[Ed. - This post has been given an R rating by the Motion Picture Association of America.]
I'm awfully fond of the film Paranormal Activity. I have a friend who asked me if it's gory. I responded, "Nope. In fact with the exception of the last minute, if I showed you every frame in random order without sound, you wouldn't even know it's a horror movie."
Later on, I thought about what I'd said. And I started to wonder why Paranormal Activity is even rated R. Compared to the big-bang scary movies of the past few years, it seems positively tame. The answer, according to the MPAA and IMDB? Language.
Fucking what?
When actors are asked to improv scenes, they tend to swear a lot. For that, Paranormal Activity received a harsher rating than PG-13 films like Disturbia, Cloverfield, Cry Wolf, Cursed and The Ring. And I'm not even going to begin to remind you in detail just how gross the PG-rated Poltergeist was.
Even more criminal, Paranormal Activity shares its rating with movies like House of 1,000 Corpses and Hostel. "Sweetie, what do you want to see tonight, Paranormal Activity or Saw VI?" "I don't know, dear. They're both rated R."
I'm not claiming that Paranormal Activity is appropriate for kids. I'm just dumbfounded by the hypocrisy of a system that would rather see people butchered than hear them swear.
Saturday, October 31, 2009
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Staying receptive to wow
In the last few days, I have read some great articles. Some, like "The Value of Beauty" and "How Local Businesses Can Benefit from Mobile Social Networks" opened my eyes to ideas I can pursue for my clients. Some, like "The Answer Factory" and "Does the Vaccine Matter" blew me away with the audacity of their concept. (Did you know that Demand Media publishes 4,000 articles and videos online every single day? Or that the healthy-user effect accounts for 100% of the flu vaccine's alleged ability to prevent death?)
When I look at my delicious page, I notice that I bookmark in spurts. Nothing for a week or two. Then five or six things in the course of a day. I can imagine two explanations.
1. Streaks are statistically inevitable.
2. Some days, I'm more open to ideas.
Either is viable. But let's assume the second hypothesis for a moment. What could I do to make sure I remain more receptive to big ideas a higher percentage of the time? I think the answer is found in a book called The Inner Game of Tennis:
I've never played tennis. But reading The Inner Game of Tennis changed the way I approach sports and work. Half of the game is staying out of your own way.
[Ed. - Crossposted at Ingwalson and Karsh Connect.]
When I look at my delicious page, I notice that I bookmark in spurts. Nothing for a week or two. Then five or six things in the course of a day. I can imagine two explanations.
1. Streaks are statistically inevitable.
2. Some days, I'm more open to ideas.
Either is viable. But let's assume the second hypothesis for a moment. What could I do to make sure I remain more receptive to big ideas a higher percentage of the time? I think the answer is found in a book called The Inner Game of Tennis:
In short, "getting it together" requires slowing the mind. Quieting the mind means less thinking, calculating, judging, worrying, fearing, hoping, trying, regretting, controlling, jittering or distracting. The mind is still when it is totally here and now in perfect oneness with the action and the actor. It is the purpose of the Inner Game to to increase the frequency and duration of these moments, quieting the mind by degrees and realizing thereby a continual expansion of our capacity to learn and perform.
I've never played tennis. But reading The Inner Game of Tennis changed the way I approach sports and work. Half of the game is staying out of your own way.
[Ed. - Crossposted at Ingwalson and Karsh Connect.]
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Twitter is screwing up Friendfeed
On January 4, 2008 I wrote, "Serial online publishers need a great way to aggregate their content into a single news stream." Since then, real-time news streams have cropped up faster than social media gurus at a travel and tourism tradeshow. The recently sold-to-the-man Friendfeed seemed especially promising. I can't tell you how many times I've stared at my Friendfeed page and wished I used the damn thing. But I don't. Here's why.
Ninety-two percent of Friendfeed users post to Twitter way more than any other social network. (I am guessing at that number. But it's definitely really high.) Which means that when viewed in real-time, any given user's Friendfeed page looks like a duplicate of his or her Twitter page.
It's not, of course. If you sift through it there are probably blog posts and YouTube uploads and music links. They're simply lost among the tweets.
Thinking about that made me realize a way in which Twitter is different from every other social website in history. All social media is about conversation. But YouTube, blogs, Flickr, Facebook, Upcoming, Slideshare, delicious and so on all start with shared content. The content starts a conversation. The conversation creates a relationship.
Twitter starts with a conversation. Some people join Twitter, realize they're in the middle of a conversation they don't understand, and eject. That's fine. Hang with the conversation long enough and you start to get actionable intelligence.
But the conversation itself is not fit for a news stream. Because there is no news there. It's just data exchange.
So today I pulled my Twitter feed off my Friendfeed news stream. If everyone in the entire world could follow suit, I would so appreciate it.
[Ed. - Crossposted at Ingwalson and Karsh Connect.]
Ninety-two percent of Friendfeed users post to Twitter way more than any other social network. (I am guessing at that number. But it's definitely really high.) Which means that when viewed in real-time, any given user's Friendfeed page looks like a duplicate of his or her Twitter page.
It's not, of course. If you sift through it there are probably blog posts and YouTube uploads and music links. They're simply lost among the tweets.
Thinking about that made me realize a way in which Twitter is different from every other social website in history. All social media is about conversation. But YouTube, blogs, Flickr, Facebook, Upcoming, Slideshare, delicious and so on all start with shared content. The content starts a conversation. The conversation creates a relationship.
Twitter starts with a conversation. Some people join Twitter, realize they're in the middle of a conversation they don't understand, and eject. That's fine. Hang with the conversation long enough and you start to get actionable intelligence.
But the conversation itself is not fit for a news stream. Because there is no news there. It's just data exchange.
So today I pulled my Twitter feed off my Friendfeed news stream. If everyone in the entire world could follow suit, I would so appreciate it.
[Ed. - Crossposted at Ingwalson and Karsh Connect.]
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
One of these days I am going to visit London
What would The Strokes sound like with Ian Curtis behind the mic? Not as cool as you'd think. Nevermind. Editors' campaign for their new album mashes up Google Street View and music to create an amazingly engaging digital experience. Check it out.
[Ed. - h/t Contagious]
[Ed. - h/t Contagious]
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Three ways Paranormal Activity is better than that movie about those kids lost in the woods in Maryland
[Ed. - This post contains spoilers for Paranormal Activity. You've been warned.]
Yes, the recently released Paranormal Activity has a lot in common with The Blair Witch Project, including a found-footage construct, improvised acting, a supernatural villain, and a unique marketing strategy. But in three crucial ways, Paranormal Activity is a far better film.
1. It's not boring: Blair Witch relied so heavily on its construct that it forgot to include any real scares. After 50 minutes of kids walking in circles in the woods, the creeping sense of impending doom was gone. Paranormal Activity, on the other hand, keeps squeezing the noose a bit tighter with every scene.
2. The end isn't a let down: One of my main gripes with Blair Witch is that its climax is even more boring than the rest of the movie. The audience deserves at least one good shot of the witch. Instead, we get someone standing in the corner and a whole lot of dirt floor. Yawn. Paranormal Activity gives us a real climax, and a brief but perfect shot of a shadowy demon made flesh and blood.
It's an example of the hardest type of horror movie to film: In "Final Destination and the importance of insight," I wrote that there are only two horror movies. The most common is called Bad Things Happen Off the Beaten Path. The second is called Sometimes Bad Things Just Happen. For all its innovation, Blair Witch is merely a re-scripting of the former. Kids stray away from society's norms and get punished for it. Paranormal Activity is a different sort of film. Like Halloween or Jaws, it gives us a metaphor for the random, meaningless, real-life evils that are suffered by innocent people in their own homes when they least expect it. This type of horror film is nearly impossible to make. But when it's done well, it always costs you a bit of your sanity.
The bottom line is, I'm never going witch-hunting in Maryland. People who do probably get what they deserve. But I am going to lock my doors, turn out my lights and climb into my bed at night. And if even this conventional, careful life can't keep me safe, what can?
Yes, the recently released Paranormal Activity has a lot in common with The Blair Witch Project, including a found-footage construct, improvised acting, a supernatural villain, and a unique marketing strategy. But in three crucial ways, Paranormal Activity is a far better film.
1. It's not boring: Blair Witch relied so heavily on its construct that it forgot to include any real scares. After 50 minutes of kids walking in circles in the woods, the creeping sense of impending doom was gone. Paranormal Activity, on the other hand, keeps squeezing the noose a bit tighter with every scene.
2. The end isn't a let down: One of my main gripes with Blair Witch is that its climax is even more boring than the rest of the movie. The audience deserves at least one good shot of the witch. Instead, we get someone standing in the corner and a whole lot of dirt floor. Yawn. Paranormal Activity gives us a real climax, and a brief but perfect shot of a shadowy demon made flesh and blood.
It's an example of the hardest type of horror movie to film: In "Final Destination and the importance of insight," I wrote that there are only two horror movies. The most common is called Bad Things Happen Off the Beaten Path. The second is called Sometimes Bad Things Just Happen. For all its innovation, Blair Witch is merely a re-scripting of the former. Kids stray away from society's norms and get punished for it. Paranormal Activity is a different sort of film. Like Halloween or Jaws, it gives us a metaphor for the random, meaningless, real-life evils that are suffered by innocent people in their own homes when they least expect it. This type of horror film is nearly impossible to make. But when it's done well, it always costs you a bit of your sanity.
The bottom line is, I'm never going witch-hunting in Maryland. People who do probably get what they deserve. But I am going to lock my doors, turn out my lights and climb into my bed at night. And if even this conventional, careful life can't keep me safe, what can?
Saturday, October 3, 2009
Be part of the really useful crew
I have created all sorts of funny and interesting stuff for the web. Some of it has been passed around a bit. And some of it has been discovered by exactly nobody, despite my sloppy but diligent efforts at ePR.
Not so long ago my aunt was complaining about Dequervain's Syndrome, which is sort of like tendinitis of the wrist. I had it a few years ago and after wearing a cast for two weeks, getting a shot, having acupuncture, and taking NSAIDs, I discovered a simple exercise that healed me in just a few days. I couldn't explain the exercise to my aunt over the phone, so I shot a video. The video was too big to email so I put it on YouTube and sent her the link.
Three months later, the thing has almost 800 views, several positive discussions and four five-star ratings.
In advertising, we often create content that is immensely strategic, wonderfully creative and flawlessly executed. But if you want to be successful on the social web, being helpful is just way more important.
[Ed. - The title of this post is borrowed from Thomas]
Not so long ago my aunt was complaining about Dequervain's Syndrome, which is sort of like tendinitis of the wrist. I had it a few years ago and after wearing a cast for two weeks, getting a shot, having acupuncture, and taking NSAIDs, I discovered a simple exercise that healed me in just a few days. I couldn't explain the exercise to my aunt over the phone, so I shot a video. The video was too big to email so I put it on YouTube and sent her the link.
Three months later, the thing has almost 800 views, several positive discussions and four five-star ratings.
In advertising, we often create content that is immensely strategic, wonderfully creative and flawlessly executed. But if you want to be successful on the social web, being helpful is just way more important.
[Ed. - The title of this post is borrowed from Thomas]
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