computer and just write computer code?". Yup. And I agree, for most people it's kinda boring. I can certainly understand. But I like to do tech stuff and create things.
If you are lookng as to what it takes to make money as a PA, you cannot do it by looking at the market and trying to cater to it.
PA's essentially do not make alot of money (at least not for many many years), so what you have to focus on instead is how to create products that push the quality standards and make them interesting for people to want to buy.
I was told when I started that I would never make that much money because i focused on the monsters, but it was what I liked making, so I just kept (and still keep doing) trying to make the products better and better until they were were something that could be interesting to buy.
I do make a living out of selling products now...but that is after 15yrs of building my catalog and improving my craft. The first 5yrs (or more) there was barely pocket money to be made. So you have to really REALLY love what you are doing to keep pushing on for many years. I don't think this is anything anyone should set as a career goal. I didnt even plan to do it full time, it was just a "life circumstance" that forced me to do so.
It is alot of work, and you really have to be passionate about it to keep going. But in the end it could work....but no market survey will tell you what to do to make money doing it. The only thing you can do is make sure your stuff is top quality and interesting to customers. THAT is what sells.
Exactly. And that's what I'm trying to determine. What's interesting to customers.
But you are goign about it the wrong way....you don't "find" what is interesting to customers....you "make" things interesting FOR customers.
It is up to you to make whatever product you make interesting.
Thats what sells
I'm guessing there are a bunch of PA's out there who might disagree. Just because I find it interesting doesn't mean the rest of the DAZ users will buy it. I imagine there are a lot of really well built interesting content that has never made any money. I mean, I could make models of freight trains, and do some incredible detailing and texturing, but I'm gonna guess that the market would be, well, tiny.
I make stuff that I find joy in doing.
I try to sell stuff that I enjoy that seems like it will at least make half decent money.
If I was solely interested in money I'd probably be a tax accountant or something.
What you will find is that there are alot of pa's who know that you cannot guage the market.
Yes you can have real well made things that don't sell. That happens all that time, and is part of the risk we take as a pa.
But there is no secret specific product type that can be made that is guarenteed to make money
Like I said...i was told at the begining mosters do not sell, But I had to take it on myself to make them interesting enough to get sales. For me it worked. There are still many sets I make that do flop, but there are many vairiables involved.
Thats just it
Hey wait a minute....I thought you're timmins.william ?
What happened? Did you morph or something?
He morphed into a PA ;)
Based on what I've seen in the store, if you make a Princess Leia-type outfit with a sword or two it will sell. Guaranteed. Not a week goes by that there aren't variations of that theme on sale. Clearly a lot of people are buying that. And skimpy outfits for women of course.
Look..I can only give you advice of what I learned over the last 15yrs.
If you don't wanna believe it, that is up to you.
Being on sale and being successful aren’t the same.
I'm curious, does DAZ give PA's any direction on what their big sellers are? Do they try to steer PA's in a certain direction, based on their history of what they think will sell?
Not the same. Its tone. And you're arguing with one of the premier creators of "creepy"....
"Dark" might have been a less judgemental term than "creepy".
It's like Pokémon.
not sure what my next form will be...
My apologies. But maybe you can understand and accept that not everyone understands the same dictionary as you.
ebergerly, make trains if that floats your boat. I counted quickly 12 or 13 in the store of varying styles, some pretty good, and that wasn't going deep so there may be more. If you have a passion for something use it.
If you were a beginning filmmaker, you would probably find advice saying to a make a horror movie for your first feature. They generally are low budget, but they make a lot of money, even the ones that are not so good. And they are easier to do. Director/Producer Sam Raimi did that with "Evil Dead" just as a for instance. He broke into Hollywood with it. Horror films do well if they are are scary or relevant. You don't need much more. Horror movies are saving the box office this year. They are simply a release for people, and that goes for the games and creepy stuff you're talking about. That's why the zombie shows do so well.
RawArt just recently released a couple vampires in the store and I bought them because they were so well made. Perfect for Halloween or anytime really. As I build a cast of characters, the creative potential grows.
This is perhaps the most ironic non political post I've seen in ages...
The thing about creepy horror stuff is that it can often cover a wide range of stuff, from fantasy to sci-fi to post apocalyptic, and so on.
A vampire has obvious use in a fantasy scene. In a sci-fi scene, maybe it's a variant human, or human like aliens.
Or those are brain robot zombies. Or...
Rawart and Oso3D - I as a reader/follower of the thread appreciate you sharing your experiences, which appear on the surface to be at odds with some of these assumptions. Thank you for your insights related to how some PAs choose their products, including horror, and why some PAs might choose their projects based on their own interests, which can build quality and a client base over time no matter the genre.
People like what the like I guess. The most popular items in the store appear to be pretty young white female characters and skimpy clothing.
As far as horror goes I like monsters because they make good aliens and opponents for the “good guys” to fight. They can be bad guys or mysterious or maligned. They can be horrific or exotic or heroes in disguise.