Jethro Waters

Director, photographer and filmmaker, Jethro Waters, is best known for a more avant-garde, magical realist approach to filmmaking whose work has been published in The Guardian, Rolling Stone, Pitchfor, NPR, Spin, and Billboard. Here Jethro shares about the ebbs and flows of creativity, how he got started making films and his launch into the world of documentaries, what it’s like to film your real-life heros and why the work of an artist is never done.

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Artistry in any form is a mountain.  And it’s really important that once you start the climb you don’t stop because, if you want to master something, it’s going to be a lifelong journey.  You will likely never reach the top but you will get a lot better the more you climb.

Some things we talk about…

  • the longevity of art – or what it takes to become a master
  • how to deal with the ebbs and flows of creativity
  • knowing which ideas to pursue and which to drop
  • why you must make your work and put it out there (even if you’re not ready)
  • how to choose between helpful feedback and feedback best ignored and
  • how to know when your work is done 

“I don’t believe in perfectionism at all. I think that it’s absolutely essential that your art has imperfections in it.” 

“The best thing you can do is make your thing. And then put it out into the world. If you make it and get it out into the world, there is a really good possibility that someone will catch on to it.”

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