Getting Ideas - Page 2
| Author: | elliot |
| Date: | Fri, 05/05/2006 - 10:06 |
| Category: | Filmmaking > Writing |
The Screenwriter and Creativity
Have you ever been walking down the street and had a great idea for a movie? Have you noticed how these great ideas seem to pop into your head as you are doing something mundane? As a writer you need to understand the greatest tool that you have - your mind. Knowing how your mind operates will give you the knowledge to utilize your mind even further.
Our minds are divided into two parts. The left side and the right side. The left side controls rational thought and the motor control of our muscles. It is this side that keeps our hearts beating, allows us to do repetitious work, like walking, without having to dwell on it, and is the side that calculates our bank balance. The right side of the brain controls emotion. The panic if the bank balance is too low, the bursts of sadness or happiness when you see the news, and the subconscious.
When you are doing something boring, like walking or vacuuming, the left side of the brain is occupied, freeing the right side of the brain. That's why all those wonderful ideas for a movie come bubbling up.
But notice how quickly they vanish? If the telephone rings, and you walk over to answer it, within seconds that wonderful idea has vanished. When you finish the telephone call, you then remember you had a great idea, and now spend the next hour or two in agony trying to pull it back.
Much has been made of the great artists of the last century. Picasso and John Lennon, to name but two. I do not believe that any artist was more talented than any other mortals on this planet were. What I do believe is that these great artists were in touch with their alpha state. The great artists of all time are not more talented. They are simply better at accessing the ideas that come to them in alpha state. But how do you capture those great ideas?
Capturing ideas in alpha state is easy and fun. But like a muscle, it improves with practice.
Identifying Alpha State
The moment you do any physical movement you will be in alpha state. You may not realize it. Tasks like walking, driving, cycling, ironing and cleaning send me into alpha state in seconds. Here is a simple exercise that you can perform to put yourself into alpha state.
Close your eyes and roll your eyes upwards until you feel your eyelids flutter. The effort of keeping your eyelids fluttering will put you in alpha state. If you want to take this exercise a step further, close your eyes, roll your eyes upwards for exactly a minute. Can you see the first minute of your movie? Are you aware of a color? An image? An emotion? If yes, perhaps these ideas can give you an idea for your movie. If not - perhaps this is just too crazy for you, or you were distracted by a noise.
