Kids love cows, goats and pigs. Geneva video-maker David Phyfer is banking on that simple premise to launch a career as an independent producer, and so far his hunches have been right on target.
Phyfer’s “Farm Animals” (Stage Fright Productions; $14.95) was recommended on “Siskel and Ebert: At The Movies” television show in December. A month later, Blockbuster, the powerhouse chain of video stores, agreed to distribute the 30-minute tape, which is geared for preschoolers age 4 years and under.
Phyfer’s approach on “Farm Animals” couldn’t be more elementary-or more contrary to the dominant trend of loud, fast and aggressive entertainment common to video games and Saturday morning cartoons. There’s no voice-over narration. Simple footage shows what barnyard beasts look and sound like.
“I’m at the opposite end of the continuum,” Phyfer cheerfully acknowledged during a break at St. Charles’ GB Productions, where he’s editing for no charge a video for TriCities Family Services. “The real low-key approach is something a lot of parents have gotten into. Rather than subject the kids to an endless drone of facts, I wanted to let them spend time just seeing what the animals look like.”
Phyfer said he has received hundreds of letters and notes from enthusiastic customers who appreciate the relaxed format of “Farm Animals.”
But there are a few who just don’t get it. “This one couple returned their video,” said Phyfer, “thinking it didn’t have substance. But it depends on what you bring to the viewing. It’s not a passive experience. It’s great if you feel you have something to add and can talk about what you’re watching with your child.”
Phyfer, 41, got the idea for “Farm Animals” after noticing how disinterested his young son was in a video about farm animals that was laced with special effects.
“I watched this tape with my boy Hugh, who was 3 at the time. I couldn’t help feeling that the animals were getting second-class treatment. There was this really loud banjo music all the way through, and then they funneled the cow, which is a really elaborate special effect, from one scene into the next. What you saw was really an adult view of what exciting visuals are supposed to be.”
What young children want instead, Phyfer said, are the basics: no fancy visuals, no narration, minimal music. “Kids don’t need a lot of flashy high tech. For real young kids, I don’t think they want to know all the details. What they want is close-ups, the sounds. Too much information just gets in the way of seeing animals romping around.”
There are plenty of romping animals to be found in the rural area west of Geneva, so in the fall of 1988, Phyfer paid a location fee to a couple of farms in Kane County and had the time of his life documenting the comings and goings of chickens, pigs, goats, sheep and other furry and feathered creatures.
“I was supposed to have an assistant, but he couldn’t make it,” Phyfer said, “so the first day was basically just me following the cows around in the pasture. It was great. I didn’t have to worry about dealing with people or any of that. Animals don’t complain about coffee breaks or overtime.”
Within six months, Phyfer had shot, edited and packaged the 30-minute video. Then came the hard part: marketing. Phyfer placed ads in obscure specialty magazines and made dozens of calls trying to persuade catalog houses to list his product. He even pitched a local dairy company on the idea of using its home delivery staff to distribute advertising flyers with the milk and cheese.
Gradually, the work began to pay off. So far, more than 22,000 copies have been sold, primarily via catalogs such as Music For Little People, a California-based mail order firm specializing in childrens’ books, records and cassettes.
“We decided to pick up `Farm Animals’ because it was very, very simple and in a good price range,” said Gail Petersen, the company’s buyer.
“We try to offer parents an alternative, products that are non-sexist, non-violent, socially responsible and fun,” Petersen said. ” `Farm Animals’ won’t hold the interest of a child older than 5, but for the real little kids, it’s just like reading a picture book over and over-I know my own child watched it many times-then, once they’ve absorbed the information, they’re ready to move on to the next level.”
Two major breaks came Phyfer’s way late last year when Siskel and Ebert aired their show touting “Farm Animals,” which in turn convinced Blockbuster that the tape was a viable product worthy of being stocked in all its corporate-owned outlets.
Paul Porrata, East Coast sales manager for Fast Forward Marketing Inc., who sold Blockbuster on “Farm Animals,” said, “It’s a real shot in the arm for David to get that level of acceptance. It’s also a shot in the arm for sales of the magnitude you can get from being distributed at Blockbuster.”
By not trying to compete with mainstream Hollywood fare, “Farm Animals” has successfully filled a niche in the preschooler video market, Porrata said. “The Disney-type animation feature and the sing-along are the two big things in this age group. And if someone is predisposed to ask `Where’s the excitement?’, `Farm Animals’ is not for them. But the tape stands out as an alternative, a way for kids to have a new experience. There’s also some learning involved, but it’s not overt. It simply gives you a real feel for what you’d see at a farm. I think there’s a lot of room in the market for a `Farm Animals’ type of product.”
When he wasn’t working the phone on behalf of “Farm Animals,” Phyfer paid the bills by producing educational videos for Learning Seed, a Lake Zurich-based company for whom he continues to make about eight tapes a year.
At the same time, Phyfer was busy developing two new children’s videos: “A Great Day For Singing,” featuring singer-songwriter James Durst, and “Big Rigs . . . Close Up and Very Personal,” a video about 18-wheelers that takes the same no-narration, no-frills documentary approach as “Farm Animals.”
Phyfer said the videos, released in January, are intended to show retailers that his company, Stage Fright Productions, is more than a one-shot wonder.
“Farm Animals” is the first fruit of Phyfer’s 20-year struggle to establish himself as an independent producer. He grew up in Geneva, graduated from high school in 1968, and studied cinema at Montana State University. The film program at the remote campus proved to be a blessing in disguise.
“At the time, we were always complaining that the film department couldn’t afford to bring in Truffaut and Goddard, like other schools we heard about. We couldn’t see `400 Blows,’ but on the other hand, we had all this equipment. So while these kids at film schools like USC (Universty of Southern California) were totally into theory, we were getting hands-on experience.”
Indeed, while at Montana, Phyfer helped produce public-service announcements for state agencies. Each term, he also handled the cinematography, sound production or direction for three student films, whose subject matter were a far cry from the wholesome themes he specializes in now.
“I remember one film I did was `The Collector,’ about a guy who collects women’s underwear. He’d drive on his motorcycle into people’s back yards and steal their undies from the clothes line, then go back to his garage and look them over,” Phyfer said, laughing at the memory. “There wasn’t any dialogue. He was a loner.”
After graduating in 1973 with a bachelor’s degree in film and television, Phyfer moved to San Francisco, where he took a variety of part-time jobs while trying to get his independent production company off the ground.
In 1975, Phyfer spent a year studying creative writing at the University of California-Irvine in the Los Angeles area. Two years later, he married Kathy, a bank executive at the time, and began working as an editor at an animation house in Santa Monica. In the mid-’80s, Phyfer went independent and started Stage Fright, driving a cab at night to make ends meet.
The turning point for the Phyfer family came during the California earthquake of 1987. Kathy had taken maternity leave to have their second child, Sara.
“Then the earthquake hit,” Phyfer said. “And I’m holding Hugh in my arms, and she’s holding 8-week-old Sara, and we’re looking at each other saying `Is this it?’ “
The couple decided to opt for the earthquake-free comforts of family and less expensive housing available in the Chicago area, where his mother and three brothers still live. In late 1987, they returned to Geneva and bought a home built in 1848.
For Kathy, a New York City native who had lived in California since 1973, moving to the Midwest entailed a certain amount of culture shock.
“It’s taken more of an effort to `plug in,’ because in New York or California, things like restaurants and entertainment are more in your face. Out here, you have to do a little more digging,” she said.
Leaving California also meant giving up the financial security that came from her bank job.
“I was used to having a job and always knew where my money was coming from,” she said. “All of a sudden, it’s gone, and at first that was stressful.”
But the trade-offs have been worth it, said Kathy.
“The upside is at least the person you’re married to is doing what he wants to do and is happy, and you can’t put a price tag on that. In the long run, that’s what’s really important.”
Kathy said she wasn’t all that surprised at the unorthodox format of her husband’s “Farm Animals” video. “Dave does not do things the way others do them. He’s always had his own slant.”
While Kathy and the kids-Hugh, 7; Sara, 5; and Will, 1-have the run of the house, David Phyfer runs his business from a tiny second floor den.
Phyfer said that in retrospect, relocation to the Midwest has given him fresh inspiration.
“I’m really grateful I pulled up stakes and left Los Angeles. There, I was one of thousands. Here I’m one of hundreds.
“Moving back here forced me to reassess my direction and start thinking about the bigger picture. `What can I do that I can control?’ Had I stayed in L.A., I probably would have stayed on the same path I was on, depending on clients for everything I did. The funny thing is so many people out there would love the steady work you can find here. And by being here, I`m able to do a much higher level of work.”
Phyfer has even gotten to the point where he can afford to be picky.
“I actually get calls now about possible projects, and they tell me what it’s about, and I can say, `Nah, thanks anyway.’ I never imagined that day would ever come.”
