Make something original
Do you like imagination? Well, too bad. We’re killing it. But, imagination is important for us to advance society and to keep ourselves entertained. How many people put their own spins on the same meme or dance or stupid TikTok while barely adding their own thing? And it’s not just trends on the internet – seriously, how many times can you make the same movie, but just change basic plot details?
The Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) made billions of dollars by making multiple movies a year from the same template for a decade. All of the MCU movies are the same with a basic layout and little changes. For example, in their first films, Thor and Iron Man have the same arc, but it takes Iron Man to escape from the cave for his arc to resolve while it takes Thor to get the hammer back for the same to happen. Same concept, just one thing slightly different.
Singular creative thoughts, that millions of people will copy, can shape our culture. People can still make creative things, but they are likely either going to be copied or copied with a tweak. Don’t get me wrong, these copies can be better than the original, or even fit a separate purpose, but we need to see more original ideas.
One original idea should produce other original ideas, instead of just tweaks. Some people may debate that a tweak makes the idea become its own; tell that to your favorites’ bad adaptation or sequel. You can’t critique it based on the merits of what came from before because it is its own thing.
The fact of the matter is that an idea tacked onto something original doesn’t make a new idea. That is when you see what has been done and do what you can to stand out.
Making a robot ninja and putting it in Star Wars is something new. Using the same meme template but changing the picture or three words is not something new. The ideas that have been done are extremely easy to find, especially with the Internet. Even making a big-budget movie is a do it yourself project now.
So, please, for the love of creativity and to help people not be bored, go out and make something that makes your own brain explode. It doesn’t have to be good, but it has to be yours.
