Round Robin

Contributors (in order of appearance):
Tom Hartvigsen
Weber Griffith
Keith Grover
Hannah Hansen
Adam Hardy

When the police officer returned to his car to scan the driver’s license, he found he had locked himself out.

The officer quickly drew his side arm and opened fire on his car window. It had been a long day!

As each shard of glass hit the ground, he felt his control slipping.

You’re buying me a replacement proclaimed his mother.

Middle-aged Brian lived with mom. Mom's into sci-fi. The metal cereal bowls were always off-limits. Brian didn't listen.

Combined Artist's Statement

In Totems without Taboos:The Exquisite Corpse Paul D. Miller discusses the need for us to respect the flow of information from different places, perspectives and cultures. In our own version of the exquisite corpse, we too had to practice this respect for each phase of the story. Each night there would be a new edition to our story and we no longer held the control to change or develop it.  In that sense, nothing was really our own. Everything was sort of an homage. Each artist was trying to express their independence in creativity, while simultaneously bending their personal pursuits to align with the previous artist. This process resulted in a final product that reflected the different perspectives and ideas of each contributor.

As to how each individual story turned out, we can all relate to Adam’s comment on his final compilation:  “In terms of my own story's exquisite corpse, I think there was a slight creative disconnect.”  Keith’s comment may explain a little bit as to why there was a creative disconnect: “As for me, I was limited by time and my inability to draw, but my contribution meant something different for the masterpiece.” Different styles of art led to different interpretations.  As one of the great philosophers has said, “Anything you put in front of the human eye man will draw a conclusion from;” once the artist has released his work, it belongs to the general public for interpretation.  Thus the theme of each of the stories were different based on the translation of the previous artist.

The exquisite corpse can be compared to the cartoon, Adventure Time, in the fact that all parts/episodes have their own beginning, middle, and end.  Yet they do not necessarily have to be viewed in order. Similarly, each story in the creative corpse does not necessarily communicate the same theme. The collaborative process and the mixing of form and content, narrative and theme, individual story and series is beautiful in and of itself.  It shows how similar yet different man may be.

As aspiring filmmakers, it is important to realize the auteur approach is not necessarily the best way to go. Making a film is a big deal and there's no way one person will generate the kind of depth that makes for good stories. Paul D. Miller talks about the sheer volume of information available to people today, which allows for infinitely more connections than ever before. Letting go of pride and ownership allows us to enjoy the endless buffet of experience coming from all sides and contribute our own bits. The writer may win the Oscar, but that award is due in part to the 13 year old girl on Pinterest and the source from which she pinned. No matter how successful we may be, we can never take full credit. Our part may merely constitute the feet.