My feeling is that if you accept the liklihood that you'll never score a major Hollywood feature film, one can find satisfying, profitable work almost anywhere one chooses to live. (Notice I said ALMOST. I'm sure there are realities of living in some places which would make the obstacles insurmountable.)
For example, I live in Charlotte, North Carolina. It's a lovely, mid-sized city with a great lifestyle. My wife and I made the decision NOT to move to LA when I chose to make it as a full time composer. That was 14 years ago. Today we oversee a shop with 3 full time composers (myself included), a talented sound designer and a full time production coordinator. It has exceeded even my own expectations. I get to work on a variety of stuff, and that's the way I like it. Commercials, TV shows (including the occasional national network show), documentaries...and several independent feature films so far.
It's taken a long time...no doubt much longer than it would have had we relocated to a major media center. We're not getting rich, but we enjoy our work, pay our bills, save a little...and we have a satisfying life.
We work hard to constantly improve our craft. We work hard on having great relationships with our clients. And yes, we have to work hard to keep work flowing in. But if you have sufficient talent and skills...and don't mind working hard...I think you can find a career wherever you are. They told me it couldn't be done in Charlotte, North Carolina. I just shrugged and said, "We'll see."
I found the comments from our European friends interesting, too. I'm afraid I agree with their words about our American perception problem. And I speak from a bit of experience. Two of my favorite film projects have been foreign films...one French, one a Spanish language film set in Chile. I loved the experience...and learned a little about our perception abroad.
Fred Story
Concentrix Music and Sound Design
For example, I live in Charlotte, North Carolina. It's a lovely, mid-sized city with a great lifestyle. My wife and I made the decision NOT to move to LA when I chose to make it as a full time composer. That was 14 years ago. Today we oversee a shop with 3 full time composers (myself included), a talented sound designer and a full time production coordinator. It has exceeded even my own expectations. I get to work on a variety of stuff, and that's the way I like it. Commercials, TV shows (including the occasional national network show), documentaries...and several independent feature films so far.
It's taken a long time...no doubt much longer than it would have had we relocated to a major media center. We're not getting rich, but we enjoy our work, pay our bills, save a little...and we have a satisfying life.
We work hard to constantly improve our craft. We work hard on having great relationships with our clients. And yes, we have to work hard to keep work flowing in. But if you have sufficient talent and skills...and don't mind working hard...I think you can find a career wherever you are. They told me it couldn't be done in Charlotte, North Carolina. I just shrugged and said, "We'll see."
I found the comments from our European friends interesting, too. I'm afraid I agree with their words about our American perception problem. And I speak from a bit of experience. Two of my favorite film projects have been foreign films...one French, one a Spanish language film set in Chile. I loved the experience...and learned a little about our perception abroad.
Fred Story
Concentrix Music and Sound Design