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Non-makers who identify that a makerâs work is derivative often become overly-dismissive, not appreciating that choosing what elements to use in your remix is an entire art in itself. This quickly becomes quite self-evident when you start making things yourself.
Eg: artists like BeyoncĂŠ have teams of creatives working for them. Sheâs effectively the conductor of a creative orchestra at this point. But simply having access to good material (which she has earned, over decades of work) doesnât guarantee good output. Her taste still matters
All work is derivative. We inherit our language, our culture, our ideas, our perspectives. Even when we reject X and make Y, the Y is typically defined as ânot-Xâ or âanti-Xâ. Every thought has a history, every story begins in the middle - denying this leads to boring dead ends
IMO trying to be âoriginalâ is usually a trap. It often ends up being something someone else has done before - that you werenât consciously aware of. Itâs usually easier to be âoriginalâ by trying to be interesting - put your favorite ideas in a room and see what happens
The smallest unit of creativity to me seems to be âX + Yâ. Alien was pitched as âJaws in Spaceâ. This could have ended up stupidly derivative and lame, but it turned out to be a rich generative concept that spawned an entire perspective. How? Why?
I think the challenge is to ask, âhow does X + Y lead to something that is profoundly different from usual concepts of either X or Yâ? Alien didnât just put a giant shark in space - it introduced rape as a threat https://t.co/YlR8lkqQBS
Black Panther didnât just make TâChalla a black Thor, they also gave him the black manâs unique burdens Harry Potter = Wizards + Boarding School Lord of the Rings = Good Vs Evil + a Ring of Corruption Game of Thrones = Fantasy setting but letâs kill the good guy
Take GOT for instance - the killing of Ned Stark isnât just a novel event slapped on for shock value - itâs something that fundamentally alters the DNA of the whole story, and reveals the shape of the fictional universe. (IMO the MCU should kill Tony Stark for this same reason)
OT Star Wars: Good vs Evil, but I Am Your Father. Just as how GOTâs world is under the shadow of Ned Stark, Star Wars is the shadow of Anakin. Star Wars to me is fundamentally about family, told in a time of strife. I think sometimes itâs lost sight of this, somewhat