Winter Edition 2021

2 Will Streaming replace Cinemas forever? Since the Corona outbreak movie productions have fallen back drastically. Movies that were originally scheduled for release in 2020 have been postponed, or even put on a streaming service. This move, inconceivable less than 12 months ago, seems to be a pathway to a new viewing experience as many people already subscribe to one of the many streaming services to pass the time at home. However, does this mean cinema is dead? While cinemas in Europe have again mostly Therefore, what is the solution for opened, they are unable to release any new the cinema industry‘s survival in this blockbuster movies because the country they current environment? While some are depending on, the USA, is still under cinemas have had to close, others are lockdown and has not been able to continue desperately trying to attract viewers production. This means a huge loss for cine- despite the pandemic. Most of them mas, as the seats stay empty and the silver are running old films with some even screen remains motionless. However, that renting out the movie theatres for does not mean streaming services have it all private events. Nevertheless, people their own way. While some have made huge prefer to stay home when new series wins, internet piracy has also increased, not like “The Mandalorian” come out and because of the lack of films, but because of it will be very difficult getting viewers the scattered nature of the products. As we back when everything is returns to know, not all films and series are available on normal. And yet, some people still say a single platform and are spread across strea- they miss the cinema. Be it because of ming services such as Netflix, Disney+, Ama- the atmosphere, the size of the screen, zon Prime and others; as such, many viewers sound quality and even those overpri- have taken the alternative and downloaded zed, but good quality, snacks. or streamed the films illegally. What effect this has on cinemas going forward is not cle- It is true, the future of the cinema ar; but one thing is for certain, it did not start is unclear, but all is not lost. Many with the Corona outbreak. Cinema numbers movies have been announced for have been steadily decreasing for years with 2021, which will be a huge win high-ticket and snack food prices even when for customers. However, while the only two streaming platforms were Netflix it is a boon for cinemagoers, it is and Disney+. Furthermore, internet piracy had likely to be a huge loss for Movie seen a huge decrease because Streaming ser- Studios because the competition vices were something people could afford and will be drastic with multiple new even share and no longer needed to walk the blockbuster films released every tightrope of illegal downloading. What started month. It seems that very few as an affordable monopoly ended in a strea- win in this situation except us the ming war with no winner. viewer. 3 So what do we have to look forward to? Some announced releases inclu- de “James Bond: No time to die”, “A Quiet Place 2”, many Marvel and DC films like “Morbius”, “Suicide Squad 2”, “Black Widow” “Venom: Let there be carnage” and others. But Horror Fans can also be excited when films like “Halloween kills” and “The Conjuring 3” will be released near October. If people are still interested incinemas as they were before the pandemic, we as viewers can expect a huge win in 2021 with films of two years squeezed into one. But, will cinemas truly survive and remain as we have known them for the last century? Will Streaming services take their place as the pandemic, changing technology and social norms continue changing our way of consuming movies and series? Only time will tell. 4 Diversity in films - why it is so important? In recent years, progress has When looking at the statistics presented in the been made in representing un- 2020 Hollywood Diversity Report by UCLA, derrepresented groups in film the numbers are clear. People of color accoun- and television. While many ted for 27.6 percent of the leads in top films countries around the world for 2019, continuing an upward trend in the have a vital film industry, Hol- group’s representation among the most import- lywood has often been accused ant roles in theatrical films. Women accoun- in the past of acts such as ‘whi- ted for 44.1 percent of the leads in top films tewashing` and depriving not for 2019, continuing an upward trend in the only those of different ethnici- group’s share of these roles. ties, but woman and members It is important because it affects younger gene- of the LGBTQ + from star- rations positively. It can also boost confidence ring on both the big and little in adults and older generations who were not screens. This is slowly chan- well represented earlier. Because if you can ging, but there is still a long see yourself on screen, and identify with cha- way to go. But why is diversity racters portrayed, for the most part you will so important in entertainment? not feel left out. You can see all these diverse characters and think to yourself, „there is really nothing I cannot do“. Be it a superhero, a CEO and everything else you could have only drea- med of. Movies make dreams come true, they let us identify with a broad range of characters that make us feel included anda little less left out. Showing more women, LGBTQ + characters and people of color inleading roles, as well as appropriatelyportraying mental illnessin the entertainment industry can increase acceptance and reduce the stigma surrounding a wide vari- ety of topics. 5 There can be new and unique stories with the right representation; there is no reason why so- meone should not try to understand diversity in order to make their story better. It also gives other people a chance to stand in the spotlight for once. For example, Black Panther was the first ever Af- rican-American superhero to lead a movie. Also, the recent coming out of transgender actor Elliot Page who uses he/they pronouns, is a further step in diversity for Hollywood. Overall, cast diversity in top films has continued to increase. Median glo- bal box office peaked for films with casts that were from 21 percent to 30 percent minority in 2018 ($94 million), while films featuring casts that were from 41 percent to 50 percent minority emerged as the best performers in 2019 ($76.1 million). Resources: https://socialsciences. ucla.edu/wp- content/ Even though there is uploads/2020/02/UC- still a long way to go, LA-Hollywood-Di- there are many films to versity- Report-2020- come, which have po- Film-2-6-2020.pdf werful representations that help increase the https://deadline. confidence among min- com/2020/01/hollywood-diversity-2009- orities who deserve the strides-film-tv-representati- right representation that on-inclusion-1202817299/ they have been seeking their whole lives. https://vocal.media/geeks/ does-diversity-matter-in- the-film- industry 6 Inﬂuence of movies on our society Entertainment causes an inevitable corruption of society. This is a strong thing to say, however it is the harsh truth. Movies can often show euphoric or sometimes even dysphoric and unethical lifestyles and cause us to com- pare ourselves to the lives of those in the films. We vicariously watch these either wishing it was us or being very thankful that it’s not. Although this is very unhealthy, it grabs our attention because it allows us to escape reality for a moment and focus on other peoples sometimes fictitious lives. Without reali- sing, we can desired states such as relaxation and can experience various human emotions that fulfil our daily lives. One perfect example of this is a documentary that came out recently about Paris Hilton’s real story, that shaped her to the woman she now is and the character she had created in her past, that caught the attention of millions of viewers, including myself. Paris, coming from a very well known family background didn’t know how much influence she was actually having on her followers. Hundreds of girls where influenced by the way Paris thought, lived, ate, dressed and bought, which where all shaped by a made up character. This meant that it was humanly impossible to copy who she was, as there was so much she was hiding in the background that nobody, not even her own family, knew about. She talks about cases where young girls would go to plastic surgeons with a picture of themselves with a snapchat filter as their reference. Although this was the case back when it was a trend, nowadays so many more people, especially in the limelight are talking openly about how beauty comes from being yourself. Another aspect of movies influencing our society is the background of how ideas are put into making a production. Every movie has its own set in which a culture is created. As the picture to the left shows, producers’ main drive can sometimes be to make a profit. This can result in a compromise in moral values, as movies start to portray glorified ideas 7 which is likely to make society deteriorate. This is because they care more about how much money the film makes them instead of how the messages of the storyline are portrayed. Now we know why so much investment goes into producing and special effects.

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