I’ve personally come to the conclusion that Tim Burton is a prodigal genius and a quiet sociopath. But I mean that in the most generous, uplifting and inspirational way possible. Over the years he’s been able to produce, time and time again, a showcase of his world in all its celluloid glory. Every project that he’s ever taken on, that we know of, has been like an extended hand into an alternate dimension, with its own rules, and enchantments, and especially visuals. The congruency in his work makes him a one-of-a-kind, and without him at the helm of every endeavor there just wouldn’t be a Tim Burton film.
This is the sort of congruency most artists strive for because it becomes your signature. Unfortunately, the myriad of projects on us professional creatives’ tabs, along with standards and expectancies of our clients make it difficult to infuse a part of us into it 100% of the time. Usually, only the uber successful (or rich) attain the ability for complete creative control. And if it’s OUR project, screw what anybody else thinks.
His latest incarnation, ala Alice in Wonderland, is quite a splendor of visual porn indeed. While squirming in one of the most uncomfortable theater seats my ass has ever had the pleasure of touching, it sprung to mind what a demented bastard this Burton guy is; and I loved it.
Now I consider myself a creative-soul-bent-on-world-domination, but watching through that 1 hr and 49 minutes of an “idea orgy” got me thinking, “Holy God, where the hell does this guy get these ideas from?”
Do I need to be high off my rockers where everything and anything goes? Or must I be like Michael Scoffield with his low-latent-inhibition and take apart and associate everything of a pillar idea to link to the next? Maybe just be like the Toys-R-Us mantra and never grow up. Well, that could be Peter Pans too but we don’t see him being too creative nowadays do we?
Actually, I’d probably say every one of those suggestions above would work, though I wouldn’t recommended the drugs part, rehab is a bitch and the price they make you pay afterwards, yea good luck. Well, let’s see if I can make this make more sense to the non-artist because I know you creative types somehow find it difficult to explain your… creativeness. (Plus I hate when people tell me, “It’s just, like, happens, and you do something, and voila… art.)
There’s actually some truth to that “it just happens part” that I can’t fully justify; but on to a few of my thoughts on conditioning yourself for creative genius.
- Anything Goes. The problem with logic, and logical people to boot, is everything has to make sense. If not, then we keep questioning how it “can’t” happen. Perhaps when getting into the grit of creativity we must learn to release the left-side brain functions of rational thought. (Oh crap, I just sounded like one of my boring, overly knowledgeable, convenience mentality, five-dollar word professors. Sorry.) Anyway, don’t challenge the thoughts at this stage. So what if by reason that square peg won’t fit in the round hole, but what if that peg were able to change it’s consistency to marshmallows and you force it down the round hole’s… hole. There, problem solved.
- Associate The Details. Simply stated: go get distracted. If looking at a coffee cup takes you to start seeing Frisbees because of the round opening, then leads to flying spacecrafts because the round opening reminds you of a Frisbee with lights attached to it. Well, there ya go. See how far the rabbit hole takes you. (Hey, that fits into the theme of this post. Purely by accident, I swear. J) You can link just about anything to something else. Just ask a conspiracy buff, I’m sure he can tie in Roger Rabbit to the symbolism found in ancient Egypt regarding the creation and location of new Babylon. Screen writers would have to be able to do this at will when writing for a TV series. Shows like 24 and Prison Break get me because I never know what to expect. Why? Because the writers keep pulling shit out of their asses. It’s amazing.
- Tap Into Your Inner Kid. If you’re already a kid reading this, then you’re already advanced in this methodology. If you’re an adult you may have a harder time. The world looks different to us when we’re kids doesn’t it? In our adolescents we don’t have the experience of failures, or disappointments, or get stuck riding the road of “reality.” Speaking of which, so-called “realists” annoy me. They’re so depressing. Possibility is hard to get through to them, thus they have a hard time being creative. Being childish is good for creativity. Children love to dream and make up stuff don’t they, especially when they’re in trouble. I used to believe I was chosen to become a Power Ranger and it would happen by the time I reached high school. That didn’t pan out too well, I actually had to wait till after college for that. Get back into that realm of make-believe, you’ll have an easier time tapping your creative resources from this state.
BEING COMPELLED
Sometimes, more often than not, I become compelled to do something creative like write a song or create a paper mache bust of The Rock. Any stimulus can trigger these moments. Visual cues from a movie, misinterpretation of dialogue, or a sudden chill on my back. Anything that triggers these basic senses can lead to you wanting to accomplish something. The key here is to put yourself in the position to be compelled. Right place at the right time? Possibly. But an easier way is to indulge in something you enjoy and pay attention. Though I must say, something you hate has the same effect as well. Also, the thing you indulge in should be something that connects to you emotionally. The emotion is what propels you towards accomplishing an action, otherwise it’s just work, but being compelled is more like an emotional response. Chalk it up to say that I would have never gotten into Crossfit if it weren’t for watching Ninja Assassin.
Well, those three suggestions should help you in your way to being able to create something wonderful. If not Burton-esque, since art is very much individual and subjective, than at least something very, very pretty. And I can’t believe I just used the word pretty.
