Caleb Light-Wills – How and when did you first find out about Tongal?
Dan McCarthy – Last summer I came across Tongal from an ad they had on an online video contest listing website I frequented. I participated in one of the concept phases and ended up placing.
CLW – Were you apprehensive about the Tongal process, or was it something you understood almost immediately?
DM – I understood the process almost immediately after I checked out a contest that has already passed. I really liked how the entire process worked.
CLW – You walked away with well over $7,000 for your win in the Benjamin Moore Authentic Color Project – one of the largest single prizes we’ve ever awarded. Were you nervous about the competition?
DM – I was very nervous. I remember hitting refresh about a thousand times until the site updated with the winners list. I have a ton of respect for the other entries especially the ones that were shot because of the amount of pre and production time it must have taken.
CLW – Was Benjamin Moore a company that you were already familiar with or was there some research involved?
DM – I was somewhat familiar with them but I spent a lot of time on their website researching as I always do before I ever start working on a project.
CLW – What is your production background like?
DM – I went to school for video editing and now work as a compositor. I have always been interested in directing, 3D and motion graphics. So I do contests to learn and with any luck make some money to buy more equipment, software and learning tools.
CLW – Your video is a great visual interpretation of Chance Harris’ 2nd Place tagline, “Chameleon Casualty.” Was it helpful to work off of the pre-selected Concepts?
Working from client-approved concepts is I think one of the most beneficial aspects to Tongal. It helps me work harder and longer knowing that I am working on something that the client would be interested in after I have put so much time and effort in.
CLW – How long did it take you to actually create “Prickles” and what was your process like?
DM – It took about 2 weeks to create from start to finish. I created a rough storyboard and script on paper first then just some tests with still frames. Almost everything was done in After Effects. The chameleon is just a still frame being warped expect for the legs which were an 8 frame loop done separately. In terms of the story I tried to stay as close to the concept as possible with some minor personal interpretations.
CLW - Did you collaborate with anyone?
DM - I did everything myself except for a voiceover which a friend did. I was having trouble getting the lip-syncing to work and ended up uploading with only a few seconds left in contest.
CLW – What are you going to spend the money on?
DM – A Canon 5D Mark II so I can continue to enter contests that involve shooting.
CLW – What is your favorite thing about Tongal?
DM – The fact that I am working from client approved concepts and seeing how everyone interprets those same concepts differently.
CLW – We’re currently in the process of redesigning the site to improve usability and the overall Tongal experience. Anything in particular you’d like to see?
DM – I find the current contests boxes too small and somewhat convoluted. It would be nice to have a much clearer view for which contest is running and also which phase its currently in.
CLW – What’s next for you on Tongal or otherwise?
DM – I always try to have fun and learn something new every time I enter, so I plan on continuing to do that and keeping my fingers crossed I win something occasionally.
This interview was conducted via email on March 10th, 2011.
