Shonda Rhimes is well known for her television series' and movies — many of which span years of filming and include seasons upon seasons of content. She is the mastermind behind shows such as Greys Anatomy which is now on its 21st season and Bridgerton which is about to take on it’s fourth season. She continues to create new content for her viewers, and her view of the creative landscape is different from other creatives that she works alongside in many ways.
Rhimes has found her success from telling stories that grip the viewer and leave them wanting more. In some cases, such as in Grey's Anatomy, the viewer finds the story believable and relevant, oftentimes finding ways to connect with absurd medical situations through underlying messages that they can relate to their own lives. In other cases, such as with Bridgerton, the viewer can imagine themselves in the world of Shonda Rhimes, which she has deemed “Shondaland,” also the name of her production company.
Rhymes says the secret to her success is her ability to think outside of the box. She finds situations that could be considered ordinary or overtold, and then puts her own spin on them that creates a whole new world for the viewer to explore. However, when asked what her process is for taking creative risks in her work, Rhimes argues that what she does should not be considered taking a risk. She says that it shouldn’t be considered taking a risk just to tell the stories in your head the way that you think they should be told. She said she believes that if we debunked this idea, the world would become more creative overall.
“It’s not risky to want to entertain yourself,” Rhimes said. “It’s not risky to tell the stories that matter to you. It’s risky, I think, to do what you think other people want… If you’re going to fail, fail spectacularly at being you.”
https://www.shondaland.com/shonda/office-hours-shonda-rhimes-on-taking-creative-risks-or-not
Rhimes said that as it stands, the landscape of creativity is drab because everybody gets too caught up in thinking about what other people will want them to create. She argues that in order to channel true creativity and share it with the rest of the world, we must stop caring with people think and begin creating things for ourselves, modeling intrinsic motivation, and hope that our own joy will be shared by others who view our finished product as well. All of this considered, she also still says that the ability to take constructive criticism and use it to improve your process is important and something she does often, although there must be a balance.
https://barcomade.com/blogs/my-scrublife/23-surprising-facts-you-didn-t-know-about-grey-s-anatomy
One of the ways that Rhimes makes her characters more relatable is by basing some of them off of the people that she is surrounded by in real life. For example, she modeled the character Miranda Bailey in Grey's Anatomy off of her mother. She said that they share a realistic way of viewing the world and a similar passion for what they are doing as well as a willingness to help and watch others succeed.
In Creative Spark, Fuentes talks about the ways that humans build off of each other's stories and experiences. Rhimes does this by using the things that we love in life and building upon them to create another world that is comforting and relatable to the viewer while also giving them a sense of adventure away from their daily life. She encourages others to look at things in this same way and not take for granted the things they have in life that they find boring.
Hi Lilli! As a former Grey's Anatomy fan, I enjoyed your blog post. It was fascinating how Shonda Rhimes's motivation ties to Fuentes' The Creative Spark, as I never knew that Rhimes bases her works on real stories and experiences in her life. However, it makes sense that she uses ideas and people familiar to her to create her stories, like her mother, to create Miranda Bailey, as each episode builds her character's complex personalities to the point that you connect with their identity as if they were real people.
ReplyDeleteIt was also interesting to read how Rhimes is strongly motivated to create, entertain herself, and capture her vision rather than make expected stories from fans. Anyone who's seen an episode of Grey's Anatomy knows how absurd or upsetting certain plot lines can be, yet the show's ability to diverge from the norm makes it so compelling. Her creativity is inspiring and a great reminder that success comes from expressing your creativity in a way that comes naturally.
It was so cool to get a glimpse into how Shonda's mind works through reading your post! I found the bit about Shonda basing her characters off of people in her life especially intriguing! I can see how modeling characters and situations off of real life would add to not only the realism of a show, but add to our connection with the show as well. I also absolutely loved the quote you included about being yourself. I know that many people, including myself struggle with sticking to who you are when it seems much easier to do what others want, but I think her idea of being yourself in everything you create is so incredibly powerful!
ReplyDeleteLili, I loved your blog post! As someone who loves a ton of Shondaland shows, it was so interesting to hear her creativity from her own point of view. "She says that it shouldn’t be considered taking a risk just to tell the stories in your head the way that you think they should be told". This quote sent me for a loop! You always think show writers have full artistic opportunity to write whatever plot lines they want; however, I forgot about other factors like actors or producers that can restrict the creative process.
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