It's like breathing...

Are you riding out the storm or are you in a corona funk each headline elbowing out the next? I try to stay vigilant for the traps but have gone there a couple of times myself. We all miss the crackle and energy of a social setting. We feel oxygen deprived. We’re even deprived the simple pleasure of seeing smiles, now hidden behind the masks. I’ve clipped my own hair a couple of times…best say no more. Paul in the next building, has turned gray, almost overnight.

Our industry has been hit hard as most people live project to project. The unimaginable difficulties of so many out of work makes my heart hurt. However there are signs around the world, that we are coming out of the fog. Filming in highly controlled environments has started in South Korea. There is also self-quarantine, before filming starts, in Sweden. The Czech Republic has started up again. Los Angeles is still a question. The UK is impressive in efforts to support both theater and film. In Greece outdoor productions starts this week. Screen Ireland has announced an initiative to give selected writers up to 8,000 Euros as development money. The Irish who have a long tradition of appreciating writers recognize that without scripts there would be nothing to produce.

This shelter at home period has been undeniable proof that stories are ‘an essential,’ essential for humans to pull through bad times and as always to enjoy in good times. So we can all pinch ourselves out of this funk and see this horribly unsettling time as an opportunity.

The irony is that with all the mess in our lives the skies are clearer than they’ve been in years. The earth itself, our planet…is breathing. A joyful reminder of what we might have taken for granted. Yet too often I feel at sea. The wind has died down and I’m just bobbing in the water. There are scientific studies which point to the fact that it is hard for most people to feel motivated when living in isolation. But as with everything else, there are two ways to look at it. As writers we can welcome the eerie silence outside and make room in our psyche to see more, feel more, hear more, give more, write more. A time to harvest an abundance of ideas. A time to let our imaginations breathe. And hopefully, one where we as a society can correct some of our wasteful ways and become one that is more conscious and caring and just.

This is also a perfect opportunity to be honest about our work habits, how we measure our days. We can start now getting ahead of the curve that the future is bound to bring. Personally, I’ve taken these long hours spent alone to reset my life, even just a little. The planet is breathing better so why not I? Well, my yoga practice isn’t arbitrary anymore, I don’t skip it because maybe I’ll do it later, I just simply DO it. Every day. Sitting at the computer for hours is the worst. So I remind myself to lean back every so often and quiet my mind, by breathing in and out, slowly and rhythmically. Then sitting up tall taking a deep breath opening legs wide, folding over at the waist hands to the floor and letting go with an audible exhale through my mouth. Feeding my back with a few deep breaths. Ah so good! Breathing oxygenates the blood, restores energy to every part of the body, calms the nervous system and brings clarity and focus to the mind. Can’t get more corona virus specific than breathing!

Spinning on that thought, stories have to breathe too. No it’s not just a fanciful idea. More on that in my next blog.

There is potential and opportunity at every turn in life. All we have to do is grab it. Embrace it. Make it our own. And come out of it a better person doing better work. More attuned and in tune, so we can create material that fulfills us, that is brimming with life, and when realized, will entertain and satisfy and move audiences. Writing a screenplay is a long process and with the joy of it, comes in equal measure, the work involved in getting there.

Stories help people feel connected and though opening up actual filming, has more questions than answers right now, the need for content will only increase. The world will always need stories.

Well after that long soliloquy… I owe you a reward. A short film that says all there is to know about storytelling: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yQQIOMubFAI&list=PL8BA9wj9_b4HsVYK1LX_B8BlJEZsg-E03&index=11&t=140s Enjoy!

Thank you for reading my blog and please leave a Comment. I always look forward to hearing from you. If you would like to develop your work click on the TUTORING link to read more. Or click on the CONSULTING link to learn more about a one time script analysis or for periodic consulting on a script you’re working on. Send me a personal message about either by clicking on the CONTACT link and I’ll get right back to you.

Stay well and stay safe and stay hopeful.

See you next time.