I took a break! It was a special break. I was marching on my way like I always do, and then I stumbled and fell and walked somewhere else. Only later did I realize what had happened as the landscape changed. Have you ever wandered off into the void?
If you were in a place of absolute quiet and darkness, what would you create to fill it? And how much of it until you realize that everything is perfect as it is?
I can only speculate that I was fighting off a cold and just …snapped after Rapid Viz. I was not available for any creative endeavours in days, then I could only write on my comic, only slowly the visual channel is returning.
Did anything change? Absolutely. Let’s use a rich Windows Update as a metaphor. Suddenly I’m thinking in camera angles and shot types like I always wished I would. Suddenly the thought of drawing 5 times over the same thing until it’s as decent as I can get it right now isn’t scary or tedious at all. Suddenly I like my crooked lines and enjoy that at least they’re alive. And now I’m returning to creating and it’s probably not a different world than before but some small changes that will stack over time. Why the hell am I making rapid progress on my portfolio now?
Breaks are important. If it is necessary, a two week break or even longer is valid. And every creative crisis or art block is a huge chance to unlearn things, a lot of things that you thought were natural to you or somewhat never to be questioned.
I did unlearn quite some bit. And then there’s room for new things. For me it was watching a ton of movies of different genres for getting a feeling for camera work and shots. In the future I hope to learn more about light and color the same way. And then editing. Not everything at the same time, but like 3 or more runs.
