Art vs Existential Dread

You folks didn't think I'd leave you without a new video over the break did you?!
My SoundCloud, I guess. / tracks

[@RedMeansRecording]

LETS GO PLATS

[@inconnu4876]

A comment by Jeremy in Matt's channel..! Now that's interesting.

[@blakejaeger154]

@@inconnu4876 RIGHT??? 2 of my all time favs

[@greatwhitedonkey]

My world's have collided!!

[@henrysteller2901]

I became homeless last week. Wrote the rest of my screenplay today. And now I'm living in a youth shelter and putting myself back together. Thank you for the inspiration and love Matt. You dont know me. But you helped me! Love you brother.

[@mcolville]

"And surely the future shall be better for thee than the past."

[@JacopoSkydweller]

I don't know you either, but keep it Henry. You got this. Only one way to go from the bottom.

[@toboraton]

How are you Henry? Do you have a more stable place to live?

[@ernestvanophuizen461]

Matt: *Speaking profound truths on art and the human condition* Also Matt: "I prefer physical knobs" My brain: "You're a physical knob" Please send help.

[@MnJiman]

If you makes you feel any better, this is literally what my brain did as well. Nice to meet another "You're a (insert randomly heard word here)."

[@N0tsaved]

I relate to this so much. I worked for a veterinarian 10 years ago and he got me on the verbal tic/meme of introducing the phrase of "you're a (word just said)." It's as much a curse as self-awareness is.

[@JinroKray]

Thanks for this, Matt, I really did need a reminder that I’m happiest when creating.

[@pattyofurniture694]

Same

[@BaDSPLeR]

"You make art, you do it to survive." Im going to make that [thing] I have been putting off.

[@rocketbird1]

Let's do it. We're always concerned with what's urgent, and we put off what is important. Whatever it is your project, let 2023 be the year it finally gets made. I recently started drawing the comic book I've had in my heart for years. The script has been ready for a while. Now it's the time to make it come true.

[@haydntothemax]

Omg thank you for this, Matt. UK medic here, specialising in mental health. I recommend creativity every day. It's powerful to be able to say 'i wrote this song' or 'i cooked this meal' or even 'i knitted this sweater'. It empowers us in a world that we are otherwise powerless to affect. Know that you help others, thousands of miles away. Junior doctors here no longer have time for D&D any more, but your musings always bring me a smile

[@MarioVelezBThinkin]

"The world outside seems insane, unfixable, and deeply anti-human." What a vibe. This whole rant is just- Chefs kiss.

[@ehtnoj632]

"We know, and we know we know." Thats gonna stick with me as I go to bed. Thank you for articulating something I've been aware of, but couldn't describe until now. Its the awareness of my awareness that informs a lot of my disposition. Also, I really enjoyed this video. I will definitely watch again tomorrow and continue working on my own art. Thank you for inspiring me to create. :)

[@Lishtenbird]

Humans are too fragile and physical for how intellectually advanced they became. They were meant to be good enough to chase antelopes and fight off tigers; now they have tools to hunt down every single antelope and tiger in the world should there be a need to, but every action hurts more because you are aware of it. And you'll be aware of it for far longer, because instead of just surviving long enough to leave the next of kin and perishing, you'll live four times as long and have enough time to think about it. ...hopefully you will. Because when it comes to, a sharpened stick is as effective as it used to be.

[@mcolville]

That rack you see being assembled in the first 30 seconds isn't "real" it's just a bunch of modules I thought would be fun to film doing their thing. soundcloud.com/matt-colville/tracks

[@ElegantD]

I still looks cool!

[@novanIV]

Isn't that a form of art in and of itself?

[@rocketbird1]

@@novanIV you're goddamn right it is

[@imissnewspapers]

I LOVE this preview of the MCDM Operator / Bard ! Thank you. Have a killer 2023 ahead 🥂

[@imperialadvisor4880]

@@imissnewspapers All pretenders to State Azure’s Throne

[@damike5]

You have no idea the depth of the pitch dark place you pulled me out of because of this video. Seriously, this video is going into the playlist that I watch when I feel like the world would be better without me. I spent the rest of this evening after watching this video reading my old poetry and writing new poetry and sending it to my sister. Thank you Matt. You never cease to inspire me.

[@fatcatsgoneblack]

My love for creating art saved my life. You were one of the first channels I found when I set out on my quest of being a DM. That was about 6 years ago. Cheers Matt and here's to many more years together🍺

[@rocketbird1]

This is the most beautiful video I've ever seen on KZbin. Thank you, Matt. The rise of AI-art is scaring a lot of artists. Finding this video feels like the discovery of a pond in the desert. Fresh water against the scary times. We press on. We make art.

[@Supercohboy]

Wow, there are few videos, lectures, recordings out there that are so succinct and accurate. You were able to take a lot of thoughts and concepts I've had at different points in my life and pool them together so harmoniously, and it's exactly what I needed at this point in time. From the bottom of my heart, this random guy on the internet just wants to say thank you. I can think more clearly on some topics that have been bothering me, and that's huge.

[@QuirkyEclipse]

Mr. Colville, your art helps to make a dark, scary world a little less dark, and a little less scary, for at least this one person. Thank you for everything you do.

[@experiment8230]

Hearing Matt Colville talk about Four Tet gave me world-void. As an electronic musician, I appreciate hearing Matt talk about what it means to him, and what it might mean to others.

[@Danmarinja]

During COVID, I got into learning simple programming for creating games. That was one of the most anxious and scary periods of my life, and I began to teach myself to make art. Mostly it was just learning how to replicate existing games like Frogger or a crane game, but I would also noodle away at a couple of projects that deliberately felt lonely and hollow. One was a game about flying a spaceship into an infinite space, where you could just fly in any direction forever and never find anything except more stars. Another was a Yume Nikki-esque dreamscape about my own personal experiences and traumas, abstracted with small cubes. That second one was especially important for me because I wanted to know that if somebody else picked up that game and played it, they would have no idea what was even happening. I just needed an outlet for my fears and anxieties in a way that only made sense to me.

[@CaseyWilkesmusic]

This is some seriously good coded language. Thanks for the message matt. Hope to see your RPG content soon.

[@zachferrier421]

4:28 I know Matt wrote Priest and Thief when he felt creatively stifled and he has had plenty of creative stimulation in the past several years, but dammit I still want to see this book series continue! When I finished Priest for the first time several years ago, I was hooked. I'm just hoping that the series gets a conclusion and doesn't forever sit in limbo like the Game of Thrones novels.

[@GeneralChaos776]

This is a very nice video, and if I am understanding it correctly a very clever way to talk about a thing while saying something else (which is by itself important and inspirational). I wish you and MCDM all the best in the coming months and we at least can look forward to seeing how the seeds will grow after the coming fire.

[@CoolWhip125698]

I can't help but watch this in context with everything that's happening so I just wanted to say: you, Matt, have been an invaluable addition to mine and my players art over the years. I hope you are doing well and I wish the best for all this storm to pass safely.

[@McDom023k]

You forgot to mention a very important form of Art that you make. These videos, all your videos, they are a form of art and one that matters deeply to many people. Videos like this are why I enjoy watching and listening to your content Matt, the introspection, the deep thought, it inspires me to make my own art. So thank you Mr Colville, and I hope you're doing okay

[@tannerbennie1062]

I'm usually here for D&D but man this was a good one. It can be tough to remember in this day and age that it's important to do/create things for their own sake. Not because it's profitable or efficient or anything else. Once again Matt coming in with an amazing video!

[@NatharagonKoranys]

This video came in at just the right time for me. Thanks, Matt. You are a river to your people.

[@GUITARISTxxxx]

This gives me hardcore John Green vlogbrothers video essay vibes, which is a huge compliment. I love this type of content, Matt. Keep it up!

[@ianjohnston8057]

noodling on my collection of guitars, amps, and synths has definitely given me countless hours of reprieve from existential dread.

[@werekill]

I remember your first synth video, when you first got your Mother 32. That one video led me into a spiral of synthesizers myself, starting with a Volca FM and now including five larger, full-sized pieces of gear. I still crave modular sometimes, but even without the wires and modules, your video here captured the joy of creation when it comes to patch design. Even just watching a patch video from Remixsample or others can hit that spot sometimes. Experiencing art and creation is core to life. Your first synth video also led to my first (and thankfully only!) parasocial fixation. I posted my Volca FM on Twitter, tagged you in it thanking you for sparking the interest in the hobby, and you replied! At the time, I was in a horrifically toxic relationship where I had become isolated from all friends and family, and here was this awesome KZbin person, replying to my tweet! From there, I tweeted at you plenty of times, taking in intense joy and satisfaction while doing so. It was unhealthy, but it genuinely helped me while I was trapped in that toxic relationship. We weren't friends or even acquaintances, but the dopamine hit felt the same. Then you tweeted that you were going to dial back from the community, both twitter and discord, and you talked about parasocial relationships. How they were damaging to people, how they were unhealthy. While I wasn't nearly as bad as some other people were to other celebrities, it still made me take a long, hard look at myself and my place in life. I dialed back the hero worship, realized that you liking or replying to a tweet doesn't mean anything beyond a reply, and took steps to get back with friends I had lost. I even made new, non-parasocial, real friends during the pandemic through online gaming. This outreach is part of what led my ex to eventually dump me (while my dad was dying in the hospital, no less), although there were certainly other factors (I didn't do chores, harrassed her with dumb jokes, and generally acted like a manchild). Those other factors don't make any of what she did right, to be clear, but I want to explicitly say that I wasn't a perfect partner myself. That break up was the best thing that could have ever happened to me, and I am in a much more positive place now. I have been dating an amazing woman for two years, own a house, have been successful in my career, have tons of irl and online friends, still create music, and am 110k words into the draft of my fantasy novel. Things are looking up, and I want to thank you for the positive influence you were on me while I was in that toxic situation. Then I want to doubly thank you for unintentionally shaking me out of a parasocial fixation and leading me on the road to restoring old friendships. Thanks. Your content is always a joy to watch, and you have been a massively positive influence in my personal life. I hope that MCDM continues to be a huge success for you, and I hope that you too continue to create.

[@ianstubbington2334]

Jeezus H Christ! This is good. This is sooo good. Thank you so much, Matt, this is something we ALL need to be reminded of.

[@Reverbial2]

I'm always impressed when Matt is able to plainly articulate thoughts I've had for decades, but have never been able to put into words. "Cursed by consciousness" is a hell of a phrase to sum up some of the worse aspects of anxiety.

[@mintysand7312]

This feels like one of those videos I will be coming back to again and again over the years as a comforting reminder when I feel crushed as an artist. Your videos on D&D may have been what drew me in originally, but it's the ones like this that reach into my heart. Thanks Matt.

[@aqbrooks7725]

I needed this this morning!.. been struggling with the world recently, but art is so important to me. So thank you Colville! Reminds me of reading the Birth of Tragedy and reading that Nietzsche said “[it is art] through which life is made both possible and worth living.” I needed to read that then and I needed to be reminded today

[@boundallis6213]

I saw this video on release... and every week or so... i come back and listen again. It's wild how you can change someone's life in just 5 minutes. Thank you, Matt.

[@leaf3288]

Same. this video is fully responsible for me getting up & finally making art this year

[@alessioantonielli5641]

There are so many great videos in this channel, but this is my absolute favourite. Thank you, Matthew Colville

[@torstenoakes]

College has been kicking my butt in the home stretch and rarely leaves me with time to create outside of breaks. I cook my own meals, I run RPGs for my friends when I can, I design and make tools for use around the house when I can afford it. All of these are creative, but still I need occasional reminders that creating art -- the hard work of breaking off a piece of myself and sharing it with the world in some way -- makes me feel alive. Makes me feel like more than a complex chemical cascade. Thank you, Matt.

[@tiredtyre]

This resonates so much different now. What can I say... We will never stop creating.

[@euansmith3699]

Sitting in the dark and playing with your knob can be a good way of coping with existential dread.

[@jadefae]

I adore this kind of video Matt. I'm only twenty, but I was sixteen when I found your videos. I wanted to create art before then, but I realised that I wanted to _be_ and artist and to _lead a creative life_ as you say after listening to you. I've learned that lesson over and over again, and I've also learned what _kind_ of artist I want to be from many other people as well. But it really did start with finding you at the perfect time in my teenage upbringing, right when my inspiration was starting to rise, but my direction was lacking. Thank you, earnestly and deeply, thank you.

[@lewhayberg8839]

It's strange how we get meaning from things in our life when we need it most. I just had my first child a month ago and I'm... struggling, to say the least. I can't pinpoint any one thing you said in this video that helped me with this time in my life, but it's in there somewhere. Thank you for what you do and your dedication to the people that look up to you.

[@talscorner3696]

"Don't trust those who propose simple solutions to complex problems" That's a quote for the books, boss!

[@krazykat9362]

This helped me a lot. I'm sure it's helped a lot of people, this is hardly an original comment on a video like this, but I just wanted to thank you. This helped me.

[@NoahWolfe]

I find it difficult to give appropriate thanks to inspiration so freely given, so perfectly articulated. You are a fantastic human Mr. Colville. Thank you.

[@adamhelesic4279]

"You make art. You do it to survive." Aaand instant tears. Needed to be heard.

[@feedweeb8856]

life is too short to wallow in sadness when there is so much joy to be found. Being able to find it, means you should probably go looking.

[@arash-yazdani]

I'm a professional composer and conductor, and I feel THIS is the manifesto of my existence! thank you sir and cheers

[@Rad_Wizrrd]

This is my favorite video you've ever made. So fucking powerful, man. You've given me clarity on things that would take to long to explain here but thank you. I'll see you on stream.

[@ForTheGoldenOak]

the River is flowing again!

[@LukeLavablade]

I've been making art recently, and it's exactly your attitude, articulated clearly here but mentioned many times in the past, that prompted me. We need good art now more than ever. Our ancestors gave us important discoveries and even more important questions, and it is our duty to continue that tradition. Come hellish heat or increasingly high water, we will leave a collective legacy.

[@l0udcheese]

I don't know why but this video brought me to the verge of tears. I have never in my life heard a more perfectly concise....and artful way of describing why we make art, and it was moving. Thank you.

[@halanhart]

This is exactly why I love you Matt! Creativity and art aren't hobbies, they are ways of being. Without this video I could sense this attitude in you from your DM vids. Thank you for being a force of passion and creativity!!!

[@Jjk82486]

Legitimately, art has been my mental health outlet. For me, recently, this has taken the form of Warhammer40k. Building little plastic armies and painting them has been incredibly soothing in a time where, I'll be honest, my hope for the future being bright is at an all-time low. So, I run D&D, I write (badly), and I paint plastic crack. • D&D gives me fun social time. • Writing gives me pure creative freedom. • Warhammer oddly enough, gives me mental peace. It turns my brain off...and for me, that is needed. Love the video Matt. I hope we're all here next year, breathing a sigh of relief; I really do.

[@koticneutralftw7016]

This is the 4th time I've come back to rewatch this video to help me process some of my negative emotions. Thank you, Mr. Colville.

[@DieDreiSpacken]

Art as a way to survive and thrive is a mindset I am slowly returning to. To add to the Conversation, consumption of Art is the first and most accessible way of creating, as Matthew said, your consciousness is working while you consume. So don’t beat yourself up if you haven’t been able to create, write, compose, draw or build, you have been gathering ideas to unleash once you find the time to create again. I believe this video will be my last of the year, these thoughts shall be my companions for 2023 and beyond. Thank you Matthew, have a great year and I hope to see you soon.

[@MisterFizzer]

I had noodled around on VCV Rack a while back, and this inspired me to open it back up again. Everything was right where I left it, muted. Unmuting the forgotten contraption, I was assailed by celestial voices I had misplaced in time. There is something of the eternal in rediscovering the ephemeral. Distilling time to a moment, the vastness of experience feels more real. Thank you.

[@hypersphere412]

I can't tell you how much I needed this. I came back to the RPG hobby after a 25 year break. I suffered a head injury last December and could no longer remember how any of my synthesizers worked. I've spent my adult life playing in bands and all of my musical knowledge disappeared overnight. I knew that I needed to do 'something' creative or go mad, so I started playing D&D online. The community has been incredibly friendly, understanding, and supportive, but I can't tell you how much I miss being able to play music. It's a journey in progress, but man I miss composing and playing live.

[@mcolville]

D&D is not the same as music, but it can be a pretty powerful creative outlet, and it can lead to all kinds of other creativity. Probably my success as a writer, to whatever extent I am successful, is mostly due to my experience as a dungeon master.

[@DougLipase]

We're all afflicted with a heinous curse Metacognition, now what could be worse?

[@johnnybigbones4955]

"I refuse to say consuming it" FUCK YES.

[@chriscarmona7725]

Been watching since sub-1,000 viewers and have to say, this may just be about my favorite video of yours, Matt. At the intersection of place and time where self-aware stardust find themselves just smart enough to seek fleeting moments of happiness , you brought one such moment of that to me. Thank you.

[@nerdgarage]

I'm not sure this was the best video to watch while waking up, but wow. Five minutes for complete graduate courses on Audio, Art, and Psycology along with an ad so cleanly included that you barely realize it's an ad. Excelent video Matt. I think I'm going to have to watch this again once I wake up. Merry Christmas, and Happy New Year, Matt and Everyone.

[@potatomuffin7177]

I kinda skipped this video when it dropped. Not because I wasn't interested in it or anything I just wasn't in the headspace for it. I still wasn't when I listened to it now I was kind of having a weird episode. But this sort of philosophical existential kind of dialogue helped ground me. I usually just listen to the Running the Game videos to prepare myself for DnD, and even in this case it helped. So thanks for this Matt. It was just nice.

[@diogenes1984]

Come for the funny and insightful RPG stuff, stay for the melancholic yet hopeful philosophical outlook on art and life.

[@segridhelmsman]

I don't comment on youtube videos much, but this video made me cry. I've enjoyed your content for years and your Running the Game series has helped me DM immensely, but independently I've begun writing songs and getting into voice acting. This video spoke to me on a level I wasn't expecting when I clicked on it. It spoke to that breathless feeling of creating something with harmony, of that feeling of simply being in harmony with something or someone else. Thank you for this, it was poetic in ways I have trouble describing. Thanks for all your content as well.

[@kurtoogle4576]

Now that is some Sage Advice. Thank you, Matt.

[@dustiningram90]

Over half a decade ago, my oldest friends and I reconnected and decided to start our own D&D campaign, like we had enjoyed as kids. I began scouring KZbin for advice that could help me to improve my skills as a D&M, and came across this channel. Matt's advice was clearly rooted in his experience and love for the game. I consumed and put into practice all of it that I could. I credit this for the two continuous years of weekly gaming that followed. Two full campaigns with the same 5 five players. One evening, I saw that Matt was hosting a live stream. I don't engage much with live streams, but I saw an opportunity to pick Matt's brain in real time, and took it. I joined the stream, already in progress, to find Matt sitting before a console of hypnotic blinking lights. My speakers reverberated with Vangelis-esque rumbles and wails. Any gaming questions I had were instantly forgotten. I NEEDED to understand what I was seeing and hearing. "What's that?" Asked the audience. "The Time Rider" answered Mr. Colville. The audience: " What does it do?" Matt, through a mischievous smile: "It rides time." He then proceeded to explain the patch, how he had engineered this beautiful, self generating music into existence, and how it had been a journey of discovery, rather than an act of conscious creation. I was hooked. In the intervening years, I have gone through tumultuous psychological ups and downs, but there are two consistent bright spots that keep me afloat. One is tabletop gaming with my friends, and the other is synthesis. Last week, I recorded the first piece of music that I feel genuinely proud of in my entire life. The meaning that I find in this practice is literally life sustaining. Today, I watched this video twice, and cried happy tears. Well done, Mr. Colville, and my thanks to you.

[@rikidog2682]

You've taught me a lot about DND, but you've taught me even more important things about life. You were the reason I decided to stop chasing things I didn't want and to believe in my art instead. I don't know where that's going to take me, but I think it'll be worth it. Thanks Matt.

[@Jonas0Wahl]

This really inspired me, as a sound artist, as a dm, as a person. Thank you.

[@kathrynlynnkipfmiller9110]

"Maybe not EVERYTHING needs to be optimized" This took me about 35 years to learn, lol. This is a fantastic take. Thanks for the insight, Matt.

[@craigsisco1894]

Thank you Matt on the reflection of “why art”. Your enjoyment of the tactile experience is spot on with me, as I choose to stick with physical paper, pencil, pen and paint. Thanks for giving what I feel words and shape.

[@MrDarthDread]

Hey a reminder that you have helped alot of people as well, your videos got me through working through the pandemic at jobs sites where people weren't taking things seriously, ide mask up and pop in my earbuds, while running wires through walls, and it'd be you and one other (seth skorkowsky) that'd get me through the day without cracking from stress. Your videos aren't just about dnd or fantasy, they are about viewing the world as a place of wonder (sometimes terror) and drawing inspiration from it. I just want to let you know that even though you have no idea who I am what you do puts a smile on a lot of people's faces, and I appreciate that your Channel is you and not what ever is chic at the moment. As a guy born in 1996, I feel more at home listening to your tales then amongst my own generation. Tldr thx for making me smile, laugh, and cry

[@Miibrega]

As with many of your videos, Matt, you put fitting words to things I can only feel but not describe. Thanks for helping me understand my own mind a little better!

[@whoaitstiger]

"We have art in order not to die of the truth." Friedrich Nietzsche

[@lukecackett4566]

I want to say thank you for this video. I've always struggled with existential dread, but it has been particularly bad in the last few years because of learning more about the climate crisis. I keep getting in a rut of feeling powerless and without hope. Making art has helped me tremendously - including playing D&D with my friends, a thing I do in large part because of your videos. So I come back to this video every few weeks, maybe several times a day when I'm struggling. I find its message and emotion powerful: I'm not alone, and I can do things to help myself. Thank you

[@Not_A_Creative]

This video has changed my life, and I cannot express my thanks for that enough. I had no idea you were into modular! But that got me hooked into the video, and I had no clue how much I needed to hear the messages here. I've spent most of my life believing others and (worse) myself that I'm not creative or "arty" in any way. I'd freeze when pressed to create and eventually stopped trying. But I'd been working to change that mindset slowly for the past few months. Discovered modular, and bought myself a Behringer Crave as an entry point. But this video gave me the kick up the backside I needed to finally start making and sharing something! The joy it's bought me already is incredible. From the bottom of my heart, Thank You.

[@darrendm8037]

Art for arts sake. Matt for Matt's sake. Amen.

[@GUNDAMURX73]

Oh hey! That version of The Two Towers is the same kind as the set my mother gave me when I was young. I was curious about "the cool books" on her shelf, and she figured I was old enough to enjoy them. That set, from The Hobbit through Return of the King, really helped to kickstart my love of fantasy and literature. And I guess, in the way that art makes us think about things, Tolkien's books changed my mind for the better. As an adult now, I love DMing, it's my outlet after a hard work week. I get to come up with my own fantasy worlds and scenarios, and figure out how to create awesome experiences for my players to enjoy. That ability to express myself, and make something cool that makes even just a few people happy, is both satisfying and empowering. Your videos have been part of that too. Thanks for being awesome, and for being part of our shared hobby mindspace. You and the MCDM folks have given me more tools to create with, and different perspectives on creating. May the stars shine bright upon you and yours!

[@azuraben5128]

Hey Matt, just saying that you've been a tremendous inspiration for how I run my games, and my philosophy on running games. You've helped me a lot during my years of trouble. Thanks for that.

[@FireallyXTheories]

I came here for DnD advice, but I did not expect some of the best life advice I've ever heard. When something like this (I guess artsy!) resonates with you, it really makes you want to open up and share too, thus art inspiring art in a positive feedback loop. I won't because I don't want to be "that guy", but I really do appreciate the message.

[@omarrivera9457]

What an incredible video and lucky to have listened to it at a time of need. A snap shock to my senses. To embrace individuality. To think differently. To feel differently. And to be filled with joy by partaking in a simple pleasures. Thank you Matt Colville for sharing with your audience. Life is experiences.

[@forestine_]

Your streams are one of the reasons I got into modular, and it kinda changed my life after other kinds of art art became difficult due to life stuff. Art is so important. So glad you made this.

[@albertenissen7186]

As someone working myself out of a depression, this is infinitely comforting to hear. Thank you Matt.

[@aaweparker]

I love all your videos, Matt. I've DMed since high school (20 years now) but I still watch and rewatch all of your videos. This is a hobby I can see myself really getting into.

[@SatanIsOn]

It's wild to me that, while taking my first steps into eurorack roughly mid-2017, I found this thing called D&D and this nice man who believed that if he could do it, anyone could. Imagine my surprise when, a few months later, the mother32 popped up on my twitter feed with your name attached to it. It still somehow makes me very happy that we now share these two particular niche interests, especially the part about having made a lot of music but mostly for ourselves and the kind of zen practice of all of it. Anyway, thanks for all you do and this message in particular. Let's never stop making things for ourselves.

[@Freezaen]

I needed this. WE needed this. Thank you for speaking your truth, Matt. Thank you for making and living your art. Thank you for existing.

[@am-180]

"In the dark times will there also be singing? Yes, there will also be singing. About the dark times."

[@Well_Meaning]

"I refuse to say consuming it" Oh god thanks for saying that, I feel less like a grumpy weirdo-- because for the longest time the modern parlance "consuming media" has driven me insane. It actually makes me feel gross to say

[@michaelmorrison5321]

Thank you Matt. This video means a lot, it struck a chord in me that I didn't realise was even there. I hope it finds other people who needed to hear it, just like I did.

[@rileywakeford8773]

I typically don't click on your non-D&D videos unless I'm super interested in the topic but I'm so happy I decided to click on this one. Definitely a well worded and much appreciated message

[@zuterwer1835]

I have never been one for tattoos. I dreaded the idea of having something stuck to me for ever. But to hear "you make art, you do it to survive" and feel it at the deepest core of my being, I think I might have to change that. I feel very seen. Art, my writing, is what is keeping me sane after years of depression. Of dark thoughts that I don't want to return to. Writing, keeps me sane. It literally helped me survive. But it took watching this video, to understand that I do. I feel seen. And I feel happy.

[@anthonyh.2957]

I've set myself a couple of challenges for the upcoming year: 1- Make one room for a dungeon a day, with the goal of having a nice 12 level, 365 (is 2023 a leap year?) room mega dungeon by next december. 2- Read a book a month. It's been a good year or two since I actually sat down & really read a book. Priest is on the list for some time in.. spring? Summer? One of those. I remember finding it moving when I first read it, & I can't wait to get back to it.

[@offbrandmtnman8574]

To paraphrase someone I read at some point some time ago, "All a man truly needs is food, a warm place to sleep, good friends, and something to do with his hands that he can be proud of. Everything else is pleasant excess, or manufactured want." I should really sketch more than I do.

[@eugeneklopper03]

Thank you Matt for helping me remember why I love creating.

[@ShannonFerguson]

"Do not trust anyone trying to sell you a simple solution to a complex problem." I'm keeping that one handy. Happy New Year.

[@puddel9079]

I feel like I needed to hear this. To know that you can craft something that others will uniquely experience would set in motion potent change in the world, that is probably what keeps everyone sane.

[@carlfishy]

"I don't think writers are sacred, but words are. They deserve respect. If you get the right ones in the right order, you might nudge the world a little or make a poem that children will speak for you when you are dead." -- Top Stoppard

[@WWH10]

This really helped me put a finger on why I like reading so much. There's more room for me to make a book my own than there is in a movie or TV show. Thanks Matt, I'm gonna be thinking about this for a long time

[@NickBurnham1]

Enjoyed this a lot, thank you. I often get so busy and stressed that I find it hard to make something new, but whenever I come back to it, I do always feel better about myself and the world.

[@asmith6006]

It's been a day, so I'm sitting here, minutes after the video ended, all choked up. I make things to feel like I have some measure of fleeting control over the space I'm in.

[@GregKoziol]

Hypnotic, comforting, cosmic. Thanks for this video! I loved every second of it.

[@ReustersPlace]

I’m no artist, but I was an aircraft mechanic for 23 years. My “art” was making something able to fly again. Watching it take off… knowing “I did that, and no one else could figure out how”. That was… and is… my Art

[@homelesspyro995]

I know absolutely nothing about modules or these "starship control panel" looking devices, but after seeing this video, I feel slightly more inspired to look into them. Very interesting and new-found knowledge-filled video for me! Thanks, Matt.

[@matiasclark7840]

Just as i finish watching Bladerunner 2049 you put this video. It is a sign, i must continue my journey into futuristic dystopia

[@KeldrinDrogues]

I like that this exists. (You rock, Matt. This does resonate with me as a lost artist, personally, and gives me a little hope back and restores a little of my humanity again, yeah yeah yeah yeah. But what I *most* value is that you wanted to share this, something you made, your own sub-creation. Art from you, baby, regardless of what my spark of a comment says about it. You rock, Matt.)