Great article about Woody Allen in yesterday’s Wall Street Journal Magazine.  In a post I wrote on “Creativity and the importance of routine” last year, I mentioned Allen as an example of someone who shows up every day and does the work.  As a result of his very disciplined routine, Allen has managed to put out 48 films over the span of his entire career and a new film every single year for the last thirty years.

In yesterday’s interview, Allen offers this interesting insight on his work ethic and prolific creative output:

You know in a mental institution they sometimes give a person some clay or some basket weaving?  It’s the therapy of moviemaking that has been good in my life.  If you don’t work, it’s unhealthy—for me, particularly unhealthy.  I could sit here suffering from morbid introspection, ruing my mortality, being anxious.  But it’s very therapeutic to get up and think, Can I get this actor; does my third act work?  All these solvable problems that are delightful puzzles, as opposed to the great puzzles of life that are unsolvable, or that have very bad solutions.  So I get pleasure from doing this.  It’s my version of basket weaving.

You can read the entire article here.