Hi! Welcome to the 4 CreativeWheels newsletter — your weekly dose of insights on creativity and fuel for your creative journey.

We are in week 15! I have some exciting changes to implement. Some of them have already been implemented (as you might’ve noticed). For the other ones, you’ll have to wait.

One thing I can reveal now is for the next 6 issues, we will be taking direct inspiration from great creative pieces. Some issues will draw direct inspiration for their topics. And some will dissect those great works. So, stay tuned!

In this week’s issue, we’ll talk about and reflect on our contribution to the world and life as creatives.

Without further ado…

Let’s start the ride!

Main Wheel

We all have a favorite movie scene. For anyone who has watched at least 2 movies in their lifetime, there is the scene of scenes. The scene that they cannot forget.

Such scenes hold a special place in your heart and mind. Sometimes, those scenes are just so good. Sometimes they are so relatable. Sometimes, they are life-changing. One of those scenes for me was in a classroom.

It was from a popular movie among creatives. The movie was and is on almost every list recommended to creatives. I heard so many good things about it that I had to watch it. I had no regret.

The movie in question is no other than Dead Poets Society. Long story short, it was an instant crush. I loved the movie from the first second to the last moment. It was and is still one of the movies that impacted my perspective on life.

There are so many great scenes in it. Many scenes that are worth quoting and revisiting. But this one scene is what I come back to the most. It's not the most creative of them all. It's not the most cinematic. But its message has been ringing in my heart.

Mr. John Keating, played by the late great Robin Williams, was the new English teacher in a prestigious private school. To avoid spoiling too much of the movie, Mr. Keating was unconventional. His teaching philosophy, his life philosophy, was unorthodox compared to what was promoted in the school.

All his teaching hours were inspirational. Yet the one set in a simple classroom is my favorite scene from the movie. It only lasts around 2 minutes. But these two minutes have shaped how I see my creative journey and my life.

In the scene, Mr. Keating talks to his students about the importance of poetry. He uses words from Walt Whitman’s “O Me! O Life!” poem. And with the last lines of the poem he questions his students, “. . . ’Answer.

That you are here—that life exists and identity,

That the powerful play goes on, and you may contribute a verse.’ That the powerful play goes on, and you may contribute a verse. What will your verse be?“

There. “That the powerful play goes on and you may contribute a verse. What will your verse be?” This is the line that cannot stop surfing in my mind.

It’s important to ask ourselves that question. Yes, we need to do and learn things. The tasks could be all related to the act of creation. You could need to arrange your camera. You could need to learn the best settings for lighting. You could need to understand how to market your studio, to name a few.

All of these things are great to do and necessary. However, they would mean nothing without the initial desire. The kindling desire that pushes us to make something from nothing. And that desire sets our intentions.

By our desires and intentions can our work spring. When it springs, there is something left behind. What is left behind is the impact on others and future humans. And that’s where we contribute to the play.

This leads us to ask two important questions, “What's your intention when you create? And what are you aiming to contribute?”

No matter the techniques, strategies, and frameworks you use, the answers to the 2 questions will shape your work. Yes, we all might be forgotten 50 years after our death. People might not remember what we have done in our lives. So why care?

Well, firstly our creative journey can stop at any moment. You don’t know when it’ll be the last time, you’d be able to create. So why not take the opportunity to make yourself happy and proud by creating the best piece you could ever produce!?

Furthermore, what you do now can impact the next generation. In return, it can also impact the following generation. Hence, your work and contribution will influence for better or for worse, what the world will have in the future.

We create to make sense of the world, to contribute something to the world. We create to appease the furnace that burns the membranes of our hearts when we have spent a long time not bringing something to life. We create because we want to have an exchange of value between us and other fellow human beings.

So, what will you create? What will your verse be?

The creatives behind our favorite scenes have answered that question. Some of them continue to answer it to this day. In their answers, they made what we love. They made the movie scenes that are ingrained in our life memories.

All of our favorite artworks, products, and services were made because of one person. They had a reason and an idea. They did not let setbacks, obstacles, and doubts erase their ideas. They completed their work and contributed to the play of life. Because of their verses, you and I have been helped, sustained, and inspired.

And now it's our turn. Similarly, by answering the question for ourselves we will help others in the process. We got the chance to live life. We got the blessing to have the desire to create and be creative.

Therefore, let's seize this opportunity. Let's create and do things we love and want to see exist no matter how small or big it is.

That the powerful play of life goes on and we may contribute our verses.

Inspiring Wheels

Here are two (or more) creative works that you’ll not regret checking out:

• "What Will Your Verse Be" - Dead Poets Society | This is the scene that inspired our newsletter issue. A simple but powerful scene that’s worth a billion watch.

• "How A24 replaced artists with AI" - Paper and Light | I have so many things to say about this video. However, I'll limit myself to quoting one of my favorite parts of it:

  “Critique it [artworks]. Assess its merits. Good art makes you feel . . . The amount of time it took to make does not automatically make it bad or great, nor does the simplicity or complexity of the work. It's the aesthetics, intent, and execution that are key.”

Want to share this issue of 4CW with a friend, colleague,… any human being? Just copy and paste this link: https://4creativewheels.beehiiv.com/p/june-20-2024 😉 😃

Thank you so much for reading! 

As always, feel free to reply to this email & share your thoughts, stories, and any experience related to this topic. I’d love to hear them!  

C ya next Week! 

Embracing Creativity™,

Richard M.

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