I don’t like to say I am a “content creator”, because I think it reduces the quality of what I do. I prefer to say I am a “storyteller”, even though I think that sounds a bit smarmy too, and really just covers one aspect of — along with the ultimate result thereof — my endeavors. “Film producer” is certainly a term that no longer is truly applicable to my ambitions, but still probably works best to capture what I do. One day I may finally stumble across the correct term for how I use my labor, but for now I just generate within an industry in total transformation.
We all know that the film industry is changing in many ways. But are we at all prepared for how it is going to change in even more rapid ways in the days ahead?
We not only have to recognize the reality we live in, but we have to anticipate the future desires and needs of the participants in our practice. The ABSOLUTE necessity of content creators & storytellers to collaborate with tech innovators is apparent, but still quite rare in practice. I use to think the result of such a union would be inevitably DISRUPTIVE, but now I see otherwise.
The next wave of leaders will be “The Redefiners”. I am working on some new startups that I believe address the future needs and desires of all participants, so when I looked at this slide show this morning (I was tipped to it by Shilpa Mankikar — thanks!), I had one of those “ah… yes!” moments: this is what I want to do. Is it what you want to do too?
Sometimes we find that in order to do what we really want, we can’t just move ahead; instead, we have to move in another manner altogether. I know I will always want to tell stories that matter, that represent the world we are living in, that connect, move, entertain, and inspire people, and that encourage positive change. I also know that we need to do it in a very different ways than we used to — and there is tremendous opportunity in that.
This slide show captures a lot of what I have been feeling, saying, and sharing. Many thanks to Anil Dash, Michael J. Wolf and their team for writing it up for us.
