ATTN Staff: Mentalism?

[bd]

A new Specialty Forum: Mentalism

I believe that mentalism has always been a huge part of magic, although not too many performers take time to practice the art or become knowledgeable about it. It's a totally different kind of art than card magic, etc- one might even go so far as to say that the person who becomes involved with mentalism makes it a way of life, and it's no longer a hobby or a profession.

In any case, I believe more magicians are looking into mentalism; something to ease this process is the amount of books and DVDs that have surfaced to the market in the past year. I think that having a forum devoted to this branch of the Arts would be well worth the small amount of time required to create it.

Thanks in advance,
Ben

 

[EugeneSoh]

I've seen enough mentalism tricks to know what i'm talking about.
Mentalism isn't magic. It just toying with peoples minds, and playing with their emotions.
I did mentalism once. Someone got hurt.
It's not magic.

-Eugene

 

[Cliff|Bumgardner]

I think a mentalism forum would be fantastic if done correctly. Moderators who truly know mentalism would be needed and it'd have to be pretty strict as mentalism is such a vast art that people don't take the time to understand.

I can see threads like "D00d stigmata vr.3 doesn't work!!1" popping up which would be plain ridiculous. But i'd love to see threads on routines such as metal bending and psychological discussions.

C=B

 

[bd]

I've seen enough mentalism tricks to know what i'm talking about.
Mentalism isn't magic. It just toying with peoples minds, and playing with their emotions.
I did mentalism once. Someone got hurt.
It's not magic.

-Eugene

Mentalism is not magic in the same sense as Card Magic, but it is magic in the sense that you are doing something beyond the realm of a normal person; you have devoted time, energy, money, and effort to create lasting experiences for people.

Yes, mentalism is the control, influence, and knowledge of the human body and mind. It is an art that takes much more than anything involving a deck of cards.

Thank you for your opinion, although my post was directed towards the staff, giving a reason for the creation of a forum.

I'm sorry for your poor experience with mentalism. If you'd like some counseling, feel free to PM me. I might seem like an ass at times, but I'm not.

Best regards,
Ben

 

[DannyT]

I kinda like the idea of a mentalism forum.
It would be good to share some patter ideas for certain effects such as fork bending. I think it would be good, but not too many people would post in it because not many practice it.
I personally would love to learn more than I already know, which isn't much.
It would definitely spark some ideas.

 

[Chr!s]

Excellent idea, i'd love a palce to talk specifically about mentalism, no doubt!

For anybody interested in a powerful, effective 'out' for when you JUST CAN'T bend that spoon, go to www.24hmagic.blogspot.com for a free piece from Dee Christophers 'Proximity effects'!

CL

 

[BrianationX]

Mentalism isn't magic. It just toying with peoples minds, and playing with their emotions.

Wow
then I guess im a mentalist
I do Brian Tudor's The Politician and I toy with chicks minds
then I take them to dinner and play with their emotions
I'm not mean and I respect Girls But hey
btw I don't recommend playing with a girl's emotions
ever

 

[Chr!s]

Please don't start bandying that garbage round this thread, this dicussion is centering 'round mentalism. You may not have got that from the thread title, or the posts (about mentalism) listed above, but now you know.

Thanks.

CL

 

[timsilva]

I agree, there should be a forum for it.

BUT, if it has it's own area, then wouldn't it lead to every type of magic having it's own section as well? If there are too many forums, then some areas might become inactive, and inactive forums are bad news.

Whoever says that mentalism isn't a form of magic should really invest some time in the history of magic. To close off doors to mentalism is a pathway to ignorance. I don't do much mentalism myself, but it is definitely a form of magic, and an artform without question.

 

[D ICE R]

There are some really good points in this thread.

I am a mentalist, all I do now is mentalism. I would love to have intelligent discussions on the topic. However I do not want a forum for just mentalism. The thing I notice when I speak to mentalists is that they often consider themselves as an elitist standing in the magic community. The amount of times I have heard I am not a magician I am a mentalist is amazing. To be perfectly honest I have said it a few times before aswell. The biggest problem I have with a forum for mentalism is that from a lot of the responses I have read on this site and others is that most people do not truly understand what mentalism is. It would be far more practical to have a mental magic forum but that is only going to open up a whole can of worms.

David

 

[Chr!s]

I think the 'not a magician, a mentalist' line should be used only towards a lay audience, to differentiate the material.

CL

 

[MentalAlex]

A mentalism forum would probably be of good use, dunno what we would talk about though... mentalism is a very personal thing, it's not really about "tricks" or "moves" which is what a lot of people around here focus on.

Oh and by the way, I never use the term "mentalism" or "mentalist" while speaking w/ lay people. Mentalist means "Fake Mind Reader", which is decidedly NOT what I am.

 

[OwnerM]

I've seen enough mentalism tricks to know what i'm talking about.
Mentalism isn't magic. It just toying with peoples minds, and playing with their emotions.
I did mentalism once. Someone got hurt.
It's not magic.

-Eugene

?????

I'm sorry I'm curious, but how did someone get hurt from a mentalism effect?????

 

[Mr.MadMan]

?????

I'm sorry I'm curious, but how did someone get hurt from a mentalism effect?????

I´m curious too!

You really can´t hurt someone doing mentalism. Thats only when you touch a spot that is very precious too them and usually people don´t write or say those things...

Mikk

 

[bd]

I agree, there should be a forum for it.

BUT, if it has it's own area, then wouldn't it lead to every type of magic having it's own section as well?

Specialty Forums
- Battles: Ready to Rumble
- Cerca Trova
- Card Magic Forum
- Coin Magic Forum
- Cardistry/Flourishing

How many "types of magic" (that are regularly performed) are we missing?

 

[copperfield 14]

It would be nice. I want to learn mentalism. Like Derren Brown stuff not pick a card and then you guess what it is.

 

[bd]

It would be nice. I want to learn mentalism. Like Derren Brown stuff not pick a card and then you guess what it is.

I wasn't talking about "Card Mentalism"; although there are many applications for mentalism in card magic, that is not the "True Mentalism", if you'll pardon the phrase.

 

[OwnerM]

It would be nice. I want to learn mentalism. Like Derren Brown stuff not pick a card and then you guess what it is.

Derren Brown started with card tricks and "pick a card".

The more I do mentalism and card tricks, the more I'm convinced that with the right pratter, you can make nearly any trick a mentalism trick.

 

[D ICE R]

The magician / mentalist comment comes out more often when talking to other magician's than with lay audiences. I have found that when I started pursuing mentalism I really had to change my mentality when I was preforming. When I was doing magic I felt nervous whenever I was preforming a slight. I found that most audience's are know that what I was doing was skill and nothing what it really appeared to be. A lot of audiences respect that and are generally entertained. However, there still is the barriers that exist which are so hard to break down that only a few effects can truly shake people enough to truly amaze them. Believe, Indecent are a few examples of that.

Mentalism though is very powerful. Almost every piece that I perform is powerful enough to shake people in that way. I was at a bar working doing a few little pieces nothing too serious and as the night was just starting someone asked me who was my biggest inspiration. Mentioning people like Derren Brown, Banachek and Luke Jermay I then said Uri Geller. Someone then grabbed a spoon and ran over towards me. After a a few bends everyone was completely quiet. That was the perfect piece to go towards the more shaking pieces.

People are more interested in themselves than someone doing simple tricks and that is in my opinion what makes mentalism so much more powerful. Banachek said it best with;

"magic is performed at the audience, mentalism is preformed with them."