Hello!
My name is Sarah Almeda.
I am a sophomore in the Academies at New Milford
High School and this is my marking period
3 project on creativity.
And uh, we had a choice of whatever format
we wanted, so I'd do something creative and
something I really enjoy doing.
So you all get to watch a video of me doodling
and talking about it for the next five minutes.
Wow!
Yay!
So, question one.
what is my creative medium?
A lot of people if you know me might think
that I'd say art?
But I don't actually think that's the case
I'd say thought is my creative medium.
And I guess that's a little abstract, and
weird, so I'm gonna have to explain that...
So, let me explain!
When I say art I don't mean "The Arts', I
mean visual art, like, the Mona Lisa, by Da
Vinci.
And when I say design I don't mean moving
furniture inside your house, I mean, uh, flying
machine sketches by Da Vinci.
Some people are really into making really
pretty pictures of fruit bowls or landscapes
and snowy mountaintops; I know my sister really
likes illustration, but that's not really
me.
I'm more about saying, "What if there was
a dog?"
And he was made out of fruit, and he had fruit
based superpowers?
This is an idea from deep inside my head and
I draw it on a piece of paper, and I show
it to you, and you say, "Whoa!
Fruit dog!
That's so cool!"
And suddenly this idea from inside my head
it traveled using paper as a form of communication
to your head!
So, then, you say, "Oh my gosh!
What if Fruit Dog had a friend named Veggie
Cat, and you draw it on a piece of paper and
I say, "Whoa!
That's so cool!
That's exactly what a vegetable cat would
look like!
Let's make a thing."
And this is killing two birds with one stone
because this is the answer to the next question,
"When do I feel the most inspired?"
When I collaborate with someone like this.
And then this idea from deep inside my head
travels through a piece of paper or a drawing
or, just, words, to somebody else's head.
And then suddenly, we're trading back and
forth and there's this whole brainstorm of
ideas that creates this huge mess of... awesome.
And, that just makes me so happy and I think
creation like that is a big part of being
human.
Question 3: what stifles my creativity?
When I make the mistake of believing in limits
or that I need to impress or please other
people.
Like the video states, society tends to tell
us that there's one right answer to a question,
and it's at the back of the book and looking
at it is cheating.
I'm stifling my own creativity when I start
to believe that something I create needs to
fit other people's standards.
When it has to be that correct answer at the
back of the book and anything else is wrong.
Even if it's a little harsh and very Pink
Floyd of him to say, I think Ken Robinson
is correct in saying that school systems tend
to resemble industrial age factory systems?
It's like a creativity stifling machine that
takes in these confident children capable
of divergent thinking and, (although education
works for some people!) it leaves others feeling...
like they have much lower self-esteem and
less capacity for imagination and... they
should really be doing the exact opposite.
But, I'll get on that later.
What I have to constantly remind myself to
say is, "It doesn't have to."
It doesn't have to make sense, it doesn't
have to be realistic, it doesn't have to obey
the laws of physics, be socially acceptable,
fit inside the lines!
Here's a relevant quote.
You have your way.
I have my way.
As for the right way, the "correct" way, the
only way... it doesn't exist.
That's by...
Fred-rick Nyetzshishishie?
Speaking of relevant quotes, let's move the
next question.
Someone whose creativity I admire, how they
inspire me, and why.
Here are some quotes taken from a speech by
Neil Gaiman; you might know him as the author
of Coraline.
"Life is sometimes hard.
And when things get tough, this is what you
should do.
Make good art.
I'm serious.
Husband runs off with a politician?...
Make good art.
IRS on your trail?
Make good art.
Cat exploded?
Make good art.
Somebody on the Internet thinks what you do
is stupid or evil or it's all been done before?
Make good art.
Probably things will work out somehow, but
that doesn't matter.
Do what only you do best.
Make good art.
Make it on the good days too.
...We're in a transitional world right now,
if you're in any kind of artistic field...
nobody knows what the landscape will look
like two years from now, let alone a decade
away.
Which is, on the one hand, intimidating, and
on the other, immensely liberating.
...You can be as creative as you need to be
to get your work seen.
...make interesting mistakes, make amazing
mistakes, make glorious and fantastic mistakes.
Break rules.
Leave the world more interesting for your
being here.
Make good art."
And that folks is why I love Neil Gaiman.
I mean, I went through a phase where I was
obsessed with Coraline, but this speech, those
words, "Make Good Art"?
They're my life's motto, my mantra!
Three words I couldn't live without.
If you have time please look up Neil Gaiman's
Keynote Address 2012 to see the whole speech;
a lot of the ideas remind me of The Element
and Out of Our Minds, and if you're like me
maybe it'll even change your life.
Okay, final question, explain what you believe
schools need to do better for students to
promote and enhance their creativity.
Well, here's something: I think we need to
do away with ranking systems.
I hate grades, I hate rankings, I hate the
honor roll- which is a little snooty to say,
but it's the principle I dislike.
To go back to the factory metaphor, it's like
getting quality checked and stamped, Grade
A student, Grade B student, Grade C student.
When you're told that from a young age, you
believe it!
I know so many people who still cry over their
grades as if a C on a biology test actually
decides that they'll never get into a college
or get a job or support a family.
Why do students cram or cheat on tests?
Because we're made to be more concerned about
grades than we are about actually learning.
Instead, schools should make us more excited
to learn about new things and about ourselves,
and to discover what we're really capable
of doing.
Because that's what the world needs right
now.
"If you plan on being anything less than what
you are capable of being, you will probably
be unhappy all the days of your life."
-Abraham Maslow
Don't know that guy.
But smart words.
To conclude, I've discovered that I really
want to do game design, because I feel like
video games are the platform where my ideas
can really be limitless.
Thank you so much for your attention and for
putting up with my voice for so long!
For this project I used my graphics tablet,
Bamboo Pad by Wacom, which is a software that
came with my tablet, iMovie, and the song
"Dawn Metropolis" by Anamanaguchi.
Love that band!
OK!
Get out there, make some good art, and...
Thanks!
Bye!
