WORDS Mary Garner VIDEO via Andrew Norton on Vimeo
This short film, directed, edited and shot by Andrew Norton, features thoughts from the likes of David Lynch, Robert Krulwich, Chuck Close, Tracy Clayton & Heben Nigatu, Ray Barbee, Lulu Miller and Susan Orlean. The clip also features the voices of children known as Ursula and Mason.
The video, which is shot in an interesting, interactive way, portrays how different people view inspiration and the process of being inspired. Some believe that showing up and doing the work is actually what gets you going, while others prefer to think of it as a lightning bolt that shoots into the brain.
Robert Krulwich, co-host of Radiolab in the US says, “I don’t think that inspiration is a starting point. Maybe I’m a little suspicious of the idea, like in the beginning there was nothing and then there was light. I don’t think I’ve had that experience and for other people who said that they have had that experience I’m not sure I believe them. The thing that gets you going feels like an itch to me, like, hmmm itch, wonder, wonder, wonder… got it. I didn’t hear inspiration in there.”
Professional skateboarder Ray Barbee is of the opinion that originality is carved out of imitating what others have already done. “Most people start off by mimicking something, then it turns into their own thing because they don’t really have the ability to mimic it precisely,” he says in the clip.
Watch the video above for more insight into where different people think ideas come from.
