democratizing creativity

If you are a computer geek like me and understand RAM, terabytes, quad-core processors, and other lingo then you'll get a kick out of this funny video.



But what I find impressive about this video is that it's a great example of how modern technology is enabling people to be more creative.

I have a lot of respect for anyone in a creative profession: photographers, web designers, musicians, cinematographers, writers, etc. In fact, I love reading the stories at www.apple.com/pro. I think this is because I'm not that creative myself, so I appreciate these skills that I don't have. But what I'm noticing is that there are more and more creative, clever videos like this one on YouTube and I can't help but think that this is in part due to the changes in technology.

First, digital video cameras and video editing equipment (such as your computer) are readily available in nearly every household. This is a dramatic shift from 10 years ago when you needed some pretty fancy equipment to put together a video that didn't look like a home movie. Not only that, but the video editing software such as iMovie make it easy for almost anyone to make a video even without prior experience.

Second, the bandwidth is available for streaming video on the internet. Obviously I don't need to go into much explanation here because I think the popularity of YouTube pretty much describes what I'm talking about. That site could not have been successful without high-speed internet becoming standard for most homes.

When you put these two things together, you have an environment that seems to breed more creativity than in the past. (And higher quality stuff too.) Or at least more expression of creativity because the final product is now easier to make and it's easier to share with a wide audience. This gives people an outlet for their creativity, a way to express themselves and maybe even a chance to enjoy their fifteen minutes of fame. There are probably a bunch of other benefits to this too. What do you think? Leave your thoughts in the comments.

Here are some other examples:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b0_LpjJfd20
http://valleywag.gawker.com/5045660/5-rules-for-making-a-company-video-worth-watching