Magic Video - Ben Cardall - Smug Guesswork

Step into the intriguing world of 'Smug Guesswork' by acclaimed mentalist Ben Cardall, a digital download designed to revolutionize your approach to performance. This isn't just a collection of effects; it's a masterclass in blending ingenious methods with profound psychological techniques like deduction, cold reading, muscle reading, and trance work. Ben Cardall's unique philosophy ensures that each routine transcends mere mechanics, transforming into a deeply impactful and memorable experience for your audience. Prepare to elevate your mentalism, turning simple predictions into astonishing demonstrations of skill and insight.

The Philosophy of 'Smug Guesswork'

'Smug Guesswork' is built on the premise that true magic lies in the intersection of clever design and genuine human perception. Cardall meticulously crafts each effect so that its core mechanics are strong, but when infused with advanced techniques, it becomes something truly extraordinary. For performers who appreciate the raw power of pure technique – akin to the subtle art of cold reading or muscle reading – this collection provides the perfect framework to integrate and demonstrate these invaluable skills within your act. You'll not only perform astonishing feats but also gain a deeper understanding of human behavior and subtle influence.

Diverse and Powerful Routines

This comprehensive download features a varied repertoire to captitvate any audience. Imagine predicting a spectator's coin tosses with 'Flipped Off', even allowing them to experience the inexplicable. Dive into 'Musical Influence', where you divine chosen songs and the exact mental imagery associated with them, or even have another spectator mind-read for you. Challenge perceptions with 'Sensory Perception', discerning thought-of materials or drinks, then having a spectator 'taste' another's thoughts. 'Psy-Do' offers a psychic twist on a classic mystery game, revealing hidden details and even manifesting a killer's face. Plus, discover unique routines like 'Mobiles Communicate', where you divine phone details and numbers from a simple ringtone, and 'Divine Post', a compelling postcard prediction.

Mastering Deduction with 'Sherlockian 2.0'

A significant highlight of 'Smug Guesswork' is 'Sherlockian 2.0'. This section is a deep dive into using practical deduction as a powerful performance tool. Ben Cardall shares his insights on reading people, from identifying cat and dog owners and their possessions to gleaning personality traits and even potential job roles just by observing their shoes. These observational skills aren't just tricks; they're genuine techniques that add layers of apparent intuition and psychological depth to your performance, making your mentalism feel incredibly authentic and personal. This collection provides all the tools you need to create truly unforgettable moments of apparent psychic ability.

Original Specs

I have purposely designed these forthcoming effects (as a pdf download) so that they will combine method with technique. By that I mean that the mechanics of the effect itself will work to create a powerful performance piece but when peppered with deduction, muscle/cold reading or trance technique will take the desired effect a transform it into a completely different animal. As I am a huge fan performing effects that just use 100% technique like the cold reading or muscle reading or even a simple game of rock paper scissors, my hope for you when looking at these effects is that you will see the power of learning these skills and how they can be put to use in your current act.



FLIPPED OFF: A predicted coin toss experiment. The spectator tosses the borrowed coin 5 times, and you have accurately predicted beforehand how many times you will guess correctly! The spectator now has a chance to play as you toss the coin and you can accurately predict how many times they will correctly guess which side up the coin will land. Different results every time!





MUSICAL INFLUENCE: 3 different spectators think of 3 different songs from your musical library/deck. The first time you are able to get the song the first spectator is thinking of. The second you can guess the song and exactly what they are seeing in their heads. The 3rd time one of the other spectators correctly reads the 3rd spectators mind in order to name the song they are thinking of.





Sensory Perception : Guess what material someone is thinking of by watching how they react to it. Then have a spectator think of a drink whilst a different spectator closes their eyes and not only guesse what the other is thinking of but tastes it as well.





Psy- Do; PSY-DO: In short this is a psychic game of cluedo! As a bonus you can even tell who chose what part of the mystery, and if you desire have them imagine the face of the killer and give them a photo of who they were merely imagining.





Mobiles communicate : Divine details about your spectators and their phones, by hearing only the ringtone and even guess what their number is!





Divine Post : A spectator manages to divine incredible detail about a postcard that is in an envelope on the table throughout.



The Shoosting : My updated, modern twist on the ESP match up game. Done between a goalkeeper and a striker in a penalty shootout setting



Sherlockian 2.0 : Contained in this section are my thoughts on using deduction as part of your act and how to do it. Also included are ideas on how to tell cat and dog people apart and what they might own as well as what people’s shoes say about them including hints on personality traits and possible job role inferences as well as many more ideas.







Reviews : Ray Doetjes - Professional Mentalist from the netherlands:



Woooh, where do i need to start, well first by saying, your mind is a goldmine. You keep crunching AWESOME ideas out!



I like the minimalist approach to props. Id definitely give several effects a try starting with : PSY-DO itll fit great in walkaround. SENSORY PERCEPTION is one that i love a lot too and definitley will work it.



This is a very good manuscript, theres enough to creat 2 or 3 quality manuscripts from it.



KUDOS! All i can say is KUDOS!



Mark Elsdon (creator of ibalance and Rubik remembered) - "Smart, modern mentalism dealing with chance, music, perception, board games, intution and football. For me, the pick of the bunch is Ben's bang up-to-date psychometry routine using mobile phones - great thinking, powerful routine. Highly recommended."