Starting Out In Mentalism

Sep 20, 2008
1,112
3
Hey guys, ive recently seen Derren Brown's show and it ignited my interest in Mentalism.


My question is: what are good sources for learning mentalism? I know i need 13 steps to Mentalism by Corinda. ive got that one sorted.

Ive also got Derren's "Tricks of the mind" for reading and inspiriation and whatnot. i was wondering though- there's a load of Mentalism tricks out there, which one would be recommended for beginners like me?

I mean, i'd like to read someone's mind on a walkaround situation. bit like Cold Reading perhaps. That's the sort of stuff im into.

Seems like a rather odd question as the magic market is ladden with Mentalism effects- but i was looking through product reviews and most (if not all) were from Papercrane productions. Its not as if im doubting Papercrane's output of quality DVD's- im more inclined onto knowing what's the difference between X and Y.

as a slight sidenote: im also interested in Power Word: Fall by Matt Sconce

So The list goes:

1. 13 steps to mentalism
2. Power word: Fall


Suggestions?

P.s.

im also aware of Mr.Sierra's Post in this topic:

http://forums.theory11.com/showthread.php?t=14286&highlight=derren+brown

Great help that is. =]
 
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Jan 5, 2008
108
0
Oklahoma
Hey,

I've been a practicing mentalist for about 8 years now, I'm 26, started when I was 18. I do shows 4 nights a week in downtown OKC at the riverside sideshow and cafe. I can't tell you what will be best for you, but I can tell you what helped me along my little journey.

Books:
1.)Like you said, 13 steps to mentalism is the bible, but not the end all.
2.)Practical Mental Magic by Theodore Annemann is a must, He's the creator of the peek in my mind(center tear/billet switch) and my favorite historical magician/mentalist. He also has a very interesting story, look it up on wikipedia.
3.) 202 methods to force a card by Ted Annemann
4.) Prism by Max Maven is a phenomenal and will help you out greatly.
5.) 7 Deceptions by Luke Jermay has 7 great effects
6.) Psychological Subtelties 1&2 by Banachek(1 might be hard to find)
7.) Psychokinetic Time by Banachek
8.) PK Touches by Banachek
9.) 3510 by Luke Jermay has a lot of great advice and suggestions

Dvd's:
1.) Richard Osterlinds Mind Mysteries series is your best resource
2.) Psi Series by Banachek is a really good resource with some great effects
3.) Stigmata by Wayne Houchin and Banachek is a very solid effect that gives the appearance that you can cold read.
4.) Into the Abyss by Oz Pearlman is a newer compilation with some good stuff
5.) Banachek's metal bending dvd
6.) Perfection by Oz Pearlman is also a newer effect that I've gotten great reactions with.
7.) Blacksmagicgroup.com has some very good book tests, I've picked up the Miracle mongers and Dracula versions and use them together for a very high impact routine.
8.) Emotional Intelligence by Luke Jermay is a new product but is based on some well known fundamental ideas. This is very good for large groups.
9.) Max Maven's Nothing DVD
10.) Invisible deck has endless possibilities
11.) Hemispheres by Jay Sankey, i'm not huge on Sankey, but this was very good.

My favorite mentalism site by far is Outlaw-effects.com They have some really interesting products

Also Learn the Center Tear/Billet Switch/ and Millard Longman's Acidus Novus Peeks, these are invaluable to a mentalist. Millard longman's Acidus novus can be learned in a couple different resources, Stigmata is the easiest to find. Richard Osterlind teaches the Real time center tear that he created, so does Luke Jermay at penguinmagic.com. Billet switch is also taught by Richard, but once again, for easy access just look up luke jermay at penguinmagic.com.

These are things that I've come across that have helped me out. Good luck! Cold reading isn't a 100% sure fire thing, but the illusion of cold reading is. Richard Osterlind, Banacheck, and Luke Jermay are considered the foremost experts in the field of Mentalism along with Derren Brown, If you want to check out one of Derren Brown's books I would recommend Pure Effect, plus it's the only one by him that I've read, but it was interesting, anything from these guys is going to be good. You might want to message Dee Christopher as well and ask him what's helped him, he seems to have a good foundation in mentalism and he just released a mentalism e-book called 23:23, I haven't bought it yet but heard it is good. I have purchased Cold by him which is solid. Hope this helps.
 
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Sep 1, 2007
185
1
Hey guys, ive recently seen Derren Brown's show and it ignited my interest in Mentalism.


My question is: what are good sources for learning mentalism? =]

You can check out Instinct by Matthew Mello: http://www.thementalplayground.com/instinct.html

Matthew also teaches his truth teller/liar routine, Impulse.

We will also be releasing alot more mentalism from Matthew. Have a look here to read about the details and stay updated.

http://www.thementalplayground.com/News.html

I think alot of the material will be what you asked about, mainly for walkaround.

Brian
 
Sep 20, 2008
1,112
3
Im not doubting Mr. Mello's capability of teaching me his effects- the problem is, They all seem to look the same to me. As for now, i still have the eyes of a spectator. i am unaware of any methods to employ psychological forces and whatnot.

Hence why (insert mind reading effect here) would look exactly the same to me as Technique By Mr.Mello.- only done with a different method and whatnot.

For now, i still see things in a spectator's point of view. if you read my mind, cool. But since there are various methods in achieving that effect, i'd love to know the differences!
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Sep 1, 2007
3,786
15
Let me start with a couple comments on some of the recommendations made thus far.

1.)Like you said, 13 steps to mentalism is the bible, but not the end all.
2.)Practical Mental Magic by Theodore Annemann is a must, He's the creator of the peek in my mind(center tear/billet switch) and my favorite historical magician/mentalist. He also has a very interesting story, look it up on wikipedia.
3.) 202 methods to force a card by Ted Annemann

I personally recommend getting Anneman before Corinda. Anneman was the innovator and Corinda was the professor. Start with the foundations of mentalism and then put it into context.

4.) Prism by Max Maven is a phenomenal and will help you out greatly.

Essential reading, but not something I'd tell beginners to start with.

5.) 7 Deceptions by Luke Jermay has 7 great effects
...
9.) 3510 by Luke Jermay has a lot of great advice and suggestions

Whenever anyone asks for material on starting out in mentalism, Luke Jermay inevitably comes up. I don't understand this. I'm not questioning the quality of his work, but his material is most certainly not for beginners.

Get some experience with Anneman and Corinda, then work on Kenton's Miracles of Suggestion instead.

6.) Psychological Subtelties 1&2 by Banachek(1 might be hard to find)
7.) Psychokinetic Time by Banachek
8.) PK Touches by Banachek

Again, essential reading but not something I'd recommend to beginners.

3.) Stigmata by Wayne Houchin and Banachek is a very solid effect that gives the appearance that you can cold read.

I hate to say it, but this is fast becoming a cliche. Everyone does Stigmata now, and most people are terrible at it.

All that said, my top recommendation is Fundamentals of Mentalism by Bob Cassidy available at Lybrary.com.

Equal parts effects and performance theory, it's very down-to-earth, organized, and accessible. Teaching is smooth and Dr. Bob has a very engaging author's voice. There's also an appendix called The 39 Steps to Mentalism, detailing 39 must-read books for any aspiring mentalist.
 
I find myself doing a lot of mentalism these days. ...A lot. And I honestly think you have everything you could want in Corinda. I've read through it again recently and found some hidden gems I didn't notice through my first few reads. It's the type of book you can learn from each time you pick it up, even if you think you know it cover to cover. With that said, I recommend just getting Corinda. Don't waste your money on anything else for the time being. It'll just cloud your judgement and concentration. Any other recommendation would be a distraction. Corinda deserves more attention than people give it credit for. Really study the book and I think you'll gain a lot more than you'd ever expect from it.

RS.
 
Sep 20, 2008
1,112
3
Bit like the AoA series i'd imagine? i still havent read the books from cover to cover- each time i pick it up, i learn something new.

Anyways, Thoughts on Derren's material? Beginner friendly?
 
Jan 1, 2009
2,241
3
Back in Time
Derren Brown's stuff is pretty advanced.

Here's what you should read actually.

Maximum Entertainment
Magic and Showmanship
Practical Mental magic
13 steps.

The first two books will help you a lot on scripting and presentation (which is what Mentalisim is 80% of.). Then the other two will get you started.
 
I would actually argue Derren's work isn't really difficult to do at all. As far as mechanics go, most of it is beginner-level mentalism found in some form or another in Corinda's book. It's his presentation that makes everything look and feel so dynamic. The presentation of mentalism will be your most difficult task to pull off convincingly. Derren's work is very simple (technically speaking), but his layers of presentation and misdirection hide the methods extremely well and dress them up to make them look like more than what they really are.

RS.
 
Jan 1, 2009
2,241
3
Back in Time
Another thing is that if you go into performing it for friends. Don't try to convince them that you have powers or anything. They'll just laugh it off. Instead maybe use the idea of what you are going to do, is going to be some sort of weird experiment.
 
Sep 2, 2007
1,186
16
42
London
Just curious but where did you get "tricks of the mind"?

I found it somewhere for like 1000$

Tricks of the Mind is available pretty easily anywhere, as it's more for the general public than magicians only. Don't pay $1000 for it, unless someone's got a platinum, diamond-encrusted copy. His earlier books, Pure Effect and Absolute Magic are quite hard to find, and therefore expensive, but if you look hard, there are a few online magic shops who still have copies......
 
May 19, 2008
448
0
manchester
yeah... defiantly get 13 steps it is AWSOME, also buy a few swami writers at the same time, start with the first chapter, read it a few times, try it out with a swami and practice a simple trick from the tricks section, after a while perform it a few times, see how it goes, start working on how you could present it, perform it a few more times, see what works, play around with it, go through the tricks section and do the same for the ones you like the look off, maybe create your own effects with the swami, make a routine with it.

start on the next chapter in the same way, try and combine the two aspects of it, make a routine, practice muscle reading/sound reading/lip reading and use the swami as a back up, perform it till you can do the routines without needing the back up.

start on the next chapter... you can see why it can take you so long to get through a book like that.

after youve done that book (a year or two probabbly) get another book (maybe practical mental effects) and work through it, create your style.

after youve got a firm base in mentalism, start trying out more exiting things, buy something like invisible touch, see what works and how they made up the effect, perform the effect, make it your closer and the one people remember you by, perform it the best you can.

now, take all your books and gimmicks and dvds, and pick your very best, your A* material, the effects that if you could make a dvd set like TA you would put these effects in it. take these effects and produce a simple show, maybe 3 effects, but your very best and favourite to perform, make a presentation for them which makes sense and entertaines people, perform it untill you have got a reputation with this show, maybe buy a book like strong magic or maximum entertainment and see what they suggest, keep adding untill you have your perfect show.

now, look around the market, think of what would make your show the best their is, maybe an outfit, a strange device, an impossible effect, buy it, add it, make it natural, make it perfect. make it so that no - one will be able to know how its done.

now, you have a show, perform it on the street, in a club, bar, pub, party, freinds house, stage anywhere you can, show people who you are and what you do.

think. think of what you would find incredible, an effect that is just more than a simple magic trick, but is a real proper peice of theater. once you know what you want, look around and if you see a book or dvd with it in buy it, if you dont, think of a way you could do it. any possible way, with as much set up or gimmicks as you need, now cut off the funny moves, make the set up easier, make this effect yours, so that its YOUR effect, make it everything you wanted it to be. now, add it to your show, put it as your big final, when people see this their gonna be astonished.

thats how you (I think) start, you dont need much.

unless its just a passing intrest you have, if thats so buy a few books and dvds, see if you like it and maybe go into it alittle deeper, if you dont like it go back to magic or whatever you do now.

;)
 
Sep 20, 2008
1,112
3
yeah it may just be a passing interest. I did develop some sort of Coin addiction for a month or so. (raven, bought a few coin Dvd's etc) never really got into it.

But im definitely putting time and effort onto silver dream.

Anyways- cheers guys, Corinda's book it is, everything else falls afterwards!
 
May 19, 2008
448
0
manchester
yeah but you know, ive had coriandas book for maybe 4 months, and its only now that im realising how good it is.

also just present stuff in a psuedo kinda nlp way and that is mentalism, like a card force, something like that ;)
 
Apr 27, 2008
184
1
Im still new in mentalism but I will tell you some of the stuff I have bought and really helped me out.

13 Steps- You're getting so it's all good
E.I- Luke Jermay's very simple trick that is very hard hitting
Intuition- Mjmmagic.com very sweet trick that is very bad ass
Entity- Mjmmagic also, newer trick but people are always baffled with it
I would pass on 7 deceptions mainly because it requires a skill that many people will not have when you start out. I can achieve a few of the effects and even then it takes to long imo.
Boris Wilds Marked Deck- E or some other magic websites

This is all a good starting point and for me people love what I do. The main thing to remember is that mentalism is easy, it's all about your performance. Don't make it cheesy make it interesting.
 
Nov 16, 2008
2,267
0
36
In the not to distant future
practical mental magic by theodore anneman is the perfect place to start along with 13 steps to mentalism. work through these for couple of years, learn everything, try it, love it. maybe after a while get something a little more advanced. with mentalism, or any magic for that matter, you dont want too many tricks. you will just get confused with material and you will probably end up never performing it. get these books. now.
 
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