Stay in Your Lane: A Timely Rant Against Getting Pushed Into a Creative Box

In an era in which solo creators and small teams can create the kind of work that used to require many more people and the resources of a well-funded studio, creatives often need to wear many hats to realize their artistic vision. Yet still, we insist on categorizing their creativity in narrow boxes.

I recall a time some years ago in my working life when I transitioned from working for large companies to the world of small, venture capital-funded startups. By comparison with my previous work experience, this new environment felt incredibly stimulating due to one particular quality that appealed to me above all others. As with all projects of any depth or complexity, there were many problems that needed to be solved. But in contrast to the situation in a large organization, where there was a specialist assigned to each of them, every member of our small team was often required to wear many hats, to learn new skills, and to work somewhat outside of our comfort zone.

In a similar manner to the kind of scientific and technical environments that I have worked in, creative projects often get subdivided into specialties, with the number of these and their degree of specialization increasing with the size and level of funding of the project. But the kinds of projects that used to be the exclusive domain of deep-pocketed corporations who funded studios and large teams to pursue their creative projects can now be realized on a much smaller scale by a few people or even a solo creator. Movies, documentaries, and TV shows can be filmed with hybrid cameras or even cell phones. Stunning aerial shots that used to require a helicopter and a pilot can now be shot using a tiny drone that costs only a few hundred dollars.

This phenomenon represents a kind of democratization of art, which, along with online publishing channels like YouTube, creates a wealth of expressive opportunities for anybody who might have a creative bent but lacks the funds and resources of a major movie studio or TV network. Many of the people creating cutting-edge work on these platforms are effectively solo creators who shoot stills and video, process and edit this work themselves, and even make their own music to accompany it.

The creative skills and instincts that underpin these various activities often overlap to a considerable degree. Somebody who considers themselves primarily a videographer, for example, is still going to bring their trained eye and well-tuned aesthetic sensibility to still photography.

And this brings us nicely to the video that I want to share with you today.

“Stay in Your Lane” is a timely rant from Ben Staley, a professional filmmaker whose channel “Adventure & Art,” I have been a fan of for some time now. Ben is clearly one of those energetic creatives who always seems to be thinking several projects ahead and isn’t afraid to dive into the work on any aspect of their production. In this age of creative opportunity, Ben is one of those people who likes to wear many hats. His primary professional area is videography, but that does not mean that he cannot also be an excellent still photographer (which he is), or a director, or even a writer. Ben has skills and experience in all of these areas, and yet he still runs into this somewhat outdated and institutional tendency of people wanting to assign creatives to a particular box. "We're looking for a director, but aren't you a videographer?"

I already introduced Ben Staley in previous articles, and even if his name is not familiar to you, you have almost certainly seen his work. Ben is an award-winning videographer and filmmaker whose stunning imagery has been featured on popular TV shows like “Deadliest Catch” and “Ice Road Truckers.” As I already mentioned, Ben also happens to be an excellent still photographer and regularly features his still photography work on his YouTube channel as well.

Ben’s rant against this tendency to label creatives is timely and, I think, important. It’s something he’s clearly very passionate about, and this is reflected in the rather salty language that he sometimes uses in the video to express his frustration about it. Strong language warning aside, I feel that this video offers excellent encouragement to anybody who is suffering through the kind of creative identity crisis that can be triggered by other people telling you what they think you are, or should be.

When it comes to realizing your own personal creative vision, my personal take on Ben's message is that you should not be afraid to learn what you need to learn or do what you need to do, regardless of what others might be telling you is “possible.”