Creativity

Celebrating Creative People

Over the years, I’ve been blogging about people who I have found fascinating with their creativity, and I would like to highlight some of those posts here, to inspire you to continue to work on your creative projects.

For years, I thought that I needed permission or approval to do something creative. Not sure why. I would jot down ideas, keep a million plots for books twisted in my brain, have a shelf of half-completed projects in my house, but I didn’t finish them, and I certainly didn’t show any one anything. Then, two amazing people inspired me. My sister, who started a writing group and kept saying, “what are you working on?” I was in awe at her ability to just work. She said to me, “Ryss, if you need permission, then I give you permission to do projects.” I LOVE her for that. The second was a talk by [then] President Dieter F. Uchtdorf who wrote a talk called “Happiness, Your Heritage” in October 2008. It inspired me at a time when I needed a creative outlet more than anything else in this world.

The desire to create is one of the deepest yearnings of the human soul. No matter our talents, education, backgrounds, or abilities, we each have an inherent wish to create something that did not exist before.

Everyone can create. You don’t need money, position, or influence in order to create something of substance or beauty.

Creation brings deep satisfaction and fulfillment. We develop ourselves and others when we take unorganized matter into our hands and mold it into something of beauty—and I am not talking about the process of cleaning the rooms of your teenage children.

President Dieter F. Uchtdorf, “Happiness, Your Heritage,” October 2008.

Check out these great reads and I hope that you begin to create today!

And a final word on creation and this post, is our new tagline (that my middle daughter thought of for this site) –

What will you create today?

Creating with my daughters has been enjoyable, but now that they are older – WOW! This is getting good. Stay tuned!


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Video/Film

YouTube Fun

Have you ever had a mini YouTube parties? That’s when you sit down with someone and say – “hey, I’ve gotta show you this video” and they show you one in return, and then you’re an hour into it, enjoying every moment.

Though you have to be careful (some videos are just too much for little ones – unless you like explaining very adult ideas to the kiddies), there are some UBER-creative videos that have me rolling!  Today I’m going to share a few of my favorites.  I am so impressed with their creativity, and amazed at how some ideas can turn into very successful business endeavors.

1. Kid History – FAAAAACCKT!

The first is Kid History.  Their tag line is –  “If our kids wrote our personal history”.  The children tell the old family stories that their parents have been telling them.  Then the adults act out those stories based on the kid’s narration.  There are truly some knee-slapping, Napoleon Dynamite moments (you know, where it’s almost too silly, but you fall in love with the lines and so you keep quoting them).

My favorites from this episode are “Girls are mermaids…some boys are too,” and of course, “Don’t do it Brett” –  “FAAAACT!”

Here is a link to their website and to their YouTube site.

2. Divine Comedy – Firebolt

Next I will feature BYU’s Divine Comedy.  These guys are “hit and miss” with their comedy.  It usually starts out funny, but then they push it too far ( nothing naughty, just too slapstick and over-the-top cliché for my taste) but I am a huge fan of this particular video.

Love the lyrics and I agree with the line – “Maybe the reason why your letter didn’t come, So you can stay protecting muggles as the Chosen One”.

I mean, don’t you just want to live in HP world again for a bit.

3. College Humor – DORA

Next is just such a hilarious spoof on a movie trailer.  I seriously thought (and hoped) that it was going to be a movie, and was a little disappointed to find out it was just a fun short.  I don’t know much about the makers of the video – College Humor, and so I’m not sure how clean or family friendly the rest of their work is (so far every other video of theirs, that I’ve looked into, has been too much for me – too crass, crude, etc., but then, that probably should be apparent in the name).  This one is really wonderful, my girls LOVE it.  So I’m putting this video up and hopefully they have others that are as family friendly and funny as this one.

4. HISHE – Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter

Finally, I wanted to share a couple of videos from the group –  How it Should Have Ended, who are really funny.  Every once in a while I’ve found some borderline jokes, but for the most part I am really happy with their work and I LOVE their endless creativity.

Case in point – in the “still” of the above video, you see a bum-bum, which to some is funny and to others is not.  I find it fine for the part in the video, but I can see where one might not appreciate it.

I think that the new media (blogs, YouTube, iTunes, eBooks, etc. are amazing because of the ability to see the “everyman” create, rather than just the studios.  It’s reminiscent of earlier times  – before TV and Movies, when families would put on plays, readings, and concerts.  But that is one of my college lectures, so I’ll save it for another day…

For now, enjoy the shows, and please,  feel free to write a comment and share your favorite YouTube videos with me!