My Creative Manifesto

Check out Karim Rashid’s Creative Manifesto http://www.karimrashid.com/manifesto_fr.html and then read mine!

My Creative Manifesto

1. Do what you love.  Fuck the rest.
2. Be open to criticism.
3. Don’t judge yourself too harshly.
4. Try new things.
5. Be confident in your ideas.
6. Value yourself and others.
7. See the beauty in everything.
8. Realize that everyone has potential, even you.
9. Nobody’s perfect.
10. Find out what makes you, you and be yourself!

10A. Written Response to FREAK FACTOR

Read David Rendall’s “FREAK FACTOR: Discovering Uniqueness by Flaunting Weakness” http://changethis.com/manifesto/show/45.02.FreakFactor and read my summary and critique below!

In Freak Factor, David Rendall states that we all have flaws and weaknesses, but we need to embrace them.  Weaknesses are really just indicators of strengths and if we try to fix them, we will lose the strengths that go along with them.  These weaknesses also make us unique or freaks, but a freak in one situation can be a hero in another, so we need to find where our freak fits.  I think that each and every one of Rendall’s nine suggestions are valid.  We each to need to learn the value of our uniqueness and weaknesses, as well as those of others, if we do not embrace these qualities, we won’t find where we fit.  This is a fantastic article, and I think it so important to learn the value of ourselves and our apparent weaknesses.

6. Focus: You Can’t Do Both

I think is one of the most important and valid points in the whole article, and one that I have found to be true in my own life.  When we try and do too much and do it well, we end up spreading ourselves too thin and ultimately do none of it well, or we are cranky when we do it and we don’t enjoy even the things we normally would enjoy.  Like Rendall says, “We have limited resources,” and we don’t have the time and energy to do it all, so we should do things we enjoy, that we are good, things we can exceed at.  Why do things you can’t do well and spend so much time focusing on those that your strengths suffer?  Focusing on both strengths and weaknesses leads to mediocre results across the board.  We can’t do anything really well if you don’t have the time or energy to spend on it and if focus solely on fixing your problems, you might end up diminishing your strengths in the process.  In my creative life, I think I need to focus on film because that is what I love and it what I enjoy doing and I’ve been told I’m pretty good at it.  I love focusing on details and sometimes miss the bigger picture, but they need people to look for the smallest things, because they have other people to look at the bigger picture, so I should just do what I do and do it well.

7. Fit: Find the Right Spot

This is an incredibly important point, because so many people feel lost and confused and like maybe they are not doing the right, all because they haven’t found the right spot to do what they are doing.  It is so important to find the right and places to let your ideas grow and flourish and become the creative person you are truly meant to be.  We need to celebrate our flaws and see that everyone has different strengths and weaknesses and in different situations and at different times we need all of these different abilities to get the job done and do it well.  Rudolph would never have become the hero he is today if he had given up, he stuck it out and kept trying until the situation changed and he found his fit.  “You need to choose situations that fit your natural strengths,” not adapt to fit the situation.  We have all tried different ventures that turn out to be busts, and it can become very disheartening, but then that one perfect group, or hobby, or experience comes along that makes it all worth it.  Just keep trying until you find your fit, it might take a while, but you will find it.

8. Freak: The Power of Uniqueness

I love this suggestion, when you really think about it, the people you admire and keep in your lives are the people that make it interesting, the people that are different from you, that do different things, and bring new and unique ideas to the table.  No one wants to stick around if you bring the same things that everyone else is bringing to the table.  That one flaw could be the thing people love about you, the thing that they come to see, and fixing that flaw could destroy your uniqueness.  Anyway efforts to fix a so-called flaw usually fails, but it is worth the effort to maintain the flaw.  “People will always try to get you to straighten up, to be normal, to stop being a freak,” ignore them, they are not going to be around if you are normal, your uniqueness is what draws others to you, people are going to make the effort to see or hear the same old thing.  Don’t be normal, be the exception.  Make what you want to make, do what you want to do.  Wouldn’t you rather be remembered for making something weird, than be forgotten for making something that has been done a hundred times before?

As far as the creative process is concerned, I have found my strengths to be focusing on details, remembering specific facts, and seeing the little things that make a film what it is, and my weaknesses are being so focused on details that I forget the main objective or big picture, I am also really hard on myself and get really down if I make a mistake, I also have a hard time sharing my creative ideas and thoughts with other people, even though it is a necessity in the creative world, otherwise what would be the point?

9B. Audio Response to Collapsus

Check out this trans-media piece directed by Tommy Pallotta  http://www.collapsus.com/ and then listen to my audio response below!

9A. Reflections on the Gaming Presentation

I just want to start by saying that the video game project and presentation was the hardest project for me that we have done all quarter.  I’ve never played a video game other than Frogger and I really have no background, experience, or knowledge in gaming.  So thank goodness I got an awesome group who spent a few hours explaining everything to me.  I think they did an amazing job on the presentation and idea behind our whole game concept.  And considering that it took them hours to explain all this different stuff to me, for the fifteen minutes we had to explain it to the class I think we did a darn good job.

I think the hardest parts of our game to communicate or get across to the audience was the objective of finding the safe haven because people didn’t really understand what the point of finding it was.  We were trying to explain that they had the capabilities to mass produce the vaccine and the character had the information to make vaccine, so they needed to come together and save the world from the zombies.  I think our group also had a hard time getting the whole vision across to the audience because we had two very talented digital media majors with strong and sometimes differing opinions about the game, so when we were trying to explain it to everyone else it came across a little jumbled and contradicting in some areas.

I think explaining or discussing the mechanics of the game was the easiest because most people have a general knowledge of how controllers and different consoles work or operate.  A lot of people have played games before and even if they couldn’t understand our game, they knew and could appreciate how the controllers worked.  Goals were also pretty easy to communicate because they were pretty standard and self explanatory, it was all based on survival, basic human needs.  Find food, water, shelter, weapons, and ammo.  These self-created objectives were ones that almost everyone had seen before and understood because we are all humans.  The objectives were probably the hardest to communicate and discuss because the audience did not understand the reason for the final winning condition of finding the safe haven.  It was the main non-optional condition that must be met to achieve the outcome of saving the world, so it was key to communicate this, but it was difficult.  The rules also seemed to be pretty easy to discuss because they have been done before and made sense to gaming in general and specifically to the world we had created.  Completing missions and delimeters provide context and structure, while also displaying procedural elements.

Video Game PowerPoint

  

 

  

 

 

 

 

8B. Written Reflection on the Hero/Villain Assignment

Critique of Rainbow Dude and Villain by Andrew Kellogg and Kyle Miller

http://awkellogg.blogspot.com/2011/03/sorry-that-image-of-villain-is-on-its.html?spref=bl

I loved this hero/villain pairing.  I thought it was a great idea to contrast the colorful world of Rainbow Dude with the black and white of the villain.  The lack of affinity between the characters really added to tension of their rivalry.  Tension and release are used to lull the audience into a false sense of security and then bring it back to the fore.  The idea of living in a world without color is terrifying and they played on this tension very well.  The contrast between the characters is very apparent based on the use of opposing colors, line and shape, and shadow, but color is the best indicator of their differences.  Rainbow Dude is full of different hues, including yellow, orange, red, blue, and green, while the villain in a colorless world except for his red cummerbund.  Kyle really explores brightness in his image of the villain, he uses varying levels of darkness to define the character.  Andrew also uses brightness in some the detail work on Rainbow Dude.  Saturation can be seen in both the hero and the villain.  It is especially visible in the orange background of Rainbow Dude’s sky, the intensity or whiteness of the color varies.  The backdrop to the villain also experiments with saturation, it displays multiple levels of intensity.

Critique of Bubble Bath Man and Dr. Dirt Nasty by Meng Li and Madolyn Nianouris

http://meng27.blogspot.com/2011/03/blog-assignment-8-written-reflection-on.html?spref=bl

This was also an awesome pairing of hero and villain, and the name Dr. Dirt Nasty makes me laugh every time.  The contrast between the characters and their motivation is apparent as soon as you seen them, Bubble Bath Man is a happy-go-lucky little guy who wants to keep the world clean and safe for everybody, while Dr. Dirt Nasty is an evil and filthy thing that is willing to do anything to make the world gross.  The affinity of the characters’ shape in the drawings makes it believable that these two would be well matched in a fight.  Lighting is used to great affect to show the differences between the two characters.  Bubble Bath Man is shown in the bright, light of day, with no shadows, as he has nothing to hide, as opposed to Dr. Dirt Nasty who lives in the shadows of his junk yard, which symbolizes that he probably has something to hide.  Bubble Bath Man’s surroundings symbolize his openness and honesty and willingness to do good.  Each of their environments create their own unique mood, Bubble Bath Man is happy and good, he is doing the right thing, while in the mood created by Dr. Dirt Nasty’s world is one of fear and the unknown, unsafe, and unsanitary things going on in the world, the underbelly so to speak.  The use of text and subtext is done very well, as it is literally said that Bubble Bath Man lives in a bright and happy world, and Dr. Dirt Nasty lives in dirty, industrial area, but when compared we see the underlying meaning of each of their worlds.  We learn what they are each fighting for and their motivations. 

8A. Audio Response to This American Life

Check out this link http://www.thisamericanlife.org/radio-archives/episode/178/superpowers and then listen to my audio response about my own superpower!

7. Written Reflection on the Video Joke Assignment

For our video joke assignment we chose two very different scripts, one a silent film and the other a mockumentary.  Since there was affinity with the actual material of the story between the two scripts, we wanted a contrast in the approach and look of the videos.  In our first approach to the train joke, the silent film, our writer/director Dan really focused on using the rule of thirds to direct the viewer’s eye where he wanted it to go.  By using the rule of thirds, he developed a point of interest, which is used to create movement.  Movement was tricky in both videos, as camera moves were not allowed, so creating any type of movement was vital.  The visual framing used also created a distinct rhythm in the piece.  Throughout the video, the boy is on the left, which contrasts the mom who is always shown on the right, this further highlights the differences between the mother and the son and their battle of wills.  In our second video, writer/director Max chose a mockumentary style, which was a stark contrast to the silent film feel our first video was going for.  Though the style and format of the video were very different, the requirement to use non-synchronous sound resulted in both video didactically telling the audience the information, as there are screen cards in the silent film and a narrator in the second approach.  At first, it seems that the audience will have to actively figure out the plot and story line for themselves, but then the narrator or cards come in and hand the information to the audience.  Movement, and especially character movement is also used in the second video.  Max did put as much focus on the rule of thirds and but did pay a lot of attention to the primary and secondary movement of the characters.  The son plays with his train, kicks his legs and is thrown into his room, while the mother washes dishes, grabs and throws the son, and snaps the belt.  The mockumentary focused more on space, both deep and flat space were explored.  The mother was dressed in cooler colors so she receded and the son was in warmer colors, so he advanced and became the focus.  Size and horizon line were also used to demonstrate the authority of the mother.

Chracter and Movement Animation

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G-wRasZKehw

Dr. Owen and The Rib battle it out!

Character and Movement: Hero and Villian

Hero: Dr. Owen

 

Villain: The Rib

Video Jokes

6B. Audio Commentary Critiquing Video Game Imagery

Watch a clip of Halo 3 and then listen to my audio commentary below.

http://vocaroo.com/?media=v1Ru6DoQRbyfhTYLb 

6A. Video Response to "How To Be Creative"

Read Hugh MacLeod's How To Be Creative http://changethis.com/manifesto/show/6.HowToBeCreative and watch my video response below.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0oGpUHifGcM

5B. Audio Commentary

 

Watch a clip from The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (above) and then listen to my audio commentary critiquing it below.

http://vocaroo.com/?media=v6Z1VEqHYnvbgUBBe

5A. Reimagining Visual Framing

The Temptation of St. Anthony Salvador Dali

 

 

I was drawn to The Temptation of St. Anthony by Salvador Dali because I thought the emotion displayed on the horse’s face was so powerful and beautiful, but a bit overlooked in the picture as a whole.  There is so much going on in the image, that it is hard to pick out and really appreciate each figure and specific details.  I reframed this section of the image because I really wanted to focus on the pain in the horse and the overpowering size of her in comparison to Saint Anthony, but also how he is not backing down.  I feel like some of that beauty gets lost in the whole image.

The Rule of Thirds is a very powerful tool, as it tells us where the eye is drawn in a image.  In the original framing the eye is drawn first to the horse’s stomach, second to the far edge of the castle, third to the horse’s knee, and finally to the spot where the yellow and blue sky meet.  These are the four spots we are drawn to according to the Rule of Thirds, and unfortunately they are not very powerful images visually or in telling the story.  In my reframing of the image, we are first drawn to the horse’s right front hoof, second to her other hoof, third to the cross in St. Anthony’s hand, and finally to the horse’s knee.  In contrast to the original image, the rule of thirds is much more powerful as it draws the eyes to the menacing hooves that look as though they are about to crush St. Anthony and then our eyes are drawn to the seemingly small cross held by the small figure, but we see the determination he has to stand up to the temptation.  Affinity is also apparent as we are again finally drawn to the horse’s knee, which again displays the contrast in size between St. Anthony and the threat of temptation represented by the horse.

Depth cues are used within a picture plane to represent a 3 dimensional world.  Dali uses the horizon line to emphasize the size of the horse and other animals and to diminish St. Anthony and the other people, in both framings.  Objectively, the animals seem massive because they are higher than the line, while St. Anthony seems even smaller because most of his body is below the horizon line.  However, subjectively the use of this line also makes St. Anthony look more confident and strong, because he is holding his ground as he reaches his body across the line.

Both framings also show how Dali used color to manipulate space.  By using light colors in the background and dark colors in the foreground, flat space is created.  This allows the audience to focus on the figures and the struggle between instead of searching for depth in the image.  In the original image, there is a lot going on, but by removing the other people and animals in my reframed image, the viewer can really take advantage of the flat space and focus on the struggle between St. Anthony and the horse as a representation of temptation.

I think Dali framed the image the way he did to tell an entire story, so you keep getting pulled in deeper and discovering new things and learning how massive and daunting the “temptation” is, as opposed to zooming in on the enormous horse and didactically telling the audience the struggle he is portraying.

 

    

4B. Music/Song Audio Reflection

Jillian’s Song

Love.Live.Music: Music/Song Assignment

 

Nathan’s Song

Nathan Hoover: Garageband Song

Matthew’s Song

Matthew's Weekly Brain Bubbles: Island Smile

My Critique
http://vocaroo.com/?media=vs74WHXFMz6PUplHi

4A. Brainwashed

Seth Godin’s manifesto,“Brainwashed” http://changethis.com/manifesto/show/66.01.Brainwashed explores the seven layers necessary to reinvent yourself after the brainwashing we have endured from years in the system.  Here I summarize two of the layers and how they connect to my own creative work and this blog.

1. Acknowledge the Lizard

We all have a lizard brain, it’s the part of our brain that worries and gets angry.  Being laughed at is its worst fear.  The fear leads to “the resistance,” or shutdown, the voice that keeps your head down and urges you to follow directions.  The resistance lives in fear and threatens to shut us down at the first sign of challenging social mores.  The resistance is easy to provoke, so we follow rules, and the resistance wins.  This resistance cripples artists and prevents their genius from transforming into art.  We need to recognize the lizard, and then ignore it.  We need to realize that we might get laughed at, but we need to push that aside and do our work, our art.

2. Learn

Learning is the key.  School used to exist to learn a trade, not anymore.  School does not end when you graduate, it is now, it is never ending.  It is the trials and errors, the experiences and the failures of shipping and learning.  Reinvention is a path, discard what you think you know and instead learn.

For me, the Blog we are creating this quarter is the definition of acknowledging the lizard and learning.  I’ve never blogged before, I’ve never made a soundscape before, I’ve never put my work and thoughts and ideas on the internet for others to critique, but I am learning or at least trying to learn.  I am experimenting with new mediums and techniques and trying to overcome “the resistance” and be comfortable putting my work out there, and even when I am not completely comfortable with it, doing it anyway.  I presented a song, my first time doing so, and I failed.  I was not happy with it, I was embarrassed to play it for others, for the fear they were judging me and my worth, based on my first try at something new.  I acknowledged the lizard, ignored it, made the art, and presented it, but then “the resistance” came back.  In a way doing the assignment was sort of contradictory, because the main reason I did was because a professor told me to and failure to do so would have resulted in social punishment, however I also did it to learn.  Learning is something I have always done and loved, and this blog is a perfect example.  At I was unsure of how to do most everything associated with the blog and assignments, but the more I learn about it and the more I do, the more I enjoy it and want to learn even more.  I think the various exercises make me a better artist, person, and student, because I am getting more comfortable with myself as an artist and a person sharing ideas, and as a student, not only doing assignments for the grade to but to learn and enjoy as well.

3B. Soundscape Audio Reflection

Beth's Soundscape

Beth Carter: Soundscape Project

Dan's Soundscape

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GCfl42iOlIk&feature=player_embedded

Alex's Soundscape

Alex Wiseman MDIA 203: Soundscape Presentation

My Critique
http://vocaroo.com/?media=vHlYWWifH7gie0WxB 

3A. Cover Song Exploration

MR. TAMBOURINE MAN

Bob Dylan
/play#Bob+Dylan:Mr.+Tambourine+Man:10283:s1201854.9561605.4657974.0.2.9%2Cstd_ea51e5813ea04ceaae7437c50eb6d15d 

The Byrds

Mr. Tambourine Man, released in 1965, was written by Bob Dylan and he was the first to perform it, however in the same year The Byrds covered the song.  There is both contrast and affinity between the two versions of the song.  Techniquely, the contrast comes mainly from The Byrds adding a 12 string guitar, changing the some of the lyrics, and shortening the length, but the contrast in the timbre or feel of the song comes from the emotion that Dylan creates by just opening his mouth, while The Byrds have a happier, lighter feel to their voices and sound.  Dylan also has more varied pitch range. The affinity between the songs is apparent in the melody and speed of the songs, as they both have the same melody to hum throughout. 

The lyrics of the original song are repeated in the in cover, but The Byrds also removed some of the verses.  Some of the lyrics missing in the cover:

Left me blindly here to stand but still not sleeping
My weariness amazes me, I'm branded on my feet
I have no one to meet
And the ancient empty street's too dead for dreaming.

Though you might hear laughin', spinnin' swingin' madly across the sun
It's not aimed at anyone, it's just escapin' on the run
And but for the sky there are no fences facin'
And if you hear vague traces of skippin' reels of rhyme
To your tambourine in time, it's just a ragged clown behind
I wouldn't pay it any mind, it's just a shadow you're
Seein' that he's chasing.

Then take me disappearin' through the smoke rings of my mind
Down the foggy ruins of time, far past the frozen leaves
The haunted, frightened trees, out to the windy beach
Far from the twisted reach of crazy sorrow
Yes, to dance beneath the diamond sky with one hand waving free
Silhouetted by the sea, circled by the circus sands
With all memory and fate driven deep beneath the waves
Let me forget about today until tomorrow.

It is almost a shame that these beautiful words were removed, but no one can replicate the raw emotion Dylan creates when writes and sings.  Dylan has created beautiful text, but also a hidden subtext that brings light to the politics and social tension of the time, and we lose this in The Byrds version, but they were a pop group, not folk singers or activists.

The timbre is the biggest difference between the two songs, as they each create a completely different feel to the song.  Dylan’s version is much more tonal and simple, and has that hardy, emotional, feel of pushing for change.  The Byrds have created a version that is happier, lighter, and easier to obliviously sing along with.  The timbre of the cover is also more noisy and has more complexity with the increased number of voices and instruments.  The pitch also contrasts between the two versions, Dylan has a wide range of pitches, while The Byrds have a lower vocal pitch, but higher instrumental one.

The affinity comes in the melody and speed of the songs.  Both versions are almost identical in melody, as we hum the same line for both and the speed is contrast throughout both versions.

Although I really enjoy listening to both versions of the song, I like The Byrds version better, sorry Bob.  It is the version I grew up listening and it just has a happier, lighter feeling, it easier sing along and dance to, without feeling melancholy.

My Song

Soundscape

Emotion: Getting Yelled At

2. Audio Response to “Finding Your Howl”

“Finding Your Howl” Jonathan Flaum http://changethis.com/ 

http://vocaroo.com/?media=v8LZc23EROkzUpLZ6

"If You Want to Sing Out, Sing Out" - Cat Stevens

http://vocaroo.com/?media=v47vsBGzTnzF6xpMg 

1B. Ways to Get Ideas

In Mitch Ditkoff’s article, “14 Ways to Get Breakthrough Ideas” http://changethis.com/, he looks at the creative process and suggests ways to enhance this process.  According to Ditkoff, people spark innovation.  In order to get new ideas, you need to realize where ideas come from in the first place and get out there and.  There are two schools of thought.  The first is that you can make up new and different ideas if you will yourself to do so.  The second, ideas are not created, but already exist and must become accessible to other human beings.  Ditkoff goes on the lay out a 14-point plan for generating ideas.  The plan includes; follow your fascination, immerse, tolerate ambiguity, make new connections, fantasize, define the right challenge, listen to your subconscious, take a break, notice and challenge existing patterns and trends, hang out with diverse groups of people, brainstorm, look for happy accidents, use creative thinking techniques, and suspend logic.

Three of the fourteen suggestions stood out and spoke to me, in both positive and negative ways. 

1. Immerse

Breakthrough ideas come at odd times, so we are not always ready to receive them according to Ditkoff.  In order to counteract this, we need to immerse ourselves, by becoming completely involved or absorbed in something.  

Of his fourteen suggestions, this is the only one I disagree with.  When I am working on an idea or stuck, the last thing I want to do is immerse myself in the problem and I find it is the least helpful.  I also do not think this is a very inventive or helpful idea, because most of us who are looking for breakthrough ideas are already immersed in our own thoughts and ideas.  I find immersion more helpful when trying to get something done or learn as much about a subject as I can, but as far as generating ideas, I think it is a waste of time and something that most of us have already tried and we are still stuck.  When you can think or your great idea, obsessing about it is not going to help, it jst make you more frustrated.

6. Define the Right Challenge

“It’s not that they can’t find the solution, they can’t find the problem!” – G.K. Chesterton

Ditkoff says that most people in their hurry to find a solution, forget to frame their challenge in a meaningful way.  Coming up with the right question is at least half of getting the right answer.  To generate a breakthrough idea, you need a question that “communicates the essence of what you’re trying to create.”

While reading the article, this is the one suggestion that really stood out to me above anything else.  I have a tendency to get stuck trying to solve problems without looking at the bigger picture or I end up overlooking the question I am trying to solve.  Be reframing a problem and looking at it from a different perspective, I think this tactic could be very useful in generating ideas, but sometimes coming up with a great question is just as difficult as coming up with a great answer. 

I have already started to implement this suggestion in my own creative life.  I am in the process of writing a short script and I have been so stuck in my own head and having trouble getting ideas on paper, I decided to frame my problem by asking myself, “What am I trying to create?”  The answer was quite simple, I want to create something with meaning, a story that will make people think.

10. Hang Out with Diverse Groups of People

Ditkoff states that most of us tend to stay within familiar groups of people, whether they agree with us, report to us, or are joined to us at the hip.  However, diverse inputs are essential to the development of breakthrough ideas.  To increase our chances, we need to break the bonds of the familiar, hang out with a different crowd, seek the input of oddballs.  If we can let go of our need for comfort and agreement, we will likely find ourselves with new ways of seeing, thinking, and acting.

This is one of the most repeated and obvious suggestions when it comes to generating new ideas, but it is one of the most helpful.  Just talking about different subjects or hearing a new opinion, one different from that of people you talk to everyday, can spark new ideas and even lead to think in new and different way.  Anyway in which you vary or stray from your normal routine is helpful when trying to come up with the next great idea.  Obviously, our old way of thinking and doing is not doing the trick, so spicing up our lives is ideal.  It can only heighten our senses and make life more interesting if nothing else.

Prompt 10

Make a list of ten people (or groups of people) outside of your traditional “posse” who you can spend time with this month.  Who’s first? When?

1. Elderly
2. Exchange Students
3. Professors
4. Handicapped
5. Eden
6. Sigma Alpha Lambda Girls
7. Townies
8. Graduate Students
9. Non-Ohioans
10. Old Friends

The elderly come first, because I rarely spend time with anyone not in their 20s and I find their lives very interesting and have always enjoyed spending time with the elderly.  I just have not made a point to do this.  I always find I leave thinking about something I would not have normally considered and many older folks have great insights and amazing stories.  I am going to call today and make a date with GoodWorks Senior Life program to go talk with elderly people in the Athens community.

1A. Who Influences you as a Creative Person?

I have always been a logical-mathematical creative person, I love to solve problems.  So when it comes to film and books, I enjoy a challenging script or storyline that allows to me figure out what is going to happen before it does, but more than anything, I like the challenge of a twist or a surprise ending, one that I was not even expecting.  I also love films that allow me to pick out the smallest details and see their influence on the narrative or character development.  Stories that make you think and introduce to a world outside our own also influence and inspire me to make films that will have this same affect on others.

Many artists inspire me, including filmmakers, musicians, painters, writers, photographers, and many others.  For example: 

1. M.C. Escher

http://www.mcescher.com/

I have been fascinated with the work of M.C. Escher ever since I can remember.  When I was younger, I was so intrigued by how fluidly he made impossibility real.  Water cannot and does not flow up, but in his world it does, nothing is impossible.  He allows his and almost forces his audience to actively view and engage in his work.  The answer is not handed to you, he bends reality right in front of our faces, but does not tell us how or where or why.  He is not a didactic artist, it is our job as the audience to actively participate in his work and figure out its meaning.  We as an audience have to figure out for ourselves his meaning and what is real and what is not.  Escher entices us into his world and then confuses us once we get there.  The more detail we notice and the more we think about and look into his work the more we are pulled in and the more we have to think and discover.  Escher never hands us anything, it is our own imaginations and discovery that allow us to appreciate his work.  He was remarkably talented, but never obvious, he was not trying to please anyone, he wanted the audience to discover for themselves.

“The things I want to express are so beautiful and pure.” – M.C. Escher

2. Janusz Maniski 

The work of cinematographer Janusz Maniski is a recent discovery and love of mine.  His work on movies such as Schindler’s List and Saving Private Ryan has been winning him awards since the early 1990s, but it was not until The Diving Bell and the Butterfly came out in 2007 that I realized his talent and the beauty he creates in his work.  Maniski’s talent for making a movie beautiful is based on his understanding of contrast and affinity and his ability to use to manipulate and audience or an image.  His use of affinity, whether it be a color scheme, outdoor images, or the types of shots he uses allows the viewer to see and understand his concept and work as a beautiful and complete whole.  His skill also lends him to use contrast to throw off the viewer and really make a point with the images and scenes he is trying to create.  Maniski’s collaboration with various directors has always lead to a beautiful story being told and his ability to create beauty out of any situation is something I hope to emulate in my own work.

3. Harold and Maude

The unlikely romance between a young, death-obsessed teen and a happy-go-lucky eighty year old is the basis for one of my favorite movies of all time.  It not only is an enjoyable film to watch, but there is more to it than meets the eye.  Director Hal Ashby and writer Colin Higgins collaborated to create a great film full of tension, but also the necessary release.  The first scene in the film introduces us to Harold, as he is in the process of hanging himself.  This first few moments and filled with confused and tension for the audience, but then we realize the triviality of the situation and his mother comes in, sees him hanging, and says, “I suppose you think that is very funny, Harold…” and we as the audience, get a somewhat unconventional release as we realize he did not really kill himself.  We are then lulled into a false sense of security as these ‘suicides’ continue throughout the film, but towards the end of the film Ashby and Higgins use this built up comfort with suicide to trick us and once again create a new tension.  This film inspires me to create my own work that can be enjoyable, but also get a message across and toy with the audience, not to mention the incredible soundtrack by Cat Stevens.