We must all believe this.
And I for one happen to think it’s true.
All posts in Ethos
Paradox of Choice
I wanted to wish you and yours a happy holidays. I’ll probably still post one or two things before the new year but in case I miss you I wanted to say enjoy!
And not to squash the buying spirit or anything but before you go out to make your holiday purchases take a look at the video above. Barry Schwartz has some really clear and persuasive ideas about what living in a world of too much “choice” can do to you.
And if you’re too busy to watch it here’s the takeaway:
“too much choice undermines happiness”.
I think he’s right.
Hey… Happy Holidays!
Elizabeth Gilbert on nurturing creativity
This vid isn’t new, I actually posted it a while back on another incarnation of my site, but it’s good.
Watch it.
Here’s the blurb from TED:
Elizabeth Gilbert muses on the impossible things we expect from artists and geniuses — and shares the radical idea that, instead of the rare person “being” a genius, all of us “have” a genius. It’s a funny, personal and surprisingly moving talk.
The Abyss
It is by going down into the abyss that we recover the treasures of life. Where you stumble, there lies your treasure.
—Joseph Campbell
Towards an Impure Poetry
If you’re looking for a useful comparison in literature then know scriptwriting and narrative film most closely resemble poetry.
Walter told me this a few weeks ago at the Screenwriters Lab and you know what? I think he’s right.
I’ve been pondering it a lot lately as I begin rewriting my feature draft.
Recently, I started thinking about it more deeply after I got an email from someone, a poet, who saw one of my shorts and she got me thinking about what Walter may have actually meant.
First Criticisms
Listen carefully to first criticisms of your work. Note just what it is about your work the critics don’t like — then cultivate it.
That’s the part of your work that’s individual and worth keeping.
—Jean Cocteau
Abandoned
A work of art is never completed, only abandoned.
—Leonardo da Vinci
The Audience
I have a theory: not to bore the audience. That’s a good theory. It sometimes seems that all pictures are too long, mine included, but this is always what I try to avoid. That’s why we have previews.
If we see the film getting slow, or somebody falling asleep or walking out, then you try to correct something to keep the interest up. Some of the directors today don’t seem to give a damn about anything except their own feelings. There’s a very fine line between self-confidence and arrogance.
Justified
Each character must justify their existence.
Disorientation
Disorientation begets creative thinking.
Writing Characters
Write around characters and not ideas.
The American People Film
“In the heart of Alabama wiregrass country, a mother haunted by prescient visions of the future struggles to find hope and the strength to live again after the sudden death of one of her children just days before 9/11.”
American People Lookbook
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Posted – The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford - 12/09/2011
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What I Remember – Sundance Labs 2011
Here’s my final post for the Sundance Institute Blog…
Continue Reading →
Impossible Me
Here’s a blog post for the Sundance Institute Blog about my time at the Directors Labs…
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Sundance Directors Labs 2011 – Production Pics
These are some pictures from our three weeks of shooting scenes from the film at the Labs.
Continue Reading →
My Instagrams – Life on the go
Articles I’m Reading
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– The Age of Innocence – NYTimes.com - 05/18/2012 - – Trayvon Martin Case Shadowed by Police Missteps – NYTimes.com - 05/17/2012
- – Bradford Young, Cinematographer for ‘Middle of Nowhere’ – NYTimes.com - 05/16/2012
- – The Coming Meltdown in College Education & Why The Economy Won’t Get Better Any Time Soon « blog maverick - 05/16/2012
- – The ESPN Man – NYTimes.com - 05/15/2012
What I’m Watching
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– 001- Enter the Void - 05/19/2012 - – 002- Jackie Brown - 05/19/2012
- – 003- The Graduate - 05/19/2012
- – 004- Somersault - 05/19/2012
- – 005- Swimming with Sharks - 05/19/2012
Music I’m Listening To
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– Let It Be Me by Ray LaMontagne - 05/04/2012 - – Have You Seen Her by The Chi-Lites - 04/30/2012
- – If You Don't Know Me By Now by Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes - 04/30/2012
- – The Stable Song by Gregory Alan Isakov - 04/30/2012
- – Eyes On Fire by Blue Foundation - 04/30/2012
From My Tumblr – Sad Vader
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– Photo - 05/19/2012 - – "It takes a very long time to become young." - 05/18/2012
- – Photo - 05/18/2012
- – "Dust and Water" by Antony & The Johnsons - 05/18/2012
- – Photo - 05/18/2012
