Inspiration

Why do I write? I started writing because I don’t sleep when everyone else does. I didn’t have anyone to talk to. So I just talked to myself. Not out loud, but in the form of words on my computer screen. I’m not crazy; I just have jacked up sleeping patterns. Some really good movies have come from this problem of mine though. That’s how I know I have a passion for this stuff, I don’t think about anything else. Seriously. Break into my thoughts one night if you don’t believe me. Every time I think, it’s about something that would make a great scene, or a clever line of dialogue, or an unbelievable series of shots. I might even go on to recommend doing this if you are uncertain of your passions. Don’t put off sleeping on purpose just because you want to discover what makes you tick. I’m just saying; if you find yourself unable to drift off, you might want to take notice of the things that are keeping you from doing that.

Or don’t, I don’t care. If I took inspiration advice from some of the kids who were studying film with me in college, I would still be back home working at Hollywood Video… or the local multiplex. I heard a few of them were still scooping popcorn there. These kids were all about NOT “selling out.” They were cutthroat artist who hypothetically, could get offered buckets of money for their film if they would only cut it down from 3 hours to 90 minutes and leave out all the bullshit… and they would tell the investors to go fuck themselves. They didn’t care about money, only artistic expression. They wanted people to see their movie for what it was, without making it commercialized. If that meant no one would ever see a single frame, then so be it. They weren’t about to sell out. Well, what they called selling out, I called working. That’s why I went to college: to turn my education into money. In my case, getting paid by the shitloads to make movies.

My advice is to not listen to advice. Listen to good music. Read good books, or do neither. I just contradicted myself by giving out advice that was also contradicting. So, I will just give out recommendations from now on. My first recommendation is that you check out the new CD from one of my favorite bands: Angels and Airwaves. Their new album came out yesterday and is called I-Empire. Do yourself a favor and buy it. Music can be an excellent source of inspiration. That wasn’t advice, it was only a reccomendation. See the difference?

AJ