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		<title><![CDATA[Forums - Bricks in Motion - Too many ideas, and how to deal with them?]]></title>
		<link>https://bricksinmotion.com/forums/topic/20297/too-many-ideas-and-how-to-deal-with-them/</link>
		<description><![CDATA[The most recent posts in Too many ideas, and how to deal with them?.]]></description>
		<lastBuildDate>Thu, 01 Jan 2015 21:43:45 +0000</lastBuildDate>
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			<title><![CDATA[Re: Too many ideas, and how to deal with them?]]></title>
			<link>https://bricksinmotion.com/forums/post/337758/#p337758</link>
			<description><![CDATA[[quote=HoldingOurOwn]Glad you are doing work for this Bionicle forum.  I didn't know there was one.  They are officially re-released today.[/quote]

Yeah, super-excited to get my hands on some of the new Protectors. I already have plans to use their parts for a character for a short BIONICLE brickfilm called [i]Forged In Iron[/i], which is a script I'm really pumped to get animating.

It's not a forum; just a YouTube channel run by myself and a group of friends. There are a bunch though, like BZPower, and they're surprisingly big (though I find the stuffiness and strict rules on BZP to be quite trying at times).

I don't know about whole scripts at the moment (uni work and whatnot) but I can certainly throw out some ideas if anyone wants to animate but is stuck for an idea. Is there a thread for just sharing ideas?]]></description>
			<author><![CDATA[dummy@example.com (jampot)]]></author>
			<pubDate>Thu, 01 Jan 2015 21:43:45 +0000</pubDate>
			<guid>https://bricksinmotion.com/forums/post/337758/#p337758</guid>
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			<title><![CDATA[Re: Too many ideas, and how to deal with them?]]></title>
			<link>https://bricksinmotion.com/forums/post/337741/#p337741</link>
			<description><![CDATA[Jampot, at last, one of the BiM Members is actually underway animating one of my scripts, so with effort you can find animators looking for writers to provide material.  I also revised the script for Life of a Clone Trooper, which was revised by Divine before he animated.  Keep looking, and you can find someone to animate your ideas.

Glad you are doing work for this Bionicle forum.  I didn't know there was one.  They are officially re-released today.]]></description>
			<author><![CDATA[dummy@example.com (HoldingOurOwn)]]></author>
			<pubDate>Thu, 01 Jan 2015 21:05:02 +0000</pubDate>
			<guid>https://bricksinmotion.com/forums/post/337741/#p337741</guid>
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			<title><![CDATA[Re: Too many ideas, and how to deal with them?]]></title>
			<link>https://bricksinmotion.com/forums/post/337672/#p337672</link>
			<description><![CDATA[[quote=HoldingOurOwn]I do see that kind of collaboration quite a bit, Squid.  I was talking more along the lines of one person who likes to write rites the story for someone else who likes to animate, etc.[/quote]

I've been writing a [i]lot[/i] of scripts for the Custom BIONICLE channel (most of them are still in development or being filmed) but yeah, less so here, which is a shame in one way but these kinds of collaborations can't be forced: for it to work, people actually have to want to work together. Still, it'd be nice to see it more.

I think there was a brickfilm a while ago where it was the same character time-travelling, and one time zone was shot by one person and the other half of the film shot by someone else. Similarly, I think Hazzat and Daragh were involved in a collab brickfilm where two brickfilmers team up to kill Daragh (that one was quite enjoyable, as I recall).]]></description>
			<author><![CDATA[dummy@example.com (jampot)]]></author>
			<pubDate>Thu, 01 Jan 2015 16:21:28 +0000</pubDate>
			<guid>https://bricksinmotion.com/forums/post/337672/#p337672</guid>
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			<title><![CDATA[Re: Too many ideas, and how to deal with them?]]></title>
			<link>https://bricksinmotion.com/forums/post/337663/#p337663</link>
			<description><![CDATA[I do see that kind of collaboration quite a bit, Squid.  I was talking more along the lines of one person who likes to write rites the story for someone else who likes to animate, etc.  The only collaboration like this that I see is usually someone lending a voice to another's project.]]></description>
			<author><![CDATA[dummy@example.com (HoldingOurOwn)]]></author>
			<pubDate>Thu, 01 Jan 2015 15:23:50 +0000</pubDate>
			<guid>https://bricksinmotion.com/forums/post/337663/#p337663</guid>
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			<title><![CDATA[Re: Too many ideas, and how to deal with them?]]></title>
			<link>https://bricksinmotion.com/forums/post/337592/#p337592</link>
			<description><![CDATA[I actually collaborate with people rather often.  A lot of people ask my to look over their script for whatever reason or to suggest ideas.
I myself often privately upload a film as so that a small number of individuals might give some good advice on rectifications I might make before it's public release.  I feel this strategy significantly improved the quality of the two films I released this year.]]></description>
			<author><![CDATA[dummy@example.com (Squid)]]></author>
			<pubDate>Wed, 31 Dec 2014 18:49:23 +0000</pubDate>
			<guid>https://bricksinmotion.com/forums/post/337592/#p337592</guid>
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			<title><![CDATA[Re: Too many ideas, and how to deal with them?]]></title>
			<link>https://bricksinmotion.com/forums/post/337572/#p337572</link>
			<description><![CDATA[Yeah, I mentioned the combining ideas.  Also, we at Bricks in Motion are a community that supports each other, right?  And we all have our own areas of talent, yes?  Some have massive collections to build models, some are master builders, some are great animators, some write well, some are special effects wizards, etc.  And many of you are all around talented.  I happen to enjoy writing, and while animation is fun for me, I just can't do it at a fast pace.

Because of all this, I am rally surprised that members of the BiM community don't collaborate more, lending talents to others, and creating something with synergy that an individual can't do on his own.  If someone writes well, why doesn't the writer offer their script to a good, creative animator who can never come up with a story to animate, and vice versa?  I'm not being critical, but I just thought more people would pool their talents together and become teams.

After a while of seeking, someone else is animating one of my screenplays.  I'm sure that with some asking around, you'll find an animator who wants to film the kind of stories you like to write, and needs a story to film.  What does BiM community think?]]></description>
			<author><![CDATA[dummy@example.com (HoldingOurOwn)]]></author>
			<pubDate>Wed, 31 Dec 2014 16:18:00 +0000</pubDate>
			<guid>https://bricksinmotion.com/forums/post/337572/#p337572</guid>
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			<title><![CDATA[Re: Too many ideas, and how to deal with them?]]></title>
			<link>https://bricksinmotion.com/forums/post/337533/#p337533</link>
			<description><![CDATA[The opposite helps too, I think--combining ideas can be useful too.  Right now, my current project aside, I also have an idea for a somewhat supernatural mystery series with a twist of Noir (which would form a sort of loose trilogy), an urban fantasy alternate-universe type idea for a world with no specific stories as of yet (at this point it's essentially a collection of rules on how magic, technology, and suchlike works), an action movie fight scene, my potential 2015: The Contest entry (although I don't know if I'll be able to do it), as well as a whole bunch of other small ideas and cameos that aren't big enough to merit a film of their own.  I'm undecided, but at this point I'm seriously contemplating combining my first and second ideas as they would work quite well together.  All of these ideas are brewing in the back of my brain so nothing is fixed.  In fact, I feel like my urban fantasy idea could be a really good basis for a professionally made live-action feature film or TV series (which would be a [i]reeeeeeaally[/i] long shot at best, assuming I even want to go into professional film-making, but it's still a possibility).

I also try to keep a creative notebook in which I write down all of my ideas.  It helps me keep track of my ideas and allows me to write down notes on how to combine them, or create film plots.  I think it might just be the way I come up with ideas, as I tend to be able to come up with really good characters and specific scenes yet tend to struggle with creating solid plots that link these together, which sometimes means that I often come up with film ideas backwards.  For example, I managed to create a pretty solid character in Mr Vertigo (to the point where he's become my brickfilming mascot of sorts, being the origin behind the current name of my YT channel and username), yet I still haven't thought of a good story in which to put him in.  It gets to the point where I sometimes feel like my film ideas are basically chimeras of different small ideas stitched together.  My current project ([i]Seven Assassins[/i]) involves several characters and ideas that I came up with (some years ago) which I intended to put in other projects which never really worked out in the end.

Bottom line, my advice would be to try evaluate your ideas and decide if they are workable, and then see if you can combine them or create a create a new idea based on them.  If that makes any sense.]]></description>
			<author><![CDATA[dummy@example.com (Mr Vertigo)]]></author>
			<pubDate>Tue, 30 Dec 2014 23:57:37 +0000</pubDate>
			<guid>https://bricksinmotion.com/forums/post/337533/#p337533</guid>
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			<title><![CDATA[Re: Too many ideas, and how to deal with them?]]></title>
			<link>https://bricksinmotion.com/forums/post/337529/#p337529</link>
			<description><![CDATA[Something to consider as well: don't be afraid to split up ideas. Appetite Lost started out as the second act of a longer brickfilm. The original idea was never quite coming together (script issues, uninteresting characters, pacing problems), and I was preparing to scrap all of it, but I really liked the second act. So I cut out the majority of the script, patched up the loose ends, and rewrote it, resulting in Appetite Lost.]]></description>
			<author><![CDATA[dummy@example.com (Nathan Wells)]]></author>
			<pubDate>Tue, 30 Dec 2014 22:06:47 +0000</pubDate>
			<guid>https://bricksinmotion.com/forums/post/337529/#p337529</guid>
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			<title><![CDATA[Re: Too many ideas, and how to deal with them?]]></title>
			<link>https://bricksinmotion.com/forums/post/337526/#p337526</link>
			<description><![CDATA[I try to sort small ideas into which of several larger story ideas that I have they would fit best with, and add those ideas to the pile of notes I've accumulated on my computer for that particular story. Sometimes I feel like an particular small idea could fit into one of two projects, and I add a note about it into both.

As for larger, overarching ideas for a film, I pick what to make next on the basis of which ideas I think are the best, most likely to be enjoyed by others, and most practical for me to make right now. At this stage I also have to consider financing (for instance, part of the appeal of the documentary was that I thought I could get enough funding to make it, whereas some of my other feature film ideas would have been hard to get money for.)]]></description>
			<author><![CDATA[dummy@example.com (Sméagol)]]></author>
			<pubDate>Tue, 30 Dec 2014 21:30:29 +0000</pubDate>
			<guid>https://bricksinmotion.com/forums/post/337526/#p337526</guid>
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			<title><![CDATA[Re: Too many ideas, and how to deal with them?]]></title>
			<link>https://bricksinmotion.com/forums/post/337517/#p337517</link>
			<description><![CDATA[For me I work on projects that I feel close to, ones that I really care about. I don't really judge them and put them in a list, I just take my favorite and work on it. Keep your ideas documented, but don't touch them until you're done with your current. I try not to multitask. I'm then unable to pour all of my creativity into a single project, not sharing it around with other projects.]]></description>
			<author><![CDATA[dummy@example.com (Gentry Studios)]]></author>
			<pubDate>Tue, 30 Dec 2014 19:19:44 +0000</pubDate>
			<guid>https://bricksinmotion.com/forums/post/337517/#p337517</guid>
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			<title><![CDATA[Re: Too many ideas, and how to deal with them?]]></title>
			<link>https://bricksinmotion.com/forums/post/337510/#p337510</link>
			<description><![CDATA[[quote=Squid]Something I've found helps me is also spending some creative energy on another non-brickfilming subject as so that I don't accidentally think of too many ideas with a good portion of my imagination focused elsewhere.
For me this is Riigo-Faloo, I just spend lots of time (sometimes even hours a day) thinking things out, and putting down certain key details like names and dates into text files.[/quote]

I've been doing something similar with a canon I call [i]Broken Earth[/i], which is a modern fantasy thing but I've come up with story ideas for parts of history too. It started years ago as a brickfilm idea, then a live-action webseries idea, and then last year I wrote an 80,000 word young adult book that I'm still polishing (I've started the second as well).

I finally organised all of my files just before writing the book, and I've been adding to it ever since, but even that isn't quite enough for when I have fantasy based ideas, hence all the medieval fantasy stuff I suggested for the BFCU (which is also growing considerably). Just to give you a rough idea...
[img]http://i.gyazo.com/9af796594a0a65e3ac52d4d6da22f5da.png[/img]
Actually, I need to get back to Book 2 at some point.

[quote=Nathan Wells]I always want to be trying something new when I make brickfilms. Whether it's a new animation technique, a different attempt at storytelling, a new editing style, or a new genre, I want to be pushing myself out of my comfort zone. For Five Years Later, it was rapid montage editing, for Birdie it was animating brick-built puppets, for Blinders it was telling a story primarily with sound, and for my upcoming Appetite Lost, I'm focusing on on-set lighting.[/quote]

That sounds really intriguing, I'm looking forward to seeing it.

I seem to remember something about Stanley Kubrick wanting to attempt as many different genres as he could in his career, and this certainly holds up when you look at his filmography. It's a good way of pushing your ability, especially if it means delving into a genre or editing style you're unfamiliar with.

[quote=HoldingOurOwn]But I began to find plots that worked together when combined and I started to fuse two plots into a single story...it may help you kill 2 birds with one stone.[/quote]

It's quite a good idea. Shakespeare himself did exactly that when writing [i]A Midsomer Night's Dream[/i] (or at least, I think I read that he did).]]></description>
			<author><![CDATA[dummy@example.com (jampot)]]></author>
			<pubDate>Tue, 30 Dec 2014 19:03:59 +0000</pubDate>
			<guid>https://bricksinmotion.com/forums/post/337510/#p337510</guid>
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			<title><![CDATA[Re: Too many ideas, and how to deal with them?]]></title>
			<link>https://bricksinmotion.com/forums/post/337509/#p337509</link>
			<description><![CDATA[[quote=jampot]Personally, I judge each idea by what I think I'm going to get out of it (learning new techniques, whether it will be received well, whether it carries genuine meaning) and then try to make a decision based on that.[/quote]

That sounds pretty good to me. One thing I love about the older Pixar films (and they may still do this, just not as noticably) is that many of their films pushed what they could do, technically or storywise. I like [i]WALL•E[/i] a lot because they tried to tell a story without very many words (at least for the first 20 minutes). 

Many of the suggestions on how to deal with your many ideas are great. I've got a lot of ideas that I'm sitting on and refining. I use [url=https://evernote.com]Evernote[/url] to keep track of all my ideas, but I've also got a notebook or two with bunches of little ideas.

The worst thing about lots of ideas is finishing one. There will always be that idea that is cooler than the one you're working on; finish the one you're working on. You'll never finish something if you always drop it for something cooler.]]></description>
			<author><![CDATA[graemecallen@yahoo.com (Littlebrick)]]></author>
			<pubDate>Tue, 30 Dec 2014 18:51:07 +0000</pubDate>
			<guid>https://bricksinmotion.com/forums/post/337509/#p337509</guid>
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			<title><![CDATA[Re: Too many ideas, and how to deal with them?]]></title>
			<link>https://bricksinmotion.com/forums/post/337502/#p337502</link>
			<description><![CDATA[I am like you as well.
A lot of the ideas that pop into my head are either space themed ideas or military/action ideas. Since none of my ideas have been made into any brickfilms (one is in production) I have given a few to a few friends who are interested.

My current brickfilm project is an action based one. How I chose this was pretty simple; I narrowed my ideas down to two final ideas, get rid of ideas that would be unrealistic for me to make, and then choose between the final two that have the best plot!]]></description>
			<author><![CDATA[dummy@example.com (Slurpy)]]></author>
			<pubDate>Tue, 30 Dec 2014 18:02:38 +0000</pubDate>
			<guid>https://bricksinmotion.com/forums/post/337502/#p337502</guid>
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			<title><![CDATA[Re: Too many ideas, and how to deal with them?]]></title>
			<link>https://bricksinmotion.com/forums/post/337494/#p337494</link>
			<description><![CDATA[RioForce is on the right track.  Actually, everybody's suggestions here are something to consider.  But a directory for all your ideas in txt or whatever text format you like is an excellent place to store everything.  It just hit me that you can also keep a text file with the ideas you'd like to put on highest priority.

Here's another idea that really worked for me.  When I started my first brickfilm, I started developing a lot of plot ideas.  I had so many that I knew it wasn't practical.  But I began to find plots that worked together when combined and I started to fuse two plots into a single story.  I'm almost ready to tart animating my 4th epsiode, and it's the first one that puts two plots together into one story, and they work pretty well, like the individual charactrers' subplots in Seinfeld all mixing together.

Of course, I have a similar problem.  I had a sudden burst of creative energy and banged out an entire 30-page script between Christmas Eve and Boxing Day.  But as the story's timeline goes, it will be several years before this one gets made.  But if you can make two story ideas work together, it may help you kill 2 birds with one stone.]]></description>
			<author><![CDATA[dummy@example.com (HoldingOurOwn)]]></author>
			<pubDate>Tue, 30 Dec 2014 16:53:19 +0000</pubDate>
			<guid>https://bricksinmotion.com/forums/post/337494/#p337494</guid>
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			<title><![CDATA[Re: Too many ideas, and how to deal with them?]]></title>
			<link>https://bricksinmotion.com/forums/post/337491/#p337491</link>
			<description><![CDATA[[quote=jampot]Personally, I judge each idea by what I think I'm going to get out of it (learning new techniques, whether it will be received well, whether it carries genuine meaning) and then try to make a decision based on that.[/quote]

This is what I do, and I think it's a good method. I always have half a dozen ideas floating around my head, but eventually you need to lock them down and really examine whether or not you should pursue them.

I always want to be trying something new when I make brickfilms. Whether it's a new animation technique, a different attempt at storytelling, a new editing style, or a new genre, I want to be pushing myself out of my comfort zone. For Five Years Later, it was rapid montage editing, for Birdie it was animating brick-built puppets, for Blinders it was telling a story primarily with sound, and for my upcoming Appetite Lost, I'm focusing on on-set lighting.

Brickfilmers shouldn't be afraid of killing ideas. I've killed so many ideas that ultimately I didn't think would work, including a fully-scripted Minecraft brickfilm (though elements of it remain in Five Years Later). If it isn't working for you but you're still holding onto it, you are doing yourself a disservice.]]></description>
			<author><![CDATA[dummy@example.com (Nathan Wells)]]></author>
			<pubDate>Tue, 30 Dec 2014 16:43:40 +0000</pubDate>
			<guid>https://bricksinmotion.com/forums/post/337491/#p337491</guid>
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