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GREY MATTER(S)
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Haven’t the “nerds” taken over?
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Aren’t we living in the age of the geek?
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Then why the F are we acting so dumb?
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Why do we accept Lowest Common Denominator as the standard? Where is our ambition? Our pride? Where did our self respect go?
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That’s easy: to the bank.
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There’s nothing that isn’t for sale in the movie world and as a result we’ve sold ourselves short. When it comes to cinema, we’ve pimped out a once beautiful art form and turned it into a Crack Whore willing to do anything as long as it gets a hit of that sweet Box Office.
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That’s not new, it’s always been called “show” business, but it’s never been this obnoxious, this blatant, this...disrespectful. Hollywood has become such a well oiled, assembly line color-by-numbers movie producing machine that the effortless marketing integration from concept inception to DVD special edition goes unnoticed. It’s invisible, seeming natural instead of calculated.
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While it’s easy to blame the studios, what responsibility do the consumers have? How about us, the movie audience? If it’s true that we get more of what we pay for, then we’re the ones responsible for it all! So, if we want better, we have to be better, to make ourselves better. The more we know the more cinema grows because we choose according to our smarts, then H-wood creates based on our choices.
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Back in the days of Plato, Socrates and all those great Greek thinkers there was a belief that the citizens needed to be educated, informed and politically active to have a healthy, functioning society. Today, Cinema is more of a democracy than ever. The power of the Internet, of connectedness, of word of mouth, of information can make or break a box office weekend. Ticket buying is a way of voting. If previews are the political ad campaigns created to influence our ticket buying behavior, then it’s our duty to be informed beyond their message, to know more than they offer. As movie citizenry, as the audience, it’s our duty to have SmartBrainThink.
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This listing goes beyond movies, into story; for that is the content and film is just one container that allows for consumption, one medium that translates it for us to experience. Kenneth Burke once remarked, “Stories are equipment for living,” so let’s gear ourselves up and bring the movies back to life.
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(This list is an ongoing project, updated whenever more better SmartBrainThink is discovered. Suggestions welcome.)
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THE INTERNET MOVIE DATABASE
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A must for all movie lovers. It’s THE digital library for all things cinema. It can tell you the what, when and who. Recently, it’s added news updates, company listing, project development by studios, box office numbers, etc. It’s the ultimate movie resource.
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AMERICAN FILM INSTITUTE
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“AFI is America’s promise to preserve the history of the motion picture, educate the next generation of storytellers, and honor the artists and their work.” Nuff said.
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TED TALKS
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“Ted is a small nonprofit devoted to Ideas Worth Spreading. It started out as a conference bringing together from three different worlds: Technology, Entertainment, Design.” All talks have an 18 minute or so time limit. Inspiring, enlightening and challenging.
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WORDPLAYER.COM
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Since 1997 screenwriters Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio (of the Priates of the Caribbean Trilogy) have been sharing real Hollywood wisdom based on experience in the biz. This site isn’t fancy, just informative.
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AMERICA’S GAME: THE SUPERBOWL CHAMPIONS
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Really? A NFL Films documentary series? Yes. Abso-F’n-lutely! These docs focus on the characters, emotions and stories of Superbowl winners. The perfect example of how to mix genre setpieces with human drama. Touchdowns become touching.
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WIKIPEDIA: THE FREE ENCYCLOPEDIA
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Once upon a pre-Internet time having an encyclopedia was a sign of affluence and social status. Today: Everyone has access to the same information; in the eyes of knowledge, we are all equal.
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NETFLIX
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Years ago movies ran in theaters once and sat in Studio vaults until anniversary re-releases brought them back into public consciousness. Then came TV, then VHS, then DVD and then streaming via the Internet. Never before have so many great classics been so easily available.
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JOSEPH CAMPBELL
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Joseph Campbell, the master of mythology, dedicated himself to discovering the secrets of the human story. By focusing on our similarities instead of differences he pieced together the greatest puzzle of all: life.
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THE BLACK LIST
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“An annual list of Hollywood’s most liked unproduced screenplays. THE BLACK LIST began in 2004 as a survey with contributions from 75 film studio and production comany executives. In 2009, over 300 executives contributed their opinion.” Quality writing exists, it’s H-wood’s courage that is lacking.
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THE ACADEMY OF...
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The Academy is, “Dedicated to the advancement of the arts and sciences of motion pictures.” There’s education, research, preservation, and events that honor the past and influence a hopeful movie future.
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THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER
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“The Hollywood Reporter is read by the most powerful people in the entertainment industry and the most influential consumers who follow it - those who shape desire, set trends and ultimately drive culture - providing an unmatched level of access and influence.”
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AIN’T IT COOL NEWS
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Started in 1996 by movie fan Harry Knowles, AICN has grown into one of the major film-related sites on the net. Its signature component? Insider information. Think of it as a Hollywood version of Wikileaks.
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THE CRITERION COLLECTION
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“The Criterion Collection, has been dedicated to gathering the greatest films around the world and publishing them in editions that offer award-winning, original supplements, publishing the defining moments of cinema for a wider and wider audience.”
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ROGER EBERT
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No other film critic has been so influential in the last 30 years as Roger Ebert. Winner of the Pulitzer Prize, his writing is professional and accessible blending education, humor and passion. A fan and expert in one.
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MASSACHUSETTS INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY
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THINKEXIST.COM
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Today’s world is about information and speed. In the Internet Age quotes are the hyperlinks to knowledge. Ingesting them brings momentary insight, digesting them leads to wisdom.
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BANKSY
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In the age of information it’s amazing that this British graffiti artist and political activist has managed to keep his identity secret. His messages however, are designed to be public. Is he an artist? Vandal? Terrorist? That’s all a matter of interpretation, but it can’t denied that it stirs emotions.
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GEORGE CARLIN
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This “Thinking Man’s Comedian” ranked 2nd on Comedy Central’s 100 Greatest Comedian’s of All Time list. But more than just a joke teller, he was an artist: entertaining and enlightening.
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