Watch a Short Film About a British Man Who Invents Useless Thingamajigs for Fun

When was the last time you did something for fun? Something with no practical value, something that you could define as "play"? The science continues to roll in about play's ability to shape and enhance people's lives. Just last week, TED released an excellent radio talk on the subject, the point of which was that free, spontaneous play is not only important in childhood development, but also something that we should indulge well into adulthood. In the immortal words of Peter Pan, "I won't grow up."

A new short documentary by director Liam Saint-Pierre titled The Reinvention of Normal profiles the living embodiment of that would-be Peter Pan. He's a British man by the name of Dominic Wilcox, who invents kooky impractical thingamajigs like a tea cup with a cooling fan, toothbrush maracas, and an umbrella with plant pots on top. His inventions seem like the physical manifestations of Jerry Seinfeld jokes, where the ordinary is reframed and given that extra little bit. One can almost see Seinfeld saying, "How do people stay healthy with such busy schedules? I'd like to see a soccer ball that you can fill up with fruit, kick it around until you build up a sweat, unzip it, and cool down with a fresh smoothie." (That's a real invention from Wilcox).

What's astonishing about Wilcox is the amount of work and resources he pours into his inventions, while spending almost no time thinking critically about them. His creative process is just going wherever his imagination takes him.

I dare you to watch this film about Wilcox and his wild creations and not want to go out and do something ridiculous yourself.

To see more of Liam Saint-Pierre's work visit his website.

Jeffrey Bowers is a tall mustached guy from Ohio who's seen too many weird movies. He currently lives in Brooklyn, working as a film curator. He's the Senior Curator for Vimeo's On Demand platform. He has also programmed at Tribeca Film Festival, Rooftop Films, and the Hamptons International Film Festival.