Stepping Back

[Warning: There are no links to exciting new projects in the following post.]

As usual, when I’m between quarters (or between massive projects), I get introspective. It’s not something I do consciously; I just find myself taking a few steps backward and looking at whatever it is I’ve been hammering on with so much gusto, so much conviction, and in some cases, so much righteousness.

Motionographer is one of those things. But it’s not really Motionographer that I’m hammering on, it’s the monolithic structure of Motion Graphics, an ever-growing behemoth cobbled together from thousands of disparate parts by millions of hands. Interestingly, as the specter of this Tower of Babel looms larger, my attraction to it fades.

I think a lot of you can relate to the following quote from my favorite philosopher, Alan Watts, in which he talks about our economy of stimulation:

“The perfect ‘subject’ for the aims of this economy is the person who continually itches his ears with the radio, preferably using the portable kind which can go with him at all hours and in all places. His eyes flit without rest from television screen, to newspaper, to magazine, keeping him in a sort of orgasm-without-release through a series of teasing glimpses of shiny automobiles, shiny female bodies, and other sensuous surfaces, interspersed with such restorers of sensitivityâ€â€?shock treatmentsâ€â€?as ‘human interest’ shots of criminals, mangled bodies, wrecked airplanes, prize fights, and burning buildings. …

“Animals spend much of their time dozing and idling pleasantly, but, because life is short, human beings must cram into the years the highest possible amount of consciousness, alertness, and chronic insomnia so as to be sure not to miss the last fragment of startling pleasure.”

[61-62 of The Wisdom of Insecurity]

Watts wrote that in 1951. Substitute iPod or PSP for radio, and it becomes perfectly current.

Pardon me for lumping you all into a group with myself, but we are the person that Watts describes above. If we weren’t, we wouldn’t be reading (or writing, as the case may be) this blog. This blog, and motion graphics in general, are obsessed with stimulation, especially the particular kind of stimulation we get from seeing a new style or revering a new twist on an old narrative.

More than any other design field (even fashion), I believe that motion graphics excels in the endless pursuit of “itching eyes.” Its reliance upon technology combined with its limited channels of distribution to millions of people make it the most ingratiating Super Slave to stimulation the world has ever known.

But we are like Ouroboros, the snake eating its own tail. The more we consume the visual junk food we produce, the more we make it impossible to ever feel satisfied. We are addicts constantly upping the dose of our favorite drug just to get back to that unattainable first high.

Some people will write all this off as being burned out. They’ll say I’ve just spent too much time working on my projects and looking at motion graphics. All I need is a little time off.

Unfortunately, that won’t work. That’s the equivalent of removing myself from the sun after getting a sunburn and thinking that the sun will never burn me again. It will. No matter how tan I get, the sun will still scorch my skin, resulting either in carcinoma or a leathery shell covering my body that can barely detect the ocean breeze.

I recently started reading Tibor Kalman’s Perverse Optimist, because that’s what you’re supposed to read when you’re burned out on design. I was struck by a passage in the introduction:

The work just changes as [Kalman’s] sense of his audience expands; at the beginning it isâ€â€?as with most start-up design firmsâ€â€?the person paying for design services who begs to be startled. Then it is the rest of the design profession that Kalman is attempting to jolt out of complacency. Finally and most ambitiously, it is the general public that falls into his sights, with Colors, Chairman and the 42nd Street and the exhibition projects.

I’m not sure when the general public started reading Colors, but the above intro rings hollow, regardless of how many people have bowed at the design of Kalman. The truth is that Kalman was an elitist, and he designed for elites, even when (especially when?) he was designing for large audiences. I’m guilty of the same thing. I mean, what is the Cream O’ the Crop if not a VIP club for elites? The only difference is that, unlike Kalman, I can barely design my way out of a paper bag.

The problem is that design that effectively communicates its message to the largest audience is very rarely “startling” or new. It is often effective because it is predictable and reliable. This is why design trends are important. Even though over-reliance on trends often leads to creative atrophy, a prudent employment of trends is a way of coding messages for particular audiences so that they “get it,” so that the message is communicated to them (and sometimes only them) in a way that not only makes sense but is attractive, too.

When you’re constantly concerned with startling people with design, you’ll often leave them in the dust, just as so much contemporary art leaves Joe Everyman scratching his head. I find it funny that so much public art is completely lost on the public. In trying to create something that is truly new (as opposed to a clever twist on the old) and that is simultaneously for a general audience, you invariably lose a good chunk of your audience.

We as designers have a truly warped sense of this reality. We see a new commercial or music video that startles AND communicates its message to us, and we think the work is a success. The only real way to judge success, though, is to put the spot in front of its relevant audience and watch them react (or not react) to it. If Colors was for general audiences, I’d love to put it in my mom’s hands and watch her reaction. Or my brother’s. They’d be thoroughly untouched by it, despite its graphic imagery and “startling” visuals. It would merely glance off their minds like a Jackson Pollock painting or a John Cage symphony.

And yet I will carry on with this blog. That’s the part that amazes me. And many of you will continue reading it. Even after we realize we’re gnawing on our own tails, we go right on chewing away, thinking perhaps that the flavor will change or that the pain of devouring ourselves will miraculously cease.

Next up, I’ll be posting some new work that I think you’re really going to dig. After that, I’ll post some stuff that you won’t be into as much, but then soon after that, I’ll post something really rad. Just wait. You’ll see.

About the author

Justin Cone

/ justincone.com
Together with Carlos El Asmar, Justin co-founded Motionographer, F5 and The Motion Awards. He currently lives in Austin, Texas with is wife, son and fluffball of a dog. Before taking on Motionographer full-time, Justin worked in various capacities at Psyop, NBC-Universal, Apple, Adobe and SCAD.

36 Comments

Paul Ducco

Great article Justin. Being itrospective is what keeps peoples feet on the ground. it’s either that or honest friends. Thanks for sharing your thoughts, this is exactly why Motionographer (tween) has become my daily read – and I sure as hell don’t get into ‘blogs’ so … YOU are doing something right.

thanks again.

:)

Sao_Bento

Coming up on 15 years in this business, the phenomenon that stands out to me is the view of the young’ns of late who think motion graphics is the highest form of aesthetics and intellect – a vehicle to be a Buckaroo Banzai (a nobel prize winning rockstar). On Mograph,net, I’ve read several posts with a tone similar to this entry. People realizing the difference between fantasy and reality.

I guess motion graphic design is kind of like skateboarding has become. As I drive down the Embarcadero to work every day, I see tons of kids skating – all with their cameraman in tow. As if there is no point to doing a trick if it’s not documented on tape.

The reality for 99% of us is that we’ll never be Paul Rand or Justin Harder, we will probably never design something that gets the adoration and attention of the design community – but that’s ok. It’s OK to just make a living doing something you like to do. Just skate and have fun – the video doesn’t matter, being famous doesn’t matter.

Essence

Commercial design in its current form requires the designer to constantly decenter him/herself as the subject of the work, since design is always about other things and not about the designer. Thus, despite our hardest efforts, we are often unable to get the emotional/spiritual ‘release’ from our work…we dont own it, someone else does ultimately. The client. The audience. The brand.

I guess that means we either have to balance ourselves emotionally/spiritually in other ways than design, or do the kind of design that has a purpose and message that carries our own essence with it, when we can say about our work : “I am a part of it and it is a part of me”.

Joie

I think the Ouroboros (eating our own tail) embodies the essence of creativity, but not necessarily in negative light.

How would we like it if we digest new information everyday without the ability to create entirely new things from what we’ve been exposed to. It is a somewhat painful process sometimes, but I think its the essence of creativity. It gives us pleasure to create music out of thin air, or to express ideas in different ways.

Maybe we shouldn’t measure our work by how many people are actually affected by it, but to know that if we manage to affect even one person, our work can evolve from that point on.

As for our society being constantly stimulated and thrilled by fluff, I have to admit I think it is quite an empty culture that all of us have a part in creating, not just the media people. No corporation, as much as they all want to be different, dare to be really different and actually do the right thing for fear nobody would listen. So clients pride style over substance, and pay us to do the work. The difference is that we probably enjoy our work more than the average coporation person who works with the sole purpose of keeping stock prices high and maintaining it until the next CEO takes over.

Sir Monkey

Once again, great piece Justin!!! I believe what you are saying is just the nature of the beast. We all take so much pride into what we do that it becomes an obsession from the time we wake up to when we go to sleep, and sometimes that sleep is very little. At the same time, we are hyper aware of changes in culture and we have a need for constant stimulation from art and culture, it becomes very exhausting. Which then can drive us to be very inspired and at times, very uninspired.

I’ve lived through both sides, once obsessed to the point where it was normal to go home only several nights a week while owning a company in NYC, then walking away from it hoping I would never see another AE interface in my life. After a brief time away, a few clients started calling me to take on some small, fun, conceptual projects, I was totally inspired again and saw a new light to what i loved to do and Sao_Bento put it perfectly, “It’s OK to just make a living doing something you like to do. Just skate and have fun – the video doesn’t matter, being famous doesn’t matter.” That is so well said.

So, to get back to the article, it’s really a matter of finding a consistant level of inspiration and not getting so caught up in “today”. In the end, it shouldn’t be about what is being done today, there is a much bigger picture out there to be explored.

To end this, I have to say, wtf is up with putting Justin Harder in the same category as Paul Rand. Sao, you’ve been in this business for how long? That is like putting Nick Lachey and Johnney Cash in the same category. Are you kidding? Trust me, I’ve said this before, Justin is a great designer/animator, but you look at his work and it’s so one dimensional, literally no concept involved, it’s purely eye candy. Name one significant piece that he did? I could put down a hundred other designers that have contibuted breakthough/conceptual work before I put his name down. But, Juicy and I debated this before, I honestly think it’s a generation thing. But, that is why it caught me by surprise to hear Sao saying that knowing he’s been in this industry for 15 years.

Binky

1) It IS a drug, and you ARE addicted, but you’re building a tolerance. Unfortunately, there’s no dealer who can sell you a pound and a half of the best junk ever to keep you juiced, cuz this shit don’t grow on trees. We’d like to think we’ve found a way to keep high all the time, but the reality’s a real bitch.

2) There’s actually something biological about this addiction. It’s tied into the neurological function of visual motion tracking, attention, and pattern discerning. Ever sit in a bar or restaurant where there’s a tv going? Notice that your eye drifts to the tv, even when it’s the most inane programming ever? You can tune it out consciously, but if you don’t, you’re likely to get sucked in. It’s in your makeup. It’s an evolutionary program from the plains of Africa gone haywire in a radically new context. Rapid movement, lighting changes, specific kinds of motion, and general novelty all trigger hardwired resposes in our brains. Don’t be bummed. We’d probably starve, get eaten or mauled by a truck without it. But we kind of can’t help but visually and mentally attend to these things, and over the last 50 years or so, TV programming has, consciously or unconsciously, become very adept at manipulating this response (and many others). “Hey, look over here, I wanna sell you something!!”

Unfortunately, in combination with other factors, the effect in our brains can actually lead us to WANT this attending response, sometimes feeling a subtle but undeniable attraction to it, which could be a biological component of so-called “tv addiction”, which is kind of a dubious title. Regardless of whether you buy the whole “it’s all in our genes” talk, the response is real, and there’s a biological component to not only the hardwired reaction to blinking lights and the pounce of a sabretooth, but also to the desire for novelty.

3) So, are we helpless monkeys? Are we to blame? No, but yes. As humans, we like a bit of surprise, some novelty, innovation, and sparkly shit. We’re curious and skiddish and we love the sweet stuff in our mouths. That’s fine. But if capitalism rules the world, then every kid is gonna get to eat candy bar cereal out of glitter-doused boxes every meal of the day and we’re all gonna die of diabetes and stupidity.

4) Enter “self-control”
Seen that old video of the rat wired up to self-administer opium or whatever by pressing the button? Yeah, it forgoes eating and sleeping and stuff. It’s in our own personal best interests to take a break from the capitalist condoned self-doping every once in a while. It’ll lower your tolerance, bring back your sensitivity, and generally rejuvenate your whole being.

As a group, we MAKE television. And as a group, we’re mainly subject to capitalist intentions in what we do artistically/professionally. It’s a commercial endeavor in the end. So as a group we’re more highly motivated than most (by client expectations, by money, prestige, and creative drive) to keep pursuing the higher highs of novelty and whizzing lights. We’re hellbent on getting fucking wasted all the time. But because of our particular position as media creators, we’re kind of getting everyone else wasted with us. MTV kids and ESPN dudes alike are kind of getting secondary highs off of what we’re cooking up, and they’re loving it, but their tolerances are going up and their getting addicted to the stimulation right along with us. More candy, NOW! So maybe it’s time to redirect our energy for everyone’s sake before we all start needing insulin shots and methadone.

5) Content?
Everyone likes style. It’s easy. You can SEE it. It’s right there. It sure looks pretty, and gosh it comes nicely packaged with readymade cultural references so as a designer, half the work is done for you when you use style (I’m simplifying). There’s a problem, though, when designers rely on nothing BUT style. Where’s the novelty gonna come from? Well, you just gotta make it bigger better brighter doper than the last guy. It becomes a bigger sensorial experience without much of an intellectual component. And now you’ve got the seeds for the higher high. Style is fine, and it has its function, but a style arms race is no good.

We can kind of solve a lot of our own problems, and everyone else’s, by cooling down the arms race and refocusing on content. Probably sounds boring. Sounds like something your dad (in dimension’X’ where your dad’s a designer) would say. But that’s kind of a cultural gap. We have to ween ourselves off of the quick fix and start spending time on real ideas. They’re interesting! The pieces you remember most and still like are probably those that came from solid ideas. And that argument’s been made about a bziliion times, but it’s because it’s true and no one wants to hear it cuz intense style is here and now and hot and it’s gonna burn brighter than content for the next twenty seconds and we’re all gonna stay tuned …until it gets boring and we need more.

onscreen

i’ve had motionographer as my home page for a year but this is the first time i felt i had to register and leave a comment

great words guys – worth all your time and efforts – great attitudes to life and the industry

THA_DON

You all thinking too much, or just drunk on a Friday night with nothing to do. Dont have time for all of that…
just work, design or do what you do…
This comment will be deleated anyway, coz having a balanced convo isent valued it appears.. but if it does stay, heres what i say,
love what you do, dont get involved with the who’s who game, just make cool shizzle. Name dropping and wine & cheese party intelect talk dont make cool reels, work does, so off to it!
Funny thing is, after all this useless chitter-chatter, some eye-candy totally conceptless piece will come along and you will all be like “woooooow, look how cool that is” and all these meanenglessly long posts will be out the door.
Signed
“That Guy”

Sao_Bento

SIR MONKEY-
“, wtf is up with putting Justin Harder in the same category as Paul Rand. Sao, you’ve been in this business for how long? That is like putting Nick Lachey and Johnney Cash in the same category. Are you kidding?”

It was actually meant tongue in cheek – That’s why I mentioned both names. Rand represents the big picture and Harder represents the flash in the pan flavor of the month that those who aspire to be rockstar designers covet.

JOIE
“Maybe we shouldn’t measure our work by how many people are actually affected by it, but to know that if we manage to affect even one person, our work can evolve from that point on”

Considering that motion graphic design is part of advertising (like it or not), reaching one person is not considered successful by those standards. Sounds like you’re confusing self-expression and art with commercial motion graphics – a common ailment in these parts.

grace

Hmm….this is probably why Floria Sigmondi doesn’t
watch other peoples films. Smart woman.

But your forgetting one important thing, Justin.
Snakes are amazing creatures.
When you’re ready, you’ll stop biting your tail long
enough to shed your skin. And then you won’t need
motiongrapher any more.

THA_DON

true grace,
i think this “discussion” is really good tho, because a year from now they will look back at it and realise that instead of over analysing and trying to be “critical” thinkers, time would rather be best spent actaully doing or creating something rather than just puppeting on and on about nothing.
Reminds me of the students who go into and art gallary and marvel and a 20 foot stretched canvas, with a little circle painted right in the middle. Then they all gather around it and start making up “analysis” of what the artist was thinking… “a circle represents infinity, no beggining, no ending, it represents the start and the end at the same time” blha, blha, blha” hahaha cracks me up.. such is life

voodoospank

News flash: most visitors are here for the vid links – that’s it. They are NOT here to read the reviews or philosophical commentary. All I ever hear is how busy Justin is with all his ‘projects’. Then he bangs out a thousand+ words of self-indigent leakage on the meaning of it all … and not a single vid in site.

Clearly, you’re not that busy, buddy. Find the links, run the blog, design something … and please, for the love of God, stop talking.

And Binky … wtf … are you at summer camp or something? Write a longer follow up next time, why don’t you?

justin

Hey there Voodoospank,

For “pure linkage,” check out Feed:
https://feed.stashmedia.tv

To see what keeps me busy during the school quarters:
https://www.itsnotaboutthegrades.com/

(I don’t post my work on Motionographer because it mostly sucks.)

Oh, thanks very much for your insight about “most visitors” of Motionographer. If you could share with me your research to back that up, I’d really appreciate it. All I get are several emails a week telling me that people are happy there’s finally a place where they can talk about motion. I’d love to take a peek at your data.

THA_DON

voodoospank, there is no need for those kind of comments… that is uncalled for…
This is not about Justin or Motionographer, (motionographer is a cool spot and a very usefull place for inspiration and news links) it is a discussion. You can be negative in the context of what is being discussed, but you are beggining to go in the wrong director brother.

anyway, cool stuff is cool stuff, just do what you do and be happy. hate on work once in a while, keeps the blood flowing hahaha

Dennys

Wow, that was the best thing I’ve read on this site.

positron

Hey guys, cool discussion, despite the haters. Thought I’d weigh in. It seems that everyone recognizes that the solution to the problem merely feeds the problem: the constant pursuit of Cool. I personally don’t think much of the ‘Just Do It’ attitude: make more and more cool shit, work will be your savior, don’t overthink things or even think about things at all! This approach leads down a very short road and it has a predictably unhappy outcome.
Justin is not the first commercial artist to feel unfulfilled and burnt out. Our industry is caught up in micro-trends and fleeting fashions–this is the nature of media culture. But design and animation have gotten to the point now where it has a history, it has developed a critical nature, and also has its own superstars. The ‘superstar moments’ are really just ways of identifying pivotal work which affected the medium in meaningful ways: Pablo Ferro’s and Kyle Cooper’s film titles, for example, or (for me, my ‘oh wow’ moment) the Todd Mueller/Jeremy Hollister re-design of the SciFi Channel IDs in the late 90s.
For *years* I was the hugest clip fiend: endlessly patrolling the web for every commercial, music vid & demo reel I could find, as part of my need for constant stimulation & inspiration. These days, I hardly do this at all; I find inspiration in just about everything except motion graphics. It’s why I came to New York, and I don’t miss it. It doesn’t make me less invested in motion graphics or the moving image; instead I have tried to develop a wider palette of influences – both visual and otherwise – that allows me to reflect, consider, and ultimately create more (I hope) thoughtful work.
In short, if you have hit a wall and hate yourself for it, it probably just means you have reached a point where you have to expand your visual vocabulary. Encourage this process and it will enrich your work. And always talk about & critique the work that you’re doing–you are creating something from nothing and putting it out into the world, and this is an awesome power and a privilege! …despite the often nauseating framework which makes it possible to be creative and get things done.
It *does* get a little sick when we make ourselves crazy consuming the images of consumption-desire–the Nike adverts are the real products, not the shoes! So it makes sense that we, the ‘designers’, would start thinking of ourselves as superbrands as well, demanding to be consumed. We have absolutely become the Ouroboros!

xposx

qoo

Motionographer isn’t the problem. You lash out at it wrongfully for two reasons. One, it’s a reminder of what you want to become and haven’t (something you admid serveral times in your post); and Two, it takes up allot of your time, time you feel should have really been spent on becoming a great designer.
I think the site is healthy, it’s good to see what other people are doing, and how people react to that work. But this mental backlash is only natural for someone who surrounds themself with the “Cream O’ the Crop” every day and let’s their own goals take a back seat.
I aint saying I’m right, it’s just how it seems to me.
Take it easy.

Sir Monkey

Voodoospank, there are a few other blogs for people that don’t speak english, this is not one of them.

But please start here first:
https://secure.hop.com/index.cfm

Positron, nice post!

voodoospank

Sorry, Sir Monkey. I guess the complexity of the writing is just above me. Oh so many syllables – impressive. In creative fields, if you don’t love what you’re doing, then you should go do something else. If you need to write about your confusion — which is what Justin did — expect an honest response. Kid gloves don’t help anyone.

Sir Monkey

Voodoospank, you continue to come here, why?

You’re response goes to show that you have very little experience in the “creative” fields. I can also tell you are very narrow minded with a slight touch of A.D.D. In that case, maybe this will help:

https://www.add.org

Wow, just in this one blog, you’ve been Hooked On Phonics and now you can work on your inner-self. This just might be the blog you were looking for!!!

But, hopefully you didn’t come back here but just in case you did, good luck in your shallow world.

THA_DON

Sir Monkey is a Tread’s alias, so what-evs

voodoospank

I’ll be honest … I keep coming back for the simple amusement of this thread, especially you, Sir Monkey. How generous of you to share your favorite websites with the community. And how insightful of you to determine – from only a few sentences – that I have little experience in the creative fields. Truth be told, I’m a heavy equipment mechanic from Arkansas with a third-grade education. Oh how I wish I were creative; creative like Sir Monkey, with his highfalutin words and diverse bookmark collection.

Back to your crayons now, Monkey.
Try to stay in the lines.

wabash

Nice post Positron.

Sir Monkey

voodoospank, I’m simply standing up for what I think Motionogrpaher is, “most visitors” that come to this website are ones that enjoy the writing, the links and the interviews. Do you realize how much effort goes into this? Then you come along and think you know the audience? Being part of the busy LA industry, I know first hand that “most visitors” love this website.

THA_DON, as for the alias, not quite, just check mograph sometime, when I’m logged on and Tread is logged on. Plus I’m probably 5 years older than he is. I’m nobodies alter ego, in a comical sense, I’m simply a monkey behind a computer that works his ass off.

voodoospank

Wow, “busy LA industry”. Now we’re all impressed.

I understand the work that goes into any site, and enjoyed this one enough to have had it as my homepage for a time. But I stand by my specific criticism of Justin’s post. It’s self-indulgent and not – I believe – what industry professionals (in LA or elsewhere) come to read about. I’m here to see the work, and if someone has something relevant to say about it, I’ll listen. The post in question offered neither, whether you live in LA or Tibet.

Tip for future debates, Monkey: flaunting credentials (real or imagined) only draws attention to the desperation of your argument.

Sir Monkey

Dude, once you get past Hooked on Phonics”, read the post again. I was using LA as a reference to – having the opportunity to work with a variety of people in the industry, whether it be designers or producers. So, knowing that, I feel I have the right to say a lot of those people that I talk to, love coming to this website for the writing and all the other goods.

Do you think if I said I worked in the hopping Tijuana Mexico industry, I would be able to say a lot of people love motionographer.

Look at the post, are you saying people didn’t respond to the original write up? I think this was a very strong post, whether one is still in school or an industry has-been, this is something that happens to the best of us, it’s human nature.

alexj

I dont think Justin should give a fuck what Voodospank thinks or any “industy professional” for that matter. This blog started a long time ago w/ the same insightful perspectives, humble musings from a fresh (and well written) perspective. Thats exactly why its grown into what it is now and will continue to attract others in the business. Mographers, VFX artists, designers etc… Experienced or not… the content is well received.

If your looking for links to wack to… there are plenty of other places to find that. Thats not what Tween was all about and hopefully Motionographer will continue on the same path. I hope Justin and the other writers keep it up and dont let the few insignificant haters slow them down. Its pretty obvious by peoples comments (27 so far) on this topic alone that it was well accepted.

Do your thang Mr. Cone!

voodoospank

So, with your finger on the pulse of LA, you’re able to speak for an entire industry? Yes, forgive me for painting you as pretentious. Is that the same sort of levelheaded insight that motivates you to accuse someone of having a reading disorder and learning disability – because you don’t like the tone of their argument? I’ve really enjoyed our little chats, monkey-man. Thanks for showing the world your true genius.

Self_90

Wow ! What a debate from Monkey and Mr.voodoospank !!
Please take it somewhere else… like mograph-net. will have fun.

As for Justin’s words they deserve to be read by everybody!
good comments from positron also.
I like Sao example on simmilarity with skateboarding! very good.

I have been in the Motion thing for 10 years now, and working in a small market.. i think i get this feeling on a 3 year base. I question myself!
and i try to go back to the love of the work. I have passed the rockstar stage.

justin

I just want to say how much I appreciate the (thoughtful) comments above. They’ve already changed my perspective, and I’m sure they’ve changed the perspectives of other readers as well.

The recurring theme that’s most important to me is the idea that being a rockstar is not where it’s at. Ego shrinkage is key. That’s my mantra now, and I hope to keep it close to heart as I continue down this path.

Thanks, all.

mica300

I think you guys should get a life.
This is absurd.
I wonder if any of you even had girlfriends
Film, design, animation, its all cool, but instead of writing, i guess you could be doing some decent and original work.

Bevan7

There’s nothing wrong with critical thinking & analysis. Anyone who’s a fan of what they do will at sometime sit down and disect a piece if it really intrigues them.

I don’t agree with the blunt statements made about doing more and thinking less, it’s short sighted.

Healthy discussion is key from both sides of the opinion, but we can’t lose sight of why we do what we do…its fun!

I agree there’s no room for egos and if you want to be a rockstar in this proffession, don’t hide behind pseudonym’s and put your face on all your work. Personally I like the relative anonymity of it all.

Balance thinking with doing.

RajivRai

We must not forget that in an industry such as this we are not just artist we are professionals of thrieve on communicating messages and ideas. There must be a purpose in everything we do.

I am by profession an offline editor and have been searching for a site that would talk about editing concepts and diciting cuts unfortunatly i have yet to find a site that caters specifically to editors such as me. If we are just here to create eye Candy then will become nothing more then button pushers and professionals are paid to think not push buttons. Thats what differentiats a prof. from a machine operater.

I can understand where justin is coming from as i am going through the same problem at this time. My enemies arent the crappy jobs or dumb clients or collegues who dont see the importance of concept in whatever work we create.(though they excist). My enemies are more of my inner demons, things like lack of forsight and feel for my work. And its has made me question my choice of carrier as an editor.

This site has helped me clear some of those demons, tough i have a lot more to face and still feel like i am sailing a boat in misty waters i am ever so greatful to Justin for ur blog is that tiny glimps of light on the other side that helps me stir my boat. So rock on!!

Pardon my spelling i know is bad.

xpez

Make your own blog if you dont like what you read. Its about time someone has made a site like this. Its symptomatic of a young creative field to have spurious writings and lots of immature voices all shouting about their expertise and experience…when in reality no one knows what they got themselves into…I mean really, who plans on sitting in front of after effects when they are fifty….and who wants to be in charge of a giant design firm and pretend to be creative at that age….

I would rather be creative than be a phoney(creative director) manager…(and the people who dont mind that role probably arent very talented and have nothing to lose).

But all of these young workers rally themselves to learn all the products( I mean software) the computer industry can create just so they will be more and more tethered to technology as time goes by….and soon will be replaced by a entirely new generation of replicants( I mean designers).

The scary part about this site is seeing all the willing participants seduced by the power of media…..but there rarely is any profound thinking going on here…just people waxing about technique and technology….
Its like reading a diary of conditioned automatons trained to speak a sophomoric language of aesthetics or its an ego stroke fest about the latest WOW project…

isralien

i really can relate to what all of you are sayin here.

all these expriences effects the design and motion.
its just some are in a period of time when analyzing all of this seems foolish, and they’r probably right .
but when you feel like this (burned out..) it probably means you need to find other things to do becuze your insperation level is low. and your not that fired up with your work.

its time to try and exprience things alittle diffrent. and exprience things that you havent done yet. in life. that will make you want to express those thing you have expirenced. and thats what art is about, expressing. your feeling toughts dreams and wishes, and if your are tied up with the same ol things. it will be bothering to even try . so think about it.

israel loves motion grapher!

Comments are closed.