Final Blog

Recently, my friend showed me a video on Youtube. The video is called "The Website Is Down" and is about a web technician who is dealing with a sales person he works with. All the viewer sees is what is on the web technician computer screen. The web technition shows what can be done with the internet if you know enough about it. He simultaneously plays Halo online, talks to people using Skype, changes received email content and uses another persons computer from is desktop. The reason why I like this video is because it is funny and also because it is a film based entirely on the internet. It was made available on the internet and is based on what can be done with it. I think it is very clever because the audience does not need much knowledge about the internet to enjoy it and people who do know a lot about the internet will also enjoy it.
I thought it was real at first but it is a film that was scripted. This is a film that only exists because of the internet. The internet is having a huge impact on how people make films. People no longer have to normal film making conventions. Since the arrival of the internet, people have accepted more different types of video than what is seen in cinemas or on TV. Audiences can accept the content of the video because they understand what is happening. I think it is more visually interesting that a lot of films because the audience must watch the screen at all times to keep up with the plot and also to get the jokes. With a lot of films one can look away and not miss anything but with this, it is all about what you see.
I like this video because I think it is a good example of what we talk about with regards digital media. Its a good example of the product of the digital age. It was distributed on the internet, the view is only of what is seen on a computer, its about the internet and for people who use the internet.

Goal of My Project

One thing which I have not talked about much but which is very importaant is the goal of my project. What is the point of my reality TV series?. What I always had in mind but never really mentioned was that I would like to show teenagers that school today is not as difficult as it was for their parents when they were going to school. Sinse I changed from just having teenagers to including adults, the goal has also changed. Along with opening teenagers' eyes to the difficulties of school years ago, the series will also show adults that teenagers have to deal with a lot of issues they never had to deal with when they were in school (computer skills etc.).
The series also needs to have something to work towords. What will be the conclusion? Each group will have to attend classes and also undertake tasks. The group who do the best in the final exams and winn the most tasks will be the winner. If the teenagers win, they will each recieve a top of the range personal computer worth 2000 euro. If the adults win, they will win a holiday worth 2000 euro each to a destination of their choice.

Film and Copyright n the Digital Age

There is no doubt that film making has undergone a massive change because of the Digital Age. With technological advances, the audience demands more from a film than they used to. Before, people would go to the cinema and be happy to just watch a film. Today however, the audience demands and also expects more from a film than just a singular cinematic experience. Graham Roberts argues in his chapter of Web Studies that the extra features element of DVD's may be the model for future film content. People today buy a DVD as much for the extra features as for the film itself. People want to get as much out of a film as they possibly can and the extra features part of a DVD allows this. The internet also provides extra content on films. A lot of new films being released have a web site with interviews with the actors and director along with previews of the film. Technological advances are the reason for these extra demands from films. Why should the audience settle for just the movie when extra content can be provided?. Take The Blair Witch Project as an example. Without all the content about it on the internet prior to its release, it would not have been the huge success that it was.
Technological advances has also changed the distribution of films. Pretty much and film you can think of is now available on DVD. The internet is now also playing a huge part in distribution. The problem film companies are having is that their films are widely available on the internet free of charge. There is huge work going on to change this and in the future films will be available on a "video on demand" basis. Whaterver the future holds for the film industry, there is one thing I am sure of: the industry has had to adapt to changes before and will once again be able to adapt because it is more than capable of keeping up with technological changes.