#say what you will about netflix they can produce a documentary

[ceasarslegion]

Ive been spoiled by netflix true crime docs. Primes are... very badly produced

[sapphiresaphics]

So these are screenshots in the Bridging the Rift documentary about the creation of Arcane. This is from episode 3 which debuted in August 2022. The episodes are all up on YouTube for free btw.

You can see them working on designing Lest.

Viktors metal hands.

And a very close to completion shot of Caitlyn in S2E1 handing tea to her grieving father.

Season 1 was released on November 2021. This documentary came out almost a year after the first season aired and they were already deep enough into season 2 that shots and characters from Act 1 were already nearing completion.

Amanda Overton has said in interviews online that season 2’s story was finished being written before season 1 even aired. The voice actors for Maddie and Sky both have said they recorded their lines for season 2 right around when covid hit in 2020. And these glimpses behind the scenes seem to confirm that. You can’t be working on near completed shots if you don’t have a script and dialogue already written and recorded.

This is why I really hate the speculation that the season was “rushed” or that the issues people have with this season are the result of Netflix or some corporate overlord cancelling future seasons or forcing them to add stuff they didn’t want. From all the evidence I can see and from all the information we’ve gotten from the writers themselves, both seasons of Arcane were written back to back and completed before season 1 even finished airing.

I know that if you had issues with season 2 it’s easier to blame some sort of external force for what’s wrong, but so far all of the evidence just points to this is how the season was written for good or bad.

Also we neee to clear some things up. Christian Linke may be going around giving interviews, but that’s mostly because he’s the show runner and producer. That’s a technical term for the guy who funds the project and makes sure it’s on budget and gets done. He doesn’t really have a lot of story credit, he’s a music producer. So take whatever he says with a grain of salt.

The REAL people you should be listening to are people like Amanda Overton who have not been shy about taking about their process in writing the series. She’s answered a lot of questions about the series in YouTube videos like this.

Additionally, you need to understand that Netflix is mostly just the distributor. Riot funded and produced the whole show on their own. And while they had some Netflix censorship guidelines they had to follow (for scenes where the lesbian sex got a little too spicy), Netflix has no control over the series. They did not cancel the show early. They do not promise them 5 seasons and suddenly cut it back to 2. Netflix is in it for the viewership only. If they actually DID cancel the series, Riot could easily just keep producing more shows and release them on any other streaming platform instead. Netflix holds nothing over them.

I guess all I want to do is show how LONG of a process all of this was and to give some insight into the making of the show. I want people to understand these things so they’re not out here coming up with conspiracy theories and out what they THINK went wrong. Uninformed speculation is not useful or productive.

Personally, I loved season 2 and the “rushed” feeling has been dwindling the more I rewatch the show and appreciate what they were doing. I strongly recommend that if you have issues with the show, go back and rewatch the entire show from start to finish. I’m finding stuff in season 1 that only makes more sense now that season 2 is out.

[sportincinema]

There is one huge oversight when it comes to the success of the sports genre, though. The soccer movie. The beautiful game has never looked as alluring when it has been made for the big screen. Sure, Escape To Victory is an enjoyable romp, Bend It Like Beckham is undeniably feelgood, and Michael Sheen has never been better as Brian Clough in The Damned United. But even in these films, the shots, passes, and tackles are too choreographed. Goalkeepers look as if they’re moving out of the way of shots instead of saving them. The pace of the game is too languid. There’s a complete absence of technique. You can never really tell where players are on the pitch, which itself often looks too small. It’s also incredibly difficult for a director to shoot a prolonged sequence of play, while any edits or use of slow-motion immediately makes the game look unnatural. It’s notable that soccer looks best on screen when the action is real: as in the recent Netflix David Beckham documentary or Zidane: A 21st Century Portrait. (...) So what needs to change in order to right this cinematic wrong? “You just can’t script a film in the same way as a real soccer match,” says Kyle Kusz, an associate professor of kinesiology at the University of Rhode Island. “Baseball and football are more static, they stop and start, and don’t have the flow of soccer.�� This gives film-makers a chance to build up the tension of these isolated moments, as audiences wait to see if a quarterback can throw a touchdown, a batter can smash a baseball out of a stadium, or a boxer can knockout his opponent. For Franklin Leonard, a film and television producer and the founder of The Black List, “conventional western, particularly American, storytelling tropes about a single hero doesn’t suite the nature of [soccer], which is fundamentally communitarian. It’s never just one person winning anything. It’s a team sport.”

Gregory Wakeman, Why has Hollywood failed to produce a truly great soccer movie? (2023)

[kitorin]

11:56 pm - 11th of November : s.akito

contents. shinonome akito x gn!reader, 2.485k words, fluff, no warnings really, rushed, mizuena mention

happy birthday to my love <3 wish i had time for a full fic but it is what it is

It's the dead of night when Shinonome Akito's night is interrupted.

The sky's pale blue was washed away long ago, by the brooding navy of the night, the sun bid the world farewell and traded places with the moon. Both inside and outside was desolate, with the winter wind's whispers and moths pursuing the weak light of the street lights being exceptions. Not even Ena was awake, for once sleep, due to lassitude's victory.

Typically, Akito refuses to sleep so recklessly, always brushing his teeth before a certain time and avoiding screens half an hour before bed. It was too late for his liking, fatigue rubs at his eyes, urging him to close them and fall into restful slumber.

But today's sort of special.

In twenty minutes (now nineteen) he'll turn seventeen— a mere year away from eighteen. He knows it's a big number, inching closer to graduation and eventually adulthood. He doesn't exactly feel thrilled, nor fearful. There's a sliver of yearning to be a carefree primary schooler again, other than that he felt quite stoic towards the matter.

Yet he still decided on waiting 'til midnight. Just for the sake of it, no rational or particular reason.

Borderline foolish, really. He'll feel a sense of achievement when the clock strikes twelve, then retreat to the blankets of his bed right afterwards.

Two taps sever the silence of the room, abrupt but loud.

Akito immediately looks up from his book to the door, instinctively. But his mother always notifies him with the gentle call of his name (while Ena yells at him instead), and his father simply doesn't bother with knocking. Ena passed out almost instantly when she came home (an hour or two ago), and his parents maintain a healthy sleep schedule.

"Yes?" He says, pushing his chair out of the desk, the wheels quietly rolling against the carpet. When he opens the door, he's met with nobody. A quick scan of the corridor produces no results. There were no footsteps, and no one in his family was immature enough to do knock and run in the dead of night (maybe Ena, but she wouldn't be bothered to sprint away).

Fear approaches him, its cold grip tightening around his chest. Suddenly he regrets watching Youtube videos about gruesome murders and true crime documentaries on Netflix.

With a shaky inhale, Akito prepares himself. He hasn't got the faintest clue from what, but he's ready to throw a front kick if needed.

The knocking happens again, this time a lot louder. Now it's obvious that it's not against wood, and cautiously, he turns to his window.

It's you.

The whole situation makes his heart skip a beat, both because you're perched on the window sill outside, and that he's not alone in his room (well technically, you were still outside).

Concern makes him act quick (especially with the shoulder bag you were wearing whilst precariously hanging onto the window), he opens the window and you're greeted immediately with a scolding when you enter.

"What the hell? Why are you here, this is the second fucking floor— Are you crazy?"

"Happy birthday!"

The ebullience reinforcing your voice catches him off guard, silencing reprimands. You were just saved from a highly likely (and fatal) injury, yet you're smiling as if you're on top of the world.

"Don't ignore me. How are you up here?"

You shrug, unfazed by his worry. "There's a tree."

"I can see that idiot. What you didn't was the things that could've happened. What if you fell down? I could've been asleep and no one would've been able to help you and—" Akito senses himself edging towards a mental breakdown, from the simple thought of something happening to you. Terror strangles him, and his words can't be uttered smoothly.

You seemed to take notice of this panic. "But I didn't fall. I'm okay. I wouldn't've done this if I wasn't confident in my own capabilities."

Unstable, though deep, he breathes in, focusing on how the air enters and exist. There was no need to think about what could've went wrong when the right thing already occurred.

He clears his throat, embarrassed at how emotional he got earlier. "Was a text not enough? Why'd you come here?" You didn't make an attempt to break in at An's house, nor Touya's or Kohane's. Why his specifically?

"Because today's special. It's your birthday." You unzip your bag, but instruct him before taking anything out. "Close your eyes, it's your gift."

He does as he's told, and he listens to your shuffling around the room and your possessions.

Electric guitar floods the room, accompanied by piano in the background. The tune rings a bell in Akito.

An entire stadium of ego, the wintry rationality.

Akito knows this song. Uninterrupted Indigo. Both the lyrics and music were created by Shishishishi (formerly known as Chosauce), there's two original versions of the song, one where the composer himself performed while the other featured Hatsune Miku.

But these vocals weren't the composer's. Nor Miku's

They were Akito's.

Heat permeates his cheeks rapidly, his eyes open without waiting for you to ask him to. He finally grasps input on what you're doing.

His record player is open and placed on his desk. The transparency of the case permitted the moonlight through, its pale complexion revealing the vinyl record slowly rotating in the dark.

Only now he just noticed that it was sort of the record player's birthday too. Precisely a year ago his mother gifted it to him, as his love for music was nurtured the more he spent time performing. Akito had told himself that he'd buy vinyls, but it completely slipped his mind (they were expensive, too). Streaming services were much more tempting anyways, their convenience were unmatched and he could listen to music whenever, wherever.

He only indulges in his own covers to review where he can improve, never for his own enjoyment. What is there to enjoy when it's the very reason why he struggles so much一why he's so unworthy of his dream that no one seems to have faith in.

Akito's about to say something, ready to criticise his vocals.

"I love this song, but I love the way you sing even more. It's my favourite. Anything you create, as well."

Suddenly the harsh things he wanted to say were gone.

He's heard you compliment him before, but each time feels just as magic as the previous.

"Did you know I fall asleep to this? I don't know if that's weird, but it's so comforting, the vocals and lyrics."

His voice, comforting? Being labelled as your favourite was surprising enough, but for his singing it be a source of comfort and joy almost made his jaw drop in disbelief.

Akito's scepticism of your words doesn't go unnoticed by you.

"I know you don't like your singing. And that's fine. But there are plenty of things I didn't like about myself too. Yet I love them now, thanks to you."

He knows what you're referring to, how when you mentioned suffering from self esteem, so he wrote something he found admired about you on a page per day in a notebook, 'til it was full.

"I wanted to do something similar for you too. Though I don't think I'm very good at it, I want you to view yourself the same way I do. Beautiful and perfect, just fine the way you are. Even if people try to accuse you of being any less."

Akito's heart throbs, both with appreciation and desire. Yearning blossoms within him, pining thorns strangle his heart as it frantically races. Teeth dig into his lips, and red pervades his cheeks for a reason other than hearing himself sing.

"If you like it, then it's more than enough for me. It makes me happy beyond words that you enjoy my music." He notices the record's case, a photo of him from when you went camping together, when you spent the night sleeplessly; roasting marshmallows and laughing until you struggled for air.

It's always you. You're the one who does reckless shit for his sake, you climbed up a tree to the second floor just to say happy birthday. You do the things you hate with a passion if it meant the slightest more comfort for him. It's always you who notices when his throat is overworked, or when tears threaten to spill.

It's only you.

The initial grin on your face dissipates, concern growing. "Do you have a fever? You're really red." A hand comes up to his forehead, and he's quite certain it reddened him even more. "You're heating up." Even when you're frowning he can't help but stare.

"And this is why I like you." Akito breathes out. He didn't want to confess, not yet, at least. Yet the words still found their way out, he might as well ensure they're told in the right way. "I can't help but want you more and more with each second. I can't think properly when I think of you, let alone when you're around."

The timing was horrid really, but though he'd much rather look at you in proper lighting, something about the shadowed room and sliver of moonlight highlighting your face is charming. "So then, may I be yours?"

This is what he means when he says he can't think. Look at him, confessing at midnight, on the day of his birthday, too.

"Of course." With a blink of an eye Akito finds himself wrapped in the warmth of your arms. "I like you too, Akito."

The weight on his shoulders which he didn't even noticed was lifted, finally free from his fear of awkward rejection. There's no more fighting his emotions to maintain composure in front of you, no more worrying about you accepting another as yours.

Now, turning seventeen didn't seem so bland.

"Thank you for tonight." He murmurs into your ear. Something inside of him pleads him to kiss you, whether it may be. But the mere thought of planting one on your cheek seemed impossible, let alone meeting his lips with yours. "Thank you for staying safe out there."

"Sorry if I scared you. Sleep now, you must be tired. We have a big day for you planned." And there it is, the cheery grin he'd never get sick of. "There's more to your gift too."

Akito doesn't want to sleep, not when his crush of over a year reciprocates his feelings. Lethargy was nowhere to be seen, right now all he wants is you.

"Mind if I pick up my bag later today? It's a lot easier to climb without it. The rest is just water and snacks I brought just in case, feel free to have 'em." You're already half out the window.

"You can't just like me back then leave."

"What do you suggest then?"

"Stay the night." He'll deal with his father's scolding. He'll answer all his mother's questions and he'll even tolerate Ena's teasing. If it meant you'll stay, that's fine (he doesn't feel alright knowing you're travelling late too). "Your parents are away, I'll deal with mine."

"If you say so then." Akito goes to his closet, where his futon is stored. You pull him away, almost making him fall over.

"We're sharing a bed, please? We did it at An's, why not now?"

But that was as friends, and he barely confessed a few minutes ago. "I'm fine with that." Adores and entertains the idea of it, though he doesn't know what to do. What if he's too cold? Kicks in his sleep? Snores?

You already indulge in his blankets, lifting them up to let him in, he accepts the invitation, and ends up regretting because his face is hot enough already.

You find your arms snaking around his waist. "Is this okay?"

The unfamiliarity of the contact flusters him, but he doesn't hate it. "Yeah, really good." His voice is a breathless whisper, a bit shaky from being so nervous.

"Can I do more?"

He nods.

Your chin is nestled on his shoulder, the sensation of your hair against his neck slightly ticklish. He can smell your breath, the saccharine scent of haichus and the other sweets you adore.

"Good night."

You mumble it back, and for the first time in a while, Akito feels at genuine peace.

"What are you studying in school?"

You list off your subjects with confidence, subtly hinting at success and awards in them, all while wearing a sweet smile.

"Mum, there's no need to interrogate them." Akito finally swallowed the large bite of pancake he was on, the rest of the dish shining in the dining room's light, soaked in maple syrup.

Mrs Shinonome didn't seem to care. "I need to know the kind of people you're hanging out with, you never bring anyone home. I've been worried that you didn't have any friends." Socially, he was doing fine, Weekend Garage was a much more appealing place to hang out, with the live bar and cafe. "They seem like a great influence. Studying difficult subjects and still doing well, they're well educated. I hope you start rubbing off of them."

"Akito, it's fine, really. She's fun to talk to." It was entertaining to watch her talk about Akito as a child, while Ena poked fun at them. She was sweet, complimenting your skin and marveling at your jewelry, while thanking you for being Akito's friend for so long.

He murmurs in response. "That's only because you saw baby photos of me." There was that too.

"To be honest my impression of you wasn't very nice. It scared me to see someone else in Aki's room." A sip of her tea, Akito's mother rests her chin on her palm. "How did you get inside? You didn't find the spare key or anything, did you?"

"Actually, I cl一"

"I let them in. I asked them sort of last minute. Y'know, waiting until midnight together." Ena watches Akito keenly, eating her pancakes as her gaze remains on him as he speaks.

"Awww, that's so cute." Ena comments with a grin. "So, how long have you been dating?"

Akito scoffs. "We're not dating dumbass."

"Then I guess y/n's holding your hand under the table because it's cold?"

"Ena, shut the fuck up, you haven't told Mum about being in love with Akiyama either."

The sudden change in atmosphere makes you purse your lips, the sight of what seems to be a war exclusively between siblings.

"Language!" Their mother scolds them, but too preoccupied to do it as she flips part of the table cloth up to see better. "You really are holding hands- And Ena who is Akiyama?"

You weren't the only one being interrogated that morning, the siblings exchanged heated words throughout their mother's quest to learn more. But amidst this chaos was you, chuckling in your seat at the ordeal.

taglist (send ask to be added) : @yuzurins, @pokkomi, @chigirizzz

© kitorin : do not repost, plagiarize, change, or translate

[saintmeghanmarkle]

JAN MOIR: As Prince's chief of staff departs after briefest of tenures... So why is it that few aides in Harry and Meghan's court have lasted longer than the gestation period of an elephant? by u/Von_und_zu_

JAN MOIR: As Prince's chief of staff departs after briefest of tenures... So why is it that few aides in Harry and Meghan's court have lasted longer than the gestation period of an elephant? Yet the Sussexes' troubled history as bosses tells its own story of difficulty and departure, with 18 staff leaving over a six-year period.Perhaps that's not too many if you are an international conglomerate, but it's a huge number if you are simply a couple of – how can I put this? – philanthropically-minded opportunists whose commercial interests to date include producing 50 jars of strawberry jam, writing a whiny book, complaining about their lot on Netflix documentaries and accepting awards for being Best Prince Who Ever Lived, Number One Diana Son and International Duchess of Dior (Sample Size Please), not to mention being given the infamous Global Ribbon of Nonsense.Whatever their role, few aides in Harry and Meghan's court have lasted longer than the gestation period of an elephant, but the truth is that most are out before a crested porcupine can pup, which is 90 days, if you are interested.So what happened this time? We have been told that Joshua Kettler left by mutual consent. It was a trial period, sources told People magazine (a regular outlet for friends of the couple). And in the end, he simply wasn't 'a good fit'.It was a different story back in May when Kettler was initially hired by the Sussexes as a Chief of Staff, which is rather a grand title to confer upon someone by a couple who are basically unemployed.**For every time another staff member leaves the employ of the Sussexes, a cloud of secrecy descends.'They will all have NDAs up the wazoo,' as one American business expert told me, meaning that staff will have been asked to sign Non-Disclosure Agreements as a condition of their employment.The Sussexes are great believers in liberty, freedom of speech and the eradication of misinformation, until it comes to those who work for them. Their ex-employees are pledged to secrecy until death – or else they can expect a knock on the door from Jenny Afia.**'Prince Harry has a bit of a history of cosplaying as an expert on internet speech, without the actual expertise to back it up,' Masnick said.'The Parents Network website provides precious few details – and seems to suggest the effort is really focused on just demonising social media.'Meanwhile down in American Riviera Orchard, nothing much has happened since the Duchess of Success soft-launched her lifestyle brand in March this year.There was some jam, a jar of homemade dog biscuits and then – nothing. A void that cannot be avoided, a great big lake of flake which has squandered any PR initiative gained by the launch.Recently Meghan has been crazy busy filming the cooking and gardening show that will supposedly complement the hard launch of ARO in 2025, and the last we saw of Harry he was in Colombia posing for selfies in his crumpled linens and trying not to look miserable. Some public figures have a talent for kinship and generating affection wherever they go and some – what can I say? – do not.Amid their ongoing staffing problems, Harry and Meghan are in perpetual danger of appearing like self-appointed experts on everything, a couple who are only out for themselves rather than their pet causes.They are better than that [No. No they are not.] , but their lack of loyal and long-serving aides to guide them, wise heads to advise them and staff to support them in their endeavours and difficulties only gets more obvious by the day. [Give the devils their due, Jan. It is THEIR fault, not anyone else's fault.]https://ift.tt/ei6bdph post link: https://ift.tt/206E5rM author: Von_und_zu_ submitted: August 17, 2024 at 05:42AM via SaintMeghanMarkle on Reddit disclaimer: all views + opinions expressed by the author of this post, as well as any comments and reblogs, are solely the author's own; they do not necessarily reflect the views of the administrator of this Tumblr blog. For entertainment only.

[katseye-daily]

KATSEYE for Vogue

From left: Sophia Laforteza wears Renaissance Renaissance. Lara Raj wears a Christopher John Rogers dress and Albertus Swanepoel hat. Megan Skiendiel wears a Patricia Voto top and Renaissance Renaissance skirt and hat. Manon Bannerman wears a Wiederhoeft top and Renaissance Renaissance skirt. Daniela Avanzini wears a Nicklas Skovgaard jacket, Renaissance Renaissance skirt, Gigi Burris hat, and Theory shoes. Yoonchae Jeong wears a Claire Sullivan top, skirt, and sash and Theory shoes.

If the name Katseye isn’t familiar to you now, that is sure to change very, very soon. The six-person global girl group, made up of Daniela Avanzini, Manon Bannerman, Yoonchae Jeong, Sophia Laforteza, Lara Raj, and Megan Skiendiel, was created last year through The Debut: Dream Academy, a high-pressure competition program engineered by Geffen Records and Hybe, the South Korean entertainment conglomerate behind BTS, Tomorrow X Together, Enhypen, and other outfits. (This summer, an as-yet-untitled Netflix documentary series directed by Nadia Hallgren will retrace Katseye’s formation, a process that included whittling some 120,000 hopefuls down to just 20 candidates.) Ranging in age from 16 to 21 and variously hailing from South Korea, the Philippines, Switzerland, and the United States, Katseye’s members are out to change the look and sound of modern pop as we know it.

“All I can say right now is that it’s going to be super exciting,” says Manon of their much-anticipated debut single, due out this year. Adds Megan, “We’re ecstatic to present a song that reflects our unique experiences and personalities. It’s a track that’s true to us and tells a relatable story.” If you’re wondering what to expect sonically, this is a band of young women whose chief musical influences manage to plumb every possible corner of contemporary pop music. (They include, in no particular order, Beyoncé, Ariana Grande, Miley Cyrus, Britney Spears, Erykah Badu, Rihanna, Janet Jackson, Shakira, Pharrell, and Kaytranada.) Daniela seems to speak for all of Katseye when she identifies her ideals in a recording artist: “powerful vocals, dynamic stage presence, versatility, and advocacy for empowerment.”

So too is the group eager for people to see just how thoughtful (and rigorous) Geffen and Hybe were in putting them all together. “Each person has had their own struggles, wins, and memorable moments throughout this journey,” says Sophia. She feels that the Netflix series will provide “a deeper dive into the reality of reaching for the dream.” Yoonchae echoes that sentiment: “I hope you can learn more about our members and what process we have gone through by watching our growth.”

To a one, Katseye’s members regard their dramatically disparate backgrounds as an asset—something that has only made them more dynamic as a sextet. “We each have our own strengths, so we will always do everything we can to help one another and lift each other up,” says Lara. “We’re in a situation where we really just have each other and have to take care of one another always, which we really do. We are each so unique and come from very different walks of life, but at the end of the day, music is what really brings us together.” —MM

Hair, Lacy Redway; makeup, Holly Silius using YSL Beauty. Produced by Family Projects. Set Design by Olivia Giles.

[sassyfrassboss]

Very interesting that Spotify dumped them… because they were also very animated sending their PR pieces about Archetypes being No.1 and how she did it and how she was at the level of Rogan (as if). only her fans were believing her ‘success’ there, while we see the debacle when her best episode (the first one) only could ranked no.11, then next were between 12-19th.

Do you think the same fate can be expected for Netflix?

That’s why isn’t good thing to brag about being paid millions (when the deal was a different thing) or sending Scobie to say that they were building a ‘billionaire empire’ 🤣. No wonder why he has been crying for his security (costs a lot). But hey, they have the millions they made while working royals with the merching

I think Spotify fudged the numbers when Meghan's podcast was #1 for "weeks" at the beginning because they used that to draw in listeners.

But the last podcast it was debuting pretty far down on the top 100 list which is never good when you sink that type of money into a project like that. The $20m was what the contract could potentially be worth but that also included cost of producing the episodes which Spotify eventually had to hire and pay producers on top of what they had already given M&H.

I think they were probably given something around $3M to begin with as initial payment and startup/producing costs. More than likely they spent this on nothing to do with the actual production of their podcast. Spotify later had to step in and hire their own production people to get the podcast done which means that Harry & Meghan fully expected $20M to be handed over to them and they weren't going to have to do any of the work.

As for Netflix, I know their series was the second most watched Documentary Netflix has ever produced but it couldn't crack any of the other shows for top 10 ratings. Even when it was released, "Wednesday" was still number one. The Rotten Tomato ratings are not great either.

So while Netflix got some of their money back, not sure if it is anywhere near the amount they spent on production costs or travel...

[ingek73]

Tominey: Prince Harry & Meghan ‘could be a poster couple for workshy Britain’

April 02, 2023

By Kaiser

The Telegraph’s Camilla Tominey is frantic. When Prince Harry showed up unexpectedly at a London High Court last week, Tominey could not contain her rage and fury at Harry for daring to stand up to a British tabloid. She barfed out an especially crazy piece about how Harry is a piece of sh-t for calling out the Daily Mail and calling out his father, who hires senior staff straight from the Mail’s editorial board. Tominey even admitted that Harry’s work-trip to London last week “would almost certainly have upstaged the King’s European charm offensive.” Camilla Tominey is such a loser and she defends losers. Well, she had another column in the Telegraph where she latched onto the Daily Mail’s “exclusive” story about the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s Archewell charity tax filing, wherein they claimed (for tax purposes) that they worked one hour a week on Archewell’s charity arm. Behold, I give you “Harry and Meghan could be a poster couple for workshy Britain.” Sub-head: “But when it comes to self promotion, no one can doubt that the publicity shy couple have put in the hours.” Here’s part of her piece:

We all know that productivity has gone down since the pandemic…But who knew that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex would have what it takes to become a poster-couple for workshy Britain, even after they left the UK to become “financially independent” in the United States?

The revelation that they last year carried out just one hour’s work a week for the Archewell Foundation, their non-profit organisation, has naturally been seized upon by the sort of people who revelled in that South Park episode. To be fair to the Duke and Duchess, it is standard practice for directors in the US to list their hours, as they have done on these newly released tax records.

Moreover, we can hardly say that they haven’t been busy since they stepped back as working royals – what with their Oprah Winfrey interview, their six-part Netflix documentary and Prince Harry’s autobiography, Spare.

Indeed, the Duke has also been occupied at the High Court this week, bravely setting aside his security concerns to join a group of well-known faces in suing Associated Newspapers Limited, the publisher of the Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday, for allegedly stealing their private information, which the newspaper group denies.

Clearly, the amount of hard graft that is necessary, supposedly to protect one’s privacy, should not be underestimated.

In Harry and Meghan’s case, it has involved the traducing of a great many people to generate the requisite number of headlines to show just how intrusive the press can apparently be. We must never forgive the sacrifices they have made in the name of global royal reporting.

To be a royal is to be duty-bound in pursuit of the service of others, but Harry and Meghan’s approach has been rather more self-serving than that. For when it comes to self promotion, no one can doubt that the couple have put the hours in.

[From The Telegraph]

Imagine writing this about two people who left the UK in 2020, had their security pulled, were in fear for their lives, and were simply trying to survive for months with the kindness of a relative stranger (Tyler Perry). And in three years, this is what Harry and Meghan have done: welcomed a second child and recovered from a miscarriage; bought a home; won at least two lawsuits against the Mail; produced a wildly successful memoir; produced a wildly successful Netflix docuseries; produced a wildly successful and award-winning podcast; taken a Chief Impact Officer position with a billion-dollar life-coaching business; made a successful investment in a small oat-latte business; built a charity which has already worked on several substantive projects with tangible objectives and raised millions of dollars as well as working with corporate sponsors; organized another successful Invictus Games despite a global pandemic; continued conservation work in Africa; built an actual business and charity from the ground up, and on and on. While I wish we saw more of Harry and Meghan too, what they’ve managed to accomplish in three years is amazing.

Imagine writing all of this snide bullsh-t about “work-shy” Meghan and Harry… and then having nothing to say about Prince William and Kate, who barely do one event a week and are currently on a month-long vacation. I guess someone’s buying it?

Repeating this because it is a fantastic list:

Imagine writing this about two people who left the UK in 2020, had their security pulled, were in fear for their lives, and were simply trying to survive for months with the kindness of a relative stranger (Tyler Perry). And in three years, this is what Harry and Meghan have done: welcomed a second child and recovered from a miscarriage; bought a home; won at least two lawsuits against the Mail; produced a wildly successful memoir; produced a wildly successful Netflix docuseries; produced a wildly successful and award-winning podcast; taken a Chief Impact Officer position with a billion-dollar life-coaching business; made a successful investment in a small oat-latte business; built a charity which has already worked on several substantive projects with tangible objectives and raised millions of dollars as well as working with corporate sponsors; organized another successful Invictus Games despite a global pandemic; continued conservation work in Africa; built an actual business and charity from the ground up, and on and on. While I wish we saw more of Harry and Meghan too, what they’ve managed to accomplish in three years is amazing.

[gemsofgreece]

Now it's fashion to cause controversy among the people of it means to profit from it. They don't care about accuracy and quality, they make controversial themes and miscasting so that people can talk about it online. They literally prefer the easy way to have views instead of making something really good.

Also Netflix has taken the down road "έχει πάρει την κάτω βόλτα". They don't know who to promote their works, they don't select a few good ones, they have random to please "everyone". Also they cancel now good shows with potential and keep awful ones for the same reasons above.

Honestly i don't think you should "cancel" Netflix just wish for the company to make again good concept like before.

Although I agree with both of you, are you both addressing to me those advices about what I shouldn’t do? Or are they generic statements? I can’t tell 😂

If it’s to me:

Anon A: I didn’t say to cancel Netflix as a whole, I said if the Cleopatra documentary frustrates you or finds you opposed, then the beneficial way to act is to not watch it because this is the way the rich producers take a hint.

Anon B: I am obviously not trying to manipulate people into silence but it is a very real and almost inevitable weapon in their hands, that if they see similar hate mail and hate tweets coming mixed by both reasonable people complaining and racists who found a good opportunity to raise their heads, then they are going to disregard everyone’s valid concerns with the argument that everyone is racist. “You sent me hate on my Twitter, you are a racist and therefore I am doing the right thing to cast a black Cleopatra”. Nobody ever got their point across with hate mail. It is a very immature and counterproductive way to react.

[denimbex1986]

'Although Matthew Modine has been making his way through the Hollywood ranks since the early ‘80s, the actor has found himself in a new position of prominence thanks to Stranger Things. Since portraying the complicated and devious Dr. Brenner in the first season of the Netflix series in 2016, Modine has become even more of a household name. The role earned him a SAG Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series and his character’s return last year made waves amongst fans. But Modine has a lot more on his plate. Recently he’s produced and filmed several movies, narrated a documentary (Accidental Truth, about UFOs), and performed onstage in London’s West End. He’s also part of the star-studded cast of Oppenheimer, Christopher Nolan’s new blockbuster about the origin of the atomic bomb.

In Oppenheimer, Modine plays Vannevar Bush, a real-life historical figure who headed the U.S. Office of Scientific Research and Development during World War II. Bush was involved in many of the discussions about the atomic bomb, including which Japanese cities to target. Modine describes filming the scenes where some guys decide the fate of the world as almost absurd.

“The idea that there was this small group of men sitting in a room, old white men, who arbitrarily make a decision in that moment of going from one bomb to two bombs is incredible,” the actor tells Observer. “That a decision as powerful and as dangerous and as deadly as that could be made in a room—it’s beyond my comprehension and my belief that that’s how decisions are made. But it’s historically correct of what would happen in that room.”

Oppenheimer, which marks Modine’s second collaboration with Nolan, is one of two projects Modine is involved with which reflect on humanity’s obsession with nuclear weapons. His recent documentary Downwind, which Modine executive produced, examines the real-world impact of the nuclear tests in America. The actor made both films in between shooting the upcoming thriller Retribution with Liam Neeson and true life drama Hard Miles, as well as writing and directing a short film, I Am What You Imagine, which will premiere in film festivals this fall.

Here Modine speaks to Observer about making Oppenheimer, why humanity is in dire straits, and how Stranger Things has changed Hollywood.

What drew you to this project?

Film, for good and bad, is a powerful tool of influence. You can make films that glorify combat and war and make it romantic—what I call war pornography. Or you can make a film like All Quiet on the Western Front that shows you how ugly and horrible it is. That there’s nothing that’s sexy or romantic about it. It’s an ugly, horrible solution to people who hold different views. So with Oppenheimer I said yes right away. There’s a scene where [Vannevar] Bush is speaking during Oppenheimer’s trial and he says he’s expressed an opinion that was unpopular and that if we’re going to destroy people’s lives because they express an opinion that is unpopular, then you should start with me because I’ve expressed an unpopular opinion.

In the time we’re living in, especially with social media and the way that people are so quickly crucified for expressing an opinion that somebody might find contrary, that doesn’t bode well or speak well of humanity and civilization. We have to be able to discuss our differences and, more importantly, to hold a different opinion. That’s how we evolve. We’re living in a really, really volatile time with these really, really powerful weapons of war.

The massive cast was probably also a draw.

Just to get a sense of Christopher Nolan, when I asked him about participating, he said, “We’re casting a bunch of unknowns. The only person that you know is Cillian [Murphy], who’s playing Oppenheimer.” I knew Cillian and hadn’t worked with him, but we were in the same movie, The Dark Knight Rises. He’s a wonderful actor. And then you get closer to going to work and all of the unknowns are people that you’ve known or worked with or people you admire, from Kenneth Branagh to Robert Downey Jr. to Matt Damon. I mean, it was ridiculous. But that’s a testament to Emma [Thomas], Christopher’s wife, and Christopher. They’re such lovely people. They’re so kind and smart and obviously great filmmakers that these are folks people want to work with.

So were you cast because you had worked with Christopher previously?

I hope so! He’s like an orchestra conductor. Christopher is always on the set, he’s always standing beside the camera. He’s there in the scene with you when you’re doing it. What generally happens today is the director’s in another room watching on a television monitor, but because he’s in the room you can feel his encouragement. The same way that a conductor stands in front of an orchestra and raises his hand and opens his palm and says, “A little bit softer, a little bit louder.” Christopher conducts when on his set and it’s something that I really appreciate.

And as a cellist or a violin player or percussionist, it’s your responsibility to learn the song. You have to learn the role and show with all of your knowledge of how to play that piece because you’re part of a big orchestra. It’s not Christopher Nolan’s responsibility or job to teach you to do your part. That’s why he hires you. It’s why those actors come to work because they do all of their homework and their research. They show up and Christopher conducts them.

How long ago did you shoot Oppenheimer?

I’m very bad with dates. I saw a five-year calendar on someone’s wall once and it was just a bunch of boxes. And in the boxes, he had ticked off what he was going to do in six months time and a year and two years and three years. What was astonishing to me was how few boxes five years represented. What it looked like. From that point, I took my watch off and I tossed the calendar and I said, “I just don’t want to measure my life by a calendar or clock.” But I want to say it was about a year ago—it was pretty fast.

In general, why does it feel important for you to be part of the conversation about nuclear weapons?

Nuclear bombs and nuclear energy are a temporary solution to a permanent problem. As long as human beings use violence and war to solve our problems we are the stupidest primate. There are eight billion people on the planet consuming the Earth’s resources at an unsustainable pace. We are about to experience the largest migration of climate refugees in the history of the planet. I picked up a book in England, which I encourage you to read, called The Long View. The problem with the world is the political systems and the economic systems are all designed for the short view. To address the environmental problems that we have, it demands a long view. You can’t look at it in four year cycles, you can’t look at it in quarterly cycles. It demands that we look at the systems where the tree that you and I plant today, we will never enjoy the shade of that tree. You plant that tree for your grandchildren. And that’s what’s missing from the human race today is that ability to see the long view.

The film Downwind, which is also about nuclear bombs, reflects on that. I grew up in Utah. My family—my father, my uncle and my grandfather and my grandmother—they all lived out in the desert in a place called China Ranch in Death Valley. They all died with cancer. They were all downwind of the almost one thousand bombs that were tested in the Nevada desert. They were downwind of the radiation that was falling depending on which way the wind was blowing. I was watching the news once and I saw my brother Maury being arrested and he said what I consider one of most significant things about atomic bomb testing: We know they work, so why did we have to test almost one thousand bombs on American soil?

Did you film Retribution before or after Oppenheimer?

Right before. Liam Neeson and I have been friends for almost three decades and we’ve always wanted to work together. There’s been some plays that we were going to try to do on Broadway.

The director of Retribution, Nimród [Antal], was directing two episodes of Stranger Things. One day, he said, “Come on, they’re ready for us on the set. So we’re going to walk through it together.” I said, “I’ll walk with you if you give me a job in the Liam Neeson movie you’re directing.” He laughed and I laughed. About an hour later, he showed me his phone and had a text message from his producer saying, “We think it’s a great idea.”

It’s a good lesson in asking for what you want.

I would have never done it before because it sounds like such an ass-holic thing to do. That’s a word I learned from Christopher Nolan—I have to give credit where credit’s due.

How has Stranger Things impacted your career?

I think it’s changed the entire entertainment industry. When I began, one of the most famous films I was in was Full Metal Jacket, a very powerful anti-war film. If Full Metal Jacket was successful in 60 territories around the world that was an unbelievable success. Netflix is in over 190 territories around the world, bringing entertainment right into people’s homes. So the kind of success that you can experience today from a streaming service like Netflix or Hulu is something that’s never existed in the history of the entertainment industry.

Have we seen the last of Dr. Brenner?

I hope not! It has been announced now they’re doing the origin story on stage. The producer of a play that I did, To Kill a Mockingbird, in London, Sonia Friedman Productions, is doing an origin story of Stranger Things. I think the whole scenario is about the origin of Dr. Brenner and the children.'

[gritsr3]

I also think Meghan has overplayed her hand too many times and she the fact she doesn't have a specific demographic to cater to either hurts her and any brand she's trying to build she's too old for the TikTok crowd she's too young and common for the NYC old money society crowds she's not talented or famous enough for Hollywood she literally doesn't have a single space she can occupy even the oh I'm famous cos I married someone famous club is ram packed and the only difference she had was she married royalty but now he's not even royalty he's 3rd row Harry on a commercial flight home and hour later.That’s a tough client, and it’s a client who doesn’t my recognize her challenges. She thinks she should get Dior and Cartier which is completely unrealistic. WME can get her something, but it’s going to look a lot like a slightly upgraded version of her Suits life and that is not what she wants.She also killed a lot of her opportunities. I used to say she could do something like The View, but Archetypes proved she’s terrible at that. The elephant doc proves she’s terrible at voiceovers. The Netflix documentary about famous persons (sorry, I forgot the name) proved she can’t sell that format either. She didn’t my do any fashion events that give you credibility in that space, and her Vogue issue was a disaster. Plus, she’s hard to work with and kind of lazy. Plus, she has already burned several partners and employers (UN, Reitman’s, Suits, the royals, Spotify) in the past. That’s not a great track record. People compare the Waleses to a regular two-income family and the hours worked don’t seem comparable.A lot of behind-the-scenes work doesn’t get counted when you do that though. I have to admit that Meghan’s experience changed my views of how onerous that behind-the-scenes work really was. I used to think it wasn’t that much or it didn’t make a big difference, but clearly I was wrong. Getting everything right requires a ton of prep work. I always wondered why Meghan never made it big in Hollywood with an emmy winning dad involved in popular soaps and the show married with children. Her dad moved heaven and earth to make all her wishes come true so I'm sure he used his connections big time to open doors for her. Then Megs marries a producer and still nothing big. Now we know why. She is a very difficult person, probably personality disordered, lazy and not too bright. Just as she's wrecked every opportunity she's gotten from her marriage to the brf family, she must have done the same with the Hollywood opportunities she had pre-harry. Only some foolish Canadians fell for her bs and I say this as a Canadian myself lol.

[a-winged-beast]

So sorry to pile onto your post but I think about this a LOT. I have this headcanon that a few years after they go pro, Ichirou Moriyama is arrested and subsequently killed in prison. The whole organisation basically unravels. And then a year or so later, after all these crazy stories come out about the Moriyamas, there's like a Netflix docuseries that's made that focuses on just the Foxes. The documentary producers can't get too many of them to agree to talk, however, Kevin, Allison, Matt, and Dan have a loooong conversation with their old teammates and agree that they'll talk, because the four of them can usually handle themselves well on screen. The Twinyards refuse to be involved in this, but after some consideration, Neil also agrees to do it because he likes to cause trouble (lol) and he has Things To SayTM. Wymack, Bee, and Abby decline to comment.

Anyway they end up talking about "what really happened", and they talk about Aaron's trial, Neil's past, Kevin's abuse...they even manage to get Jean to contribute. Stuff like that comes up. It breaks the fucking internet.

You have exy historians and reporters (in the documentary as well as online) saying things like, "The one thing you must understand is that until very recently, in almost every way that matters, Exy was a sport that was owned and controlled by the mafia." And some other investigative journalist tweeting like, "None of this surprises me, we've been needing to know the truth about the Moriyamas for years" and "There's a lot of money in pro sports. And where there's a lot of money, there's a lot of crime." People compare it to the involvement of the mafia in other pro sports like soccer. It just becomes this whole THING.

(I love Aaron the most so this is supposed to be about how Aaron hates how everything gets dredged up again when he's trying to move on with his life, but that's by the by).

ALSO I have this headcanon that when introducing the Foxes (in the docuseries), the producers use MCR's "Teenagers" as their intro song LOL

I wonder what the Ravens NDA for new recruits looks like. I wonder what legal protections they have in place against graduates/ex-Ravens who consider talking about their treatment in evermore. I wonder if Evermore were to fall would people start speaking out, and would the numbers of victims coming forward just keep rising and rising? Every day, new athletes names being added to this infamous list. Famous athletes on the US Court talking about their abuse, other people on pro teams getting the courage to come out about it. Suddenly it’s on everyone’s mind, suddenly it’s a top story on the mainstream news. It breaches containment out of the sports world and it’s all that anyone can talk about.

The NCAA Exy Scandal. Athletes declining to comment because they’ll always be a Raven. “You were a Raven before - did you see this happening? What did you see happening?” A number of weeks where every single day something new comes out, some new abuse story, some new shocking detail that leaves people unable to comprehend how nobody noticed, or spoke out before now.

If someone were to do the hard thing, to open that door, would they be able to stop the outpouring of other athletes following suit to come out about their time in Evermore? Would the Moriyama’s ever be held accountable, and how many people would be implicated? The team nurse who turned a blind eye, who refused proper medical care for the athletes, the campus president who didn’t notice this happening right under his nose, the people who wrote the contract that forced the players to stay silent.

[ecsundance]

2024 Sundance Film Festival Buzz

We made it! We are finally at the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah.

We are about four days into the festival which runs from January 18th to the 28th. Even though it is early in the festival, there is already a lot of buzz. In case you don’t know what I mean by that, buzz refers to what everyone is talking about, what they are all excited about, and what they are all thinking about! This could be about the films, the different events, the celebrities, etc.

No matter where you go you hear buzz. People are talking buzz on buses, in ticket lines, at restaurants, coffee shops, and basically anywhere you can think of.

Many films are getting a good amount of buzz with some even getting picked up by major studios and streaming services.

On January 19th Variety posted that one of the first festival sales had occurred. This was the Netflix purchase of the documentary, Ibelin. This film is about a Norwegian gamer, Mats Steen, who at 25 years old died of a degenerative muscle disease. His parents, sad because they felt their son did not have many friends due to his illness, learned through condolences from Mats’ fellow gamers that he had friends from all around the world.

Channel 4 News San Antonio also announced that Hit Man was bought by Netflix as well. The rom-com film, directed by native Texan Richard Linklater, was inspired by a true story about a man that goes undercover as a hit man. Things soon become complicated as a potential client is a woman in distress.

I have also heard some buzz about Freaky Tales by multiple people on buses and in lines, etc. Basically, they are saying that the film is not living up to all the hype that it was given. After initially reading about this film, I really wanted to see it but couldn’t seem to procure a ticket for it. However, when I went in person to waitlist for the film, I was lucky enough to be gifted a ticket for it. After seeing it, although I did enjoy it, I unfortunately tend to agree with this buzz that the hype surrounding Freaky Tales seems to have been unjustified.

I also heard a lot of buzz about DiDi, Presence, and Krazy House.

For DiDi they stated it is a great film and a must watch at Sundance this year. I am hoping I still have a shot at getting a ticket for it.

For Presence, the buzz is that it is also a great film, but it is so scary that it is causing some people to have to walk out of the theater. I have not seen this one yet and I am not sure if I am up to being scared like that.

I have seen Krazy House, and I do agree that it is a great film. It is so funny and there is never a dull moment even during the violent killings. They land perfect jokes that make everyone laugh.

Before the premiere of the Greatest Night in Pop at the Eccles, everyone was very excited to see the film. There was a lot of good buzz leading up to it and it did not disappoint. Afterwards there was a Q&A session that included the director, Bao Nguyen, producer, Julia Nottingham, as well as Lionel Ritchie. It was cool. One of the questions asked was how Dan Aykroyd qualified to be in the group. You just have to remember he was one of the Blues Brothers.  

In addition to hearing buzz, I have also seen buzz posted online. One item that I found interesting involves the discreet transportation arrangements for celebrities. I saw this on ABC4 Salt Lake City. In this report it explains how some celebrities try to maintain their privacy when arriving at the Sundance Film Festival. They do this by flying into Heber Valley airport which only accepts small private planes. By flying into Heber Valley, celebrities can avoid the paparazzi. It is worth noting that the number of arrivals increases during Sundance from ten to fifty a day. Tight airport security helps keep VIP arrivals under wraps. One can only imagine who is on these flights. As much as I would love to get a glimpse of them now and again, I can understand they want to maintain some privacy. As Wendy Swann who is one of the transportation providers stated in the article, “They’re normal, everyday people that have a job to do, like everyone else.”

That’s all the buzz I have! Until next time!

Ryan McCormick

[saintmeghanmarkle]

Recap of Juicy Scoop episode w/Spencer Pratt from April 23 2024 re: polo show by u/RBXChas

Recap of Juicy Scoop episode w/Spencer Pratt from April 23, 2024 re: polo show Spotify link: https://ift.tt/AX2jUMs at ~32:35Heather asks Spencer if he’s gotten any jam, and Spencer sounded confused and said he thought she was doing some coffee thing. Then Heather got confused and asked if M was working at a coffee shop like Ben Affleck making donuts at Dunkin’ Donuts. (They go on a bit of a tangent here, so I’ll skip ahead.)Heather asks Spencer if he’s a M fan (he says he’s a big fan) and if he thinks her creating ARO is a good move. She says that some say it’s a long name but is supposedly the actual name of the orchard “in which she lives on or where she’s grabbing her berries from.” Spencer says he would be more excited if she figured out a way to be on a reality show without saying she’s on a reality show, and he feels like “the polo show” is the way to do that. Heather asks what that is. Spencer says M is executive producing it with H and goes into how Heidi used to go to polo matches in Santa Barbara and thought it would make a good reality show, so he told her that now the show she always wanted is getting made, except it’s even better because it has H&M in it. He said these are some of the richest people who get together and drink. Heather basically expresses that she doesn’t know anything about polo. Spencer recounts what we all saw about the cameras being at the recent polo match in Florida.They move on to talking about Harry’s announcement that his official residence is no longer in the UK as of June of 2023. Spencer says it could be “a tax thing”, and Heather says she doesn’t know about that but thinks that they tried the documentary thing and the podcast thing, realized it was harder than it seemed, so now the cameras just follow them around because that’s what we all want to see, since they hang around with rich people who can just hop on private jets and go to things, then throw in a charity event here or there to make it look like they care about people.Spencer says he saw “the best clip” from the polo match after the trophy ceremony. Heather interrupts to say that he’s talking about old footage, the stuff where M is trying to take the trophy, but Spencer corrects her and says that this is something from the recent polo match. He goes on to describe the lady who stood next to H, but M whispered something to her to make her move away, which Spencer says is the show he wants to watch. (In other words, he wants to watch some drama.) Heather says that M is beautiful and stylish and that even if you don’t like her, you’re still intrigued, so Netflix should go for it.Spencer lamented that M and her team still haven’t figured out a way to get in with Taylor Swift, which is “such a no-brainer”. M and Taylor could hang out while H and Travis could hang out, and Travis has a new show that H could go on._______________________________My take? Nobody in the US cares about polo, and IMHO, making a documentary about a sport that’s too expensive for most people to play is not exactly a good look. “Waaaah, King Pa cut me off, waaaah, M can’t even afford her own lip gloss, waaaah, I can barely see through my tears when I brush my ponies, and the only thing I have to wipe my tears is the wads of hundred dollar bills that my pockets can’t seem to contain.”However, I think people will watch if only to see how gruesome H&M are. I certainly won’t tune in but will have my eyes peeled for recaps. post link: https://ift.tt/FSVXMjz author: RBXChas submitted: May 01, 2024 at 02:45PM via SaintMeghanMarkle on Reddit disclaimer: all views + opinions expressed by the author of this post, as well as any comments and reblogs, are solely the author's own; they do not necessarily reflect the views of the administrator of this Tumblr blog. For entertainment only.

[nickgerlich]

In The Mail

Once again, technology rules the roost, taking jobs with it but creating new ones in its wake. It is a never-ending cycle of progress, and while it has produced a net good, there are still people who complain about the disruptions.

Because, you know…those jobs.

Like at the grocery, where staffed checkouts are systematically being replaced by self-check. You would think the Russians were coming to get us or some other Cold War-era fear mongering. Post your Facebook memes and virtue signal all you want when you loudly proclaim in-store that you do not work for Walmart.

A century ago, young women were the victim of technology, when mechanical switchboards were rolled out and suddenly their role as telephone operators was no longer needed to make connections. These were entry-level jobs for women, and the machines made them irrelevant in the workforce. Well, for a while. People complained, of course, but women adapted. And here we are. Technology is like that.

I suppose those same kinds of people will be upset that Netflix is finally ending its DVD-by-mail subscription program. All those order fulfillers will have to find something else to do. Launched in 1997 as a disrupter to the bricks-and-mortar movie rental shop (Blockbuster, I’m looking at your empty storefronts right now), the company added streaming in 2008, and four years later, started producing in its own original content. The way we have watched television has never been better.

As recently as a couple of years ago, Netflix had about two million people still signed up for DVDs-by-mail, but this last April the company announced the sunset would come. And that date is 29th September, after which point the company will no longer send out discs. Current estimates peg the declining number of subscribers at a little more than a million.

Part of me says it is hard to believe that there are still a million or so people waiting days to feed their movie desires. Netflix may have been cheaper and convenient, but waiting for the postal worker to deliver your discs presents the same problem that e-commerce in general has been trying to overcome: the time and space gap. You better plan your weekend viewing now, on Tuesday.

But there is a small sliver of a silver lining on the dark cloud of progress, because if you are one of those remnant million or so, Netflix is going to toss in as many as 10 additional titles on your final orders. Better yet, they don’t want you to return anything after the end of this month. Because, what are they going to do with those old discs anyway?

I used to be a tangible media kind of guy. I insisted on owning music CDs as well as my movies, first in VHS and then DVD. I treated them like my books, because they were part of my library. I still buy books, but haven’t bought music or movies in years. Who needs to own things when you can just pay a few bucks each month (OK $20?) to tap into a massive online library? I could never begin to purchase all of that content.

While we have already discussed streaming subscription fatigue and all that, it is hard to deny our lives being improved by the changes in how we consume media. And yes, those online libraries do change over time, thanks to licensing agreements. You won’t be able to watch Breaking Bad on Netflix after 2025. No telling where it will wind up, but somebody will grab it for sure. It’s still all good, though. Even with all of my monthly fees, I am still saving money compared to how much I once spent on media.

As for technology in general, beyond how we consume media, we need not look very far to see all the disruptions that came along not just during our lives, but those before. In practically every case, jobs and workers were displaced. Do you pump your own gas (except in New Jersey!)? Pay your bills and do your banking online? Buy airline tickets, rent cars, and book hotels online? Check your own groceries? I’ll wait.

Sounds like a documentary waiting to be made, how all of these changes came along and…drumroll…here we still are. We adapted, just like the young women a century ago. We adapted, just like the farriers who shod horses before the advent of the car. We adapted, just like the former travel agents, bankers, and all the others. Yeah, I’d watch this. On Netflix, of course.

Dr “Stream Me Up” Gerlich

Audio Blog

[skiplo-wave]

incoming rant bestie, i’m tired.

seriously wish depp fans will just let shit go. like majority of the misinfo hate isn’t even [redacted] fans at this point, but rather the obsessive NEED to correct shit.

because why are they boosting up an old ass documentary, that came out right after trial, that was just as wrong now as then? y’all already clowned it a year ago.

i get it, netflix brought the rights or whatever. but this isn’t netflix producing some shit.

and tbh, it’s getting clowned AGAIN. even in the off-chance, that a person who was brain dead last year, and know jackshit about depp v. [redacted], they would see that nobody believes that fucking tiktok decided the trial.

bestie we were THERE, the trial was just funny as hell for off the wall it was. even when it boring.

every tiktok i deadass watch was snippets of the goddamn trial. like johnny being funny ass fuck and clowning rottenborn, his bodyguard (forgot his name oops) completely DYING at dennison getting [redacted]’s expert to say “amber turd” into the record, the ace attorney parodies, the animations, bestie.

like it’s all still there. nobody seriously will say “i watched the netflix documentary and um well” with a straight face knowing you can watch the trial.

Eck

I'm glad I still have johnny's name muted and blacklisted on twitter cause yeah both sides being annoying

Can we not talk about King being french daddy or what?