But, to me personally, he was Dawson. I mean that as a compliment - I admire his other work but for me, ‘Dawson’s Creek’ touched my life in a way few shows do.

Us boys were not meant to like Dawson’s Creek. It was a soap opera. It was dramatic and emotional and the cool kids were watching anything other than this.

But to me, it was everything.

I learned about friendship through this show. I learned about girls. Of course, I had to unlearn everything the show taught me, because being a Dawson is not attractive in the real world.

That being said, I can’t understate how influential this character was to me.

The kid who had dreams and aspirations to break out of his hometown and become a film director, I related to it. His obsession with seeing his life as a series of storylines. Of romanticising the people and places that pass through his life. That was me.

This show came along at such a specific time in my life -- when I was a similar age to the characters -- and it gave me a sense of meaning, an emotional centre that I still carry to this day.

Dawson wasn’t perfect. And with each rewatch, he kind of becomes weirder and more annoying. But I love the guy. Van Der Beek portrayed a character who spoke to a generation, became a cultural landmark that anyone who was a teenager in the 90’s knows about.

To this day, any time I’m losing heart, forgetting the truest parts of myself, I put on an episode of the Creek. The best episodes for me are often ones where Dawson is pursuing his filmmaking dream. Or pursuing Joey Potter. It’s no coincidence that I ended up with a brunette from a small town in America. Dawson never got the girl so I had to make sure I did, to balance things out in the world.

Dawson is a fictional character, written first by Kevin Williamson, and then many others. But it was carried and portrayed by James Van Der Beek. And what he did, means a huge amount, to millions of people.

He was just 48.

And as is always the case with the artists we admire, we think they’ll live forever.

James was not much older than me. To think he’s gone, it doesn’t make sense. I didn’t know him personally yet somehow, through seeing his face constantly for close to three decades, the loss feels personal.

Rest in Peace, James. Thanks for the memories.

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Parents of murdered babies appear as ‘digitally anonymised’ versions of themselves, as does a buddy of Lucy Letby. Digitally Anonymised is a polite way of saying “FAKE AI!”

The film focuses on one of the most horrific serial killer cases in modern British history. The murders and attempted murders of numerous children in a British hospital. It’s understandable that the people involved in the case - especially victims, want to be protected through anonymity. But the filmmakers decided to use TRULY BIZARRE renderings of the people they interviewed.

They DON’T LOOK LIKE HUMANS!

They COULDN’T EVEN SYNC THE VOICES TO THEIR WEIRD UNCANNY FACES!

When the mother of a baby who was killed is being interviewed on camera, where I’d normally be feeling empathy or sadness or understanding, instead I’m completely disconnected emotionally because THE INTERVIEWEE HAS A WEIRD BALLOONING FACE, it looks like THOMAS THE TANK ENGINE MORPHED INTO A NEARLY HUMAN.

And then even when they do film and interview humans who are presented in their true human form, the interviews are weirdly stilted and unnatural. NOBODY IN THIS DOCUMENTARY TALKS LIKE A REAL HUMAN!

Maybe the police officers and expert witnesses and medical consultants scripted out their answers and then spoke from an autocue. Or perhaps they were heavily directed on how to respond. Either way - NOTHING FEELS REAL OR HUMAN IN THIS DOC!

It’s positively baffling.

The film is tonally WEIRD, nothing feels real. The devastating truth of this case is presented in such a bizarre way that it’s near impossible to fully take in what’s happening. At times, the AI-faced interviewees are so STRANGE that it literally makes you laugh.

WHAT!

Never did I expect nor want to laugh during a Lucy Letby documentary but wow, this film truly is a unique original. Awful.

We can't stop AI, it's here and it's infiltrating everything. But in a documentary like this, the humanity of the people involved needs to be protected. If you need to blur faces, or change voices, or use actors, it's understandable. But the way AI is used here is insulting to everyone involved in the case. We are listening to the horrific testimony and views of those involved, but what we're seeing with our own eyes is not human, it's just plain weird and unsettling and it undermines the documentary, making nothing seem real.

I have these discussions with my friends all the time where we ask each other - is it still art if it’s AI? Will it ever reach the point where we don’t know if it’s real or not?

Well, I think this film is real. As in, I think they’re real actors. Who knows anymore?

But you have to watch this short because it’s incredibly funny and relatable. And it captures where we’re at now, with society and AI, and it does it in two minutes.

I love that this is a short film. It could so easily have just been a TikTok. But here, presented in short film form, it works so well - and gives me hope for the format (at a time when so many people, and often myself, are thinking that the Short Film is dead as an art form).

NEWS

It’s impossible to get reliable news now. Everyone is fighting to shape the meaning of events as they happen, there’s nobody out there who can present it in black and white without telling us what to believe.

We all watched the same video of Renee Good yet nobody knows what actually happened. Liberal media is certain she was just turning the vehicle to the right. Conservative media is certain Renee was an aggressive agitator using her car as a weapon.

You can’t watch that video without hearing the voices of everyone online explaining to you what it is you saw. It's only a few seconds long, with so much context missing, yet we all proclaim to be experts.

The government have already decided the meaning. How weird is that? A person is killed and instead of letting the police figure it out, you have the Vice President at a podium.

Where can we get real, non-biased news from?

SOCIAL MEDIA

Yes, you’re obsessed with social media and so am I. But --- not as much as we were six years ago. X no longer exists as a serious platform. If you still open the app it’s only because of muscle memory.

Instagram used to have your friends and family. Now, it’s just a bunch of ‘influencers’ telling you how to live a better life.

Their lives are not better than yours. How do I know? Because of how much they’re online!

Somewhere along the way we were taught that success is posting selfies from Dubai. Turns out happiness is sitting at home with a lamp on, reading an old novel.

Social media is still prevalent but it’s losing its grip on people. We check the apps out of habit, but we’re no longer engaged.

MOVIES

I actually think movies are getting better. In the peak ‘woke’ era, people were afraid to tell stories. People got petrified and the only things being made were stories that had the ‘correct’ points of view. People were too afraid of online criticism that they got scared to have an edge. To say something that could be perceived the wrong way.

Now I feel like things are changing. Films are finding their groove. You can go to the cinema and be pleasantly surprised.

We want the diversity; we want films that come from all types of voices, but the creatives need to feel free to tell stories without shushing themselves.

I'm not saying it should be the Wild West, but that for too long now people have been second guessing themselves in order to play it safe.

TV SERIES

They’re bland. We get excited every now and again by something, but most TV now is like most coffee shops. They have different names, but inside they’re all the same.

We are not in a golden age of TV. There is no new ‘Sopranos.’ ‘Pluribus’ was fun for a few episodes but just when you think you have a new favourite show, it hits you with a ton of filler episodes.

And every week there’s a new crime drama that’s exactly like the last one.

Problem is, the stakes are lower now. When Netflix gave us ‘House of Cards’ we were ready to be amazed. We craved greatness.

Now we see the red Netflix logo and we deem a show a success if it holds our attention. ‘Second Screen Viewing’ became a buzz term, where shows are made that give us some background viewing while we scroll through TikTok.

AI

AI has already changed everything. Those who oppose it are being left in the shadows, because pretty much the entirety of culture is being shaped through it.

Your boss is running his ideas through Copilot. Your friends are getting advice on how to talk to you by pasting your messages into their AI therapy threads. And creators of TV shows are turning to it for plot twists.

The main problem with AI is that it’s very good. It can do everything. And once you get hooked, you rely on it.

Take an article like this one. It’s honest, it’s first draft-y, it’s opinionated --- and it may be good or it may be terrible, I don’t know. This is a good thing, because it’s vulnerable! But there’s the temptation to run it through Chat GPT and say ‘is this any good?’

The advice it would give, would be solid. It would improve the structure and improve the points I’m making. But would it actually be me, anymore?

And then what happens when everyone is writing everything with the help of AI? We would never get another Jack Kerouac, or Van Morrison. Everything, over time, would become the same. Not because AI spits out the same material, but because we'll all be outsourcing our judgement to a robot.

BOOKS

Books remain brilliant.

Your brain forgets this.

Books seem slow. Our attention can no longer work to their pace.

But it’s worth fighting for.

Because sitting down, reading a few chapters of a book, it improves your mental health, your breathing, your intelligence, your imagination.

ALGORITHMS

Algorithms are the opposite of books.

With a book, you decide what you want to read and then you sit with it for days, weeks or months.

The algorithm is not something you choose. You log onto YouTube thinking you want to watch a video about canoes but then the algo leads you to a strongly opinionated piece about Venezuela. And you don’t even realise you lost all free will and decision making in the process.

Algorithms are truly ruining our brains. Used to be you’d sprint down to your local record store because the band you love had a record out. Now, you exhaustedly open Spotify and you’re served a personalised mix of AI music and you don’t even know it’s AI.

Instagram and Tiktok are taking hours out of your day. You know more about right-wing politics and Manchester United’s manager search than you knew was possible, but all you really wanted to do was log on to Insta to see pictures of your niece’s birthday.

The algorithm is shaping how we are entertained, how we process politics, and how we communicate with our friends. We are no longer controlling these things ourselves.

PODCASTS

Podcasts are great if you can find your way to the right ones.

But for the most part, we’re just using them to pass time. To help us on the commute.

You try new shows every few days but tend to return to your safe favourites.

In theory, podcasts can help you listen to an endless array of voices and ideas on every topic you’ve ever been interested in. But do you really manage to make the most of it or do you tend to just listen to that thing which helps you get through your gym session?

PROPAGANDA

This takes us back to the topic of news. Most people are no longer reading news articles. They get their knowledge of the world from whatever WhatsApp videos they receive within their echo chamber.

Whether you lean left or right, you’re receiving videos about how the other side are evil.

The dehumanisation of ‘others’ is as big as its been in my lifetime. Want to be racist? Someone has twenty videos to send you to prove it’s the right way to be.

Those videos you’re receiving in WhatsApp groups are not news, they’re not even opinions, they’re propaganda. Eventually, we’re going to get bored of convincing ourselves that the other side is stupid. It doesn’t heal anything, doesn’t make us grow, it just makes the anger stronger.

We no longer hear the opinions, ideas and knowledge of experts, nor of ordinary well-meaning people. The internet has put the fringe cases front and centre. Crazies against crazies, with all of us watching videos on social media, while texting our friends saying ‘did you see this!?’

SUMMARY

We’re in strange times. People want to know the truth, but either they can’t find it, or they’re captured by social media savvy zealots.

I don't think any of us wake up, planning to be enraged. By Tiktok and YouTube and CNN/Fox News thrive on you being offended.

Truth is, there's a lot to be offended by, but not enough time to really think through what we're witnessing. So instead, we pick a side and double down on believing that everything that our side says is the gospel truth.

It's an attention economy. I'm convinced we'd all be better off shutting down and reading some books, but I'm also aware that's the idealised, nostalgic version of me talking. The truth is, we're different now. We don't read, or watch, we consume. We're hungry, and they keep feeding us.

We go to the gym for our bodies, we eat greens for our digestive systems, but what are we doing for our brains?

In recent times - instead of the typical crime documentaries I’ve been more inclined to watch police bodycam videos on YouTube. Channels like Code Blue Cam release mostly unedited videos of traffic stops, arrests etc, filmed from the body cams of police officers.

When Netflix first started pumping out the crime docs, it seemed revolutionary. Everyone was gripped by ‘Making of a Murderer’ and ‘Tiger King’.

But then came all the bad documentaries, like ‘The Vanishing at the Cecil Hotel’. Four episodes of talking to detectives and random web sleuth crazies --- a four episode arc made up entirely of filler episodes. At the very end, we find out the girl wasn’t murdered, she just accidentally drowned in the Water Tank.

I sympathise with the girl who drowned but, despite the loss, it didn’t need to be a documentary.

And that’s what we’ve all learned in recent years. Most of this crimes don’t need a six part series, you can have more fun just reading the Wikipedia page.

I love documentaries but I love them when they actually go after something. Like Michael Moore banging on doors, or the original ‘Catfish’ documentary when they were obsessed with finding the truth. Or ‘Icarus’, when they uncovered how cyclists were doping in real time.

Or, if you’re going to make a crime doc, give us CCTV footage. Give us the suspect interviews. Don’t put a retired Sheriff in an artsy looking diner and make him reconstruct everything that happened 32 years ago while simultaneously having shots of him driving around the neighbourhood looking pensive. That’s not a documentary, it’s just a waste of time.

‘The Perfect Neighbour’ is fascinating because it’s made up almost entirely from police bodycam footage. This film barely needs a director, it just needs a good editor. The footage is so fascinating! You can just let the story tell the story!

The documentary tells the story of a woman, Susan Lorincz, who seemingly woke up one morning when she was in her 60’s and decided to begin a vendetta against her neighbours; calling the police on them every five minutes, complaining that the kids were being nuisances and threatening her.

Time and again, the police turn up, find that nothing criminal is happening, and leave.

There’s also a brief scene somewhere else in town where Lorincz drives through a locked gate for no reason and the police question her about the incident.

Then some bigger things happen but I can’t tell you them all because I’d rather you to watch the thing.

But things escalate, and it all plays out on police bodycams.

After the main incident, there’s a lot of unrest in the neighborhood; and for a while, you figure there’s not going to be justice. And you sense the documentary’s angle/viewpoint on race, on policing, on gun control.

And while it does have a point of view, it doesn’t overcook it. It primarily lets the incident and the police/courts do the talking. It’s fascinating.

There’ll be other documentaries like this. Seeing real people, in real moments, filmed on a crappy bodycam is far more interesting that a polished piece with tons of interviews and analysis.

At times you feel like you’re seeing far too much. The film reels you in at first because it seems almost comical.

But then tragedy happens and you watch a family get told they’ve lost someone and the camera is so close you literally feel like you’re a part of the family. I’d say it’s a breach of privacy but I assume the family gave permission.

There’s so much more I could say but if I do, then there’ll be no point in you watching it on Netflix.

If you like crime docs that get to the point and show you the important stuff as it happens, this is the film for you.

If you prefer films with reconstructions and multiple episodes and drag and delay tactics, then this one isn’t for you.

True Crime can be fascinating. I think ‘The Staircase’ is one of the best things ever made. But in recent years, the crime show formula has worn thin.

‘The Perfect Neighbour’ breathes new life into the genre.

It would be silly to be shocked. Nobody watches it. And honestly, I’m not sure I ever did watch MTV.

Maybe once every four years I’d be flicking through the channels, hear a song I liked and stick around for fifteen minutes. But it was not a regular occurrence.

Even so, MTV was a part of the culture. “MTV Unplugged” was such a treat back in the day. You thought you knew Oasis, but then Noel Gallagher sat down and did an acoustic set and you were blown away by his brilliance. Even The Corrs did an MTV Unplugged and it was fantastic. Bands came alive by appearing on the show and breaking their songs down to the bare essentials.

Rod Stewart’s unplugged set is genius and I honestly think it’s one of the greatest live albums of all time.

The legend of MTV, it’s place in the culture, is what makes it important. Something can exist in our heads as crucial even though, honestly, it no longer plays a part in our current lives. MTV continued, in the background, and there was comfort in knowing it was there -- like some aging relative who lives in a faraway town who never seems to actually die. That was MTV, and now it’s ending.

Their reality TV channel is, for the time being, going to survive. And for younger people today - if they do know MTV - it’s probably because they watched ‘Catfish’. But even that show is now canceled and who knows how long the channel will last.

As for the music channels, it’s amazing they lasted as long as they did. Music Videos have been irrelevant for some time now. If a song is three minutes long, who has the attention span to watch the accompanying video? Years ago the music video was a great place for talented filmmakers to show their cinematic vision. But now if you want your song to hit, you’ve gotta get on a Spotify playlist or even better, you’ve got to go viral on TikTok.

But you don’t go viral for having a good music video. You go viral because 10 seconds of your song catches the public’s imagination and gets reused in hundreds of thousands of videos. That’s how I discovered Olivia Dean, someone was lip syncing to one of her tracks and I thought she sounded amazing.

MTV was once central to the culture. Their audience was young, full of energy, and music was king.

In recent decades, they jumped the shark. Moved from music to reality TV as the core focus. They did it because they had to find a way to survive.

MTV has, in its modern state, been irrelevant for a long time. Yet, you still think someone is kind of cool if you see them in an MTV shirt. They’re not wearing it because they watch ‘Catfish’. They wear it because MTV meant something. Because there was a time when we all came together because we loved music.

As for TV, nobody is watching. Primetime on TV in the UK - that golden 9pm slot - gets less than a million views now. We got comfortable saying “it’s all about streaming these days”, but when was the last time a Netflix show knocked your socks off?

You joined Facebook to see your friends updates. But now, according to Meta’s own data, only 17% of what you see on their site is content from people you’re connected with.

X, which you wish was still Twitter, is now a right wing propaganda machine, and it’s practically pay to play. You might have 2000 followers but unless you pay for a blue tick, maybe only twelve people are seeing your tweets.

Instagram used to be a platform for sharing photographs. But now they’re pumping out video reels from strangers and if you’re hoping to see pictures of your friends and family you can forget it, because that’s not what you’re being shown.

I started You’ve Got Media, thinking I would write freely about films and TV and even social media but, it’s only after I started that I realised -- nothing in the media is anything like we think it is. I wasn't sure what it actually is I'm meant to be writing about. The entire culture is changing before our eyes.

How do you even get the news these days? Do you trust the legacy media, or do you trust the conspiracists?

Maybe you chose to trust ‘The Free Press’, the news source started by Bari Weiss after she left the New York Times. But now this supposedly free thinking independent news source has been bought out by Paramount for $150million.

What upcoming movies are you excited about?

What TV show from this year have set your soul on fire?

When did you last have a fun heartwarming experience on Twitter?

Nothing is the way we think it is.

As for TikTok, it’s not even human beings posting content anymore! Most of what I see is footage made in Sora 2, we’ve got Queen Elizabeth II body slamming Stephen Hawkin, and we’ve got Freddie Mercury singing about AI and we’ve got Martin Luther King being arrested for speeding.

And we’re ACTUALLY WATCHING THIS STUFF and sharing it with friends.

A lot of us still want to read books but don’t have the discipline to turn two pages without picking up our phones.

But when we look at our phones we think it’s 2017 and we’re about to have a meaningful debate on Twitter.

Those days are gone.

‘Social’ media is gone.

The photographs have vanished from Instagram.

Your friends are not on Facebook.

And none of us can name any of the last five movies that Tom Hanks starred in.

I’m here. I’m still human. And I’m determined to continue ‘You’ve Got Media’. But first, I need to figure out what the media even is now and what it means in the modern era.

Stay tuned. I'll be back after I've prompted Sora 2 to make a video of Margaret Thatcher dancing to Taylor Swift in the middle of Toys R’ Us.

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I love both of them for the same reasons.

They're joyful.

They don't over-complicate.

They're sincere.

When you think back to all your favourite shows, films and songs from years gone by, chances are you loved them because they expressed something sincere.

Yet sincerity is so taboo in this day and age.

If Olivia Dean's song has a political message, I don't hear it.

If 'The Runarounds' has a deep thought about society's ills, I didn't notice it.

'The Runarounds' is a show about a bunch of young guys who form a band and will do anything they can to be a success.

'Man I Need' is about a woman who likes it when the man she needs calls her wonderful.

Charlie Chaplin once said "simplicity of approach is always best". I agree, but it's so hard to do. So rare that artists trust themselves by leading with simplicity.

The vulnerability of having a song that says "Hey come be the man I need!"

Or a show that strips everything down to the bare essentials of "We need to make this band work!"

It's refreshing.

I feel like we've been living in a strange cloud for maybe a decade. Partly because the old ways of consuming things was dying (remember CD's? Cinema?) and partly because you couldn't release a TV show without making a statement about how to make the world better.

But art is at its best when it's about the personal journey. About someone with a goal or need.

Olivia Dean needs this man to talk to her.

The Runarounds need to get another gig lined up.

Of course, the show and the song are a lot more layered than I'm making out. But at their core, is something genuine. Audiences don't want to be preached at, they just want to feel something.

But the algorithm Gods happened to serve up a clip of 'Moneyball' on my feed - and it felt right to immediately stop what I was doing and to go watch the film.

Film watching is a lot like running long distances. The idea of going out and jogging every night is daunting, until you start doing it, and then it soon becomes the best thing in your life.

I LOVE films. But recently, I've lost the engine for it. Not only has life got busy, but attention span has fractured.

After yesterday's post, a creative friend text me. He said: "My film/TV watching, reading and writing have dropped off a cliff this year haha".

Was comforting to know I'm not the only one. Something is shifting in the culture. New movies might be crap, which explains why we're watching less of them; but why are we watching less of the old films we love?

But one great movie will always bring you back home.

I always liked 'Moneyball'. I'm an Aaron Sorkin diehard and know most of his writing by heart. But I didn't realise just how much I love Moneyball until just now, when I watched it again.

It was only made in 2011 but already, somehow, it feels nostalgic to watch. Feels like it was made in the good old days. Maybe 2011 were the good old days. Who knew?

Brad Pitt is incredible in the film. The confidence of his acting is remarkable. He's never forcing you to like him. He's never drilling home the drama of a scene. He trusts the moment. Trusts his voice. Trusts the script and trusts the story. When you think he's going to yell, he's calm. When you think he's going to get serious, he has a smile on his face. People spend thousands going to drama school but sometimes I wonder if young actors would be better off just watching someone like Pitt.

'Moneyball' works because it captures something about life that we all know and feel.

Life has roadblocks. And most of the time we try to get through the tough times by.... doing the same things we've always done.

But like Pitt says in the film:

'Adapt or Die'.

If the Oakland A's keep playing ball the same way they always have, they're gonna sink.

So a new way is needed. And it's going to be rough.

But to forge a new path, you have to take risks. You have to be prepared to fail.

'Moneyball' resonates because Billy Beane does the things that deep down in our hearts we know we need to do, but seldom have the guts.

I guarantee that whoever you are, whatever you do, there's some path you know you need to take. But something stops you. Probably the thought of looking silly, of disappointing people, of failing.

'Moneyball' is about taking an educated gamble. Doing something you believe in. It has to be big enough that you may fail, but equally, you may make the impact you always dreamed of.

It's a heartwarming home makeover show.

In this particular episode, they were dealing with an asbestos problem. It got me wondering about the history of asbestos, when did they know it was a problem? What's the story behind it?

As we continued to watch, I thought to myself, "there must be some documentaries about asbestos."

Tonight, I considered watching a movie. Either 'Donnie Brasco' or 'Goodfellas'.

When it came to it, I realised I didn't have the energy to watch a whole movie.

Instead, I typed 'Asbestos Documentary' into the YouTube search bar.

We often perceive ourselves in a certain way. I like to think of myself as passionate about film, an avid reader, and a prolific writer.

Here we are, on 'You've Got Media', a creation of my own mind. A place where I imagined I would write deeply about movies, dissect news programming and pontificate on the nature of creativity.

I've hardly done any of those things.

At this stage in my life - I'm barely watching films. Struggling to find time to read. And when I get down time, I'm on YouTube, learning about asbestos.

If you want to know who you are, don't look at a shortlist of movies you're waiting to watch. Look at the last five things you actually viewed.

Whatever you did last night, and the night before, and the night before that, that's who you are right now.

Yes, I love movies. And I'm intrigued by all aspects of media.

Maybe it's my age. Maybe it's that I'm a Dad now with no spare time. Whatever the reasons - I have to accept who I am.

I'd love to be the guy with insight into every new release and how they compare to the classics, but that's just not where my head is at.

What that means for 'You've Got Media', I don't know. But here I am.

I guess I'm going to go learn some more about asbestos.

'Forget about who you thought you were, and just accept who you are.' -Maya (Liv Tyler in the film ‘Jersey Girl’)

Or, if you didn't watch it, you'd still give it back, and swiftly forget you ever started it.

Now the things we start stay in our watched queues forever. Maybe at the end of life, a family member should read out the names of all the shows we never got around to finishing.

Here, with a profound journalistic eye, I delve into the shows I've not finished, and try to figure out why.

Fred and Rose West: A British Horror Story

This three part series was fascinating. And by fascinating, I mean, almost fascinating.

It grips you at first because you're seeing the inside scoop on two of the weirdest serial killers of all time. Intriguing!

But here's the problem with so many crime documentaries these days. They're not being made because of new information. There's nothing investigative going on. It's just a rehash. It's like watching football highlights, but instead of a game that finished two hours ago, it's a crime spree that happened three decades ago.

A few days ago a friend of mine made a really good point about crime documentaries. She said that if the crime seems really interesting, she'll just look up the killers and read an article. It takes five minutes. Why spend many hours watching heaps of unnecessary episodes when instead you could just glance at Wikipedia?

The White Lotus

I loved season 1 and I loved season 2 and I told myself I loved season 3. But the truth is, I didn't and I don't. It's boring.

Not unwatchable boring. But, entertaining boring. The type of thing you think you're enjoying but as soon as something comes up, like needing to make a phone call or popping to the kitchen for a snack; you completely forget you were ever watching it.

I want to love it, but I just don't care.

American Manhunt: Osama Bin Laden

It was fascinating to begin with. An important time in recent history. And I feel smart watching docs like this.

But at some point I stopped watching and forgot I'd ever started.

I am certain I'll never finish it. But I wish I would.

Adoration

Italian show. Good first episode. I don't remember what it was about though. I think a girl went missing?

Zero Day

Robert De Niro is an ex-President and now he has Alzheimer's, or something like that. I'm pretty sure nobody anywhere has finished the first season.

This reminds me of another show I was watching on Apple TV, someone shot the President and they're blaming Sterling K Brown. Forgot about that one too. Is the problem me and my ever decreasing attention, or is it the shows?

The Penguin

I convinced myself it would be a masterpiece, therefore I can't bring myself to properly watch it. I am still on episode 1 but struggling to deal with the Farrell transformation and I know I need to get over myself.

Lockerbie

It's good. Intriguing. And Colin Firth is great.

But a few weeks before watching this drama, I saw a doc about the crash. And the doc is better!

But I was enjoying this.

But then I just stopped.

And pressing play on it again feels like the hardest thing in the world.

Based on a True Story

Season 1 was great. I started season 2 and then within a few episodes I completely forgot the show even existed.

In fact, I vehemently disliked something about the start of season 2. I just can't remember what I disliked.

Anyway it's sitting there as part of my great 'Unwatched'. Never to be viewed again.

What shows have you not finished/abandoned/forgotten?

Take a glance at TikTok and all you’ll see is AI videos from Veo 3. Go on X and instead of conversations between people, you’ll see users asking ‘Grok’ to fact check. Go on Instagram Reels and, depending on your personal algorithm, you’ll either see a Gym Bro upselling his course or a Mommy Vlogger telling you you’re parenting wrong. This would be fine if there weren’t thousands of these ‘creators’ saying THE EXACT SAME THINGS!

”You know what? That is not what inspires people. That is NOT what inspires people.”
-Jerry Maguire.

People are screaming for something real.

Something that will light them up.

It’s hard to believe this when everything feels stacked against creativity.

People aren’t scrolling social media because they love it.

Yes, they’re addicted.

But why?

BECAUSE THEY ARE LOOKING FOR SOMETHING.

They are looking for you. Your art, your story, your voice.

I was in a daze for months, scrolling TikTok aimlessly, feeling lost. But then I found the music of Stephen Wilson Jr.

Not to exaggerate, but my life changed in an instant. This was EXACTLY what I needed.

I’m not saying that if you listen to the same music as me your life will change. But you know what? It might. I posted a video above of him covering ‘Stand By Me.’ If it speaks to you at all, check out the rest of his music.

But if you don’t like Stephen Wilson Jr, don’t worry about it. Your own version of greatness is out there.

Remember when Oliver Anthony released ‘Rich Men North of Richmond’?

As far as I’m aware, there was no marketing company behind it. No big scheme. It was just a guy with a guitar.

It’s had over 200 million views on YouTube and now this guy is set.

I like YouTube. Nearly every night after my kid is asleep I log on hoping to be captivated. Mostly, it’s crap. An algorithm of things that are somewhat like something I used to like. It’s a bore.

But every now and then you stumble upon a Peter Santenello.

And again, his videos might not be your jam. But to me, he’s one of the best documentary filmmakers around. There’s no particular agenda, he just likes to meet people and find out what they’re really thinking. His videos are addictive - but you don’t feel like you’re wasting your time.

All of the guys mentioned above are successful, both in terms of audience and money. But not because of film studios or record companies but because they have a voice and are unapologetic about putting it out into the world.

It really is tough out there. You can be putting out great work, and have no audience. Or you can build a big audience, and still not be making any money.

I write this blog partly to inspire you to use your voice in the world but I also understand that, realistically, it still takes a long time to get to where you need to be going.

You’re probably worrying that AI is taking over everything. And in many ways, you’re right.

But what we’re craving is NOT funny AI videos. It’s not Hollywood movies made by a machine.

We want realness.

We want to follow people on TikTok who make us laugh. We want to read Substackers who reflect the world back at us. We want music that helps us understand life and we want movies that take us somewhere we need to get to.

Big movies are flopping. Famous singers are releasing generic records that mean nothing. Celeb bloggers are inspiring nobody.

It’s time for you and me.

We just need to keep believing in our own voices.

And remember that it’s a marathon, not a sprint. And we build an audience one person at a time.

Your art is needed. Now, more than ever.

I love its simplicity. And I see the film's influence in nearly everything that has come since. Remember that scene in 'Annie Hall' with the lobsters? Or the scene in 'Kramer Vs Kramer' when Dustin and the kid are cooking French Toast? Those scenes are Grandchildren of the scenes in Chaplin's film. At the beginning, The Tramp is struggling to look after the little boy--- making his food, keeping him fed. Then twenty minutes into the movie; the boy is making pancakes as The Tramp sits in bed -- it's a wonderful role reversal, and it tells us so much about the characters.

The connection between Charlie's 'The Tramp' and the kid; has anything in cinema ever been more beautifully life-affirming?

The film was such a personal one for Chaplin. Set in the Poverty-filled world he grew up in, it's a film about the human spirit; about the people that shape us as children. The film is about the same thing all of Chaplin's films were about, love. But this film wasn't about him chasing a pretty girl; it was about being a Father. Being responsible for someone else.

The sadness of when the kid gets taken away by social services, is one of the most emotional moments in the history of cinema. When the boy is on the back of the vehicle, screaming out for Charlie -- it's still painful to watch.

But let's not forget, this is one of the funniest films ever made! It's over a hundred years old, yet still it's one of the most innovative films I've ever seen. And I mean that based on watching it again now. The jokes are still fresh! Chaplin's work was so ahead of its time, so unique, and so perfectly crafted that it's utterly inimitable. Like when he keeps dumping the baby but the police repeatedly show up, or how he turns his bed sheets into clothing, or when he's hiding the kid from the guard at the shelter --- genius.

‘The Kid’ is poignant.

If you haven't seen it already, please do. I'm not one to demand everyone go and watch every classic film ever made. As important as 'Citizen Kane' historically, many people will tell you its a snorefest. But 'The Kid' is, I genuinely believe, one of the most watchable and entertaining films of all time. And it’s only 52 minutes long!

Charlie Chaplin is, above everyone else in the history of cinema; my absolute hero.

I love Nora Ephron’s New York. The romantic, let’s-grab-a-coffee-and-walk-through-the-Upper-East-Side New York. It’s a New York I knew myself; but only because I loved ‘You’ve Got Mail’ and spent my first two visits to Manhattan with the soundtrack in my ears, pretending I was Tom Hanks.

A New York that I love even more is the ‘Frankie and Johnny’ New York. It’s gritty, it’s raw, it’s full of hard-working people trying to make the best out of their tough lives. It’s not quite ‘Taxi Driver’ NYC and it’s not ‘The Godfather’ - it’s something more vital and real and alive.

What is the real New York and what is purely imagined in my own head?

At it’s best, New York is the ‘Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist’ New York, when you’re darting across the city with a singular mission that absolutely must be achieved. I was at a birthday party in Brooklyn, some decades ago, when the birthday girl couldn’t eat her cake, because she was vegan. So myself and some guy I’d just met drove over the bridge into Manhattan to hunt down an appropriate cake. This was before veganism was everywhere, and seemingly before you could just Google ‘Good vegan cake.’ It was a heartfelt mission that plays in my memory like a favourite old movie.

Nearly all of my favourite movies take place in New York. From ‘The Apartment’ (oh how I wish that version of the City still existed), to ‘Almost Famous’ - where Penny Lane overdoses in the Plaza Hotel. Thank you, Cameron Crowe, for making Elton John’s ‘Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters’ a key part of the New York that plays in my head.

New York has been romanticised and it’s been painted as a hellhole. Sometimes even as a romantic hellhole. ‘A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints’ is in my all time top 5 films. Not sure many other film lovers rate the film highly, but for me - it captures an NYC I know and feel in my heart.

Every beat of this film feels real to me. When I can’t go to New York, which is most of this time, this film transports me. I’m not saying I recommend you watch it, because one thing I’ve learned is that my New York is different to yours.

If you mash up Nora Ephon, Cameron Crowe and Woody Allen, and mix it in with Al Pacino, Robert De Niro, and Spike Lee - you find yourself in my New York. I’m not sure this place exists in real life anymore. Nor is it found in modern movies.

But it existed, for a while.

I made a short film in 2013; set on the streets of Manhattan and Queens. It brought together so much of the city that I love.

Before you watch that, here’s a random YouTube video; it’s someone with a terrible camera filming the city to the sound of The Indigo Girls covering ‘Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters’.

Somehow, this video became a big part of the New York in my head. You’ll see the influence in what I show you next:

Myy short film: Emilie and New York City.

It references ‘You’ve Got Mail’ and ‘The Apartment’. The composer, David Wittman, also composed music for ‘A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints’. Here I’m bringing lots of my favourite things together.

This is a zero-budget film. No crew, no nothing - just me and a couple of actors (Chelsea Watts and Eden Marryshow) and a battered old camera. It’s part the movies I loved, part that random Indigo Girls video, and part ‘You’ve Got Mail’, to the sounds of the composer of a film far grittier than mine.

This feels like yesterday, but I shot it nearly thirteen years ago. Weird when your own projects start to look like period pieces. The New York I captured feels different already. I miss the New York I knew in recent decades but I also miss New York of Joseph Mitchell’s New Yorker articles from the 1940s.

The city is always changing.

That’s what makes it so vital.

Such an inspiration to writers and filmmakers.

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What Joseph Mitchell saw was different to what Woody Allen saw. It changed again for Nora Ephron, and then Spike Lee showed us something entirely different.

I’m not sure who will be next but someone will come along and refresh our vision of it once again.

But what if in the past thirty years, the artist has an entire alternate discography waiting in the shadows?

Bruce Springsteen has announced a new release for June 27th, 2025, and it's SEVEN ENTIRE PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED ALBUMS. WHAT!?

For some artists, the stuff from the vaults is a curiosity. It's a fun look at the stuff that didn't make it. With Bruce, if it's anything like the iconic 'Tracks', then the fans are about to get 82 of their all time favourite songs. It will change what we know about Bruce Springsteen.

When The Boss created his Broadway show, and when he released his autobiography, there was a sense of completion, the feeling of his story being set in stone.

But then you find out he has an entire treasure trove waiting to see the light of day.

Tracks II has been a mere dream for Springsteen fans for decades.

For the diehards, it's not just a bunch of old music, it's a rewriting of the story. A new understanding of Bruce's history. The Greasy Lake forums will have renewed energy in coming months as the fans band together to discuss the meaning of the songs, to understand why they remained unreleased, and to figure out what these releases mean about his ever increasing legacy.

Twitter came along and told everyone to write in 140 characters, so we did, for years.

Google wanted us to stuff 'keywords' into our blogs, and overnight the internet became unreadable.

Then the gossip blogs started using hooks to reel you in. You'd be half way through an article before you realised the title beared no relation to the content you were reading.

And now most online journalism consists of shock headlines, like "MANCHESTER UNITED PLAYER FURIOUS WITH MANAGER." You have to scroll through eleven paragraphs and 22 adverts just to find out that Manchester United's reserve goalkeeper is slightly aggrieved because the manager made him train on a Tuesday when he thought he'd be getting the day off.

Social media became a place where writers and creatives had the possibility of crafting something meaningful.

Yet 90% of these sites are scam artists trying to teach you how to get rich. "EARN 50k a week on TikTok, it's easy!" Or "Here's how to get 10,000 subscribers on Substack in the next month."

Bad, non-authentic creativity is already everywhere.

And now, AI is here.

Many people use it to write.

And most of those who don't use it to write, at least use it to research. Used to be if you were writing an article about airplanes, you'd spend days or weeks researching and maybe if you were lucky you'd get an engineer from Airbus and he'd tell you everything you need to know. Now you can just ask ChatGPT how airplanes are built and it will know the answer.

But just like with SEO stuffed blogs, and just like with those finance bros on TikTok who know how to ‘get rich’ -- we can CHOOSE to not partake in the game.

The great writing of history is still available. For me, a week doesn't go by without my picking up my favourite book, 'Up in the Old Hotel' by Joseph Mitchell. His writing about the characters of New York - the bums, the misfits, the forgotten - the words fill me up creatively. His writing still excites me and inspires me, even though I've read each story a hundred times.

You have your own version of that - a writer who has that spark. It might be Nora Ephron, it might be Ernest Hemingway or it might be a poet on Substack who has only nine subscribers.

Yes, AI is taking all of our jobs. And there will undoubtedly be people who will sit on a beach reading an AI novel and they'll be none the wiser. But you're not one of those people and neither am I.

Humans need humans. Some don't, some are happy to spend the rest of their lives in a computer simulation. But for the rest of us, we're still searching for words. Real words.

The human mind is an incredible thing. When someone truly writes from the heart - and when they're open enough to let their subconsciousness seep into the writing, magic happens.

Now, let me tell you how airplanes are built…

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For more than a decade, I’ve made a living writing and directing showreel scenes for actors. Weird way to make a living, because I’ve had to explain what it is to nearly everyone I’ve met who isn’t in the industry (and many who are!).

PERSON: “What do you do?”
ME: "I’m a filmmaker, and writer.”
PERSON: “What kind of stuff?”
ME: “I write and direct showreel scenes from scratch for actors.”
PERSON: “What’s that?”

Then would come a long-winded, rambling explanation:

ME: “Oh, so— for actors who perhaps don’t yet have TV and film credits, I write scenes for them, based on what will suit them, and then I direct them on a filming day.. and then edit them. And also for more established actors - perhaps someone who gets cast a lot in dramatic roles and wants to get into comedy, I’ll make a scene for them— or for a comedic actor who wants to get into drama… or a theatre actor who wants to do more TV…”

Now, in the age of influencers and YouTubers, there are a plethora of ways where creative people make a living with digital video. But starting out, my niche often didn’t make sense to people.

On top of that, the way the industry feels about showreels is ever changing.

“Showreels should only include actual TV and Film work…”
“Showreels from scratch look really fake and the scripts are awful!”
“Showreel scenes are a great way to show what you can do!”
”Have a montage, using music.”
”Never use a montage!”
“Showreels are pointless, just use self-taped scenes of yourself!”
“Film it yourself.”
“Don’t film it yourself, it’s amateur!”

Opinions on showreels change as much as the weather, but I’ve tried to stay consistent throughout in what I do.

My Unique Selling Point in the showreel world is that I write every single scene that I shoot. At this point, I’ve worked with hundreds of actors, and it’s all been material that I’ve written. This focus on originality is what has kept me fresh—- it’s a joy to meet new actors because it means I get to write for a new person.

Not to say it hasn’t been challenging over the years—— there’s only so many ways you can write a break-up, or a police interrogation— but that focus on short bursts of dialogue and conflict has really helped me hone my craft as a writer. It is this focus on short content that helped me when I went on to create comedy sketches for social media that would be viewed by hundreds of millions of people.

The Best Part of the Job?

Is that it has introduced me to hundreds of brilliant actors. I could probably be a casting director at this point, because if you need a specific actor, to do a specific thing, I probably have a good idea of who you should hire.

For most actors I work with, the dream is to get more work in Film & TV. But a deeper, less consciously understood goal is often; to be more fulfilled by the material they put out into the world, to have more autonomy in their careers, to step forward confidently in the pursuit of their acting ambitions.

…The Hardest Part of the Job?

It’s wondering if I’ve stopped short of my own career goals in service of helping others with theirs. Don’t get me wrong— I enjoy the showreel work, it pays me, and it’s fulfilling to write and direct scenes for actors who trust me and believe in what I do. But with each passing year, there’s a nagging feeling I should be focusing more on writing longer form content— to have my material serve a bigger purpose for me as a writer.

Another hard part is knowing that —

The Showreel Guy Never Gets Any Credit

Partly, it’s my fault. I have never put my name on any part of a showreel video that I’ve created. There are hundreds of videos out there that nobody knows I filmed.

This is by design - you want the scenes you shoot to look like they’re from film and TV. You want people to say:

“What happens next?” - or
“What is this from?”

It ruins things for the actor if they have to say “Oh, it’s the work of some showreel guy.”

The successes of most showreel makers happen quietly. It’s not meant to be about us.

A sadder part of this is another common factor - that actors will disown that they ever had a showreel made from scratch, once they’re getting regular work as an actor.

I can understand the reasons why, but it’s hard when you’re the guy who created the material, the applause is never for you.

Showreel Creation Has Led to Many Great Experiences

I feel very lucky, and privileged, to have been able to write and direct showreel scenes for some top drama schools, including Guildhall School of Music & Drama, ArtsEd, and most recently, East 15.

What I am most proud of is that all of the above mentioned schools approved of me writing the scenes specifically for each actor I worked with. For me, this is crucial, because the worst thing an actor can do on a showreel is rip off some copyrighted TV show or play and use that material. It rarely suits a reel, it often looks like impersonation - and it’s unlikely to impress the people who are going to be watching the clip.

Drama schools tend to focus on well-known writing for most of what they do. For good reason, too - of course actors need to learn Shakespeare, etc!

But I think it can be a jolt in the real world once performers leave the safe walls of their school, and find themselves contending with real world script material. That’s why it has been such a joy to write scenes for students in drama schools; because it mirrors what they’ll be facing when they’re out in the industry.

I’ve also appeared on many podcasts, spoken at colleges, been invited to many industry events — all from the very unexpected beginnings of making bespoke reels for friends, back when I started making short films.

What does the future hold for Showreels?

Showreels change, much like actor headshots. There’s always new advice and ideas.

“A showreel must be less than 3 minutes!”
“A showreel must be less than 2 minutes!”
“A showreel should have as many scenes as possible!”
“A showreel should only be one or two scenes!”
“The characters should be wildly different to show versatility!”
“The actors should be quite similar so people get a sense of your casting type!”

The opinions are relentless.

If you’re interested in my hard-worn knowledge (aka: yet another person’s showreel ideas; Buy My Book on Amazon.)

As long as actors are getting new agents through showreels, as long as casting directors are watching them, and as long as actors continue to get new work through their demo reels, showreels will stick around and be a very crucial tool for professional actors.

The Job That Shouldn’t Exist

Given the mixed opinions on showreels from industry professionals over the years, I think my quips about how ‘my job shouldn’t exist’ became a defence mechanism. I was in some ways apologetic for what I was doing.

I got started doing this job because actors would be waiting years to get material back from filmmakers they’d worked with. If they hadn’t been forced to wait, there may not have been room for me.

But, there was room for me.

Now, I have clients on Netflix. On Prime. On Cinema screens and on the BBC. What I do is a success, it’s meaningful, and it’s leading me towards ever more exciting things.

If you’re interested in working with me or finding out more about showreels, head to my website.

Kevin Smith is the indie film ideal. An idiosyncratic writer who crafts highly personal films. And they're usually hilarious.

Over the years, Smith flirted with the big leagues, writing huge franchises and bigger budgeted movies. But now, he seems comfortable where he is - being himself. Writing the films he wants to make and wants to see.

I class myself as a big Kevin Smith fan, yet I've not always loved the output. The tough thing with a writer like Kevin Smith, who repeatedly "returns to the well", is that he's going to attract criticism that he's ‘repeating himself,’ and ‘making the same movie.’

That criticism works well when the films aren't very good.

But when he nails it, you realise how great it is that he returns to the well. It's a place full of heart, creativity, hilarity and meaning.

The 1980s setting breathes new life into the Kevin Smith universe. Yes, he's bringing back themes and actors (in supporting roles) that he's used before, but it's fresh, it's engaging.

I'm constantly hearing on the internet and in the media that 'most films are made me for people like me’, i.e being a white, straight male, etc. But the truth is, in the last fifteen years or so there have hardly been any movies I’ve genuinely related to.

But this one really clicked for me.

Underpinning the comedy is a simple, heartfelt story about a guy wanting to take a girl to the cinema. Watching this was a great reminder that simplicity works. A guy asking a girl on a date and not knowing whether it's going to work out was great fodder for movies in the 1980s and it still is now.

As for the nostalgia, it hit me to the core. It's not a rare thing these days to see the 1980s played for nostalgia kicks. All it takes is a stroke of synthwave and some wavy hair and you've got yourself some feels.

That said, even though it can be a bit of a schtick, when it's done well, it really captures you. I felt similarly about the film 'Adventureland' (2009, Greg Mottola). I must've watched that film 30 times, it just resonated with me.

And so did this.

Going to the movies, not just because you want to see a flick, but because it's a huge part of your identity, is something I related to. It's not so much who I am now, but it's who I was then, when I was younger, when me and my friends had nothing better to do than go see a movie. What I saw in this movie, was myself.

And all the best movies make you feel that way.

I sent a text to my friend Paul after I saw this film. We've probably seen ten Kevin Smith films together, usually at the Prince Charles Cinema in Leicester Square.

He didn't like it. The film barely worth more to him than a sentence.

At first, I felt disappointed. How can he not like this film?

But then I felt a peace about it. This is exactly how indie film should be. When you have a personal voice like Kevin Smith, his art isn't meant to appeal to everyone. Even within his fanbase, not everybody will like every film. If they did, it would probably be a sign the filmmaker is being lazy, repeating the same stuff.

'The 4:30 Movie' is my favourite Kevin Smith film of recent times, and I enjoyed it as much as, if not more than, any new film I've seen this past year. Films like 'Anora' and 'The Brutalist' may have won the awards, but 'The 4:30 Movie' won my heart.

And no, you're not shadowbanned.

It's because your content SUCKS!

Okay, maybe it doesn't suck. Quite likely, it's been put together well and you're using your creative skills.

BUT THAT DOESN'T MEAN ANYONE IS GOING TO CARE ABOUT IT!

It used to be about follower count. If you had 10,000 followers, that meant thousands would see your stuff.

But now, followers are irrelevant.

Nobody has time for average. Nobody has room to be bored.

If your video moves people, they'll hit like.

If the video really grabs them, they'll share it.

If the video outrages them, they'll leave a comment.

They'll even come back to the comments to argue, and then they'll stick around for days.

But if you think they'll watch the video because you have a lot of followers, then you don't understand the internet in 2025.

It's EASY to say the algorithm is to blame. Super simple to say: Instagram is screwing me! Tiktok is hiding my stuff!

No, your work is not grabbing people.

If it's great, it gets shared.

If it's unique, people will debate it and argue about it.

This is true for comedy sketches, true for political debate, true for cat videos.

Don't be annoyed about how content works in this day and age. Be excited - because if you truly nail something that resonates, it will spread.

The three most recent videos on my Instagram:

One has 30,000 views.

Another has 300,000.

And the other one has 14.9 million views.

Did you the algorithm screw me on the one with the least views?

No, it just wasn't good enough. It didn't grip people.

The one that is nearly at 15 million, it got people talking. I've had to file 50 copyright infringement notices because people keep posting it on their own accounts. This is a sign I did my job, I made something that connects.

When it doesn't connect, the fault is not with the algorithm. If you blame the social media company then you're not taking accountability for your own work.

Take responsibility for your content. Be the one who makes sure it's worth watching.

Worth sharing.

Worth arguing about.

The algorithm loves you when you truly show up. When you're willing to provide value, originality, humour, and skill.

Many thought you were insane, or plain dreaming. Many thought you’d fail.

And of course, they’re right about failure.

All creativity is failure.

Even if you have a success, the first thing people ask is, ‘what’s next?’ -or- ‘Can you achieve that again, or was it a fluke?’

Even if you weren’t the type of teenager to proudly state your ambitions. Instead, maybe those dreams quietly grew inside of you. Everyone else in your class was struggling to come up with a story to write, but you could do it with ease, because writing came naturally to you.

The thing they don’t tell you about being a creative, is that it’s a lifelong thing. If you’re a filmmaker, you make films. If you stop, people ask why you stopped. You usually say ‘I’m between projects,’ or ‘I’m working on something,’ but it’s rare you say ‘my soul has died, I’m empty. I just want to win the lottery and watch reality TV.’ But that is truthful more often than it’s not.

Your creative spark requires renewal. A rebirth. Everyone else gets to say ‘I don’t like sci-fi,’ but if you’re creative, you can’t turn completely away from a genre because, eventually, you’re going to need to find some inspiration from it.

Inspiration. What a word. It sounds— inspiring. But so often, it’s a slog.

Do you honestly know any creative person who is constantly in a state of beautiful, wonderful creation?

Sure, many people say they are abundantly and never-endingly creative. Good for them, but do they have an audience?

Because when you have an audience, it gets harder.

Your ego wants your stuff to be great.

Your audience wants the same thing as before, only they don’t want to notice it’s the same as before. If they spot you’re plagiarising yourself, they’ll tell you you’re out of ideas.

“YES, I AM CONSTANTLY OUT OF IDEAS!”

That’s another thing we rarely say.

To be creative is to constantly be on a press junket in your own head, where you tell everyone around you that your new project is coming soon.

When you started out, you got to believe that your creations were masterpieces.

Eventually, you learned your own averageness.

Here’s the level most people don’t get to:

Realising you’re average, and then creating anyway.

Substack is an incredible example of the insanity. Every writer on the platform has to take a position.

So often that position is:

“I don’t write for others, I write for myself.”

Or—

“I only have three subscribers and it’s all I need.”

Of course, we’re all fooling ourselves. I’d love for ‘You’ve Got Media’ to be a giant empire that brings me wealth and fame; but I’m burned out and barely write two articles a month.

And yes, they’re average!

But nearly everyone who is creative is average.

Occasionally, whether it’s the zeitgeist, or just plain luck, we nail something. We go viral. We mean something to people.

With virality comes opportunity. People interested in collaborating with you, maybe even paying you.

The problem is that after your viral smash, you need to produce something else.

And inevitably that thing only gets 19 views.

So who are you - the guy who got millions of views or the guy who got 19?

Which ones defines you?

Neither SHOULD define you, because you’re a well-rounded human being. But when you do creative work, you’re constantly on the hook.

Somebody’s going to try sell you a book or a course that’ll make you be happy with where you’re at, but those people are frauds. They’re only creating those courses because their art isn’t paying the bills the way they thought it would.

Everyone creative is trying to do work that means something.

But they’re also trying to pay the bills.

And sure there are people out there who post poetry for nobody just because it’s a fun hobby, and that’s fine.

But most of my friends who do this stuff, they do it for a living. You wouldn’t know that, because they’re working in cafes and being extras on film sets and going into debt buying new computers for video editing.

Somehow we gotta get back to the brains we had as teenagers.

When it was fun.

When somehow, it was easy.

When we felt INSPIRED!

Everyone tries everything.

Inspirational self-help books.
Vitamin pills.
Retreats.
Holidays.
5am Ice Baths.
Podcasts.
Taking in world affairs.
Ignoring world affairs.
Writing to idols and potential mentors.
Going it alone.
Rehashing a past glory.

The point to all this ramble is that creativity is a full time job. And virtually no-one doing it is in a healthy, wonderful and rested, non-addicted mind.

I know for sure I’d be more creative right now if I was reading two hours a day, but I have a baby, and I also have social media to scroll through, where can I find the time?

If you have a friend who has tried to get a project off the ground at any point in the last five years, check in with them. Not to judge their progress, but just to say hello - to let them know they have an ally on their crazy, lost, lonely creative journey.