On Being Yourself

I listen to Barry White when everyone else is sleeping. I watch 'You've Got Mail' repeatedly. My ringtone is the theme tune to 'The Apartment'. I go back to my favourite 'Ally McBeal' episodes once a month, and have done for twelve years.

I try to convince myself to do what everyone else does. I must see 'Ted'. I must write a blog about Nolan's Batman trilogy. I must get to know Kubrick's films better.

But there isn't time!

You have to blaze your own path.

Find the stuff you love and make it the center of your universe.

Because it's YOU!

And sure, you should challenge yourself and there are classic movies that will help your filmic education, but you're not beholden to them. You're you!

And I bet you fell in love with film and TV because you stayed up every night when you were 12, just to watch your favourite sitcom. Or you watched the same film three times in one day just because it made you feel alive!

I remember when my cousin was obsessed with 'Finding Memo'. I'd try to take her to the park, and she'd just want to watch 'Finding Nemo'. I'd tell her the house is on fire and she'd risk it just so she could stay in her room and watch the fake fish swim around.

When do we lose that? Don't even try to tell me it's nature! It's society, it's our philosophy. Enthusiasm, individuality, passion-- these things aren't encouraged, they're marginalized.

Ever censored yourself when sharing the name of a cheesy song you like? Or justified your bad tastes? "I know it's lame, but I love Bridget Jones.., must be something wrong with me."

And sure, someone will comment and say, "I don't care what people think, I love what I love," but I don't believe them, everybody caves. It's the world we live in, but how insane is that?

All we have is who we are. And if you hide a part of that, then you're not even really you!

The guilty pleasures. The things you think you should have outgrown. The things that make you feel so happy that they make you smile to yourself like an insane person--- I bet you stop yourself enjoying these as much as you should.

You should take your favourite movie and watch it every single day of the week. Sure, it'll influence you and shape you, but that's fine, it's meant to, it's a part of you. That's why you love it so much.

You're an alchemist, mixing the elements. Finding the perfect mix that makes you you.

You're a shaman, fending off the mean spirits that stop you watching 'Cool Runnings' twice in one weekend, even though you want to.

Be yourself. There's no point being anyone else.

Care to share?

Tweet

Six Writers You Should Definitely Read

SETH GODIN 

His blog posts are often short, but always inspiring. I think his area of expertise is marketing -- something that normally makes most of us vomit -- but it turns out that his wisdom for his industry is applicable to everything creative. 

He has integrity, he has a distinct voice, and he wants you to be the best artist you can be. Thousands swear by his every word - and after you read a few of his posts, you'll understand why. 

Read Because: He'll make you feel good about the path you're on. 

Read Seth's Blog HERE. 
Follow Seth on Twitter



DAVID CARR

He writes the Media Equation column for The New York Times. If you've seen 'Page One: Inside the New York Times' you'll know who he is. A fascinating writer, full of knowledge, who writes from extensive research, mixed with his expert opinion. Read his columns and you'll be light years ahead of everyone else regarding what is shaping and changing the media industry. 

Read because: He'll make you the smartest guy in the room. 

Read his The New York Times Column HERE. 
Follow David on Twitter. 


BOB LEFSETZ 

I only enjoy about one in every ten Bob Lefsetz rants these days. He's a lot like the music acts he criticises - a grumpy, irrelevant has-been. And he's repetitive. 

But every now and then; something he says is absolutely golden. 

His writing is neurotic and narcissistic -- he writes like he's trying to avoid his thoughts, desperately spewing out words and demanding we all read them.

Not doing a very good job convincing you to read him am I?

As for the repetitiveness, so much of it is valid and exactly what you need to hear again and again. When it comes to being an artist; he preaches about stripping away your ego and expectancy of success. He says it's about the 10,000 hours of hardcore practice. 

He'll insult you. He'll piss you off. But he'll also inspire you unlike anyone else. There's a reason why anyone who's anyone in music (mostly band managers and ageing rock stars) read him, the passion jumps off the screen.

Read because: He'll make you feel guilty and self-loathing for not trying hard enough, which in turn will inspire you to action. 

Read The Lefsetz Letter HERE. 
Follow Bob on Twitter.


MEGAN AMRAM

I first read her work when someone shared her hilarious piece 'America: A Review' on Twitter. A unique comedic voice. Make sure you visit her Tumblr and read absolutely everything. Brilliant.

Read because: She's innovative, unique, and extremely funny.

Read Megan's Blog HERE.
Follow Megan on Twitter HERE. 


NORA EPHRON 

She died, but the writing lives on. Amazing to think that we all spin words and sentences out of the same 26 letters. She did it better than everyone else. Read her work whenever you can; amazing. 

Read because: To not read her work would be stupid. 

Read Nora's New York Times columns HERE. 
Read Nora's Huffington Post blogs HERE. 


DAVID POLAND 

You don't really have to read David Poland - he doesn't blog all that much. But he is responsible for the most in depth interviews in the film industry. He gets incredible detail from the biggest names in the business; the archive is an incredible resource. 

Somehow he manages to skip the promotional bullshit and get right to what matters about filmmakers and actors: their journeys and their art. 

Read because: The wealth of knowledge available in his interviews will make a huge difference in your path to success. 

Read his stuff and watch his videos HERE. 
Follow David on Twitter. 

Care to share?

Tweet

Landing

It's a world of possibilities, you have to remember that. If you're around too many naysayers, the world caves in and you feel trapped.

Truth is; when you pick up a pen, or they point a camera at you: anything can happen.

We don't know everything. We don't know when we'll be excited or inspired. When we go to sleep at night we don't know what we'll dream about.

The next thing you create could mean something to someone. Such a great thought, but then so often we stop ourselves. You owe it to yourself to try.

Creativity is everything. Possibility is everything.

Neil Armstrong put his feet on the moon. And Harry met Sally. And Andy escaped Shawshank.

Remember the school play? It wasn't perfect but it was worth it. You felt the buzz inside. And someone in the audience felt joy.

That's all it is.

Care to share?

Tweet

Hello, is it me you're looking for?

Hello, blog. Feels like I've been ignoring you recently, it's just that I've been busy. Not that everyone else hasn't been busy, just that this particular type of busy has used up my writing mojo -- it's needed elsewhere right now.

Very sad about Tony Scott. I really dug a lot of his movies. Seen a few blogs and tweeters wondering about what happened, and why. We'll never know, and it's none of our business. His legacy remains: 'True Romance' is the one that'll go down in history. The others were a blast, and totally deserving of your time when you have a chance.

I got to see some athletics at the Olympic Stadium. Was magical. Everything about the games were fantastic. London came alive.

Have had no time to watch films recently, although I did find time to watch 'Manhattan' a few days ago. Such a perfect New York movie. I love the ending, when Ike tells Tracy he doesn't want her to go; but she explains that she has to -- and that it's only six months.

The most beautiful thing about the scene is the quiet wisdom of Woody's character. Six months is a long time, connections form. It's a sad truth; people think the way they feel is the way they feel, but a new place and new people change everything. And all Ike can do is cling on:

"I just don't want that thing about you that I like to change."

I always find that scene incredibly poignant. Woody drops the comedy act and gives us a purely human moment. One of the best films ever.

I need sleep.

Some people make absolutely no sense in emails.

When your script gets chopped up by the producer and then given back to you to patch up the huge mess, nobody remembers that the producer chopped it up - they just think the writer must be stupid.

I would like a high quality pizza.

I saw '360' in the cinema last week. Terrible movie, but Anthony Hopkins is fantastic in it. He's a level above pretty much everyone.

My top 5 films starring Jack Lemmon: The Apartment, Some Like It Hot, Grumpy Old Men, The Odd Couple, Days of Wine and Roses.

Actors I'm liking this year: Olivia Munn, Dev Patel, Mark Duplass, Emily Blunt, Greta Gerwig, Kevin Hart.

Currently listening to:

The Who
The Cure
Marvin Gaye
The Waterboys
Black Flag
Fort Minor

Goodnight.

Care to share?

Tweet

No Shortcuts

I don't know why you'd want success now, because what would it mean? You think getting discovered is your golden ticket?

Most of the great actors I know personally, sucked ten years ago. Many of the ones who were good ten years ago are no longer acting, because they were too bitter to last. They thought their talent entitled them to success.

You can be the fastest man in the world, but you won't break the 100m Olympic Record without years of gruelling training. It takes a lot of hard work and sacrifice to be the best you can be. Did you see 'Senna'? Talent isn't enough. You need to know the system. You need to work through your mistakes and limitations.

If you're a struggling writer or actor, or in fact any artist at all, it's to be expected, even when you're many years down the road. Moan because you're tired, cry because you can't afford to eat, but don't ever allow yourself to think you're entitled to anything.

If someone is consistently working, if they're earning the money, you can be almost certain they've earned it. You may think you've earned it too, but have you really? When people moan about how hard done by they've been, I never want to work with them; because they assume they've had it worse than you. They don't realise everyone else has been through it ten times over.

I meet a lot of actors who are two or three years out of drama school, and they're outraged that nobody wants to pay them to act. They look down upon the student productions. Meanwhile there are other actors, nine years out of drama school, who shot two hundred student films. And guess what, 198 sucked, but one of them had a great director and another one had a runner who knew a guy who is related to a producer who is casting a massive movie... and that's how it worked out. The point of the story isn't that you luckily meet the right people, it's that it takes 200 projects.

No-one I knows who moans about lack of opportunities has honed their talent enough to deserve being hugely successful. Myself included! But I've made peace with the fact that it's a gradual process. I went through years of steady progress that to an outsider, looked like nothingness. But there I was, my development steadily growing day by day until eventually, it was useful in some way, it meant something to people. You need to have a track record. You need to find your niche. You need longevity.

There are no shortcuts. And if you find one, don't forget to keep learning along the way. Trust in the process of steady advancement.

Talent is easy, style is quickly learnt. Heart and substance take years to form. But they only form when you work on them. You have to turn up at the running track. You have to know your vehicle inside out.

You need to be an artist.

Care to share?

Tweet