Playing and being childlike to be more creative

Imagination and creating is our essence

Getting caught up in the more “serious” aspects of a career, you may lose contact with that child part of being an actor or other artist.

Psychologist Robert Maurer noted in an interview that children are “playacting from the time they have words and the ability to move.

“They begin fantasizing, playing, imagining, and creating. To me, that’s the essence of the human spirit: the ability to imagine and create.”

He continued:

“What the actor does is refuse to let go of that most human of all our drives.

“Most of us get corrupted in that pursuit and go after other things like money, power, possessions. But acting, in its true sense, is the essence of the human spirit.”

From article The Vision Thing by Karen Kondazian, The Actor’s Way column, BackStage West.

But children can also experience trauma and fear.

Dr. Maurer declares “Fear is good. As children, fear is a natural part of our lives, but as adults we view fear as a disease.

“It’s not a disease. Children say they are afraid or scared, but adults use the clinical terms anxiety or depression.

“A writer should not view fear as something bad, but as essentially doing something right.” 

From article Fear and being creative.

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Kirsten Dunst once commented:

“It’s so important in this business to stay open and childlike. You don’t want to block yourself. It’s really important to be affected by things.”

(Photo: Kirsten Dunst in On Becoming a God in Central Florida – 2019 Showtime series.)

Jamie Lee Curtis has claimed to be “as much of a child-adult as there is. I’m frozen at about 6 and a half.”

And Paul Newman once commented, “I suppose that the best actors are children, so to that extent that you can sustain and maintain that childlike part of your personality is probably the best part of acting.”

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Milla Jovovich recalls, “I was a very disciplined kid. I was never treated like a little princess, I was never told: ‘Oh how cute you are like this!’”

“My mum criticized me more than she complimented me: that’s another Russian characteristic.

“The idea being, that a child should not be allowed to become completely self-assured.”

But she also commented about a result of that upbringing:

“It’s funny, but I think that I’m more of a child now, exactly because I’m no longer afraid of being one.

“I’ve more freedom. Before I was always trying to seem like an adult. I matured rather early.”

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Psychotherapist Mihaela Ivan Holtz helps creative people in TV/Film, performing and fine arts.

In an article of hers, she notes :

As an artist, you have a deep calling to create.

And, at the same time, you need your audience to show you how much they value your art or your performance. 

When you look at your audience’s reactions to your art, you see it as a reflection of who you are and what you’ve created.

Your audience is your mirror.

You may think of looking at your audience, your mirror, as a very in-the-moment experience.

When in fact, you may be seeing your entire lifetime reflected back at you – especially your earliest years.

Your childhood experiences can influence how you relate and how you expect people to respond to you.

Read more in article: How you were as a child and how that may influence your art or performance today.

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