Escaping the Creative Rut: Lessons from Sam Kolder on Art & Deadlines

Do you feel like you're stuck in a creative rut? Are you frustrated with the pre-production process, struggling to find the right music, or just can't seem to find a good story to shoot?

If you are nodding your head, you need to check out Sam Kolder's video, "How I've Grown as a Creator/Human."

Full creative rights and credit go to Sam Kolder. The use of this video in the blog is purely for educational purposes and to share this video with others.

This isn't just a tech review or a tutorial; it is a deep dive into the creative process from beginning to end. Kolder argues that our art is much more linked to our humanity than we might think. Throughout the video, we learn a crucial lesson: as Sam grows as a person, he also grows as an artist.

Content is Experience

As artists, we rely on our senses, what we hear, see, smell, and feel to create work that is true and expressive. It's not just "content;" it's experience. Especially with video, we have the power to create visual moments that help other people feel exactly what we felt.

Sam explains this perfectly: he had to learn to be himself to discover his own effective creative process. He admits that even as a famous videographer, he created projects he wasn't proud of because he wasn't being authentic. The only way he broke through that wall was by doing the work, practicing the craft, and not being afraid to mess up or face criticism.

The Practical Tools: Deadlines and Pre-Production

This piece isn't just about the emotional side of creativity; it provides the concrete stepping stones to getting things done.

Two major takeaways changed my workflow:

1. Set Hard Deadlines: Sam emphasizes that setting deadlines is vital to ensure we keep creating and, more importantly, finish our work. When we set a deadline, we are beginning with the end in mind.

2. Edit Before You Shoot: This sounds backward, but it works. Sam builds out his video timelines and picks his soundtrack in the editor before he picks up the camera. This helps him storyboard and go into the shoot with a plan, rather than overshooting and trying to find the story later in a mess of footage.

Real-World Application: The "Same Day Edit"

Just these two skills, deadlines and pre-production planning, increased my production quality tenfold. I recently put them to the test while shooting an event recap for a company called Tranont.

This wasn't a standard shoot; it was a "Same Day Edit." This means the client orders a video to be filmed during the event and then shown on the big screen before the event is over.

In the past, this task seemed insurmountable and incredibly stressful. But after watching Sam's video, I changed my perspective. I realized all I needed to do was relax, be myself, and apply some pre-production planning.

Here is exactly what I did:

• One week prior: I found a song I really loved on Envato Elements (a great resource for music and video assets).

• The Pre-Edit: I placed the music in my timeline and set markers for where I wanted high-energy clips, low-energy clips, and B-roll filler.

• The Shoot: At the event, I felt total relief. I wasn't filming blind; I was filling in a checklist. I knew exactly what to shoot and where it would go.

• The Result: At the final session, I threw the clips into the timeline, synced them to the beat markers I had already set, and voila! I had a polished video to present to the crowd, and it was a huge hit.

The Takeaway

Don't wait around for someone to tell you what to do. Be authentic, use the skills you already have, and love the creative process enough to do the hard work of pre-production planning before you arrive on set.

Check out the Sam Kolder video linked above, and stay tuned for more posts on the Splendor Media Blog!

Comment below: Who is your favorite video creator or film director right now? Let's discuss in the comments!