Archives for May 2017

Nostalgia: 4 Reasons Why It’s Good To Be Nostalgic

May 16, 2017 By mwmelugin

I’ve been a nostalgic person for as long as I can remember. I still have stacks of homework assignments from elementary and middle school, drawings I did as a child, and countless scrapbooks my mom made. Like many people I enjoy looking back through these from time to time for a casual stroll down memory lane. For me, nostalgia has always been a positive thing. It reminds me of a “simpler time”, and makes me appreciate my life.

Nostalgia can be a double edged sword however. For those like me it can connect one with their past and bring an appreciation for a time that once was. Sometimes though it can induce sadness or a tendency to “live in the past”. Despite the possible consequences, I’ve found that to be nostalgic can be tremendously beneficial both in the writing process as well as in one’s day-to-day life.

An old photo of me reading Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, circa 1997. This scene is essentially the epitome of nostalgia for me.

HOW NOSTALGIA IS GOOD FOR WRITING

They say “write what you know” and that “all beginning writers write about themselves”. As far as I’m concerned, these maxims both ring true. There lies great creative value in holding on to the small, emotional bits of life so as to one day channel them into a character. To appreciate the significance of the past can aid in developing more complex characters in one’s writing.

Time Lapse Poetry #1 – “Debt”

May 9, 2017 By mwmelugin

When I write poetry, sometimes I handwrite and sometimes I write on my iPhone. I find it funny how regardless of which I do first, I inevitably copy the poem over to one or the other. When I handwrite I usually copy the poem digitally just for the sake of posterity and safekeeping. With this one, I wrote the original draft in my Evernote because I was out and about without paper when the idea struck. I liked it, so I later transcribed it to a notebook for no reason other than feeling like it’s more fun and poetic to see it handwritten.

A side by side view of the original draft of this poem and it transcribed to a notebook.

The same day that I wrote this poem down in my notebook I randomly came across an advertisement for an app called Camera Lucida. I investigated and ended up purchasing the app for a few dollars. It’s not the most robust application but it’s proven a fun tool and very good for recording time lapses. This video is the result of my early experimentations with the app. Side note: I used to own a small iPhone tripod which I seem to have lost. So, this video was recorded with my phone taped to a tall stack of DVD’s. I also propped the notebook up with one and you can see a sliver of the DVD jacket for Wes Anderson’s Bottle Rocket in the bottom left corner.

Commercials and Product Placement: Why They’re Good For Us As Artists

May 8, 2017 By mwmelugin

Commercials are everywhere. They’re on our televisions and social media, in our movies, and play before our YouTube videos. It’s true that their omnipresence can frustrate me from time to time. Ads can be exhausting and occasionally make me feel like I’m being bombarded by capitalism. However, there remains a wealth of reasons why commercials are a great thing for us both as consumers and artists.

1. They Provide Jobs

Being an artist and/or filmmaker is classically one of the toughest fields as far as job security goes. I might not enjoy every car or fast food commercial I see on cable but I appreciate how they provide work for thousands of people. It’s tough to get experience as a director, cinematographer, editor, sound engineer, etc. Thankfully, there’s not likely to be a shortage of commercial work anytime soon. Each commercial made, whether it be video or audio, offers more opportunity for all of us to secure work in these positions. While these can still be difficult positions to get, this is a valuable professional resource for burgeoning artists as we work toward whatever it is we truly wish to be doing, such as working on films or shows. And, if your ultimate goal actually is to work on commercials, even better.

Behind-the-scenes of a Mini Cooper commercial.

2. Commercials and Product Placement Provide Budgets

Product placement in movies and TV shows has seen a dramatic increase in the past decade. Companies have learned that they prove more effective than traditional TV ad spots. These placements give products more context for the viewer. They force the viewer to emotionally connect the product with whatever show or movie they’re watching. Unfortunately, this form of advertising doesn’t exactly provide jobs like standard TV/radio/YouTube/etc commercials. However, they provide another very valuable service to the creative process. They furnish additional budget to the creators of the films and shows that feature them. Movies and shows are expensive to make (obviously) and making placement deals with companies is a brilliant way to provide artists with the high budgets they require to produce quality content for us to enjoy.