True originality is not possible. Every idea and concept come from somewhere and something. However, innovation comes from combining varying ideas from different locations and creating metaphors. For example, you can find unique furniture designs by googling images of them. However, then you are simply re-stylizing them which is not true innovation. Innovation comes by asking questions like what a chair look like would if it were a bird. Innovation also comes from identifying problems and looking at other industries solutions to similar problems. Example: How can we design safer football helmets? Instead of searching for information only on football helmets, look at any type of collision protection (what is the airline industry doing to protect travelers during a crash? How is NASCAR constructing safer barriers?) Separating yourself from the individual product and abstracting aspects into diagrams is also beneficial because it forces the individual to consider ideas and forms that otherwise would have been ignored.
Creating metaphors, abstraction, research, and development all lead to innovative ideas and products. However, these processes also take quite a bit of time and therefore, money. The designers in the video did not have much time, so they reverted to images that were fresh in their minds. If they were given more time, I would then begin to question their abilities.
As designers, it is easy to rush into a project by merely drawing and creating sketch models. But it is equally important to dissect the research to maximize innovation. While I attended Western, we were given less time to do research and complete projects. Because of this, student projects were not as innovative as they could have been. Designers are also human, so it is impossible to avoid all preconceptions and outside influences subconsciously. It helps to pay attention to the world around you, so you know where these images are coming from. However, it is the most important to get outside of your own mind to avoid mimicry