Notes

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This year, I led a weekly improv workshop that just had its first public performance.

People often tell me "I could never do that."

• ❌ I'm afraid to go on stage
• ❌ I'm not spontaneous enough
• ❌ I'm not funny enough

But what became crystal clear to me this year is that improv has NOTHING to do with any of that.

You don't need to "be funny", or have witty comebacks.

To build an unscripted story that captivates an audience, you just need to follow three simple rules:

1. Accept what your partner offers.
   Even if it's crazy or unexpected. If it's said, it's real. You start from there.
    
2. Build on that offer.
   You can't ignore it or go in another direction. You add YOUR brick on top of the one that was just laid down. (That's the famous "YES, AND...")

I added a third rule, the most important one for me:

3. Throw away the idea in your head.
   Before going on stage – or asking for a raise, or confronting a loved one – we often already know what we're going to say. We have a plan.

Next time, try this experiment: plan as much as you want, but at the last second, throw it all away. Enter the arena with an empty mind.

Three things will happen:

• You'll no longer be "in your head," so you'll actually be listening.
• You'll be surprised by your own reactions.
• You'll feel more alive than usual.

Experiencing this spontaneity and presence in a "safe space" within a group built on trust and laughter is a chance I was lucky to have this year. I recommend it 👍.

And since we're on my professional website: YES, this experience also feeds into my professional public speaking coaching BLAH BLAH BLAH.

I'm delighted that episode 5 of our web series Panic in Space (coming out this fall!) will be screened during two sessions at the Les Nuées Ardentes Festival ("The meeting of science and imagination") from June 13 to 15, 2025. This follows the audience award won at the Riom Scientific Film Festival.

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Synopsis "A Thousand Years of Solitude": A space delivery driver (Guillaume Vanhille) learns that his best friend (Bob Levasseur) is an artificial intelligence... If you're interested in our series, follow us on the "Panic in Space" website and sign up for the mailing list to receive episodes for free as soon as they're released.

Because most people do it very badly.

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When a company needs a video, it usually goes like this:

1. A poor soul, with no particular knowledge in the field, is put in charge of the project ("But yes! You made the Christmas video with the tree! It was great!")
2. To prove that progress is being made, this new manager makes decisions alone or in consultation that will quickly become irreversible: format, duration, sequences...
3. Service providers are then contacted. For them, these arbitrary decisions are now input data. To prove their worth, they compete... on prices.

I'm caricaturing. But we're not far off.

The flaws of this approach: the most experienced people take no part in the most important decisions on the subject they know best. And the final choice of service provider is made on the anecdotal (price), not on the essential: the value the film will bring.

(Not to mention the unnecessary stress of the person who has to decide without knowing, knowing that everyone will see the result...)

Ideally, it would go more like this:

1. At the first need for what looks like video content, a minimal brief is assembled. It answers basic questions – and that's it:
   • Why do you need a film?
   • What problem should it solve?
   • What is the budget envelope?
2. This information is communicated to several service providers who can then compete on ideas, not on prices. A short phone conversation will be enough to see who you feel aligned with and which ideas make you go "Ding!"
3. Go back to your real work instead of pretending to be Spielberg.

Don't forget: making a film is an artistic endeavor. Your company will benefit enormously from letting the service provider express themselves. However, it's up to you to ensure alignment of what they propose with your brand.

💡 And if it's a significant investment and you're not sure about the message or the brief? Call me and I'll take care of this step. Yes: only the brief. This is a new service I offer and you'll have peace of mind.