Turn yourself into an Idea machine instructions:
get a notebook.
start a movie that is not currently popular, but is notable for some quality of excellence.
while you watch the movie, take note of any ideas that you have for creating something.
write the ideas down in the notebook.
write down as many details about the idea as you can.
choose movies that are not currently trendy.
old stuff, from the ’60s or the films that inspired the creative people you look up to.
that way you’ll be encountering ideas that your contemporaries won’t be aware of.
and then write down your ideas that are generated from those references.
some movies that i’ve seen recently that were very idea-stimulating include:
belle du jour, point blank, the birds, wings of desire, holy mountain, enter the void, the bicycle thieves, the tree of life, the fountain, 8 1/2, brazil, city of god, drive, upstream color, and on and on.
so you watch these movies, and you write down all your ideas in your notebook, and later when you need to come up with a concept, you look through the notebook, and you take bits and pieces from this one and that one. maybe combining “shoot a model’s reflection in a broken mirror” with “shoot a landscape in an unusual way” to get a view of a broken cityline.
This is a great way to actively engage in synthesizing new ideas from references.
Mix and match to wind up with new and interesting combinations.
Don’t wait for inspiration to strike…. get out there and hunt that bastard down.
-Tim
Creating an idea machine
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