[Fredslist] Gotham video production and 3d animation company in the news

[Stuart Kamen]

Hello, Tribe,

I wanted to let you in on the good news that our company, Platinum Platypus (we create video, 3D animation, motion graphics and visual effects for corporate, broadcast, sports and entertainment clients), was recently showcased on TV and the newspaper. The video, which is about how the company first got started, is currently running on FiOS 1 in the Long Island region. Below is a link to the 3-minute finished piece.

http://vimeo.com/35376962

There was also a print article that ran in Long Island Business News. I am cut-and-pasting it below, as you need to subscribe in order to see it online.

I welcome any questions/comments.

Thanks ... and I wish you all success.

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Platinum Platypus gets down to business
by John Callegari
Published: January 20, 2012
Tags: 3-D animation, Advertising, Advertising agency, corporate video production company, design, Economy, Long Island, Media, motion graphics, Ronkonkoma, Technology, visual effects

After 20 years at a corporate advertising firm, Pete Sussi was ready for a more animated career. Freelancing in designing 3-D animation, Sussi took the plunge and opened his own firm, Northport-based Platinum Platypus, in December 2010.

Like the animal that shares its namesake, Sussi’s business is a hodgepodge of several different ideas: a corporate video production company, a motion graphics and visual effects design firm and an advertising agency.

The company is close to landing a deal that would stretch its staff of six beyond the breaking point. Expanding, however, would require a big investment, and not just in personnel.

Since opening its doors, Platinum Platypus has done projects for companies like Pringles, Bayer, HP, CA Technologies, Teachers Federal Credit Union and Marchon Eyewear, as well as professional sports teams including the Milwaukee Brewers, the Pittsburgh Pirates and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, designing the graphics used in the teams’ scoreboards to get crowds interested in the games.

And more recently, Sussi has been in talks with the SyFy Network about working on one of the network’s TV shows – a potential deal that appears to be close to being finalized. The show, which Sussi didn’t identify other than being about the paranormal, would employ Platinum Platypus to handle the graphics and visual effects for each episode.

Sussi said if he lands the deal, he’ll have to double or triple his staff even though he recently hired two artists. Such an expansion could be an issue for a small company still in its infancy.

“Obviously when you grow, you take a bit of a hit because you have to add the stations and software for the artists,” Sussi said. “Expansion brings a lot of costs.”

Compounding the cost problem is the fact many clients of advertising or production companies don’t pay their bills in a timely manner. This was such a big issue for Sussi in the beginning that he resorted to leasing out part of his 1,100-square-foot office overlooking Northport Harbor to other unrelated artists just to make the rent.

“Even if the flow [of work] was there, just waiting for the pay cycles was tough,” said Sussi, who added that the firm charges between $7,000 to $80,000 depending on the complexity of the project.

Getting clients to pay is tough for any firm, but especially so for a fledgling company like Sussi’s, which has little else to bank on. Roy Zeidman, president of Paradise Advertising in Rocky Point who has partnered with Sussi on a few projects, said his advertising company has had to turn down accounts worth up to $1 million due to continually late payments.

Zeidman was introduced to Platinum Platypus while working on an advertising campaign for Teachers Federal Credit Union. The company decided it wanted to have an owl serve as its mascot, which Zeidman suggested animating. A video production company Zeidman hired suggested going with a 3-D avatar of the owl to make it appear more lifelike. That’s when Sussi and his crew were brought in.

“They did a great job creating that owl,” Zeidman said. “Everybody I talk to loves that little owl, and I really hope [TFCU] does more with that little owl, which I think they will, so I expect to be working with [Platinum Platypus] again.”

He may not be alone. In addition to Sussi’s ongoing discussions with the SyFy Network, Platinum Platypus is also trying to land deals handling the visual effects for a Starz show and is in talks with a reality show based in New York City.

“The important thing is that you don’t bite off more than you can chew,” Sussi said. “It’s more about people you surround yourself with because you need that passion to feed off of. It’s not going to be a normal 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. job. Art’s like a funny animal." Kind of like a platypus....


Stu Kamen
EVP Corporate Accounts
Platinum Platypus, Inc.
skamen at platinumplatypus.com
Office: 631.925.5622 x102
Mobile: 516.551.2900

 Connect with me

Corporate Album: http://www.vimeo.com/album/1675259
Broadcast, Sports & Entertainment Album: http://www.vimeo.com/album/1689891









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