Audience Experience

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Imagine a writer, thinking herself into insanity. Trying one thing after another-too hot, too cold. Waiting until she can find the thing that is Just Right: "Okay, so at one point after college, I realized I was a Writer-I had always identified myself as one, always did research and readings, kept a journal, etc-but I realized I hadn't WRITTEN. So I literally began at my beginning. I started doing Blogs. And Plays. And Short Stories. TV Pilots, Novels. And lately, I've also started doing Satire.  Short pieces which focus on humor, on a good idea that gets developed-and also gets workshopped among you and your closest writing partners. New York has hosted several of my pieces, and I've been proud to help others bring theirs forward (helping to produce is helping to pay it forward in your own "work") Everything feels natural to each of the medium (media), but it's about persistence.  And if something is not working, not breaking through, I'm ...

For the first evening of this  2019 Edition of the Annual Gathering of Thoreauvian Appreciators  my play, THOREAU/TWAIN: Brothers of The River will be performed. I am immensely proud to be presenting my work to such an excellent group of scholars, enthusiasts, teachers, environmentalists, historians, professors-AND this year's focus will be encouraging the ENGINEERS to come out in full force. Therefore, not ONLY am I excited to be able to do research on both Thoreau and Twain, but also to focus on the parts of their lives which reflect their interest in innovation, technology and how things get put together. Hint: This will involve HDT's work on developing a new formula for a graphite pencil, AND Twain's enthusiasm for a printing machine known as the Paige Compositor. Which will survive the ultimate test of engineering?

Of all the big plays of the moment, no play does a better homage to the spirit of the tale than Network-currently starring Bryan Cranston.  It’s a perfect American story-created in England. The surrounding immersive media is just the beginning.  The line “I’m Mad as Hell” is presented perfectly the first time, and then highlighted as a regular battle cry-you wonder if this is made from a movie from the 1970’s (it was) or if it was written tomorrow. It takes too much of the insanity of the media-centric world to too many logical conclusions. It plays with your mind over and over, as if media is just an extended magic trick-constantly diverting your attention. For this play, it’s worth it to pay attention.

TCM is showing That's Entertainment and its subsequent successes for New Year's Eve.  The hosts are sitting around the TCM set (a fake home-like atmosphere) with champagne, in suits. As if they are watching along with us. An illusion upon an illusion, and lots of us (okay, me!) just eat it up. These are like the old fashioned TV clip shows, when the show wanted to show off all the hits of the previous season. These tribute movies were like extended commercials, just like others-especially those commemorating the Beatles and other glories of the 60's. Somehow, I missed that the glorious stars of yesteryear were walking through decrepit and decayed sets of MGM, right before they were turn down. I understood Sunset Boulevard (1950) instinctively.  I knew there was a sad quality to this time gone by-but yet, it was captured.  Those people LIVED and lasted through time, even though most were probably dead by the time I first saw them. My favorite movie is/was Perils of ...

Other than the distribution channels, what are the REAL distinctions between Film, TV and on line media?  Other than economics, prestige and tradition, there is no difference. For instance, if you are a writer with a brilliant script, you want to maximize the exposure and influence of your work.  If you are approached by producers of various media, you’d hope to get to the “top of the food chain”. Naturally, you’d choose a Film contract-assuming that the budget would be high, as it always is-each film requiring a unique production crew, sets, even a unique accountant.  Plus, you’d hope, that each scene would have intense focus and blood, sweat and tears poured into each shot for ultimately 90 minutes of story. TV has scales of efficiencies, presumably a production company already in place, cranking out “Made for TV Movies”, or better yet-they’d allow your idea to grow and breathe, beyond the scope of 90 minutes. Maybe a miniseries? Online media (i.e. Youtube, or...