Artivist

Meggan’s submission about synesthesia and her desire to produce, write and star in a short, avant-garde film about the condition caught the eye of producers. “I’ve known I had this condition all of my life” says Meggan. “It was just last year when I learned that it had a name: synesthesia. It’s been a whirlwind of a journey both personally and professionally learning how to use this through art. Learning how to accept that nothing is wrong with me and that it’s a very real thing.”

“I have a form of syn called Sound→Color Synesthesia. Syn is a fusion of the senses and with me, it’s the senses of sounds, colors and shapes. Every sound I have ever heard, produces an involuntary visual of particular colors and shapes, sort of like a transparent kaleidoscope. It’s every moment of my life, and it always has been that way. Syn colors and shapes never change. If I painted a picture of a song for instance and then heard the song 20 years later, I would paint the exact same picture. I thought this was a normal human trait as a small child. I was asked one day to draw a picture during my time with a speech pathologist of “how I felt.” Music was playing during this setting, so I simply drew with crayons the song I was hearing. Upon telling my pathologist what I was specifically drawing, he quickly laughed it off as a child’s imagination. It was that point where I knew that this was not “normal” and I kept it a secret until I learned as an adult that it was the condition of synesthesia.”

“What I once was afraid of…afraid to ever tell anyone, I am now finding how to use this through art and my life as a whole.” says Meggan. “I am now proud to declare that I’m a Synnie, and I couldn’t imagine a world where the colors weren’t there in my life. Honestly, it would frighten me if one day I ever woke up and I was “normal.”

Artivist and the 30 Day Challenge to a Greater You is giving people who have passionate goals to help make the world a better place via activism and art the resources, tools and professional guidance to make their goals breathe into life. Stay tuned for details and further upcoming information.

Director’s Statement:

Comedy by definition is any discourse intended to amuse. Sketch comedy in particular is a comedic exploration of a concept, character or a situation. With derivity from the ancient times of Greece to the vaudeville actors of the early 20th century America, these vignettes help all of us, both the creators and the audience temporarily escape from our own realities so that we can mentally and emotionally cross over the bounds of what is deemed acceptable and possible. Simply, it’s a thrill for me to fuck around with your minds!

Hypomanic Euphoria was birthed from life’s experiences in particular from the past year of my life. Both the happiest moments and the saddest moments of my life have occurred in this time frame. They say that most comedy derives from real life experiences and Hypomanic Euphoria is no exception. I am human. As such, I possess many different kinds of emotions, from the joys of life (“Feed My Fetish”), Anger and frustration (“Late Night Confessions”), to sex (“Love Song For My Burrito”); comedy’s reputation of being brutally honest is not only refreshing but enlightening!

Many say that comedians use comedy in order to heal or to hide something dramatic. I say that comedy is not only medicine but more complicated than drama. It’s easy to be serious, much harder to let your guard down by choice in order to enter into that familiar, comforting weird realm of creative craziness. Comedy is a beautiful dance of colors between what is possible and what you thought was impossible. It fades the lines between reality and your dreams.

My hope with Hypomanic Euphoria is not only to entertain you for an hour out of your life, but to show you, the audience through comedy that your mind, your evolutionary house of your own creativity, can indisputably erase the boundaries between reality and your own visionary thoughts.

hypomania  hy·po·ma·ni·a (hī’pə-mā’nē-ə, -mān’yə)

n. Psychology  - A mild form of mania, characterized by hyperactivity and euphoria. Hypomanic episodes have a  profound feeling of floating upwards, and usually cause the person experiencing them to become highly creative, have endless energy, a decreased need for sleep and floods of ideas. Often associated with the feeling of being in two places at once, sufferers are able to distinguish between reality and fantasy, and do not represent a risk to society since their grasp on reality remains stable at all times. It is believed that Hypomania is largely caused by severe traumatic lifetime events usually during childhood. Most Hypomanics view their condition as a gift, as many hypomanics are prominent in fields involving the creative arts and attribute their success to it