Creativity in Motion by Penumbra Entertainment

Lee Percy and Eric Schunk are friends who live in Atlanta. Besides being longtime architects, each with a wide variety of experience in the field. they also share a passion for illustration and drawing. Every couple of weeks, they get together and venture out into Atlanta in search of something to draw.

In this episode, Chris and Mark talk with Lee and Eric about how switching gears and going out into  public spaces to practice their craft informs their professional work as architects, designers and project managers. Topics also include the importance of being present while you’re creating and tips to get you started when you find yourself with “blank page syndrome”.

Chris and Mark talk with sound designer and game developer Russell Mehringer about making the transition from working at a creative business to owning that same creative business. Among other topics, they talk about the business aspects of running a creative company and how business limitations can impact creative decisions. Also, Russell details his process of creating the sound design that the client wants.

In the episode, we speak with author Lacey Johnson about how to know if what you create is good, why  the reticular activating system (RAS) is so important to creativity and what happens when your subconscious erupts.

In the episode, romance novelist Marty Chester talks to us about her writing career and we talk about the difference between being skilled, talented and being technically proficient.

In this episode, Mark and Chris revisit the first 11 episodes and the guests that they had the chance to interview including three guests they met on a week long road trip through the Carolinas.

Then they talk about the different stages in their careers and how some of those stages are best left in the past.

Dr. Leo Twiggs was born and raised in St. Stephen, South Carolina. He navigated his way through some of the most tumultuous years in US history, including the civil rights movement, to become the first African-American student to receive a Doctorate of Arts from the University of Georgia.

He created the Fine Art Department at South Carolina State University, where he taught for 25 years. Along the way, he became an accomplished batik artist, whose works are held in public and private collections around the world. 

In this conversation, Dr. Twiggs talks about his early family life growing up in The South, finding his voice as an artist, how he converts ideas into images and why he chooses to incorporate the Confederate flag in much of his art.

It’s a conversation that is guaranteed to make you think about how you create your own work.

In 1987, Jeff Storer and Ed Hunt opened Manbites Dog Theater in Durham, NC. They wanted to use the theater to bring awareness to the Durham community about the different forms of theater and prove that live theater can be a powerful tool in opening people’s minds, eyes and hearts. They hoped they would survive for a couple of years. Thirty-four years later, they are still going strong.

In this episode of Creativity In Motion, Jeff Storer shares with us some of the ways they have been able to stay true to their mission, while at the same time growing their company into a foundation that supports theater arts across the region.

It’s a revealing conversation about doing whatever it takes to keep moving forward.

In this episode, photographer Steve Whitsitt shares highlights from his 30-year career as a professional photographer. He takes us through his early days when he realized he wanted to pursue photography, how he decided to go to photography school and the significant events and opportunities that led to his diverse bodies of work. Key topics include Steve’s discovery of what motivates him creatively, his time working with the King of Pop, Michael Jackson, and his personal beliefs about what it takes to create an authentic portrait. It’s a fascinating journey that touches on many different aspects of creativity.

In this episode, we have an in-depth conversation with Hayley Malone, Brenden Barraza and Savannah Lingle. These photography students are at the beginning of their professional careers and are "in the trenches," learning how to be creative on demand, 24/7. Among other things, we talk about what inspires them daily, their early misconceptions about what it takes to make great work and their feelings about social media. It's a frank discussion with three people who are on their way to being creative professionals.

In this episode, we talk with Emmy Award winning special effects makeup artist Ben Rittenhouse about his long career in film and TV production and his enthusiasm for teaching young people the finer points of his craft. Among other things, Ben talks about what inspired him as a young person, the many ways that failure has made him a better artist and how his personal work has sustained him during difficult times.