Embroidered Collage

One aspect of the San Diego Comic-con that surprised me, but shouldn't have, was how often questions about the creative process came up in panels and on the floor.  Where do your ideas come from?  How do you develop them?  How do you prepare to act as a specific character?  Two particular moments stand out.

It's still art and the same concerns apply.  I went to one panel that had Stan Lee answering questions.  He was the creative force behind Marvel comics introduction of Spiderman, the X-men, and other highly popular characters.  He said it always amazed him that these little stories that he wrote became such big things when all he was concerned about at the time was if he could make them good enough that readers would buy the next one and he could pay his bills.  The ideas come because they have to, because you're looking for them.

I went to a panel on the third Spiderman movie and one fan asked Sam Raimi, the director of all three plus other fun stuff, how he could become a successful film maker.  Sam's answer sent me straight back to reading Art and Fear or some of Robert Genn's letters.  Every weekend go out with a camera, get a couple actors, and film a short movie, asking them to do scenes different ways.  Every week sit at your computer and edit the scenes, put in the music, and add the special effects.  On Friday evening, show the movie.  Did the audience react as you intended?  Did you like what you did?  What worked?  What didn't?  And start over again on Saturday.  In other words, paint one hundred paintings.  Do the work.