I found Remix Manifesto to be interesting, the main reason I did so it because of how many points the documentary makes that I agree with.
In terms of copyright, I side with the producer of the documentary and his passion toward believing that copyright restrains the creativity of an individual. For example, if we were to take the case of the combination of samples that Girl talk mashed up. Girl talk merely combines a series of songs and creates his own version of music. If we settle to believe that experiments such as these are results of stealing other people’s work, we somehow contradict the idea of gaining inspiration from past works. How is an artist to build up on his or her on work, but at the same time keep up with the constant evolution of the arts itself. Bands from the twentieth century should be seen as a source of inspiration for the music that the current generation is producing. They are in reality the the building blocks of the music that we create today. Artists do believe in the essence of authenticity or originality, which convey them as distinctive. But, in my opinion, all works are in some form or another a replica of a former work as a result of drawn inspiration, but what makes these works authentic is the essence of the artist and their ability to execute their vision.
Another point that the documentary highlights is this idea of Fair Use, which in retrospect is used to justify a point through the use of an another artists work without being charged for copyright infringement. In my opinion, if Fair use allows us to take other people’s work to justify a point, why is it different from using the work as a justification of an artists creativity. For example, when we cite another author’s work in our essays, although we credit the person in our essays we somehow unconsciously use their opinion as our permanent back up. The same way when we take different samples and combine them together we are in some way justifying our creativity, or instilling in our minds that the sound we produced makes us an “authentic” artist.
But most of all I think that the very notion of remix is the current stage in the evolution of all forms of art. Remixing art brings familiarity and adds to the aesthetic pleasure of the very concept of art. For instance, when I listen to a mash-up of classics, I get a sense of nostalgia due to familiarity. Even though I know in the back of my mind that it is not the original song, a second or a few seconds of that sense of familiarity appearing and disappearing constructs a new form of art. I believe that remixes could potentially define our culture. Remixes are technically everywhere in our day and time and are most likely to persist or be the building blocks for another type of art form that will eventually add to the evolution.
