Today will be the first episode of the web series I am hosting, “ReInvent Hollywood”. It will be live at 11A PT on http://reinventors.net/series/reinvent-hollywood
The first episode is on “The Form”. Is the era of feature film dominance over? If so what is to take it’s place? We will look at technological advances and cultural changes that effect the manner in which we tell stories. Has science influenced us? Will it? What are good examples? Are their best practices? We have a great group joining in to participate: Karim Ahmed, Tiffany Shlain, Michel Rielhac, Liz Rosenthal, and Lance Weiler.
I wrote the following blogpost to give you an idea of the why and the how:
What Do You Want From A Cinematic Art Form?
What do you want from any art or business – and particularly one that is both? Why is it the way that it is? How did it get this way and can it evolve into something more? If we refuse to settle for what is, can we drive movies into a new realm that is more satisfying, more dynamic, and truer to whom we are today?
We generally think of cinema as the most modern art form, the one that most captures our life as it is today. But is that really so? Can we imagine something else, a different form, capturing life even better, and if so what would it look like? When we speak of cinema are we seeing the big picture or have we defined it simply as a small part of a far greater whole than we generally realize?
Popular culture may be an art, but it is primarily a business, and the pursuit of profit has shaped and defined the form. The 90-minute to two-hour narrative that we call “movies” evolved based on our bladder’s ability to endure that time period, as well as our stomach’s capacity to demand to be satisfied. Movie theaters make their money not from ticket sales but from selling a 15-cent bag of popcorn for six dollars. In an era where the average concertgoer spends over a hundred dollars at the show, it is a given that the film business model will evolve, and with it so will the art form. Movies drive sales in many ways and primarily in the home, motivating purchases of screens of all sizes, and subscriptions cabled and cordless both. We are all connected to and now accustomed to consume art, media, and entertainment in a vast number of ways far beyond the forms they are delivered to us in.
Every new technology or platform also gives birth to a new art form around it, be it cinema, radio, television, or giant screen auditoriums. Will we move now beyond serial cliffhangers, soap operas, nightly news, sitcoms, or superhero 3-D spectaculars? What are the unique attributes that the web brings to our diet that has yet to be integrated into our storytelling palatte? Does the connectivity mean that we will no longer look exclusively for viewing or listening experiences, but prefer something that truly allows us to participate? Will we no longer demand to just consume, but also to collaborate?
If our modern existence is shaped by our own desires, what are people looking for now, and do we have the technology and imagination to deliver it?
Does the trend to larger screens, three dimensions, and 100 channel sound, demonstrate a desire for more immersive tales? If so, how far can that go?
Does the use of “on demand” and “time shift” recording express a wish to remove appointment dictated consumption? When we no longer plan and all is available, how is our ability to make choices affected? Can we move beyond the separate silos of impulse and educated choice, and what would that even feel like?
Is the success of user-generated content in garneringsuch large audiences an indicator of dismissal of today’s aesthetics and corporately backed stars and personalities? As audiences’ media literacy continues its accelerated growth, will tastes morph into something more polished or more free form?
Does the popularity of MMORPGs, along with the vast number of creator/viewers online, reveal an equal desire to participate and create, as there is to consume and watch? Does the greater consumption of video games than movies mean that story telling culture has already lost? Will ARGs and the like become part of the filmmaker’s arsenal?
If we have now grown comfortable with our ability to connect with people all over the globe, both immediately and asynchronously, will we also seek out a way to use this connection more fully in our entertainment?
We all carry around one or more screens with us wherever we go, remaining reachable and tuned in. Does it mean our stories ever have to end when they never need to find us or have us discover them? Mobile and screen-enabled, will our reliance on linear forms rescind, as we tune in and tune out at will, getting lost in or addicted to characters, actions, places, and things? What will that even look like, let alone feel like?
Have you ever wanted to glimpse into the future? Know what is next? Come join those who work to deliver tomorrow to you today, as we gather together some of the film world’s bravest thinkers to see what cinema can truly become.
(If you’d like to read a similar post on The Artists, check out: “For Artists Working in Film, It’s The Best and Worst of Times“)
