Kev H on the Card Community
+5 (1 votes)
Loading ...Posted on: March 21, 2008
Who do we perform for?
The people on the other side of some random computer screen, or people in real life?
When you’re doing flourishes for people out in the real world, what’s usually the case is that everything you’re doing is brand new to your spectators. As a result, you want to be doing the most eye-popping, variety-rich material so as to effectively display your masterful prowess in this little-known art. So what usually happens is that you’ll turn to the tried-and-true, published material of the masters to include in your arsenal of 52. And that’s perfectly fine.
However -
When you’re performing for the online card community, it’s a whole different case.
Is your intention to impress us? If so, the bars have been set – there are countless amazing videos out there, so if you want to make any impact at all you’re going to have to raise the stakes a little. If I’m going to sit down and spend a minute or so of my time watching a video, why should it be yours? Usually this involves the introduction of original moves, original takes on classic moves, or an original approach altogether. One of the most awesome videos of all time, Daryl Ho’s Reloaded, only had a few original moves, but the way in which he approached the presentation of the video had never been done before, and it remains iconic for that reason.
On the other hand, perhaps you’re posting a tutorial of a move, which is admirable – one can be a little… hesitant to share material nowadays, for reasons I’m sure we’ll all aware of. But like it’s been said before, keep in mind that merely adding a packet to a cut or changing the direction of a swivel is not enough to be able to call something your own. In my opinion, it has to do with intentions – are you merely publishing a tutorial so as to present the illusion that you have original material, or do you genuinely have something worthwhile to share? Usually it’s the second case that brings more inspiring material in terms of originality.
Part of the reason the online card-related video community was started up over half a decade ago was so that people who did what we did could give honest and constructive feedback on each other’s progress so as to help each other get better, advancing the future of the art in the big picture. But what happened along the way is that it turned into a competition of which metaphorical lab rat could get to the metaphorical cheese the fastest, and all those who were generous enough to share their own material started to withhold in disillusionment. The solution is simple – for commenters to have higher standards and let people know when their roses really smell like poo-poo-ooo, and for those with an abundance of original material to come out of their cages and start providing hotspots of inspiration again.
All in all, though, keep in mind that this art is still in its beginning stages – the foundations are still being laid out, so consider yourself lucky to be one of the early practitioners of the sport. And while you’re at it, why not add a building block of your own?
-Kev, The Virts
as read in dananddave.com/forum
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December 13th, 2009 at 7:44 pm
Well said Kevin!
Your an huge inspariaton to me!
Fredrik