JJ Abrams + The Mystery Box- 01.10.08
First things first ~ i think my favorite thing about running the NOTCOT sites is YOU. Yes, you readers who find and share the most inspiring and incredible things with us whether it is via NOTCOT.org, email, im, etc. I don’t lie when i say that thanks to you, i haven’t had a day that i wasn’t incredibly inspired by something since the sites launched back in 2005. So, thanks for that!
But moving along, this whole little 4am emotional outburst is triggered especially by the latest TED talk with JJ Abrams that Jason Wishnow was kind enough to enlighten me with. I had never really looked into the background and philosophies of producer, director, screenwriter behind things like Lost, Alias, Felicity, etc… who knew the guy was quite the geek, lives right in my neighborhood, and might have a box/packaging obsession to rival mine? In fact ~ he has a laser cutter! (which he apparently uses to make his own boxes as well as turning his kids sketches into 2D renderings) - all this random info is courtesy of a fun NYTimes interview i just found… and his full TED bio is after the jump.
But if you’re wondering why i have an image of this awesome Tannen’s Magic Mystery Box with the incredible typography up there… well, in his TED talk, JJ Abrams will tell you his story of this 15$ mystery box that his grandfather bought him, that he has STILL YET TO OPEN… and he discusses the concepts of infinite possibility and the power of a sense of potential… how mystery is the catalyst for imagination… and that life altering moment where he realized the possibility that mystery is more important than knowledge… the difference between what you think you’re getting versus what you’re actually getting… and how this applies to movies, storytelling, life… and how incredible it is that todays ubiquitous technologies have made it possible for anyone to instantly try their hand at writing/publishing (i.e. blogging) and movie making to a degree that wasn’t even possible a mere 30-40 years ago. Anyhow, this is an inspiring one to kick off your Thursday with… watch the talk after the jump!
Why you should listen to him:
As the Emmy-winning creator of the smart, addictive dramas Lost, Alias and Felicity, J.J. Abrams’ name looms large on the small screen. As the writer/director behind the blockbuster explode-a-thon Mission: Impossible III, the upcoming Cloverfield and the next Star Trek movie, these days Abrams also rules the big screen — porting his eye for telling detail and emotional connection even to larger-than-life stories.
Abrams’ enthusiasm — for the construction of Kleenex boxes, for the quiet moments between shark attacks in Jaws, for today’s filmmaking technologies, and above all for the potent mystery of an unopened package — is incredibly infectious.
“As a boy, JJ Abrams was fascinated with magic. As a television writer, director, and producer, he has beguiled audiences with a masterful use of suspense, plot reversals, and special effects.”
—— Wired
OH, and in case anyone else is wondering, or wants to help me with my nagging curiosity as to what is IN that box… i’ve googled and ebayed with no success to find one of those boxes and what’s inside… but i did track down Tannen’s Magic Shop which has a really cute logo and has been around since 1925. So, let me know if you find out what’s inside! (And i understand the whole point is not knowing… but… yea, well, i couldn’t have survived as many years as he has with that box,… but i suppose its the lifelong suspense that keeps it fun… is that his inspiration for rimbaldi’s box?)
Hi Jean, Great post on JJ Abrams. Lost had me going for quite a while…and the scene in The Graduate he mentions is genius.
----- Jeremy 14.01.08 15:31