Posers

I hate it when people say they’re good at something just because they know the basics of what they’re doing. This applies to film, but pretty much anything else art-related out there, like photography or music or whatever.

Imagine: when people say their film is “artsy.” Sure, that’s fine and all. But if the rest of your film is pure crap, you have nothing. You can make a ton of pretty little angles with cool colors and the retarded film focus effect, but if it doesn’t do anything for your film, then it has no meaning.

People associate pretty things with art. Anyone can make something pretty. You can take a photo of just anything, color correct it and everything and bam, you call yourself artsy. You can take a video clip of anything, put in some ambient music and color correct it, and bam, it’s pretty. So what?

What do those colors do for your picture exactly? Does it capture the right emotion? Does your “artsy” video clip do anything for your film other than make it look pretty? Is your video even good? What’s the point of it anyway?

Artsy implies some form of art, expression of the imagination and feeling. Anyone can make a photo or a video clip and make it look pretty. Anyone. It’s really easy actually—just pull a few sliders here and there and voila: pretty pictures. You haven’t proved anything. You just know how to use sliders on your computer.

In my opinion, art needs the extra layer beneath the surface that has the thought and the imagination in it. I enjoy looking at photos that have meaning. I enjoy watching movies that stress the story before visual effects.

I don’t disapprove of ambition. If you’re really just trying to get better and just experimenting, fine. But don’t go around bragging that you’re all that just because you made one pretty picture. If you have something to back yourself up, well then fine, you choose what you want to do with it.

I’m not trying to criticize anyone specific. This is how I feel generally. I just don’t like it when people talk big but have nothing to back it up with.