Using art to solve a business problem

Today on Willful, our guest Ricardo McRae talks about:
• Customer retention with an artistic twist
• Using drawings to solve a business problem
• The sustainability of playing with geeks when you’re an artsy person 

McRae is a painter, TEDx speaker, and vision activator for Wedge15, the branding agency he co-founded with Gloria R. McRae. He is also the founder of Black In Canada and the host of TheFramingPodcast.com.

Willful is the web series that tracks how artists and creative entrepreneurs work, thrive and survive. We interview one artist a week, then post five three-minute snack films from that interview on YouTube every day.

Follow us here or on our YouTube Channel and Facebook Page for our entire archive of inspiring interviews.

Thanks, as always, to Greg Garson, for inviting us into your beautiful restaurant, The Merchant Taps & Tavern.

When to listen to your parents

Today on Willful, Ricardo McRae describes: 

• Turning down a placement in business school … for art school.
• When to listen to your parents’ advice, and when to say, “I got this!’
• Combining practical and analytical skills with emotional intelligence.

McRae is a painter, TEDx speaker, and vision activator for Wedge15, the branding agency he co-founded with Gloria Roheim McRae. He is also the founder of Black In Canada and the host of TheFramingPodcast.com.

Willful is the web series that tracks how artists and creative entrepreneurs work, thrive and survive. We interview one artist a week, then post five three-minute snack films from that interview on YouTube every day. 

Follow us here or on our Facebook Page for our entire archive of inspiring interviews.

Thanks, Greg Garson, for inviting us into your beautiful restaurant, The Merchant Taps & Tavern.

The starving artist scenario

Today on Willful, Ricardo McRae (@RicardoMcRae) describes: 

• Growing up in Trinidad, a hotbed of colour and creativity.
• How fear of being a starving artist pushed him into the tech sector.
• What racism feels like: “It’s like facing waves in the ocean. You can’t win against the ocean, you have to ride the waves.”

McRae is a painter, TEDx speaker, and vision activator for Wedge15, the branding agency he co-founded with Gloria Roheim McRae. He is also the founder of Black In Canada, and host of TheFramingPodcast.com.

Willful is the web series that tracks how artists and creative entrepreneurs work, thrive and survive. We interview one artist a week, then post five three-minute snack films from that interview on YouTube every day. 

Follow us here or on our YouTube Channel for our entire archive of inspiring interviews.

Thank you, Greg Garson and the staff at The Merchant Tavern for your hospitality!

The example of Stephen King

Mystery writer, Angela Misri, is a good person to share a laugh with. In our last Willful episode with her, Angela talks about:

• Her debt to a Stephen King short story.

• How writing fiction has transformed her.

• How she wants to change the world through her work.

Angela Misri (@karmicangel) is a Toronto-based journalist and former CBC’er, now a co-host of the podcast, Ada’s Sisters (with Eden Spodek), and the author of A Portia Adams Adventure Series.

Willful is the web series that tracks how artists and creative entrepreneurs work, thrive and survive. We interview one artist a week, then post five three-minute snack films from that interview on YouTube every day.

Follow us here or on our Facebook Page for our entire archive of inspiring interviews.

Our thanks to Greg Garson and the staff at The Merchant Taps & Tavern for their hospitality.

Taking control of your digital marketing

Her years spent working on digital strategy for the CBC has made mystery writer, Angela Misri, a crackerjack digital marketer. In Ep. 6 of Willful, Misri shares tips on:

• How you can take control of your digital marketing.
• Showing what you want to be known for.
• Researching plot details on the internet

Angela Misri (@karmicangel) is a Toronto-based journalist and former CBC’er, now a co-host of the podcast, Ada’s Sisters (with Eden Spodek), and the author of  A Portia Adams Adventure Series.

Willful is the web series that tracks how artists and creative entrepreneurs work, thrive and survive. We interview one artist a week, then post five three-minute snack films from that interview on YouTube every day. Sometimes we post 6 or 7 interviews a week if the material blows us away. 

Follow us here or on our Facebook Page for our entire archive of inspiring interviews.

Thank you, Greg Garson and the staff at the beautiful The Merchant Taps & Tavern for your generous hospitality. #CraftBeer

Losses and gains in the digital age

In Ep. 5 of Willful, mystery writer Angela Misri (@karmicangel) talks about:

• Losses and gains in the digital age.

• Processing criticism from editors.

• Women supporting women in the arts.

Angela Misri is a Toronto-based journalist and former CBC’er, now a co-host of the podcast, Ada’s Sisters (with @EdenSpodek), and the author of A Portia Adams Adventure Series.

Willful is the web series that tracks how artists and creative entrepreneurs work, thrive and survive. We interview one artist a week, then post five three-minute snack films from that interview on YouTube every day. 

Writing strong women

This week on Willful, I sat down with Angela Misri (‪@karmicangel‪), a Toronto-based journalist and former CBC’er, now a co-host of the podcast, Ada’s Sisters (with @EdenSpodek), and the author of the Portia Adams Adventure Series. In Ep. 4, Angela shares her thoughts on:‬‬

• Normalizing intelligence and independence in her female characters.

• Writing about the women of the 1930s

• Boys, and whether they'll read books with a female protagonist.

• Stereotypes publishers need to get past.

Willful is the web series that tracks how artists and creative entrepreneurs work, thrive and survive. We interview one artist a week, then post five three-minute snack films from that interview on YouTube every day.

Follow us here or on our YouTube channel for our entire archive of inspiring interviews.

Writing YA fiction with Angela Misri

This week on Willful, I sat down with Angela Misri (‪@karmicangel‪), a Toronto-based journalist and former CBC’er, now a co-host of the podcast, Ada’s Sisters (with Eden Spodek), and the author of the A Portia Adams Adventure Series. In Ep. 3, Angela shares her thoughts on:‬‬

• Writing Young Adult fiction.

• Searching for female protagonists in books.

• Why Nancy Drew isn’t her cup of tea.

• Running in heels.

Willful is the web series that tracks how artists and creative entrepreneurs work, thrive and survive. We interview one artist a week, then post five three-minute snack films from that interview on YouTube every day.

Follow on our YouTube Channel (WillfulProject) and Facebook Page, or on our website WillfulProject.com for our entire archive of inspiring interviews.

Thank you to Greg Garson and the staff of  The Merchant Taps & Tavern for the location and the hospitality.

Shot and edited by the talented Yann Yap.

Being an outsider

This week on Willful, I sat down with Angela Misri (‪@karmicangel‪ ‬), a Toronto-based journalist and former CBC’er, now a co-host of the podcast, Ada’s Sisters (with Eden Spodek), and the author of the A Portia Adams Adventure Series. In Ep. 2, Angela talks about:‬‬

• Being something other than a doctor or an engineer, and telling her South Asian parents about it.
• The teacher who changed her life
• Being an outsider
• What makes a good mystery writer

Willful is the web series that tracks how artists and creative entrepreneurs work, thrive and survive. We interview one artist a week, then post five three-minute snack films from that interview on YouTube every day. 

Follow us here or on our YouTube Channel and Facebook Page for our entire archive of inspiring interviews.

Shot and edited by the talented Yann Yap.

Thank you to Greg Garson and the entire staff at  The Merchant Taps & Tavern for hosting us.

Finding time to write with Angela Misri

This week on Willful, I sat down with Angela Misri (‪@karmicangel‪ ‬), a Toronto-based journalist and former CBC’er, now a co-host of the Ada’s Sisters Podcast (with @EdenSpodek), and the author of the Portia Adams Adventure Series. In Ep. 1, Angela talks about:

• Finding time to write when you’re spending all your creative energy at work. 
• First steps: filling Moleskin notebooks with ideas.
• How her characters make themselves known to her.
• Creating a female detective out of Baker Street.

Willful is the web series that tracks how artists and creative entrepreneurs work, thrive and survive. We interview one artist a week, then post five three-minute snack films from that interview on YouTube every day. 

Follow us here our website WillfulProject.com or our Facebook Page for our entire archive of inspiring interviews.

Avoiding burnout

In Ep. 5 of Willful, Andrew Dobson remembers his first big investment: "a Black and Decker bread maker when I was in the sixth grade." He goes on to talk about:

• His heroes.
• Avoiding burnout.
• His definition of success.

Andrew is the editor in chief of DobberNationLoves.com, a food, luxury travel, arts and entertainment blog now in its 9th year. 

Willful is the web series that tracks how artists and creative entrepreneurs work, thrive and survive. We interview one artist a week, then post five three-minute snack films from that interview on YouTube every day. 

Follow us here on our website WillfulProject.com or our Facebook Page for our entire archive of inspiring interviews.

Andrew Dobson's *gay magic*

This week on Willful, Alison sat down with Andrew Dobson, the editor in chief of DobberNationLoves.com, a food, luxury travel, arts and entertainment blog now in its 9th year. In Ep. #4 Andrew talks about:

• How the movement to respect the rights and dignity of the LGBTQ community has energized his blog, and his way of expressing himself.

• How he never imagined making money from his "truth."

• Why it's empowering being from Canada

Willful is the web series that tracks how artists and creative entrepreneurs work, thrive and survive. We interview one artist a week, then post five three-minute snack films from that interview on YouTube every day. 

Follow us here on our website WillfulProject.com or our Facebook Page for our entire archive of inspiring interviews.

Creativity and compensation

This week on Willful, I sat down with Andrew Dobson (dobbernationLOVES), the editor in chief of DobberNationLoves.com, a food, luxury travel, arts and entertainment blog now in its 9th year. In episode #3, Andrew talks even more about:

• His efforts to change the culture of free on the internet.
• His favourite example of creativity and compensation coming together. 
• When he has said YES to non-paid work, and why.

Willful is the web series that tracks how artists and creative entrepreneurs work, thrive and survive. We interview one artist a week, then post five three-minute snack films from that interview on YouTube every day. 

Follow us here on our website, or on our Facebook Page and YouTube channel for our entire archive of inspiring interviews.

Monetizing your blog posts the DobberNation way

This week on Willful, I sat down with Andrew Dobson (@DobberNation), the editor in chief of DobberNationLoves.com, a food, luxury travel, arts and entertainment blog now in its 9th year. In Ep. 2, Andrew talks about:

• The social media landscape after he graduated in 2007. Twitter was a year old!
• Monetizing your writing and videos.
• The mistakes he's made/lessons learned in the push to get paid for his creativity.
• Setting expectations with clients.

Willful is the web series that tracks how artists and creative entrepreneurs work, thrive and survive. We interview one artist a week, then post five three-minute snack films from that interview on YouTube every day. 

Follow us here and on our YouTube Channel for more inspiring interviews.

The origins of DobberNationLoves.com

This week on Willful, I sat down with Andrew Dobson (@DobberNation), the editor in chief of DobberNationLoves.com, a food, luxury travel, arts & entertainment blog now in its 9th year. Andrew tells looks back on:

• The Word doc. origins of his blog.
• How working on the internet has changed since he started blogging.
• If he has always seen travel and food blogging as a profession vs. a hobby.

Willful is the web series that tracks how artists and creative entrepreneurs work, thrive and survive. We interview one artist a week, then post five three-minute snack films from that interview on YouTube every day. 

Follow us here or on our YouTube Channel for more inspiring interviews.

Getting the Millennial POV

Our roadmap to a better future is art. In Ep. 4 of Willful, documentary filmmaker, Maureen Judge (My Millennial Life) discusses:

• How the internet has informed her storytelling methods.
• Getting the Millennial POV by hiring a ton of them, including her son, Jacob Waxman (Waxman), who did the music and sound for the digital documentary, MyMillennialLife.ca, and some of the some of the music for the film.
• How making documentaries has changed her as a person.

Willful is the web series that tracks how artists and creative entrepreneurs work, thrive and survive. We interview one artist a week, then post five three-minute snack films from that interview on YouTube every day.

Follow us here and on our YouTube Channel. Don't forget to visit our website WillfulProject.com for more inspiring interviews and blog posts.

For more of Maureen and Jacob Waxman's work go to:
http://www.MyMillennialLife.ca
http://www.makinmovies.ca/productions-3/docs/unveiled
https://soundcloud.com/waxmantrax

Covering female territory on film

Is being female ever an advantage in filmmaking? In Ep. 3 of Willful, filmmaker Maureen Judge discusses

• getting female territory on film.
• how she deals with setbacks.
• her seminal influences.
• the constant exploration of ideas and new technologies.

Willful is the web series that tracks how artists and creative entrepreneurs work, thrive and survive. We interview one artist a week, then post five three-minute snack films from that interview on YouTube every day. 

Follow us here on our YouTube Channel or here at WillfulProject.com for more inspiring interviews.

To check out Maureen's work and some of her influences, go to:

http://www.MyMillennialLife.ca
http://www.makinmovies.ca/productions-3/docs/unveiled
http://greygardensonline.com/the-documentary/ 
https://www.criterion.com/people/1057-eric-rohmer

How to capture transformative moments on film with Maureen Judge

One of the greatest pleasures and saviors of working in the arts is losing yourself in the work. In Ep. 2 of Willful, filmmaker Maureen Judge describes 

• what moves her the most about documentaries. 

• how she chooses her subjects.

• how she sets out to capture those transformative moments in people's lives. "I look for subjects who are living the broader shifts and changes in society."

To wit: Her latest TVO doc, My Millennial Life, formed in her mind after she read news articles about youth unemployment in Spain and Greece. "It really resonated for me as a parent of Millennials."

Willful is the web series that tracks how creative entrepreneurs work, thrive and survive. We interview one artist a week, then post five three-minute snack films from that interview on YouTube every day. 

Follow us here on our website or on our YouTube channel for more inspiring interviews.

Maureen Judge remembers her start in documentary filmmaking

In this episode of Willful, award-winning documentary filmmaker, Maureen Judge, recalls how she got her start in film.

Maureen heads up the production company, Makin' Movies, and creates documentaries that take you inside people's lives.

Highlights in this interview include:
• Why Maureen chose documentaries over other forms of filmmaking.
• Her first camera.
• How photo albums, sewing, and studying philosophy all worked together to shape Maureen's vision as a documentarian.

Willful is the web series that tracks how creative entrepreneurs work, thrive and survive. We interview one artist a week, then post five three-minute snack films from that interview on YouTube every day. 

Follow us here and on our YouTube channel for more inspiring interviews. 

Welcome to Willful!

Willful is a  new web series by Alison Garwood-Jones and Yann Yap that tracks how creative entrepreneurs work, thrive and survive. 

In this web series, we interview one artist a week, then post five snack films on YouTube every day. 

As freelancers — Alison is a writer and illustrator; Yann is a videographer — we're always looking for crunchy ideas to jump start our day, whether it's an inspiring story, advice on process, or tips on the economics of being (and staying) creative. We're guessing you geek out on that stuff too!

In each episode, you will meet women and men who are:

• Gutsy and joyfully oblivious to "You can't do that" and "Who do you think you are?" (it's a Canadian thing)

• Determined to make things, create something new, and realize an emotion or idea, then put it out into the world.

• Innovators and disruptors whose focus and positivity has elevated them above the snark of flabby, anonymous commenters.  

BTW: we chose the name "Willful" for this series because there's a current of willfulness running through every creative person we've ever met — a certain scrappiness and determination. "Willful" is something you have to be if you want to make a real difference in the world.

If you like what we're doing, please share!

If you are creative and have a "Willful" story worth sharing on camera, contact us at willfulproject@gmail.com, or on Twitter @WillfulProject.