Flourish Builders: Your Inspiration Behind Some of your Moves

[Tower of Lunatic Meat]

Let's get some more discussion going!

Cardistry engineers, I have a question directed specifically to you:

Was/is there something that inspired you to create your flourish? Or helped in the creation of one of your flourishes? Or something that has now inspired you to start making your own flourish?

Was it from another cardistry video? Flash of insight? Or something completely different and unexpected?

Lots of questions. Let's see what comes up!

 

[Duncan F.]

I think a lot of my inspiration just comes from practicing. You make a mistake and all of a sudden it opens up a whole new set of possibilities. I love these "happy accidents" and I find they happen most when I'm trying to modify a flourish to fit my style.

Another way I create is to start from a single move and build the routine from there. I recently saw a move in the Virts Air Time video. They did a packet aerial in the middle of Sybil, and I fell in love with it. I practiced the aerial till I got it down, and then built and opener and closer around it. I like this method a lot because it not only helps you create, but it helps you practice. Sticking the TG Deckflip in a routine helped me learn it much quicker than just practicing it by itself, and now I have a cool flourish built out of it called Flop.

I find it's easier to be creative when I'm not trying to force it, but a few years back, I wanted to put out a Cardistry project of 7-10 flourishes that were all based on water. The project would have been called, "Fluid" and every flourish was inspired by water. It was a fun idea, but I felt too constricted near the end, so I abandoned it and evolved a lot of the flourishes into something different. It's still an interesting method to create though. Set a goal and try to achieve it. I may revisit the project one day, but for now, I'm happier modifying and pushing flourishes in a direction that isn't determined by the inspiration.

 

[Tower of Lunatic Meat]

I completely agree that you can't force it. I tried rushing out a tutorial for the first flourish I made and I'm glad that circumstances happened that made the video go on hiatus. The move is still changing and it's kinda morphed into just weirder and weirder stuff.

I have a second one I have the concept down for. It's inspired by how Wolverine juts his claws out. But man it hurts to do--lots of finger stretching.

How long did it take you to create a 7-10 flourish project--or at least how long did you spend on it? I think it's awesome that they were all based around the same concept.

 

[Duncan F.]

The move is still changing and it's kinda morphed into just weirder and weirder stuff.

I have a second one I have the concept down for. It's inspired by how Wolverine juts his claws out. But man it hurts to do--lots of finger stretching.

How long did it take you to create a 7-10 flourish project--or at least how long did you spend on it? I think it's awesome that they were all based around the same concept.

I probably spent over a year coming up with flourishes for the Fluid project. I only managed to make 5. I probably could have finished it if I had pushed for it, but I didn't feel confident in my ability as a cardist back then. I still practice those 5 flourishes, but like you, they have morphed into something different and much more unique, casting off the shackles that once was the inspiration. The thing is, and maybe you have run into this problem, if your flourishes are constantly morphing and evolving, how do you know when they're done? I probably only have 2 flourishes that I can actually say are complete. The rest feel like something is missing.

The "wolverine" flourish sounds really interesting. Looking forward to seeing it when you're ready to show it off.

 

[Tower of Lunatic Meat]

That's another good question. I think to know when an original flourish is done is a combination of how long it takes to do it, assessment of peers, meeting your original goal.

I think it's like writing a good joke, there's a lot you can try and add to make it funnier, but once you cut out the fat and keep only the meaty parts (brevity) it makes the whole joke that much better and funnier.

I think it's a little harder in cardistry because the gauge for brevity is tougher to feel out, you could add a spin here, a revolution there, and display somewhere along the way.

Sticking to a solid idea and adding flourishy parts that are relevant to make the flourish happen would be good ways to keep on track, I think.

But here's where it gets muddles a bit: does one REALLY need to finish a flourish by nearly resetting the deck as one deck?
Why not two packets?

 

[Duncan F.]

But here's where it gets muddles a bit: does one REALLY need to finish a flourish by nearly resetting the deck as one deck?
Why not two packets?

For us 2 handed flourishers, I think it does need to go back to 1 deck because pretty much every flourish I know starts from that position. It's a universal starting position, and that's going to be really hard to change.

Plus I really like the look of starting from an unassuming deck of cards. It's like a transformer. It looks like this normal car, but it can transform into this awesome robot, or a plane, or a Werm.

I appreciate your advice on brevity. I do struggle with that sometime, but my main struggle is that there are just so many directions I could take a flourish that it's hard to know which is the right direction. The only way I know a flourish is right is if it "feels" right. And even that can change over 6 months.

 

[Tower of Lunatic Meat]

For us 2 handed flourishers, I think it does need to go back to 1 deck because pretty much every flourish I know starts from that position. It's a universal starting position, and that's going to be really hard to change.

Plus I really like the look of starting from an unassuming deck of cards. It's like a transformer. It looks like this normal car, but it can transform into this awesome robot, or a plane, or a Werm.

I appreciate your advice on brevity. I do struggle with that sometime, but my main struggle is that there are just so many directions I could take a flourish that it's hard to know which is the right direction. The only way I know a flourish is right is if it "feels" right. And even that can change over 6 months.

HA! I've made the 'Transformer' noise in my head watching some cardistry videos. It really is like that.

But as far as the deck returning to its 'normal state', my idea was that, for example, why not end a flourish with half of a deck in both hands and continue going into another move or routine. It seems like a lot of cardistry videos is just 'do one move, fold the deck back, do one move, fold the deck back, as nauseum.' It doesn't seem like there is a lot of move integration--despite how many moves are out there. I've only been doing this for less than a year, so I might be wrong; in that case, let me know!

But it seems like cardistry, as a whole, is stuck in a 'mold' of sorts.

As far as when to know how a move is supposed to end. That's tough. Unfortunately, I'm struggling with the same question with one of my flourishes as I'm just adding all sorts of non essential stuff to it. If it's still evolving, it still needs work

 

[Duncan F.]

But as far as the deck returning to its 'normal state', my idea was that, for example, why not end a flourish with half of a deck in both hands and continue going into another move or routine. It seems like a lot of cardistry videos is just 'do one move, fold the deck back, do one move, fold the deck back, as nauseum.' It doesn't seem like there is a lot of move integration--despite how many moves are out there. I've only been doing this for less than a year, so I might be wrong; in that case, let me know!

But it seems like cardistry, as a whole, is stuck in a 'mold' of sorts.

There are such things as routines in Cardistry. The most famous one being Jackson 5 from Dan & Dave. It's a mix of 5 different flourishes that have been streamed together into a routine. However, this does seem to be kind of a forgotten direction for cardistry. I think video editing (cutting between different shots) has a lot to do with it, but it could also just be because it's routines are harder to pull off in one take. I agree it should be more prevelent though. Practicing my routines is a fun challenge.

 

[jtra]

Chase Duncan talked about this briefly at the con. He said, "There are two rules of cardistry, you start here (deck is in left hand), and you end here (deck is in left hand)." It was a humorous moment, but there is truth in it. You can't end with multiple packets; it's just not right.

 

[Tower of Lunatic Meat]

Chase Duncan talked about this briefly at the con. He said, "There are two rules of cardistry, you start here (deck is in left hand), and you end here (deck is in left hand)." It was a humorous moment, but there is truth in it. You can't end with multiple packets; it's just not right.

Well, from an artistic standpoint, I can't say that Mr. Duncan is wrong. I just think that the start/end procedure is something that can be challenged.
At face value, it doesn't sound like the neatest thing in the world. I just think that the 'deck coming to close' at ones physical core could be done...differently

 

[Duncan F.]

Chase Duncan talked about this briefly at the con. He said, "There are two rules of cardistry, you start here (deck is in left hand), and you end here (deck is in left hand)." It was a humorous moment, but there is truth in it. You can't end with multiple packets; it's just not right.

I must be doing something wrong. I always start and end with the deck in my right hand

 

[Tower of Lunatic Meat]

I must be doing something wrong. I always start and end with the deck in my right hand

All the tutorials I see are mostly done by lefties. Us righties are the odd ones out. You might want to jump on it, Apatche.

 

[Duncan F.]

All the tutorials I see are mostly done by lefties. Us righties are the odd ones out. You might want to jump on it, Apatche.

We've discussed this before lol. Right-handed people are supposed to hold the deck in the left hand, so technically all the tutorials you see are done by righties. Us lefties (meaning you hold the deck in your right hand) are the odd ones out.

 

[Tower of Lunatic Meat]

We've discussed this before lol. Right-handed people are supposed to hold the deck in the left hand, so technically all the tutorials you see are done by righties. Us lefties (meaning you hold the deck in your right hand) are the odd ones out.

I do remember having the discussion, I just couldn't remember with whom.

It was apparently with YOU. I feel like a goober.

 

[Duncan F.]

I do remember having the discussion, I just couldn't remember with whom.

It was apparently with YOU. I feel like a goober.

Yep. It was with me. But I could talk about that topic all day. Left handed cardists are a rare and dying breed. I mean what new cardist is gonna think to switch his hands when learning a tutorial? Noone, because it's like 10 times harder to learn it that way. The Virts used to tease a left handed section on their old site since one of them (Bone Ho I think) is a lefty like me, but it never came to fruition.

I just feel so alone lol