The Vs. Studio Blog

“In my whole life I’ve never been good at something I wasn’t very interested in. It just doesn’t work. There’s no substitute for strong interest.”
— Charlie Munger

“Mastery is the best goal because the rich can’t buy it, the impatient can’t rush it, the privileged can’t inherit it, and nobody can steal it. You can only earn it through hard work. Mastery is the ultimate status.” -Derek Sivers

“You’ve got to find what you love. And that is as true for your work as it is for your lovers. Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven’t found it yet, keep looking. Don’t settle. As with all matters of the heart, you’ll know when you find it. ‘-Steve Jobs

Love is the fuel of excellence. There is no other fuel. There is no other way to mastery.

If you don’t love the thing, you won’t put in the necessary work over a long enough period of time to be excellent at that thing.

If you haven’t found that love, then you have two options:

1. Stop the pursuit of excellence. Settle.
2. Keep looking. Don’t settle until you’ve found that love.

Per my meaningful consumption practice, I try to log all the films, plays, albums, and books I consume in a year. It only takes a few minutes each day and doing so provides a nice look back at the end of the year.

In 2024, I saw 128 films (my goal was 100). I prefer films to tv, though I’ll watch a limited series if someone recommends (Ripley was really good). Some of the films listed below I’ve seen prior, but one of the great things about having two teenage sons is you get to introduce films you love to them. When it’s their first time viewing, it’s like your first time all over again (The Graduate, Before Sunrise, and Can’t Buy Me Love all come to mind. Yes, I’m a romantic at heart.) Shout out to American Cinematheque for providing an opportunity to see great, classic films on the big screen.

Okay, without further adieu, below is my baker’s dozen list (in alphabetical order)…

Act Of Violence directed by Fred Zinneman – shout to Eddie Muller and TCM for programming this film noir gem; check out the impressive diversity of Zinneman’s filmography

Apocalypse Now Redux directed by Francis Ford Coppola – had only seen the original, never this longer version; was a great opportunity to introduce the film to my younger son, Truman; a powerful and mesmerizing viewing experience for both of us

Conclave directed by Edward Berger – saw it in the theatre; an ensemble of phenomenal acting and gripping storytelling

Den Of Thieves directed by Christian Gudecast – while it may not be Heat, I love that it wants to be; an awesome bank heist movie that me and my older son, Callum loved; put this on a double bill with Shot Caller

His Three Daughters by Azazel Jacobs – great acting and a perfect ending; I love that the director cared so much to shoot it in 35mm film

Janet Planet directed by Annie Baker – saw this in the theatre with a live Q&A with the director and cast. Julianne Nicholson gives a master class in simplicity

La Dolce Vita directed by Federico Fellini – always wanted to see this masterpiece and it delivered; I definitely plan to own it and watch repeatedly

On The Waterfront directed by Elia Kazan – one my all-time favorite films; I’ve seen it countless times and own the 4k; Brando gives, in my opinion, the greatest male performance ever on screen; this was my first time seeing on the big screen however (thank you American Cinematheque); took Truman and he loved it; I wrote this blog post about the experience.

The China Syndrome directed by James Bridges – saw it twice this year; great acting including Jack Lemmon in a supporting role (speaking of Jack, I saw Save The Tiger again (he’s so good in it); introduced Callum to Glengarry Glen Ross (another personal fave; he loved it) and watched Missing for the first time.)

The Hunchback Of Notre Dame directed by William Dieterle – Charles Laughton is incredible as Quasimodo

The Last Stop In Yuma County directed by Francis Galluppi – saw a screening including a Q&A with the director and cast; a fun indie gem and true labor of love; wrote about it in this blog post

The Monk and The Gun directed by Pawo Choyning Dorji – saw it in the theatre; such a cool and imaginative premise and story

They Drive By Night directed by Raoul Walsh – great film noir; Bogey, George Raft and Ida Lupino don’t disappoint

To Kill A Tiger directed by Nisha Pahuja – a moving documentary that stayed with me; saw it in the theatre

Okay, that’s my list. I’d love to hear some your 2024 favorites. Send ’em my way!

“The cave you fear to enter holds the treasure you seek.” -Joseph Campbell

“If you’re not feeling those butterflies, you’re not taking a big enough risk.” -Ray Manzarek

“Fear causes hesitation, and hesitation will cause your worst fears to come true…If you want the ultimate, you’ve got to be willing to pay the ultimate price.” -Bodhi (played by Patrick Swayze) in the film Point Break

How alive you feel is directly correlated to how big a risk you take.

To feel alive, you don’t have to be Johnny Utah and jump out of a plane.

You do need to face your fears though and take a chance.

Remember…no risk, no art.

“Make before you manage.” -Tim Ferriss

“Make movies. Not meetings.” -Mark Duplass

“I like to find (a) simple solutions (b) to overlooked problems (c) that actually need to be solved, and (d) deliver them as informally as possible, (e) starting with a very crude version 1, then (f) iterating rapidly.” -Paul Graham

“Remember that whatever discipline you are in, whether you are a musician or a photographer, a fine artist or a cartoonist, a writer, a dancer, a designer, whatever you do you have one thing that’s unique. You have the ability to make art.

And for me, and for so many of the people I have known, that’s been a lifesaver. The ultimate lifesaver. It gets you through good times and it gets you through the other ones.

Life is sometimes hard. Things go wrong, in life and in love and in business and in friendship and in health and in all the other ways that life can go wrong. And when things get tough, this is what you should do.

Make good art.

I’m serious. Husband runs off with a politician? Make good art. Leg crushed and then eaten by mutated boa constrictor? Make good art. IRS on your trail? Make good art. Cat exploded? Make good art. Somebody on the Internet thinks what you do is stupid or evil or it’s all been done before? Make good art. Probably things will work out somehow, and eventually time will take the sting away, but that doesn’t matter. Do what only you do best. Make good art.” -excerpt from Neil Gaiman’s 2012 commencement speech at The University of the Arts.

A 2025 Artist Resolution (and every year resolution):

More making.

Less spectating.

P.S. – The full Neil Gaiman speech here and read the transcript here. Highly recommend.

“After a while I went out and left the hospital and walked back to the hotel in the rain.” -last sentence of A Farewell To Arms by Ernest Hemingway

“I lingered round them, under that benign sky; watched the moths fluttering among the heath, and hare-bells; listened to the soft wind breathing through the grass; and wondered how any one could ever imagine unquiet slumbers for the sleepers in that quiet earth.” -last sentence of Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte

“Where I am, I don’t know, I’ll never know, in the silence you don’t know, you must go on, I can’t go on, I’ll go on.” -last sentence of The Unnamable by Samuel Beckett

So maybe you’re Act One was just okay.

And Act Two was a disaster.

But hey, you still got time, you can give a dazzling Act Three.

Great teams, athletes and artists all share this in common:

They know how to finish strong.

Run what’s left of the race.

Go all out.

Give it everything you got.

Finish strong.

P.S. – Talk about a closing kick.

Loyalty is an admirable virtue. It simply means showing up and doing what you said you were going to do.

Perhaps you pride yourself on your loyalty. You always come through for your family, friends, co-workers, neighbors, etc…

But are you loyal to yourself? Do you keep your own promises?

If not, why not?

P.S. – “The world’s worst boss.” One of my all time favorite Seth posts.

“Enthusiasm is one of the most powerful engines of success. When you do a thing, do it with all your might. Put your whole soul into it. Stamp it with your own personality. Be active, be energetic, be enthusiastic and faithful, and you will accomplish your object. Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm.” -Ralph Waldo Emerson

“You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with.” -Jim Rohn

“Art is not a luxury. It’s sustenance.” -Ethan Hawke

Nothing is more compelling than listening to someone’s enthusiasm and passion for whatever they’re working on. It’s rare to find those people, but when you do, it’s inspiring. Because you realize “Yes!” It is possible to feel that way.

As much as you possibly can, surround yourselves with such folks.

And realize that when you choose to find and produce your passion project, it is a gift. Not just the project itself, but also how it can inspire others to go and do likewise.

Like the infinite loop of grace, your enthusiasm is the gift that keeps on giving.

P.S. – This short TED talk by Ethan Hawke. For whenever you need a little enthusiasm boost.

“Humility is not thinking less of yourself, but thinking of yourself less.” -C.S. Lewis

“Humility is not a lowering down to the ground, as the word’s Latin root (humus) suggests, but a rising up and a reaching toward something we can never quite touch yet must trust is there. Some call this faith — faith that the world holds together, that our tiny and transient lives are nonetheless an essential part of the whole, that the choices we make within them change the shape of the whole, that love is the mightiest choice we could ever make and the highest form of faith.” -Maria Popova

“Humility does not mean self-abnegation, lassitude, detachment; it’s more a calm recognition that you must trust in that which does not make sense, that which is unreasonable, illogical, silly, ridiculous, crazy by the measure of most of our culture. You must trust that you being the best possible you matters somehow… That doing your chosen work with creativity and diligence will shiver people far beyond your ken. That being an attentive and generous friend and citizen will prevent a thread or two of the social fabric from unraveling…This is what I know: that the small is huge, that the tiny is vast, that pain is part and parcel of the gift of joy, and that this is love, and then there is everything else. You either walk toward love or away from it with every breath you draw. Humility is the road to love. Humility, maybe, is love.” -Brian Doyle, One Long River Of Song

Humility isn’t about lowering or thinking less of ourselves, though as C.S. Lewis writes above, we’d be wise to think of ourselves less often. If for nothing else, peace of mind.

Humility means trust.

Trust that you are a part of something much bigger than yourself. Some thing or some force that’s been here waaaaay before you were born and will be here loooong after you are gone. Trust in the mystery, awe and wonder of it all. The big picture will work itself out however it’s supposed to work out.

Yet also trust in the beautiful dichotomy that while it’s all so much bigger than you, your seemingly small and insignificant change can make a huge impact.

It can. Humility allows you to trust in that.

Go make your art.

Uh-oh, I feel a sports metaphor coming on…

It doesn’t matter that the only reason you got in the game is because you brought the ball. Or that there were nine players and they needed you for ten to run full court.

All that matters is what you do once you get in the game.

“If you truly do your best, and only you will really know, then you are successful, and the actual score is immaterial whether it was favorable or unfavorable. However, when you fail to do your best, you have failed even though the score might’ve been to your liking. I want to be able to feel, and want my players sincerely to feel, that doing the best that you’re capable of doing is victory in itself, and less than that is defeat.

I don’t think you could find any player to tell you that I mentioned winning. I wanted winning to be the byproduct of the preparation, and failure to prepare is preparing to fail. I always wanted them to have that satisfaction within themselves, that peace of mind within themselves, that they made the effort to execute near their own particular level of competency, not trying to be better than someone else, but be the best that you could be.” -John Wooden

“How you climb a mountain is more important than reaching the top.” -Yvon Chouinard

“Make today your masterpiece.” -John Wooden

I’ll take the “10” effort yet “4” outcome result, over the 4-10 every single day of the week.

It’s what you do when you’re not feeling it, when things aren’t going your way, that will define you in the long run.

Make your EFFORT today, your masterpiece.