Can he DO that?

[yajuunomiko.livejournal.com]

Recently I was contacted by someone wanting a plushie for their child.  I gave them my standard reply of how much each size costs and stated that I don't recreate officials or plushies done by another artist.

This has become a standard response because a look around plushie communities you'll see bootleggers and copycats making money off of other people's hard work.  It's something I don't want to get involved with so I state it in my early responses to queries.

Ok,,, so this guy starts asking questions about how much and how big and what style.  He then starts showing images official plushies and wants it "like that."  I then point blank turn him down and state I'll have nothing to do with bootlegging.  To which he seems agreeable.

Then a couple of days later I get this email full of rage, asking me "who pissed in your cornflakes."  He goes on to tell me I've ruined his child's hopes of getting this plushie and that I'm an unprofessional that will NEVER survive in the real art world.  And he was going to tell everyone what an unpleasant person I was to work with.

This hit me hard. 

And so I ask you... will I survive the real art world if I stand by my policies?

Comments

[dinogrrl.livejournal.com]

I think it'd be better to stand by your policies than do something that could put you in big trouble. You'll get much more respect from everyone that way.

Don't let jerks like this bother you.

[leahtaur.livejournal.com]

You did the right thing, all the way. He was just trying to save money and/or couldn't find the official plushy, and was peeved at you when you stood up for yourself and your policies. It's a good rule to have for yourself and since you told him from the start, he won't get anyone on his side unless he outright lies.

You're clearly more professional than many (most?) of your peers. Stay that way! :)

[wolf-nymph.livejournal.com]

You WILL survive in the art worlf if you stand by your policies. You can also make a fine living NOT standing by your policies though. It's up to you, really, if you want to go that way. Personally I think you should stick to your guns, try not to let this person bother you... After all, if you did what he asked, you could get into a lot of trouble. To me, running an honest business no matter what these kinds of people say is important.

You did the right thing. =)

[oolong.livejournal.com]

no, it just shows that you actually have some integrity. stuffed animal designs are intellectual property and copying one outright would be a good way to get sued, which would end your art career fast. you made the right decision.

[birdrock.livejournal.com]

If you DON'T stand by your policies, you won't survive the art world. This guy needs to learn how to handle his shit when things don't go *exactly* as he wants- that's his problem, not yours.

[clickclackcat.livejournal.com]

bi-polar much? o_o That guy seriously needs a chill pill. I say stand by your policies, you'll end up better in the long run. You're not at fault here, that guy is. If he wants a plush for his kid that looks just like "plush A" that "artist A" did, he should just ask that artist or better yet, if he's gonna be so damn pissy about it, he can make his own bootleg plush. Maybe then he'll have a better respect for what you do. Ruined his kids hopes of getting this plush? Gimmie a break. His kid must've learned to bitch and whine from his father then. The guy should've either politely moved on to find some other plush artist who would have made the plush for him like he wanted or just dealt with your policies like a mature adult.

I don't know if this is the case, but I find it funny that most of the people who yell at artists about how they'll "never be able to survive in the art world" are not artists themselves and often times have no affiliation with the art world at all except that they maybe went to a museum. Once. Don't worry at all about surviving in the real art world. You'll be much better off making your own original creations than trying to bootleg to cater to people like this.

Sorry that kinda turned into a rant. XD I like to make my own custom stuffed animals and plushies in my "copious" free time and I guess that just kinda struck a nerve.

[aaaamory.livejournal.com]

So what if his kid is disappointed? Disappointment is a fact of life so why wouldn't he see this as an opportunity for his child to learn about how to deal with it?

[bladespark.livejournal.com]

Agreeing with everybody else here, (And I really agree with clickclackcat, I've never heard anybody who's IN the real art world spout off such nonsense, it's always people who don't know what they're talking about.)

My policy is slightly more lenient, I am happy to do things "inspired" by existing designs, but the final product must always be unique, and not simply a copy with one feature changed. But I've had to turn down customers before, and have had a few get irate with me over it. One threatened to sue me!

But so far I do just fine! I make plushes too, but mostly I make fursuits, and that's my dayjob, it's what I do for a living.

Also, anybody who will use his kid to try and emotionally blackmail you into breaking the law is scum, pure and simple.

[tania.livejournal.com]

It's never professional to bootleg; you did the right thing. This dude is just pissed because he didn't get what he wanted. Conclusion: Ignore, ignore, ignore.

One thing confuses me in this story: if the guy wanted a licensed / copyrighted plushie, why didn't he just go buy the real one? No matter how expensive a plushie is it couldn't possibly match the cost of getting one custom-made.

[mazz.livejournal.com]

ugh, that guy is an odd one.

Do you have a price list by chance and examples. I was a plush of my fursona but I need to do some price checking to see if I can ever afford one.

[yajuunomiko.livejournal.com]

You can contact me through my DA page: http://leloi.deviantart.com/

[auryanne.livejournal.com]

Wow, your stuff is neat, I'm going to watch you now :D

[peaches-wolfiez.livejournal.com]

He's probably bluffing to try to intimidate you. In any case, you can rely on people you have done work for before to back you up on the quality of your service. I wouldn't even dignify a person like that with a response.

Good for you to sticking to your guns. It shows that you have respect for your craft and you aren't after the almighty dollar.

[superfangrrl.livejournal.com]

that guy sounds like a total tool. I agree with what others have said. If he wanted a plushy EXACTLY like "PLushy A", then he could have just bought the original thing. I think he's using his kid as an excuse to be a jerkface... if he even has a kid...

[uneide.livejournal.com]

wtf. Bipolar?
Listen - you're doing what any reputable plushie maker does. I had the same policies for the number of years that I made them ( until last year). If they want a commercial one, go buy the actual product. What, the hell... O_O

Stick to your guns. Not only is he being an aggressive ( and immature) ASS but if you'd take on any kind of comission I can pretty much guarantee it'd taste like sawdust.BAh.

Personally -- I wouldn't let the jerk bother you. IGNORE! ;)

[yaochi.livejournal.com]

You didn't disappoint his child.

You disappointed his inner child.

And what a vile and bitter child did you flush out of the shadows.

Really awful people ........ its better not to work for them at all.

For sending you that hideous email he gets loser troll of the year.

You should feel GOOD.

Because you are not doing business with him.

*hugs*

[thrivis.livejournal.com]

This guy clearly has no idea what he's talking about because no respectable commissioner or company in the "art world" would ask for copyright or intellectual property infringement, nor would they be upset you refused such a request.

Your policy of originality can only help you weed out the whackos to beware of, like this guy clearly is. o_o

[theassassinnox.livejournal.com]

You are totally in the right. Artists that copy other work drive me nuts, and it really makes the fraft soul-less. Your steadfastness shows that you will do well. I totally respect that, and wish you the best.

[susandeer.livejournal.com]

Stand by your policies. His child's disappointment is not your responsibility.

[larylich.livejournal.com]

There are too many immature people in this fandom. You are going to run into people like this from time to time if you do commish work for niche markets. Just about every artist has, as you can see by many of the posts here. "Clients from hell", "Disappearing-with-your-money Artists" etc. You have to expect the occasional screwball throwing a tantrum when they can't have everything they want in life. Actually, expect this no matter where you go- it seems to be endemic.

The trick is being as nice as you can while being as firm as you can. If you love what you do, this occasional hiccup will not be so bad. Since it seems to be your first, it's probably feels much worse. Keep at it, draft a formal policy and stick to it. People respect consistency.

Also remember that one retard does not a reputation make.

[thaily.livejournal.com]

I love it when people use their children to try and manipulate others.

But what of my chiiild!
You're making my chiiild sad!
Think of the chiiildreeen!
My chiiild should be the exception!
You should do what I want because I have a chiiild!

So he sperm-poisoned a woman once, big whoop for him. It doesn't make him king of the world and he doesn't get to decide who does and doesn't make it, contrary what this type of person thinks (and they're woefully abundant).

[ironbadger.livejournal.com]

"Sperm-poisoned" as a euphamism for pregancy?

LOL!

I have never heard that one before- its funny....;)

Mind if I use it some time Thaily?

-Badger-

[thaily.livejournal.com]

Go for it, I have more where that came from ;P

[notveryathletic.livejournal.com]

As hard as it might be to do, I'd ignore him, your rules are clear and fair, simple as that :)

[theblackdragon.livejournal.com]

sometimes it's not so much what the policy is as much as whether or not you stand by them. if you regularly waffle and crumble under the force of whining and anger, no, you won't last -- you'll get angrier and angrier at yourself and your commissioners over various things you've made leeway for (instead of holding to what you've already laid down as comfortable and fair for you) and you'll burn out pretty quick. you did the right thing to stand by your guns. :3

[lilenth.livejournal.com]

Ignore him, anyone who listens to someone spouting how awful you are for not committing copyright violation? Is probably not someone you would want as a customer anyway.

Stand by your policies. Bootlegging is quite possibly the fastest way to end up being actively disliked in any group. After all look at what happened in the Goldman case. http://www.miketyndall.com/todd_goldman/ He stole and ended up losing everything when it came out.

You'll survive in the artworld if you stand by your policies and work hard, stealing from others and getting caught? well you can see from the goldman case that he might have made a lot of money but eventually his house of cards came crashing down and wrecked his reputation.

[thaily.livejournal.com]

Did anything bad actually happen to that douchebag though?
I got the impression he intends to carry on as per normal.

[lilenth.livejournal.com]

They yanked all his T-shirts and I think most of the galleries dumped his work.

[thaily.livejournal.com]

Awesome...

[snapesgirl34.livejournal.com]

Sweeeeeeet.

[lastres0rt.livejournal.com]

Hooray for Mass Internet Protest!

[gothwings.livejournal.com]

Being successful in the art world will always be tough, especially for the ehtical artist. However, it does pay off in the end.

If you're after a 'quick buck' and aren't too worried about your reputation, repeat trade and a good customer base then you don't need ethics. If you really want to make it and are willing to put in the time and effort, put up with the disappointment and the struggle to finally achieve something great, then be ethical.

I think you're of the latter variety, and that always makes me feel content that I'm not the only one trying to be ethical in what can be a vicious, unethical business.

[crssafox.livejournal.com]

Is this your first "angry customer"? I have been lucky to not have any of those yet, at least when it comes to artwork. I get them all the time in my retail job, though. O_o

People just get pissy sometimes. I know it seems like a personal attack, but what he's doing is NOT something against you, personally. He's trying to justify himself wanting something wrong. You have your policies in place for a reason - you don't want to copy someone else's work. That would get YOU in a world of trouble. It wouldn't mean a thing to him - he'd have his "knockoff" plush and you'd be the one to have to deal with any upset coming from the original maker, not him. It's easy for this type of person to try and make you feel bad, because they're just trying to step on the little people to get what they want.

Stick by your own policies. They are GOOD, don't let this jerk make you believe that your own policies - that you came up with for a good reason! - will bring you down in the art world. They will make it harder for you to gain more experience, because it is *easy* to just copy someone else's work, but the experience you DO gain will be ten times better than if you had copied. Not only that, you will have a great reputation. Would you really like to be seen as a "bootleg version of PopularPlushieMaker"? I know this sort of thing has happened in the fursuiting genre - some people are content making cheaper versions of what look to be early works of other fursuit makers. The problem there is, they don't have their own originality any more. Rather than their own work being set apart from everyone else's, their work gets confused with others' and may be credited wrongly. If you were to copy another plush, it might be confused with the other plush maker's products, and you would not even receive proper credit for your hard work. Is that something you really want? That doesn't sound like surviving in the art world, to me!

Don't let this guy get you down. He's stupid and tactless if he will try to guilt trip you into thinking you let down his kid and "ruined their hope of getting this plushie" because if they REALLY wanted that plushie, they could get the real deal. It's not YOUR fault this kid's dad has no idea how the world works and wants what he wants and when he wants it. Please don't feel bad, and don't worry about surviving in the art world. Your work looks great, and you CAN make it -- just stick to your policies you've already set down. :)

[solid-squid.livejournal.com]

I should probably point out that, while working at a game store, I had a man claim I had ruined their child's christmas by not having any PS2s in stock one week before christmas the year that San Andreas came out. Your situation is just as ridiculous as this one, the man obviously either promised his daughter he would get her one without finding out how much/how hard to get they were or she specifically asked for one. On finding out he couldn't get one he decided that, rather than be an actual parent and tell his daughter no once in a while, he would try to guilt trip you into making one.

This is all on his shoulders, and has nothing to do with you. He knew what your policies were when he contacted you and shouldn't be bitching you out for sticking to them

[kuwaizair.livejournal.com]

wow. what a jerk.

was the plush he wanted retired or no?

[kiwihunter8.livejournal.com]

No way this guy has a child, he's just an immature furry trying to yank your pity chain, I'll bet you dollars to donuts.

And if he DOES have a kid, then he needs to either a) stand up to his own child or b) be careful about what he promises his kid before receiving it.

Kudos to you for standing your ground!

[snapesgirl34.livejournal.com]

Frankly I think it's a lot more professional to refuse to make bootlegs than to make them.

[ironbadger.livejournal.com]

In a word, yes.

You can indeed survive int he art world; and sticking to your guns on policy will say more for you in the long run than caving in to such a clear case of intimidation.

See, some folks play this game when negotiating to:
A- drive a price down.
B- try to force someone to do what they want even if its a clear rippoff that might get the artist in trouble in the future if they agree to do the work.

I've heard crap like this before, and it has NEVER affected my business one way or the other.

Tell him to shove off, or better yet, do not reply and block his email.

-Badger-

[ransomdracalis.livejournal.com]

Like comedians, artists gotta support each other, and must never rip each others' work off, or that's the end of your respect from your respective community. Like the eleventy people that posted before me, I agree, you did the right thing.

[haricotvert.livejournal.com]

you won't get sued for copyright violations, i can tell you that. and i'd ask who pissed in his cornflakes. if he wants one like an official one so bad, he can go to any con or Suncoast Movie store and buy it. you go to a commission artist for something unique.

to answer your question, yeah. you will. just because one pisser gets his panties in a knot cuz he doesn't like the way you work doesn't mean everyone's gonna be like that.

assholes suck. but that goes without saying. cheers, luv!

[katsuki.livejournal.com]

He probably just has one of those psycho kids who reemed him out when he said he couldn't get it for them.

Stick by your policies and don't worry about it.

[dream-runner.livejournal.com]

its tough but i believe its possible. that sounds like this guy is a real chode tho. i bet he didnt even read your whole email before he started asking for copies.
screw him. make art you love and it will show. make art you dont love and it will show too.

[metaraymek.livejournal.com]

I smell someone using the 'I have a child' excuse in order to play the sympathy card.