0:00:19.439,0:00:21.259 Ten years ago, 0:00:21.259,0:00:23.439 I quit my job as a bookseller, 0:00:23.439,0:00:29.389 I packed my luggage and I left[br]to live in Los Angeles. 0:00:29.398,0:00:33.708 I didn’t know anyone there but[br]I knew I wanted to make movies 0:00:33.708,0:00:38.178 so it made sense to me[br]to go to Hollywood. 0:00:38.674,0:00:41.764 After a few years [br]I came back to France, 0:00:41.764,0:00:46.024 and when people would ask me:[br]"What do you do in life?" 0:00:46.024,0:00:49.614 I would reply:[br]"I'm a filmmaker, I make movies." 0:00:49.614,0:00:53.214 "I’m just back from a few years in L.A.” 0:00:53.214,0:00:56.924 At that moment I would often[br]see a sparkle lit in their eyes 0:00:56.924,0:01:00.064 as they'd say, "That's amazing![br]what kind of films do you do? 0:01:00.064,0:01:01.494 Can we see them at the movie? 0:01:01.494,0:01:04.154 Have you worked with famous people?” 0:01:04.595,0:01:05.545 And I would reply, 0:01:05.545,0:01:06.995 “I direct mostly fiction." 0:01:06.995,0:01:09.205 My films don't play at the movie theatre 0:01:09.205,0:01:11.245 - not yet. And no... 0:01:11.245,0:01:13.735 I haven’t worked with anyone famous.” 0:01:14.861,0:01:16.911 At that moment there would be a silence 0:01:16.911,0:01:20.201 long enough for their enthusiasm[br]to go down a few inches 0:01:20.201,0:01:22.391 And then we would keep on talking about 0:01:22.391,0:01:23.991 Los Angeles. 0:01:25.788,0:01:26.628 Little by little, 0:01:26.628,0:01:33.128 tired of seeing people’s reaction[br]going from curious to disappointed 0:01:33.174,0:01:36.004 when they would realize[br]that I was a "wannabe" 0:01:36.004,0:01:40.804 I started lying about what I was doing. 0:01:41.040,0:01:43.950 I stopped saying[br]"I'm a filmmaker" 0:01:43.950,0:01:46.660 to say “I work as a freelance.” 0:01:46.900,0:01:48.740 I stopped saying "I make films" 0:01:48.740,0:01:52.410 to say “I make videos for clients.” 0:01:52.740,0:01:54.810 It sounded less dreamy 0:01:54.810,0:01:56.520 but it was useful and practical. 0:01:56.520,0:01:58.440 We would talk about how to find clients, 0:01:58.440,0:02:00.940 how to bill them, about gear. 0:02:01.330,0:02:02.930 And more importantly, 0:02:02.948,0:02:08.158 I stopped feeling like I had[br]to apologize for my lack of success. 0:02:08.158,0:02:10.538 I began to feel a bit weird [br]about it though. 0:02:10.538,0:02:13.583 I started to wonder:[br]"Why do you lie about what you do?" 0:02:13.593,0:02:18.013 And why do you feel compelled[br]to diminish people's expectations 0:02:18.013,0:02:21.963 so they won’t think you’ve failed? 0:02:22.793,0:02:25.863 It’s at that point that I really started[br]to become interested 0:02:25.873,0:02:28.343 about the concept of “success”. 0:02:28.343,0:02:31.353 And at how it has evolved[br]in the last few years, 0:02:31.353,0:02:36.183 especially with social media's arrival [br]in our lives that reminds us daily 0:02:36.183,0:02:38.653 how we rank on the graph of success 0:02:38.653,0:02:41.533 compared to the other 8 billion. 0:02:43.037,0:02:46.657 This ranking on the “success graph”[br]explains why sometimes, 0:02:46.657,0:02:49.557 when we talk with people,[br]a contest starts 0:02:49.557,0:02:52.657 to find out who has the most impact. 0:02:52.657,0:02:54.627 It’s conveyed through innocent words: 0:02:54.627,0:02:55.967 “I know X person” 0:02:55.967,0:02:57.937 “X number of people follow me”, 0:02:57.937,0:02:59.917 “I visited X number of countries”, 0:02:59.917,0:03:02.397 “I was a speaker at X event”. 0:03:02.397,0:03:05.277 Giving a TED Talk is great[br]to win an impact contest. 0:03:05.719,0:03:08.239 Thank you TED. 0:03:08.984,0:03:12.384 Power and Success have always existed. 0:03:12.384,0:03:15.491 And they’ve always been a fuel[br]for some people, 0:03:15.491,0:03:17.461 and obstacles for others. 0:03:17.461,0:03:20.941 But in the last few years,[br]things have become so intense 0:03:20.941,0:03:25.571 that I’ve already found myself [br]listening to 24-year-olds 0:03:25.571,0:03:28.921 explaining to me that they had [br]abandoned a dream or an idea 0:03:28.921,0:03:31.421 before they had even started. 0:03:31.421,0:03:34.621 And the reason why they[br]had given up before even trying 0:03:34.621,0:03:38.481 is because they were paralyzed by[br]the success of people younger than them 0:03:38.481,0:03:42.231 that they were witnessing daily [br]on social media. 0:03:42.231,0:03:46.741 I’ve listened to 24-year-olds explaining[br]to me that if they really had something 0:03:46.741,0:03:51.831 to achieve on this planet, they should[br]have had their breakthrough by now. 0:03:52.600,0:03:59.860 At 24 they didn’t feel old, [br]they felt expired. 0:04:01.150,0:04:04.770 We have developed a surprising [br]relationship with what we could call 0:04:04.770,0:04:06.870 our “expiration date”. 0:04:06.870,0:04:10.770 We used to have one expiration date:[br]it was the date of our death. 0:04:10.782,0:04:14.352 Today we have a second expiration date [br]in our lives, and it's 0:04:14.352,0:04:17.573 our social expiration date. 0:04:17.573,0:04:23.433 The idea that when we do something, [br]its value must be recognized and 0:04:23.443,0:04:25.433 measurable to exist. 0:04:25.433,0:04:30.463 And if we don’t receive immediately[br]a positive feedback about what we do, 0:04:30.463,0:04:40.833 or worse, if what we do is deemed [br]useless, ridicule, or a failure, 0:04:40.833,0:04:44.873 then we feel socially expired. 0:04:44.873,0:04:47.853 And that’s how some 24-year-olds 0:04:47.853,0:04:51.693 prefer to go sit on the bench to[br]watch History create itself 0:04:51.693,0:04:55.063 without them, rather than [br]risking to do something 0:04:55.063,0:04:59.983 and not receive immediately [br]a positive feedback. 0:05:00.733,0:05:03.123 While I was looking into[br]what "success" means today 0:05:03.123,0:05:04.978 and into our date of social expiration, 0:05:04.978,0:05:07.818 I’ve realised that my job is not 0:05:07.818,0:05:12.078 to write screenplays or direct films. 0:05:12.078,0:05:15.818 My job is to fabricate stories. 0:05:16.146,0:05:20.766 It’s a job that might seem[br]useless, but actually, 0:05:20.766,0:05:27.616 storytelling is the best way that we,[br]humans, have found to survive. 0:05:28.516,0:05:29.736 Tonight, 0:05:29.736,0:05:33.536 if we’ve all come onto this stage[br]to talk to you for 15 minutes, 0:05:33.536,0:05:37.826 it’s because the best way to[br]convey an idea is to do it 0:05:37.826,0:05:39.856 with a story. 0:05:39.856,0:05:46.286 In 2018, we could have made a[br]pdf with each TED Talk's main idea 0:05:46.286,0:05:49.446 summed up in one sentence,[br]and emailed it to you. 0:05:49.446,0:05:51.106 Really, we could have done it. 0:05:51.106,0:05:55.196 It would have cost you less money,[br]and it would have taken us less time. 0:05:55.546,0:05:58.626 But the power of the messages[br]we are trying to share 0:05:58.626,0:06:01.286 would have evaporated. 0:06:01.286,0:06:03.336 We know it and you know it. 0:06:03.336,0:06:07.596 And that’s why you are here tonight,[br]to listen to stories that might open 0:06:07.596,0:06:09.966 a world of possibilities. 0:06:10.448,0:06:12.178 In 1944, 0:06:12.188,0:06:16.868 Professors Fritz Heider and Marianne [br]Simmel conducted a test. 0:06:16.868,0:06:20.058 They showed a video[br]to a group of students 0:06:20.058,0:06:23.158 and asked them to answer[br]a series of questions 0:06:23.158,0:06:25.348 to describe what they had seen. [br][br] 0:06:25.348,0:06:27.538 I’m going to show you 15 seconds [br]of the video, 0:06:27.538,0:06:29.498 it’s going to be quick 0:06:29.498,0:06:31.828 but I invite you to try[br]to answer this question: 0:06:31.828,0:06:33.878 “What am I seeing on the screen?” 0:06:49.383,0:06:51.523 That was 15 seconds. 0:06:51.523,0:06:53.823 When they reviewed the questionnaires, 0:06:53.823,0:06:58.073 Heider and Simmel discovered[br]that 33 out of 34 students 0:06:58.073,0:07:00.567 had fabricated a story. 0:07:00.567,0:07:02.527 They had imputed motives, 0:07:02.527,0:07:04.957 emotions, and behaviours 0:07:04.957,0:07:07.557 to the geometrical figures[br]that were randomly moving 0:07:07.567,0:07:10.147 through space that you just saw. [br][br] 0:07:11.021,0:07:14.311 This study was one of the first[br]scientific study to confirm 0:07:14.311,0:07:19.761 that our brain understands[br]the world through stories. 0:07:20.841,0:07:25.361 We cannot help but give meaning[br]to the world that surrounds us. 0:07:25.361,0:07:29.001 And to give meaning to the world [br]that surrounds us, 0:07:29.001,0:07:31.681 we fabricate stories. 0:07:31.681,0:07:34.241 Knowing that,[br]that stories are essential 0:07:34.241,0:07:36.521 to our survival and to our life, 0:07:36.521,0:07:41.101 I want to tell you another[br]story about success. 0:07:41.101,0:07:45.911 An alternative to the current notion[br]that paralyzes so many people today. 0:07:46.455,0:07:49.679 Earlier I said that we [br]had two expiration dates: 0:07:49.679,0:07:53.769 the date of our death and [br]the date of our social expiration 0:07:53.769,0:07:56.049 that we give to ourselves [br]sooner and sooner. 0:07:56.337,0:07:58.797 What I did not tell you… 0:07:58.797,0:08:01.720 is that a phone is ringing right now. 0:08:01.720,0:08:04.970 What I didn’t tell you is[br]that we all have a joker. 0:08:05.818,0:08:10.758 We all have the possibility [br]to become a good story. 0:08:10.758,0:08:15.748 We all have the possibility to become[br]a good story that is going to inspire 0:08:15.748,0:08:19.532 other human beings and [br]help them move forward. 0:08:19.532,0:08:25.652 And there’s one group of people[br]whose job is to distribute jokers: 0:08:25.652,0:08:28.245 the story fabricators. 0:08:28.245,0:08:30.365 Lucky me: it’s my job. 0:08:30.365,0:08:35.897 My job is to hunt, to imagine,[br]and to share the stories 0:08:35.897,0:08:40.361 of people with a surprising,[br]innovating and impactful destiny, 0:08:40.361,0:08:42.871 and who embodies strong ideas. 0:08:42.871,0:08:46.776 And currently, we are living through[br]an extremely interesting period. 0:08:46.776,0:08:48.176 Just like archeologists, 0:08:48.176,0:08:52.296 we are digging out new stories,[br]different stories. 0:08:52.296,0:08:59.386 Stories of people who often did not receive[br]immediate and positive feedback 0:08:59.386,0:09:02.356 about the worth of what[br]they were doing and who, 0:09:02.356,0:09:06.266 5, 50, 100, 200, 500 years later 0:09:06.266,0:09:09.966 end up at the center of the[br]storytelling stage to help us, 0:09:09.966,0:09:12.776 the new generations, to better[br]understand the world 0:09:12.786,0:09:14.636 and to move forward. 0:09:14.636,0:09:18.566 For example, some of you[br]might recognize the name of 0:09:18.566,0:09:20.226 Georgina Reid. 0:09:20.226,0:09:26.246 A textile designer who, in 1971, [br]when she was 63, decided that 0:09:26.246,0:09:32.246 what she really wanted to do was[br]to save her little town's lighthouse 0:09:32.246,0:09:35.705 that was at risk of falling down[br]due to the cliff's erosion. 0:09:35.705,0:09:38.935 Georgina created a whole system[br]that she patented. 0:09:38.935,0:09:42.775 She presents her project to [br]the coast guards, 0:09:42.775,0:09:44.835 they listen to her and say: 0:09:44.835,0:09:47.945 “We won’t prevent you from doing it[br]but we won't help you out either." 0:09:47.945,0:09:50.065 Okay, no problem. 0:09:50.065,0:09:54.385 For 15 years, helped by her husband [br]and volunteers, Georgina used 0:09:54.385,0:09:58.115 her knowledge and her time[br]for free, to prevent the lighthouse 0:09:58.115,0:10:01.085 to prevent the lighthouse [br]from falling down. 0:10:01.085,0:10:03.145 And she will succeed. 0:10:03.145,0:10:07.445 Georgina died in 2001, but[br]the lightouse is still here. 0:10:08.370,0:10:12.317 And then, 3 years ago,[br]a French story fabricator, 0:10:12.317,0:10:16.193 Pénélope Bagieu, gave a joker [br]to Georgina. 0:10:16.193,0:10:19.923 She shared Georgina’s story[br]in a graphic novel dedicated 0:10:19.923,0:10:25.467 to several women who changed [br]their story and sometimes History 0:10:25.467,0:10:27.687 in unexpected ways. 0:10:28.637,0:10:31.917 It’s thanks to a story fabricator 0:10:31.917,0:10:36.057 that 200,000 French people[br]and myself, have been inspired 0:10:36.057,0:10:40.527 by Georgina and her determination[br]to fight for something 0:10:40.527,0:10:45.747 that mattered to her even though[br]officially she was told it didn't. 0:10:46.957,0:10:49.927 Georgina was able to become [br]a good story because she was 0:10:49.927,0:10:54.287 an active actress of her story. 0:10:54.287,0:10:58.766 She didn’t settle for wishing that [br]the lighthouse wouldn't fall down. 0:10:58.766,0:11:02.606 No, she did what she had to do[br]to make sure the lighthouse 0:11:02.606,0:11:04.439 wouldn’t fall down. 0:11:04.550,0:11:06.780 And this word, “doing”, 0:11:06.780,0:11:10.920 is one of the three steps [br]to become a good story. 0:11:11.211,0:11:14.066 In reality, the recipe to become[br]a good story is simple. 0:11:14.066,0:11:16.796 Well, it fits into three steps. 0:11:17.906,0:11:20.146 First, you have to listen[br]to your intuition, 0:11:20.146,0:11:23.777 to hear what each one of us[br]individually, really want to do. 0:11:23.777,0:11:26.199 And once you’ve listened to it, 0:11:26.199,0:11:30.439 you need to muster the courage[br]to go for it, and do it. 0:11:31.219,0:11:33.541 And once you’ve had [br]the courage to do it, 0:11:33.541,0:11:35.131 you need to repeat. 0:11:35.131,0:11:37.971 Every day, you need to [br]do it again. 0:11:38.601,0:11:42.271 Today we are under a lot of pressure[br]when it comes to the projects 0:11:42.271,0:11:44.254 we decide to pursue. 0:11:44.254,0:11:45.796 They need to have a goal. 0:11:45.796,0:11:49.226 If they don't have a goal, then[br]they are not serious. 0:11:49.226,0:11:52.454 And if they are not serious, [br]then they are worth nothing. 0:11:53.656,0:11:56.786 I completely disagree with [br]this way of thinking. 0:11:56.786,0:11:59.926 If there’s one thing I've[br]learned this past decade, 0:11:59.926,0:12:02.786 hunting and fabricating stories, 0:12:02.786,0:12:07.793 it's that the value of what we do[br]is not fixed in time. 0:12:07.793,0:12:12.135 The value of what we do[br]can have a surprising impact 0:12:12.135,0:12:15.835 in five years, in fifty years, [br]after our death or 0:12:15.835,0:12:18.025 our great-grand-children’s death. 0:12:18.025,0:12:21.065 So there’s no point to try[br]picking something that will have 0:12:21.065,0:12:25.190 an impact instantaneously. 0:12:25.190,0:12:27.360 We can’t know if it will happen. 0:12:27.360,0:12:29.835 We should just keep on doing. 0:12:31.365,0:12:33.143 And these three steps:[br]listening to yourself, 0:12:33.143,0:12:35.393 going for it, and [br]doing it again, 0:12:35.393,0:12:39.890 they are crystallized in [br]Carmen Herrera’s story. 0:12:40.554,0:12:44.594 Carmen Herrera was born in La Havana in 1915. 0:12:44.594,0:12:47.814 At a young age she realizes that[br]what she really wants to do 0:12:47.814,0:12:49.064 is paint. 0:12:49.064,0:12:52.206 So she paints, every day. 0:12:52.206,0:12:55.605 And then she realizes that she creates[br]minimalist abstract paintings, 0:12:55.605,0:12:58.635 exactly at the time when abstract [br]minimalism is trendy. 0:12:58.635,0:13:00.128 Perfect. 0:13:00.128,0:13:03.968 She sells her first painting, [br]and then nothing. 0:13:03.968,0:13:08.407 She exhibits her work, [br]the audience doesn't respond. 0:13:08.407,0:13:12.657 She tries to find galleries[br]that would exhibit her work, 0:13:12.657,0:13:14.441 everybody says no. 0:13:14.441,0:13:16.675 And then one day, 0:13:16.675,0:13:20.615 Carmen is offered the opportunity[br]to exhibit her work again, 0:13:20.615,0:13:24.015 and this time people love it. 0:13:24.644,0:13:29.314 We are in 2004 at that point, [br]Carmen is 89. 0:13:30.595,0:13:32.817 Today Carmen is 103. 0:13:33.347,0:13:36.847 These past 14 years, her[br]paintings have been exhibited 0:13:36.847,0:13:40.707 presented in some of the most [br]prestigious museums in the world. 0:13:41.096,0:13:45.986 For 60 years Carmen Herrera[br]has created daily, 0:13:45.986,0:13:50.585 paintings that nobody thought [br]had any value. 0:13:50.585,0:13:52.277 And then one day, 0:13:52.277,0:13:57.395 Carmen Herrera’s story has aligned [br]with Art’s History. 0:13:57.395,0:14:03.979 If I tell you this story, it is not [br]to tell you that success always comes. 0:14:03.979,0:14:06.468 Because it’s not the case. 0:14:06.468,0:14:09.708 But it’s because I'm convinced[br]that Carmen Herrera would still 0:14:09.708,0:14:13.468 be painting today, even if [br]she had never found 0:14:13.468,0:14:15.900 her audience while[br]she was alive. 0:14:15.900,0:14:19.441 Carmen Herrera didn’t paint[br]to become famous. 0:14:19.441,0:14:23.516 She painted because it was[br]giving meaning to her life. 0:14:23.516,0:14:27.415 It’s not success that gives meaning to our life 0:14:27.415,0:14:30.927 it’s being self-expressed. 0:14:30.927,0:14:33.457 And when we are fully expressed, 0:14:33.457,0:14:37.927 our social expiration date vanishes. 0:14:37.927,0:14:40.266 When we are fully expressed, 0:14:40.266,0:14:43.106 our failures as well as our successes 0:14:43.106,0:14:45.306 become simply steps, [br] 0:14:45.306,0:14:48.885 on the graph of our personal growth. 0:14:50.483,0:14:54.945 Tonight what I want to suggest[br]is to shift your focus 0:14:54.945,0:14:58.658 away from what you cannot control. 0:14:58.658,0:15:04.588 We cannot control how people[br]are going to react to what we do. 0:15:04.588,0:15:08.168 But we can control what we do. 0:15:08.168,0:15:12.913 So, let’s stop paying attention [br]to society’s feedback 0:15:12.913,0:15:17.163 about the value of what gives[br]meaning to our lives. 0:15:17.163,0:15:22.652 Because we rarely can measure the value[br]of what we do right after doing it. 0:15:22.652,0:15:27.412 And more importantly because the value [br]of what we do will evolve unexpectedly 0:15:27.412,0:15:29.652 over time. 0:15:29.983,0:15:34.440 Today, when I meet people and[br]they ask me what I do in life, 0:15:34.440,0:15:39.203 I tell them that I am a story fabricator. 0:15:39.203,0:15:43.106 Nobody really understands what [br]it means but it's okay, 0:15:43.106,0:15:47.022 because if I have the chance to [br]talk a little bit more with them, 0:15:47.022,0:15:53.684 they understand that fabricating stories[br]is my way to express myself fully 0:15:53.684,0:15:55.794 and daily, doing. 0:15:55.794,0:15:57.459 For the last ten years, 0:15:57.459,0:16:04.739 I’ve been hunting and fabricating stories[br]that I share as screenplays, films, lyrics 0:16:04.739,0:16:07.945 drawings, podcasts or graphic novels. 0:16:08.365,0:16:10.843 Sometimes, I doubt. 0:16:10.843,0:16:14.676 I feel that what I’m doing [br]is completely useless. 0:16:14.676,0:16:20.153 And then I remember that my intuition[br]is probably whispering something to me 0:16:20.153,0:16:22.842 and that I should[br]probably listen to it. 0:16:22.842,0:16:28.567 So I listen to it, I go for it, [br]and then I repeat the process. 0:16:28.567,0:16:32.721 If tomorrow when you wake up [br]you feel like doing something "useless", 0:16:32.721,0:16:37.008 listen to yourself, go for it, [br]and repeat the process. 0:16:37.008,0:16:43.020 Because it’s by being active actors[br]of our story that we will become 0:16:43.020,0:16:44.991 good stories. 0:16:44.991,0:16:49.311 Stories that other human beings [br]will be able to use and share 0:16:49.311,0:16:51.741 to move forward. 0:16:51.741,0:16:54.095 Do what you have to do, 0:16:54.095,0:16:56.856 never mind if it feels useless. 0:16:56.856,0:17:02.274 If it’s important to you,[br]then it's worth doing. 0:17:02.274,0:17:03.909 Express yourself, 0:17:03.909,0:17:06.159 and we, the story fabricators, 0:17:06.168,0:17:07.608 we will find you. 0:17:07.608,0:17:08.617 Thank you.