Carl Jung’s favorite classic myth called THE WATER OF LIFE inspires an indie filmmaker to change his approach to Hollywood…and life. In our latest video, Hunter re-tells the myth and also explains how it applies to our journey of making an independent feature film.
Carl Jung had a profound impact on artists in his own time and his relevance has only grown in recent years, with his writings on dreams and archetypes holding relevant revelations for creative types diving into their own personal unconscious and exploring, knowingly or unknowingly, the collective unconscious that surrounds them. But this simple story doesn’t just provide fuel for an individual character or symbolic image, but supplies a kind of code for how an artist might approach his entire life’s work.
Some essential lessons to draw from the “Water of Life” story for independent filmmakers.
1. Go with Intrinsic Interest, Not Public Interest. Where the powers-that-be and the public-at-large may be interesting from a sociological point of view, but creativity is an internal process that requires you to dive within yourself. By doing so, you may anticipate where the crowd might go in the future.
2. Systems Decay and Die for a Reason. No singular approach or creative movement can last forever with the integrity and curiosity with which it began. It’s only human that, after a while, the material rewards for a job well done start to corrupt and stagnate what once was a flowering notion. Don’t be too attached.
3. Keep Searching. The water of life – symbolic for the transcendent, life-giving force that none of us can fully understand – is ONLY to be found in unexpected places. So keep searching. Don’t ignore territory that’s out of fashion or overlooked. In fact, those are precisely the areas that may contain a hidden reservoir of the water of life.
Jung’s story of “The Water of Life” brings up an essential question for every filmmaker facing choices on how to approach their project. Will you be a seeker or a supplicant? Watch Hunter talk about the story and its importance in the Video Essays members-only section of our Patreon page.