"Writing is a process of discovery of what you really do know. You can't limit yourself in advance to what you know, because you don't know everything you know."
Walter Murch
“Things in life have no real beginning, though our stories about them always do.”
Colum McCann
The largest stumbling block to writing has been the process of writing itself.
This may seem odd coming from someone working in a creative field to admit. There is always the perception that writing comes as a natural extension of the process when it comes to film making. Thinking up lines of voice over or a line in the context of a scene is vastly different from creating a concept from scratch. I have the greatest admiration for the producers, directors and copy writers who can adapt their voice to any circumstance and come up with genius every time they put fingers to keyboard. Truth be told, I've always had a love/hate relationship to writing.
As one grumpy, cantankerous and brutally honest copywriter once told me, when asked to help out on some ad copy, " That's great mate if I was asking for a pile of shite. Best leave it to the professionals. Good thing you know how to edit and grade."
So a vlog would seem like more of an obvious choice for me to convey thoughts, opinions, ideas, and reflect on my experiences in the film, television, advertising & media industries and life in general. Why wouldn't I simply set up the camera, turn on some lighting and create a fast paced bite sized, easily digestible piece of online content. Stick to what I know, well, editing and post production. Who really wants to read through pages of text these days? Surely 160 characters, or a 15 second video is enough to let the world know your opinions. Depending on what you want to convey that idea reigns true.
The blog has been a forum I have been wanting to delve into for some time - instead of writing tales of fiction, writing what I am passionate about and know from the heart. If I can share my experiences, express opinions and give advice about the craft of editing, grading, production and post production in general, that others can find value in, then the process is worthwhile.
In media, particularly in post production, you never stop learning and growing as a professional. Post production is constantly evolving, changing and expanding. There are always new technologies, software and techniques that will improve the way you can craft and tell a story, accelerate processes and deliver content to your audience. The minute you think you know it all is when you stagnate and stop developing your craft. Being open, alert and responsive to new ideas and ways of thinking about the techniques, processes, and most importantly the way you tell a story is just as vital as being technically capable at operating a piece of software, or knowing every nuance of an application. It's being able to embrace change, all the while being confident to step out of the comfort zone.
So, this is the getting on point to a story that has already begun. It's time to discover and share what I already know and expand upon what I think I know, even if I just don't know it yet.
Thank you to Andy, Gary, Matt, Glen, Belle, Kuni, AJ, George, Dorothy, Ellie, Amelia, Lucas, and dearest Nim for the guidance, advice, support and inspiration to always strive to just be better.