Spark ⚡1: What are your conditions for being creative?
The other night, I went to see Martin McDonagh’s movie “The Banshees of Inisherin” starring the phenomenal Brendan Gleeson and Colin Farrell amongst others in this great cast. It’s set on a fictional remote island in Ireland during the Irish Civil War of 1923. As usual, I had read the blurb before I went, but even if I hadn’t, I have always really admired Martin’s work and and I was pretty sure I was going to like it.
Like? Love? Dislike? Moved? Disgusted? Shocked? ..any of these could have come up at any point in the movie and to be honest most of them probably did but none of these really sum up what made the movie so poignant for me.
The spark for me came from the film’s exploration of what it means to be a human and especially a creative human. What do we each need to survive? What’s the legacy we need to leave? It also serves as a reminder of what one person needs isn’t necessarily what someone else needs.
Brendan Gleeson’s character, Colm, is a fiddler, an accomplished musician and a thinker and he is battling with his purpose in life. To be clear, this is a remote Irish Island with one pub and one post office and a mighty fine splattering of scenic but remote views. You would think if you needed alone time here to be at one with your artistry you could find it. Not so it seems.
His ‘friend’, Pádraic, is a simple soul played by Colin Farrell who loves nothing better than talking about mindless, trivial stuff and having a pint with his mate. As Colm tackles what his deeper, existential purpose is in life the wider the gap gets between him and his ‘friend’. You see, Colm, is an artist and is battling with his own mortality, this is only amplified by the encroaching explosions we hear from the war on the mainland, we sense how he feels a pressure or a calling to leave an impact on the planet from his time on it. There’s an impending sense of time running out and a need to be remembered for more than being ‘a nice bloke’. He refers to Mozart not being remembered for just being a ‘good talker’. There’s a sense of urgency in him, a fear that life is passing him by and mainly that his ‘friend’ is distracting him from his creative genius. From his perspective, Pádraic is not just annoying but he is instrumental in wasting his precious time. He can’t waste any more time. His whole legacy is at stake. He becomes so vehmently focused on having freedom from his ‘friend’ to create his life’s best work that when he doesn’t listen to him he makes a threat which is at once shocking and also damaging to his skill and artistry as a musician.
What is the catalyst for this drastic action?
He needs space and demands it. He needs to be surrounded by a different creative circle to feel inspired so he sets up a group of musicians. He realizes what is wasting his time and makes changes. It’s ironic that even in so much pain, when these extremities set him ‘free’, he creates his best and most explosive work. He becomes like a man possessed with his music roaring up inside of him and exploding with more power than he even thought was possible.
So my questions to reflect on today.. 💫
What do you need to create your best work?
What impact do you simply have to have?
What is standing in the way of doing your art today?
Hi, I’m Suzy, Founder of Firelit. I am a coach and mentor for actors, writers and creatives. I am passionate about sparking creativity, nurturing potential and giving all artists the confidence and courage to be powerful.
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