#get played

This really resonated with me. I think that when a piece of media is so wrapped up in our personal identity anything that deviates from what that original thing is, feels like a personal attack. It isn’t though. Creators do not know you or think of you specifically when they make something. They have a story to share and have chosen a certain way to do that. Sometimes that way deviates from what we are used to from that media. That is their right.

Like what you like, and don’t like what you don’t, but understand why and reflect on that and if you’re upset about it consider why. And don’t hassle creators about it. That’s your personal issue. Not theirs.

HAC goes on to say “The thing that you love is still there. So why get angry. ‘That’s not for me, it’s for some body else..probably.’” The thing you love isn’t changed by the new thing. Even in franchises it doesn’t change anything. Love Star Wars episodes 4-6 and hate everything else? Great. don’t watch it and remove that other stuff from your personal canon. You have no obligation to George Lucas or anyone to engage with that media. Reverse is true too. Love all Star Wars? Then just go love it all.

So my friend Jo and I made a podcast where we watch movies like Alien and talk about things like lesbians, cats and the physics of chucking a corpse into space. You should totally check it out.

Anchor : https://anchor.fm/getplayed

Spotify : https://open.spotify.com/show/0wq8VXP0eqejipYvrBuJ88

Heather Ann Campbell made a point on this week’s Get Played that helped me understand our current state of media, not just in relation to the WGA and SAG strikes, but to how media exists in our world at this moment in time.

They were talking about the strikes, and she made the point that studios, CEOs, shareholders, etc. view television and movies as content, and not art. This also clearly informs their notions around AI being used in the creation of media. Content is content is content. It doesn't matter if it's good, meaningful, important, just as long as it is out there and able to be consumed. Quantity over quality at the cheapest possible price.

This was a real AHA! moment for me. It made me realize that everything has become content. It is no longer television, movies, books, even news. It is all content. The issue with this view of these mediums as content is that content is consumed. That is its purpose, to be bought and consumed by the consumer. With that being the new purpose of all forms of media, then there is no room or purpose for analysis, reflection, appreciation. It also means there is no reason for things to last.

Because of this lack of ability to pause and allow for insight we exist in a perpetual state of consumption. Our function as consumers becomes our identity. We identity with what we consume, and also as consumers. This is, in-part, I think, the reason for the rise of toxic fandoms. There are other reasons as well, the anonymity of the internet, the "echo-chamber" of online communities. The actual destruction of physical community and meeting spaces.

The reason this creates toxic fandoms is because media/content becomes our identity and any change or attack, whether perceived or real, becomes an attack on our person. This is true for the news and politics as well. Now there are legitimate reasons to become upset about political stances, but why would anyone get upset if Fox News or MSNBC is called out on something? We shouldn't that's truly insane, but we do because we have become those media.

Back to the strikes. Until studios view what actors, writers, animators, CGI animators, voice actors, directors, editors, camera operators, etc etc etc, do as craft and as art, they will never respect or view the end product as something of value other than what can be viewed as content to be churned out in order to increase revenue. That will always be the driving motivator, how much output can be forced from these workers for as little money as possible.

New episode of Get Played out today!! You can click the link above to listen to it on anchor, or one of the links below!