Someone to Read Your Drafts

I really enjoyed the reading this week. Not only was it entertaining, but it was definitely full of useful advice for artists hoping to create brilliant pieces of art. I found myself being able to really relate to the author. She constantly talked about how she feels anger and sometimes even hatred to those who are not entirely thrilled with her work. I think that this is true for all artists. Artists whether they are writers, painters, or filmmakers, are extremely vulnerable. This is because we are putting our hearts and our souls into our work and we want others to accept, appreciate, and love what we do. However, people will not always love what we do and sometimes it takes an outside perspective to point out what we are missing in our pieces that would make our art more understandable and gratifying to an audience.
It has been very challenging in Brad's 185 class to screen everyone's work. We do this routinely and although it is very helpful, it is also pretty scary. I feel very nervous every time one of my films comes up for everyone to critique and view critically. Sometimes I am offended, hurt, or even mad when the feedback I receive is not what I was expecting or hoping to hear. It is hard to put yourself out there and show an entire classroom or even one person something that is so close to you and that is apart of you because what if they don't like it? But the thing is, it is necessary. Other people's opinions, although hard to digest sometimes, are extremely helpful in the artistic process of creating something meaningful and beautiful.
It is important for me and for other filmmakers to remember to be open minded and appreciate comments on our work. It is also important to remember that critical does not have to be cruel. This is important to remember when we are critiquing other people's work. Our perspective and suggestions for others' work can really help them and it is not necessary to be hurtful. It is very difficult for you to hand your work to someone else and wait anxiously while they meticulously read or view what you have created, but it is an essential step in the process of perfecting your piece. For this reason my goals for responding to feedback would be to stay positive and open-minded and not be offended by suggestions for improvement but really consider them and incorporate them into my work. I am asking for feedback so I should listen to it and use it. If I didn't do that then my work would never be nearly as good as it could potentially be.