We are back for another blog post. The past two weeks flew by so I really can’t believe that it’s already time for me to right another one of these things. No matter, here I am with a topic that is so important for all artists. Finding inspiration for creative projects.
I think that we have all experienced burnout in some area of our lives whether that be with a show we watch or a song we listen to or a food we eat. Eventually we get fed up and need something new. The same can be said for filmmakers/videographers etc. (I am going to call them/us artists because it’s easier to spell) Eventually we get tired of creating. Tired of making the same videos, or doing the same edits or just tired in general. We lose all inspiration and creative intuition that makes our work so special in the first place. That can be one of the worst feelings as an artist because you know longer have the will to create and as a result, anything that you do create seems to only be half as good as it could.
Now, I did not just write this to tell you how horrible this creators block?? (I kind of like how that sounds) is for artists. I came here to hopefully find some solutions to find inspiration and make you want to create again. So without further ado, here are my three solutions to creators block…..
TAKE A BREAK
I feel like that is an obvious solution but I am saying it anyways. Sometimes you just have to stop creating videos, taking gigs or making things for your friends. By just resting, we give ourselves the chance to recharge our batteries (pun intended) and reset are creative fire. As an artist, anything you make takes time, energy, and creative power to do so often it’s in our best interest to take opportunities to put the camera down and just live a little.
FIND SOME CREATIVE FRIENDS
This is a big one. Finding a group of artists to create with not only leads to better work but also leads to more inspiration and the urge to keep getting better at your craft. Naturally by seeing a dope edit that your friend make, you will be more inclined to try and match or top that edit with your next video. Another example is that those same friends will drag you along on their creative projects which allows you to partake in creating something using someone else’s vision which contrary to popular belief, can be an extremely enriching experience. And this goes both ways because when you have your own project, you can enlist the help of that group of friends, whether that is giving you an extra hand on set, or while editing or just brainstorming ideas. This all helps to balance the load and allows you to come up with more ideas. Lastly, and quite possibly the most important reason behind this point is that creating with friends is more fun. When you are able to create work from start to finish with people you appreciate and enjoy being around it makes the experience better and makes seeing that final product all the better. Being around people who support us and that we support makes it nearly impossible to run out of creative steam.
CHALLENGE YOURSELF
My last solution to your creators block is challenge yourself. I think that after a while, the process of filming and editing can become easy and therefore we become lazy. After filming 15 of the same type of video, we are bound to get bored and no longer find joy in filming it. The same goes for the type of editing we do. To avoid this, the best thing is to try and create a genre of film that you have never done or try implementing a new type of edit in a video. These simple ideas can force you out of your comfort zone and force you to try new things when creating. The same rules don’t apply when making a sports edit vs. a short film, so by pushing yourself to try making something outside our area of expertise, we come up with new inspiration and new creative ways to complete a video. It forces us to see filmmaking in a different way and provides new ideas to bring to your next project. More importantly, you just become a more diverse and better artist capable of creating work in various fields.