Shawn Peters: No Pun Intended

Cheating on Myself

Forgive me "No Pun Intended"... but I have been unfaithful.

Of course, I was paid to do it.   

A few months ago, my company, Viewpoint Creative, started a blog with weekly posts rotating throughout the company. My turn came up, and while I had to blog about something related to the advertising and promotion industry... I "kept it real."

Take a look, words and images by yours truly. I promise it's not anywhere close to a dry industry blog post... heck, I might even get in trouble for it. 

Oh, and yeah... every pun intended on this one.

http://blog.viewpointcreative.com/

Day 21 - Past Perfect

Ernest Hemingway supposedly said, "The first draft of anything is crap." Actually, he said "The first time you write something it's probably going to reek  worse than my seat cushion after a warm afternoon of watching the bullfights." Then he revised, tweaked, and trimmed.

The truth is, it's inarguably rare that any creative endeavor (other than improv) is ever conceived of and executed perfectly when done so quickly and without revision. Whether you're acting in a play with a long rehearsal process, or writing a blog, where theoretically you could publish your first, unedited draft, there is value in taking the time reconsider the work you've done, raise the bar of your own expectations, and try other ways of communicating your point. I've heard tales that "Good Will hunting" started out as an action thriller that was actually written by Ben Affleck and Matt Damon before being repeatedly revised into the touchingly believable movie that won Academy Awards.  Of course, not all revisions will bear fruit, but even in those cases, it usually makes you feel even better about your initial instincts to see that your original work is not easily topped.

But when are you done?

Day 27 - Creative Crimes

I got an e-mail from a co-worker today quoting an article about a TV network that is launching a cool microsite for one of their new series. There are all kinds of themed interactive games, activities and nuances mentioned and that co-worker titled the  e-mail, "Sounds somewhat familiar." That's because we pitched that basic idea to them a few months back and hadn't heard anything from them since. Guess we won't be getting that one, eh?

"Creative larceny!" you shout? "Idea theft!" you proclaim? "Intellectual property pilfering!" You assert?

Yes, and no. Because as the previous series of three sentences prove, there are many, myriad, and multiple ways to get to the exact same place in any creative endeavor and no one has a copyright on an idea, let alone one that multiple people are working to execute.

Day 28 - A Long or Short Program?

I'll never forget the day in 1995 when my friend, Ron, came home from the big-time talent agency where he worked with a label-less VHS cassette. Every now and again he scored movies and TV shows before they came out, but he promised me this was different.  I asked him to describe what we were about to watch and he couldn't, except to say that it was the funniest thing he'd ever seen.

That's how I was introduced to "The Spirit of Christmas," a crudely animated short (in every sense) by two guys named Matt and Trey, that featured four foulmouthed Colorado kids, a Mortal-Kombat-style throwdown between Jesus and Santa, and a guest appearance by a super-effeminate Brian Boitano. The video was an eleventh-generation dub of a dub, but we wore that sucker out as lines like "don't you oppress me, fat-boy" and " don't say pig-f**ker in front of Jesus" worked their way into our permanent lexicon.

With St. Nick and the Messiah locked in a death roll, the entire story's plot turns on the question, "What would Brian Boitano do?"

Interview with a Tramp-ire?

The revelation that Barbara Walters revealed to Oprah that she had an affair with a married U.S. Senator in the 70's has got me... and I'd imagine everyone else... asking the same question.

"Who is going to do the exclusive follow-up interview with her?"

I mean, this is exactly the kind of story Barbara Walters was built to cover, but she can't do double duty... or can she?

You know, I was a little disappointed when the U.N. couldn't get a worldwide cloning-ban pact done, but I think we've finally seen why the big guy upstairs has let us develop the technology to "play God." It's so we can clone Barbara Walters and have her interview herself on-air.

Will she ask the hard questions of herself? Will she make herself cry? What will she wear... and will she wear different things as interviewer and interviewee?