Is Creativity a Formula?

Creativity is one of those subjects wrapped in shrouds of mystery. How does one “get creative.” How do you go from staring at a blank canvas, a black and empty composition, and then end up with a masterpiece. Everyone has a different take on it, and most people try to boil creativity down into repeatable steps. I’ve heard many variations of 3, 4, 5 or 6 step plans to getting creative:

1. Preparation 2. Incubation 3. Illumination 4. Implementation

1. Observe 2. Reflect 3. Make

1. Inspiration 2. Clarification 3. Evaluation 4. Distillation 5. Incubation 6. Perspiration

I think creativity is quite a bit more ambiguous and mystical than a clever sounding 5 step plan and I also think it will be different for every person. Let me share what works for me:

Find inspiration

Finding inspiration before I start transforming a blank canvas is key. My process usually starts with cruising the internet, taking screencaptures of design or photographs that spark something in me. It could be a color scheme, a font, a background texture etc. I compile all of these into a folder. All of these different inspirations start to focus my mind into a direction I want the piece to go.

Set boundaries

In my opinion, setting boundaries is the key to getting started. The hardest part for me is the first object/element I put onto the blank canvas. Setting boundaries helps you narrow down the infinite possibilities into something that can focus your mind on. Deadlines are one boundary that will force you to get started and do the work. I watched a video recently by Jack White of The White Stripes talking about boundaries. He said this:

“Deadlines and things make you creative, but opportunity and telling yourself “you’ve got all the time in the world, all the money in the world, you’ve all the colors in the palate you want, anything you want” — that just kills creativity.”

Start with one piece of the puzzle

I look at the client, their logo, a font they require, their color pattern, their vibe/mood. These things all set boundaries as well. If I have a certain color palate, then I have a boundary. If they require a font, then I have a boundary. These help me put something into my empty comp. They help me start the process. I find that once I get one element in place, then my mind clicks into the flow and everything else is simply getting lost in creating and filling in the pieces.

Crank up the music and get lost in the flow

Once you get that first element in place and you have started the process, the rest is easy. Your mind is prepped and ready. You have boundaries and direction. At this point I turn up the music and get lost in my mind. Simply enjoying the process of creating. Not really thinking, just enjoying. This is the “flow” that is so coveted and so sought after; A strange phenomenon where you lose track of time and simply enjoy the process.

As for the details of the process, this is my workflow: I create 3-4 style frames for a project. I generally show one style frame for how I will treat a text moment, one frame for how I would treat any video that is in the spot, and one frame for the end slate with client logo and call to action. I create these in After Effects which may or not be unusual. I know a lot of people do them in Photoshop, but I can’t stand doing that. All of the effects and plugins and presets that I have are in After Effects so I feel like I have more options and tools. I also am able to “build” the scene to some degree and then when the concept is approved I don’t have to re-build it. It’s ready to go.

I never, ever turn on the 3D layer button or animate anything. That is a limitation I put on my design phase. Everything is 2D and the layers are simply stacked on top of each other. I do this so I have more creative freedom to grab layers and push them around and try new things quickly. Animating anything or “testing out” a camera move simply takes too much time. The goal is to create a design, not to animate. Once I changed to this mindset I was able to create concepts much quicker. If I’m doing any C4D work I will render out a single frame, bring it into AE, play with it, go back to C4D and make tweaks, then render that frame out again. It makes it incredibly easy to integrate the two programs when you’re just doing one frame and it gives you the ability to try out so many different variations on a design.

Take a coffee break, then come back and look at your creation

When I’m done creating a design I step away. I go for a walk. I go refill my coffee. Then I go back and look at the design. A lot of times you need to step away, even overnight, before you can see what you have created with the perspective of someone seeing it for the first time. Getting others opinions is vital also, since you are so steeped in the design you may be blinded to little details.

And that’s my process for coming up with a design. It works for me. I’ve spent years trying to figure out the way my mind works, the way I get into the “flow” and the way I find inspiration and translate it into unique and powerful design. It most certainly is a process that you will have to figure out yourself.

I’m interested in how you stay creative and what your process is! Please share in the comments!