Mitch Ditkoff's 14 Ways To Get Breakthrough Ideas
I think one of the most important steps in Mitch Ditkoff's 14 Ways To Get Breakthrough Ideas is Fantasize. Just like Ditkoff says in the reading, fantasizing has a negative connotation to it, but in reality it would be your day dreams. You have to receive your ideas someway, and what better way to do that than through your own mind's storytelling. The best part about day dreaming or fantasizing is that if you are a visual person it is almost as if you can watch your ideas play out in your head. You se in your mind's eye exactly what you are wanting and are working on. I like to have one good idea of what I want then start picking characters and personalities. I sit and day dream about the setting of the story and how it represents the tone of the story. I have to day dream about the relationship between and and all of the characters and how their personalities represent each element of the character. The step of fantasizing is definitely a key step to a creative breakthrough, but not the most important step.
As previously mentioned fantasizing is an important step in breakthrough ideas but there is a more important step than that. That step is the third step, in Mitch Ditkoff's 14 Ways To Get Breakthrough Ideas, is tolerate ambiguity. This is an important step of realization. This step refers to the nature of trial and error in the creative process. Everything any one person or even multiple people do they will do something wrong because it is only human to make mistakes. Whether or not you learn from those mistakes is a personal choice. Trial and error is a learning process and a good one to gain experience. one of the best ways I can describe this in a practical media sense is the way I learned how to light for film, video, and photography. I have been lighting on and off for projects for about three years now. I started with no instruction, just purely fantasizing about the different lighting schematics and lighting effects. I did not know the actual mechanics yet, but once I took my lighting class I understood what was wrong with my techniques. I then began working with lights in different set ups to see if they worked, trial. If something didn't work, error, I would tweak the set up until everything was perfect. This trial and error is how I learned some of my most useful lighting techniques.
The most important of Mitch Ditkoff's 14 Ways To Get Breakthrough Ideas is follow your fascination. It has tied with hundreds of conversations I have had with distinguished media professionals. They all say two things. First is if you do what you love money will come to you. The second is if you do what you love you will feel as if you have never worked a day in your life. This spoke volumes to me. First of all, if you are fascinated with something, you probably know a lot about it. If you don't know a lot about it, then you are probably very willing to learn. With this knowledge, you will be constantly fantasizing about creative new ideas. Ah, see, fantasizing, one of the other breakthroughs before. this will make being creative a lot easier for anyone. Of course once you have your fascination and your fantasy you can try your trial and error of your ideas and projects. In my own personal experience I did not know what my passion in life was. I know it had to do with art, but not anything specific. It wasn't until a moment of enlightenment that I knew I wanted to work with video and film. That is when I became fascinated with every aspect of them both. I love creating videos and films recreationally and professionally. I haven't felt like any of it has been work. It wasn't until I came to Ohio University that I had the realization that i wanted to be a Cinematographer.
The activity that I have designed is made to get your creative juices flowing. I would like to combine all three of the breakthrough techniques I have previously mentioned. First, think of what you are fascinated with. Once you have that in mind, start fantasizing what you would like to draw that includes your fascination. Then comes the tolerate ambiguity step. With this drawing you can only lift your pen or pencil off the paper 5 times. You may try this drawing as many times as you would like.
Thursday, June 30, 2011
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
Influences 1.1
I am a Junior at Ohio University, using my creativity to paint pictures with light for film, video, and photography. I am a visually and aurally creative person and I am influenced by many other creative people. One of my favorite artists is Ralph Steadman. He is British artist that focuses on Gonzo art. His style is very unique because he uses paint splatters to create a contrast with his thin scratchy pen line drawings. His art work has a very addicting and menacing tension based from his subject, or content, as well as his contrast from his style. Another reason he is a big influence on me is because his art work goes hand in hand with the works of Hunter S. Thompson. Hunter S. Thomspon has influenced the way I think, create, and percieve the world since I picked up a paperback cope of Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. Ever since then he has enlightened my artistic subconscious. Hunter's work is subjective, as is Steadman's, because their work is looked at through a "Gonzo filter". it is almost like they use creativity to tell the truth while streatching it to a point to the brink of untruth. His work Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas influenced me very much so because his personality and views contrast so much with the average boring American. If I may quote him, Hunter once said, "I hate to advocate drugs, alcohol, violence, or insanity, but they have always worked for me." I find that they work for me and my creativity also. I, like Hunter, try to represent an altered reality with my writing and art. I try to represent the outcast, the black sheep, and the artist. I don't agree with dirty politics and neither does Hunter or my biggest musical influence The Frankl Project of Cincinnati, Ohio. The Frankl Project is a power trio of some of Cincinnati's most talented musicians. They play music that is a very unique blend of ska, punk, and blues. They have very bluesy grooves in "Greyhound Bus" and very fast punk songs with ska/reggae up strokes during the verse such as the song "Black and Blue". Each member of the band is a friend of mine and they share my political and spiritual beliefs. They are amazing musicians that have very socially aware lyrics. I have actually adapted my drumming style and preference from their drummer Joseph Frankl. He uses a unique style of syncopation to combing with the crunchy guitar and the grooving bass. Finally my most influential film is Fight Club. If fits my style just fine. I instantly too the the rebellious messageof the film. Along with the beautiful Neo-Noir cinematography it captured my attention from the first scene. I felt like i was the "Narrator" in the film. It strung me through every minute of it. I went into cinematography because of the beautiful imagery in the movie. It gave me the cut the shit do what you love belief, and I've kept it ever since.
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
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