Why tell stories?

Patryk_Rebisz said:
Abundance of anything changes nothing what so ever, you are right Stephen.
16th century. The Dutch find a new way to the spice islands, old routs loose profit. Abundance of cheap spices changes nothing, you are right Stephen.
18th century. Influx of black slaves into Americas (to replace dying indigenous population) to work on sugar plantations giving all of Europe cheap sugar. Cheap sugar changes nothing, you are right Stephen.
19th century. Telegraph spans all of US. In matter of hours you can hear news from other side of the continent. Abundance of information changes nothing, you are right Stephen.
20th century. Walmart moves into a neighborhood actively killing all local small stores and their potential for hiring. Abundance of cheap goods changes nothing in local economy, you are right Stephen.
20th century. As prices of airline tickets drop airfares become more affordable to many. More people travel. Abundance of tourist changes nothing, you are right Stephen.

Come do need to keep on being an asshol*?
(the above IS an asshole* comment, so take it easy)
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Good to see you engaging in positive, thoughtful discussion. And thanks for getting personal.
 
Stephen Mick said:
Good to see you engaging in positive, thoughtful discussion. And thanks for getting personal.
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Unless i'm missing something you are the one who FIRST called my argument "illogical," and that it "has no validity."

On more serious note. One of the best series showing how change occurs and how new-found abundance of one thing has a huge implications is James Burke's "Connections":
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iDtYSpk5_tY
 
Patryk_Rebisz said:
Unless i'm missing something you are the one who FIRST called my argument "illogical," and that it "has no validity."

On more serious note. One of the best series showing how change occurs and how new-found abundance of one thing has a huge implications is James Burke's "Connections":
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iDtYSpk5_tY
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I don't disagree that "abundance has implications." But what you're apparently saying is that the abundance of content, by the nature of that abundance, changes how we EXPERIENCE (or emotionally connect) with that content. I see no evidence that this is the case. It may change how we select that content, or where we consume it, but the act of consumption itself is not necessarily changed BECAUSE of that abundance.
 
You know this little guy has to make an appearance:

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This is a complex question because I think for me it has no specific answer. One reason is I feel like it's what I was made to do. There's little I understand more then cinema so to do anything else with myself seems like a waste. I dropped out of engineering school because I realized I would sit behind a desk doing that for 40 years and wonder why I was doing it the entire time. No thanks.

Another reason is it's so rewarding. I don't really have any hobbies. Watching movies could be considered one I guess but it's so connected to what else I do that I'm not sure it qualifies. Besides raising kids and being married, there's nothing else I think I'll do in my life that'll feel as rewarding as developing, creating, and finishing (then releasing) a film. It's a sort of visceral and emotional satisfaction that happens quietly and internally...it's personal...at least in the indie realm. I'm editing my second feature now and the first was blessed enough to be very profitable, hit Redbox almost 2 years after release and be very successful there, etc. It wasn't even that great of a film, but I busted my rear end for years to get it finished and to see it flourish was really amazing...the sort of feeling you can only get by doing something just like it. I can't imagine what it feels like to be more "legit" and have your film in the big time, I would be numb.

Then there is the entire process of making a film and the differing joys that come with that. Writing has its own satisfaction. Production has the gut wrenching nervousness day to day along with the reward of making your day (even better if you got amazing footage). Then there's the smaller aspect of production, the scene to scene and shot to shot satisfaction. Knowing you wrote that great moment months earlier and some actor just knocked it out of the park and you KNOW you got it. Nothing like it...then coming home and editing that footage together and seeing that when you said cut and print that you weren't completely out of your mind...it actually works.

Gosh I could keep going...there are a ton of reasons why. I haven't even mentioned the satisfaction you get when someone says the film touched them or impacted them. Knowing it actually made a difference wasn't just rented or purchased and mildly enjoyed for a night and forgotten. Probably even crazier is getting reports that someone in another country, 10,000 miles away watched your film and liked it. Crap even having your film on a shelf in another country is insane.

Everything about it is amazing. Maybe I take it too seriously LOL? For me besides my God and my family...film is life...a damn good one too.
 
Drew Ott said:
I'm starting to see bad movies (or even well-made entertaining movies) as immoral, wrong, and damaging to humanity. I cannot fully articulate this idea here... and for some reason I cannot indent.
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if you look at your keyboard on the left side, there is this key called "tab" that will let you indent. it's above the "caps lock" key and below the "squiggly line" key. i'm not real sure what the "caps lock" is for, but i use the "squiggly line" all the time to write in fake spanish. now if i could just figure out how to get it above the letters.
 
telling a story through film is creating a world, creating characters and creating emotion. it's almost like magic, it's an illusion, and it's immensely therapeutic for me.
 
To add a little bit more... I never went to Film School proper, but I took as many film related classes as I could where I went to school. I took a film appreciation class and the most important thing I got out of it was a quote at the head of the Introduction of the assigned textbook. I am probably paraphrasing, but it said, "The language of cinema is the language of dreams". I did not keep the textbook and can not remember who is cited for the quote, but that has stuck with me ever since. Telling stories with the language of Cinema allows a creator to share their dreams, in a more vivid means than any other art form. I am a big fan of dreams and I have multiple reoccurring motifs in my dreams that I think are worth sharing. The language of cinema can allow me to share the emotions and experiences of my dreams.
 
David G. Smith said:
To add a little bit more... I never went to Film School proper, but I took as many film related classes as I could where I went to school. I took a film appreciation class and the most important thing I got out of it was a quote at the head of the Introduction of the assigned textbook. I am probably paraphrasing, but it said, "The language of cinema is the language of dreams". I did not keep the textbook and can not remember who is cited for the quote, but that has stuck with me ever since. Telling stories with the language of Cinema allows a creator to share their dreams, in a more vivid means than any other art form. I am a big fan of dreams and I have multiple reoccurring motifs in my dreams that I think are worth sharing. The language of cinema can allow me to share the emotions and experiences of my dreams.
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[h=1]“Talking about dreams is like talking about movies, since the cinema uses the language of dreams; years can pass in a second and you can hop from one place to another. It’s a language made of image. And in the real cinema, every object and every light means something, as in a dream.”[/h]
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dmg
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Federico Fellini quotes
 
ugafan said:
i'm not real sure what the "caps lock" is for, but i use the "squiggly line" all the time to write in fake spanish. now if i could just figure out how to get it above the letters.
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CAPS LOCK IS FOR YELLING AT PEOPLE ON TEH INTERWEBZ.

Ñ/ñ:
Mac - Option+n, then N or n.
Windows - Alt+0164 (lower case) or ALT+0165 (capital)
iPad/iPhone - hold down the n or N and a pop up will allow you to select.

As for the original question, storytelling is as old as humanity. It's how we preserve knowledge, both historical and emotional. It doesn't matter if it's oral, written, or visual. Storytelling is crucial to the human experience.

I live smack-dab in the heart of Appalachia, and the breed of storytelling that comes from the mountains here was a huge part of my life growing up. For me, taking that influence and adapting it to audio and visual media is the natural next step.

Side note: if you read that above and pronounced it "Ap-puh-LAY-chya," you ain't from here.
 
too bad, the first page is a really interesting exchange of views and then something happened to this thread.
 
Gillvane said:
[h=1]“Talking about dreams is like talking about movies, since the cinema uses the language of dreams; years can pass in a second and you can hop from one place to another. It’s a language made of image. And in the real cinema, every object and every light means something, as in a dream.”[/h]
c5.gif
dmg
as0.gif
Federico Fellini quotes
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Yeah, I am pretty sure that is the quote. Thanks.
 
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