WHY DO WE DO IT? – THE UNETHICAL TREATMENT OF MEDIA ARTISTS IN DANCE

THE LIFE OF AN ARTIST IS HARD, THERE’S NO DOUBT ABOUT IT.
In a world and society that has grown to value STEM professions over the arts more and more, and instant gratification over craftsmanship, it’s incredibly difficult to make a living being a dancer, a photographer, a painter… Ask any artist and they’ll regale you with stories of people offering them “exposure,” “exchanges,” etc. for their art–pretty much anything except money.

It’s something we all experience, and something for which all artists have sympathy. As a newly minted dance instructor, I’ve already struggled to advocate for myself and what my lessons are worth. It’s not just the time spent training. Private lessons and classes cost money, and that reflects in the cost of my own rates. Despite my rates still being half that of a more experienced instructor, I hear “that’s too much” all the time. I expect this sort of feedback from non-artists… they don’t understand. But still… when you have spent countless hours and dollars training and honing your craft to provide its best possible version, it’s incredibly frustrating and insulting for someone to treat you like your product is worthless.

SO IT’S SADDENING (AND MADDENING) TO ME THAT SOME DANCERS DO THIS TO MEDIA ARTISTS – PHOTOGRAPHERS AND VIDEOGRAPHERS – WITHIN THE DANCE COMMUNITY.
In the dance world, photography and videography is the backbone of marketing for either an individual dancer trying to make it big, or an event organizer trying to grow the community. Media artists will work hard to capture the subject, spending hours in post-editing that they don’t really charge for, and the finished product is exquisite. Yet far too often, they are undervalued and put down by fellow dancers/organizers.

I’ve several photographer friends who consistently get offered a “free pass” to a weekend event by the organizer. That’s approximately a $200 value for what usually amounts to almost 48 hours of work – shooting all of the socials and workshops over three days, editing photos and videos – $4/hour. That’s not even minimum wage, AND the artist doesn’t get to really use the pass – because they’re working the entire time to capture the event.
Occasionally the organizer will include lodging in the deal. Now we’re at approximately a $350 value – $7/hour. (The quality of the lodging can even be questionable – I have heard a firsthand account from a videographer who was given second-rate lodging compared to the dance instructors, and actually felt unsafe where he was staying.) Sometimes artists are left paying for their own meals too, which puts them even further into the red.

That same dancer who is offering basically nothing for hours of work – how insulted would they be if they were to be offered $4-7 for an hour-long private lesson? The hypocrisy is staggering.
And a lot of the time the media artists will acquiesce to such ridiculous requests.

• They don’t know better/feel bad asking for more
• They really need the exposure so they’re willing to bite the bullet
• They’re foreigners who struggle to get work and take any available gig for the above reasons
• And media artists are invested. I spoke earlier about the time and money that goes into training as a dancer. Not only do photographers have to train, but their equipment is a hefty monetary burden. Buying the necessary cameras, stabilizers, tripods, lenses… paying for maintenance and repair… insurance… In addition, a lot of photographers rent equipment especially for an event, and often times won’t get paid enough to even cover the rental costs.

“WE’RE ALL STRUGGLING, THOUGH. SOMETIMES IT’S JUST TOO EXPENSIVE TO PAY MORE FOR A PHOTOGRAPHER.”
That’s entirely true! If that’s the case, there are alternative options. Payment plans, agreeing on a set number of hours, the equivalent of the proper pay in private lessons, etc. But it’s simply immoral to not even try.

Or, if you can’t afford them, at least don’t talk shit about how expensive they are… which also happens. a LOT.

Well, look. I know money complicates things. So let’s leave that alone for a second.

LET’S TALK ABOUT “EXPOSURE.”
When photographers take pictures of an event, they will often give a disclaimer with the photos asking people who share the photos to not crop their watermark and to give them credit, and it still gets ignored.

A lot of dancers do photo shoots and video shoots to promote themselves and their business. Especially for video shoots – shooting a dance with a high-quality camera captures the energy and emotion in a way that a friend with an iPhone can never hope to match. Depending on the project, the editing is just as important as the dance itself in getting the story across. And an alarming amount of dancers fail to even mention the media artist when sharing the finished product.

This might not seem like a big deal, but it is. We’ve already established how difficult it is for media artists to get people to appreciate their work. While “exposure” doesn’t equal payment, it’s still incredibly important to growing their reputation and getting more business. By not giving credit where it’s due, we severely cripple their ability to advertise. In what some artists refer to as a “gig” economy, where your employment is dependent on individual bookings, advertising your work is the only way to get more. Media artists have to promote well enough that they are the ones being approached for gigs. Otherwise, artists are left reaching out to organizers, which puts them at a disadvantage and in a position of vulnerability because the organizer knows they need the work and can exploit that. By helping to promote artists’ material, we give them more freedom.

This brings us to the final point: What can be done?
Firstly, if you’re an event organizer hiring a media artist, be fair.

• If you can only afford to offer a free pass, set a contract with a number of work hours that is fair for the photographer– i.e., you’d like them to shoot for one hour each night of the social. This comes out to about $50/hr. And they get to enjoy the event and actually use the free pass. If they choose to work more, that’s up to them, but you won’t be taking advantage.
• Several event organizers have been using this format, and they still get a spectacular product (gained ethically, which makes it so much better).
• If you are thinking of hiring a photographer or videographer for an event, do your research. Have a clear idea of your brand and what results you’d like, and look past the go-to artists for other events. There are a lot of skilled artists out there who may not be as well known but are worth reaching out to.
• Treat artists the same regardless of their stature. If you have multiple artists of different renown working your event, you should provide the same accommodations and perks to the lesser-known artists… they are working just as hard.

Secondly, if you are buying or even just sharing the photographer’s work, be supportive.

• It takes a few extra seconds to tag them or type their name into the description on your Insta/Facebook post.
• Recommend them to your friends if you like their work.
• Leave a nice review on their page.
• Invite people to like their page.

Be fair.

It’s really that easy. And so worthwhile. Business doesn’t have to be ruthless. Especially in the art community, where so much of our work is fueled by passion, if not love, it’s completely counterintuitive and unnecessary to screw others over to make a profit.

THE LIFE OF AN ARTIST IS HARD. WE’VE ALL BEEN THERE. WHY NOT LOOK OUT FOR UP-AND-COMING ARTISTS AND SUPPORT EACH OTHER?
See you on the dance floor! ❤
-Elena “the Rhinestone” Rovito

Photo: Dan Yamamoto
Original Post: The Rhinestone