Episode 94 'Untitled'

Shhhhh...

...I am going to begin with something positively inspirational and end on a negative truth. I sit here in hope that the latter shall not quash your want of reading, but it's how I roll these days; an optimistic pessimist (ha!). 

POSITIVELY INSPIRATIONAL works of art can be found scattered across the city of Manchester. Even Stockport, where I have set up abode, has a great creative influx. Whether you stand before a grand mural towering up the side of a building, or spy a mysterious little character painted in the nook of an alleyway, you are in for a treat. I have seen many delightful pieces in passing, but have yet to tick them all off (some only last a few weeks; Bowie [above] is sadly no longer with us). However, as I was surfing my second favourite web browser, I stumbled upon a guide that portrays many of these incredible pieces from the streets of Manchester. I strongly recommend a peruse:

https://www.blocal-travel.com/street-art/manchester-street-art-guide/

In the aftermath of episode 3 of the final season of Game of Thrones, a mural of Arya Stark has been painted in Stevenson Square. I believe that the same artist has since painted Tyrion Lannister on a wall in Hulme. Just lovely.

Project Bonsai

I have had many themed projects hidden from view, down in the depths of my basement (now dubbed the Rebel Scum Studios), where I would reveal them only upon completion. You shouldn't be surprised to hear that most of my projects are themed around Star Wars or Lord of the Rings. I might dabble, from time to time, in a Disney or Aardman related character sculpts (I still need to finish my plasticine model of Hey Arnold! which is neither, actually).

*Sighs* Anyway... this current project is Lord of the Rings themed and I shall reveal it before completion for I am rather fond of the idea. It began at Christmas where my Aunty Teresa gave me a Bonsai Tree starter kit, of which shall become the focal point of this model. The idea is to build a Hobbit home around the base of a plastic plant pot, paint and dress it using classic diorama essentials such as flocking and foliage and finally attempt to grow the Bonsai Tree from within the pot. The effect being; to create a realistic Hobbit home, scaled to the dimensions of my LOTR Games Workshop figurines and guide the growth of this Bonsai Tree (roots, trunk, branches and all) to take pride and place as a natural looking centre piece. 

Being early on in the stages, these images will show the bare bones of my Hobbit model home. I used a basic plant pot for the central base and built up the sides using oasis foam blocks (great for carving) covered in foil (great for building up a rocky facade) and finished with a filler/PVA mix (great for... ummm.. papering over the cracks! Yes). Balsa wood will indeed play a major role too, but the star of the show will undoubtedly be the Bonsai Tree. Hopefully, with much patience and training, I shall prune myself a fine home for Frodo; this would be his bachelor pad if the ring had never come to him.

****** 3 Months Later ******

Well. I prepared, sewed, planted, stored and cared for the chosen seed to the letter. Store it in the fridge they said; leave it to grow in this unorthodox but resembling climate for 3 months they said. Just to confirm, they are the authors of the Bonsai manual. Unfortunately, it seems as though they were more like guidelines anyway, as the poor little bugger has not grown at all, rendering my project a slight failure. Alas for my patience and optimism. But at least I can fit a little bit more cheese into the fridge now!

For those of you who don't know, I have been working at the BBC for the last few years, primarily for the CBBC and CBeebies departments stationed up here in Media City UK, Salford. I have been lucky enough to be involved in some cracking television shows and work with many wonderful folk. For me, the Art Department (in whatever form is may take) is a place of creative splendour and diversity, especially when it comes to visualising a particular idea or concept; I will always be blown away at the high standard that every Art Department delivers on.

But as I sat there, supping my neglected cup of tea (contorting my face in the same manner as if I had just necked a shot of vodka), I realised that the Art Department is probably the most inspiring yet troubled department in any creative industry. Throughout my experiences in animation studios, commercials and promo videos and the larger television productions at Media City UK, it's become clear that even though the visual is hugely influential over the success of a show, nobody knows anything that truly goes on behind the scenes.

People might say oh, it's the nature of the beast or it is what it is but if there was a venn diagram representing all of the departments of a typical TV production (each would overlap quite happily) then the Art Department would be a tiny dot on the outside of the diagram. Like a lonely moon, orbiting from afar. It wasn't intended to be this way, and yet this unnatural distance continues to grow; who are the Art Department? Should we invite them to the wrap party?

It's always been tricky, working in any Art Department. The expectations are usually far fetched because there is no understanding about the processes in making anything. The skills that a prop maker requires over a certain amount of time tend to be none comparable. You just can't measure artistic skill, it's all subjective anyway. Catch 22? Who knows.

I shan't digress too much, at least not in this blog entry, because I already have an upcoming gripe about something that is already out of my hands. I guess what I'm trying to say, with as little detriment as possible, is that communication in the 21st Century is becoming so distant and warped that it is affecting natural elements of daily life. Another explanation is that I am experiencing another quarter life crisis (my second in ten years) where I become so overwhelmed with modern societal change that I immediately retreat to the basement and play [position, leave and yell] with my Star Wars figures.

Quick... look at these photos of me and Steve exploring the Peak District.

I am particularly fond of this last photograph. And the reason being one word; scale. What is it?! How big is that raging river in the foreground? Have I taken this aerial shot whilst leaning out of a helicopter? Are those tiny people you can see, scaling the cliff with grappling hooks and an insane mind? Alas, this is not the case, as I could quite comfortably step across and stand on that flint ledge with my head cropped from the top of the photograph. But to quote Paul Whitehouse "isn't scale brilliant??!!"


I absolutely love stop motion animation. I absolutely love Adventure Time. When I realised that these two had been combined, I cried for 12 minutes and 49 seconds. Coincidentally, that is the same length of the 'making of' video below. So if you're anything like me then I implore you to watch it and appreciate some lovely art before I stray once more into a dismal rant (I am okay, by the way).

This final section of the blog, being of a slightly negative nature, is not entirely in keeping with my general ramblings concerning creativity and the art world. I tried not to sound too down in the dumps earlier because I am truly honoured to be a part of the BBC and work on these productions. But really I am merely writing this purely for my own gratification and that you should by no means feel obliged to read it. Whether you opt out or not, I understand and shall look forward to your return on my next blog entry!


For those who are curious about what on earth I'm trying to say... I shall begin.

I watch many movie news and review shows on YouTube, where the hosts would report on trailers, films and television series. They would then discuss them, rate them, bring you news on cast speculation, Hollywood rumours and sometimes controversial topics in regards to the industry (directors, studios, actors). For a film fan, it's a rather solid way of gathering information for upcoming films etc. [try Collider Movie Talk, The John Campea Show or Mr Sunday Movies].

    It's not uncommon to find the hosts of these shows commenting on the backlash from fans and how toxic the social media side of the film industry can be. Star Wars is always a good example; The Last Jedi [2017] had such a divisive response that a group of hardcore fans actually petitioned for it to be remade. The kick-starter website Remake The Last Jedi has raised over $150,000, which I find both impressive and ludicrous. 

Personally I think that social media represents everything that is wrong with modern society (the irony being that I would go forth and post this). But one particular host, Robert Meyer Burnett, was speaking with John Campea about the situation regarding Liam Neeson. I won't deliver my own opinion in regards to the story, because essentially it doesn't matter, but you can read an article HERE to find out a little more about it.
    To summarise, the media had jumped on this 'story' and painted Liam Neeson as a racist without hesitation. It was then plastered over social media with a juicy title, much like a Venus fly trap, luring in unsuspecting click bait prey. The knock-on effect was obvious; everyone from here to Timbuktu believed that Liam Neeson was a racist because that is what they read in a Facebook article.

During this discussion on The John Campea Show, Robert made the following statement.

"Our entire civilization is going to be click-baited into its own demise". 

That is one of the must truest statements I have ever heard. The irony continues to flow throughout my writing, however, as I myself offer up more links to articles! Infact, there is a really interesting one I found that is certainly worth a read [The Social Media Scourge of 2016]. Basically, it likens click bait to junk food; you hate yourself when you've gorged on it. Unfortunately there is no answer and social media (and all the shit that comes with it) is here to stay. Until, at least, VR headsets have become so advanced that we can visually immerse ourselves into that shit.

If you have ever watched any Black Mirror episodes, then you would see how many of the themes that Charlie Brooker incorporates cover the general downfall of morality. There is never a happy ending because essentially it uses the truths of our world to highlight how awful humanity is; usually portrayed via the development of technology and the social media aspect that comes with it.
    Twitter is full of hatred, abuse and vile comments. Instagram is home to visual torture. Facebook is now the lead platform in educating people in what isn't happening (via click bait). Our life is an episode of Black Mirror!

But this comment about our own demise. I paused the video and replayed it about ten times. For some reason it has really stuck with me and I'm struggling to remember what life was like before social media demanded your attention every five minutes. The headlines pop up and we cautiously read it as fact. We are numbly given information that simply doesn't matter but requires immediate reaction, comments, likes and uploads - how can our minds cope? It can't be healthy. I can actually feel my thumbprint disintegrating because of how often I scroll or tap.

I feel sick now.  

So I'm going to stop.

Consider this a temporary sign off on such a topic, but I assure you that I will return. 

And remember... I am fine! #nofilter