What gets (and keeps) you inspired?

[hebrides]

Whenever I'm in the middle of a big project -- be it creative, academic, or otherwise -- there inevitably comes at least one moment where I say to myself, "Why am I doing this?" The drudgery of the hard work takes its toll, and the passion and enthusiasm that usually sustain me don't seem like they're enough anymore.

These moments usually pass on their own in time, but sometimes other things (a trip, some time away, working on something else, rewatching a favorite movie or rereading a favorite book, etc.) can snap me out of them. Sometimes, though, nothing seems to help.

I'm sure I'm not the only one who has to get through these moments, especially in fanediting.

So maybe this is as good a place as any to start a thread to compile a bunch of ideas we can all benefit from.

What helps you discover (or rediscover) the spark?

What gets you (and keeps you) going, especially when the goal seems far away?

 

[TMBTM]

If it's a burn out thing, I guess resting a moment is the thing to do (ask boon!).
But when I just run ou of ideas, I usualy try to turn upside down all the scenes in my head.
"Can't we have the gungan battle in the opening of epsiode 1? and what would be the motivation of the characters after that?"
Things like that.
But one of the best source of inspiration is music.
Play your edit with a music you like (or you think would fit the mood, or maybe not!) and watch the result.
Sometime music make the characters look like they thinks something else, or that something is about to happen.

What keeps me going, when the goal seems far away?
Well, first of all I don't think I'd like to spend 2 years making a fanedit.
So I usualy try to make them in few months.
Luckily I had some free time for now this year (days off that I did not take last years and that I had to take)
So for now I can concentrate on one edit and make it quite fast.
I know some editors prefere switching from a fanedit to another and working this way until the job is done,
it should help to keep the motivation by not having your brain taken by one big project.
(I did it myslef, a bit, by starting my next edit while finishing the Judas Breed)

Of course I'm doing fanedit for my own enjoyment,
but this enjoyment comes from the fact that I think about the audience's reaction.
So when I'm getting fed up about working on my vision of a movie, I try to stop and think about what the audience would like to see.
It's not like I want to "please the masses" and add funny silly young characters for childs to like (Hollywood do that perfectly),
it's just that when you get too long behind the wheel you sometime focus on scene after scene (maybe diverging from your start idea, and why not)
whereas the audience will watch the whole thing at once.

And if all those things does not bring me fresh ideas, I send a workprint to someone.

 

[tranzor]

Time is my savior (and my demon). If I feel like not being bothered working while in the middle of a project or just get burned out (which happens failry easily with me), I just take a long break and I leave all the files as they were on my pc. If I do not go back to it in like 4 months it is usually a sign I do not want to continue with that project and just abandon the idea.

the trigger for any of my fan editing can come from mood or just a random thought or just time passing

I have nothing that would clearly inspire me to do an edit (though I could technically say seeing a crappy movie would help or doing a nostalgic type of edit which is something I do enjoy). I just have to get that feeling and roll with it and see where it takes me.

the hard part though is really taking the time to see it through.

I should not have posted, as nothing of benefit is gained for your topic. Sorry about that--

 

[Gaith]

Has the Spell of the Skull ensnared you, hombre?

I'd theoretically like to do more fan edits, but I really got burned by Womble randomly dropping certain audio fades while polishing up The Mummy: Year of the Scorpion. That, and I'm at a point in my life where I don't really have an immediate audience for potential edits, apart from my mother. I've got a few pals in town, but neither the space, tech nor the common interest to do proper screenings. And when I do contemplate doing an edit, I look at the screenplay project hanging on the wall and feel guilty for neglecting that to the extent that I do.

That said, I love the idea of edits, and I love this forum. My advice is, never do it if it isn't fun, take all the time and/or breaks that you want, and never make apologies for so acting. As much as we may look forward to this or that particular edit, there's always a universe of great professional edits of films to discover on Netflix and beyond...

:wink:

 

[Uncanny Antman]

My advice is, never do it if it isn't fun, take all the time and/or breaks that you want, and never make apologies for so acting.

Agreed 100%. Couldn't have said it better.

 

[Remixed by Jorge]

Getting paid is very inspirational. and a 2 month summer holiday.
Also deadlines.

But I have abandoned fanedits. Mostly because i dragged them out for too long.

But the spark for me is not the fanedit, it's the editing itself.
So i guess my spark is re-ignited by working on another project.

Maybe you should back-burn KOTCS and do another easier, faster fanedit and accomplish that.

nah, i got your number. You're a single project guy and this will be your first and last.

 

[hebrides]

My advice is, never do it if it isn't fun, take all the time and/or breaks that you want, and never make apologies for so acting.

Agreed 100%. Couldn't have said it better.

Excellent advice, all of you. I'm not exactly burned out, but when I am (and I think it's safe to say I will be), that sounds like a good way to go.

Jorge: I wouldn't be too sure about me being a "one and done" editor. I was just rewatching Thirteen Days, for example, and realizing that an idea I had a long time ago -- removing Kevin Costner's character, or at least relegating him to the background -- might not only be possible, but actually help keep the film more focused and tense. Certainly not on the order of creating whole new sequences and effects shots, so I think it would qualify as a much "quicker" edit. We'll see.

 

[Remixed by Jorge]

Jorge: I wouldn't be too sure about me being a "one and done" editor. I was just rewatching Thirteen Days, for example, and realizing that an idea I had a long time ago -- removing Kevin Costner's character, or at least relegating him to the background -- might not only be possible, but actually help keep the film more focused and tense.
We'll see.

hahaha... my plan worked!

 

[hebrides]

Jorge: I wouldn't be too sure about me being a "one and done" editor. I was just rewatching Thirteen Days, for example, and realizing that an idea I had a long time ago -- removing Kevin Costner's character, or at least relegating him to the background -- might not only be possible, but actually help keep the film more focused and tense.
We'll see.

hahaha... my plan worked!

Oh, make no mistake: I recognized a challenge when I read it :lol:

 

[elbarto1]

with the exception of die hard 2, which was a breeze, I always have to stop take a break and return with fresh eyes to my editing projects. I havent touched robocop 2 in 3 weeks due to being extremely busy, but it clears my head and sometimes gives me a new perspective if I am stuck. usually I get buried so deep in the film that I cant see the forest for the trees. come back later and I'll see all types of issues/ideas I missed before.

IRL, deadlines really motivate me, I work best under pressure. Most of my college assignments get done the day they are due because I am slack ass.