Mystery Box

The video that I watched has always been one of my favorite TED speeches, J.J. Abrams’ “Mystery Box” which he made in 2007. Not only do I find Abrams to be a great inspiration in the film industry, but his speech is universal, about everyone finding what their own mystery boxes are and how prevalent they are in everyone’s life. To Abrams, a mystery box is defined as anything that fuels your inspiration and strives to keep you finding the answers. Some of the mystery boxes that Abrams lists for himself are a blank piece of paper, his laptop computer, the progressing plot in a movie, and his actual mystery box that he bought with his grandfather when he was a small boy. It’s no bigger than a shoebox, cream in color, with a large question mark on it; this can be seen in the featured screen capture from his speech.

He starts out with an anecdote about his popular television show LOST, explaining how many people always come up to him and ask, “‘what the hell is that island?’ Followed by… ‘No seriously what the hell is that island?’” He proceeds by showing a clip from the show, explaining how fascinated he is by the amount of technology he has at his disposal these days in order to make the show possible.

The bulk of the twenty-minute speech that follows is Abrams telling the audience about how much his grandfather touched his life and spurred his love for mystery boxes. He always deconstructed things like radios and phones in front of a young Abrams. This experience has stuck with him and began a lifelong fascination with taking things apart. He produces a deconstructed tissue box to demonstrate this.

The story was an excellent tool to help you feel close to both him and his now-deceased grandfather, drawing you in to want to learn more about his explanation of these mystery boxes. In order to explain something that is so close to his heart he very passionately talks about a man who was so important to him and helped introduce him to all the driving forces in his life. Sharing personal stories is a common way to be able to not only bring people closer to you, but also help explain deeply personal things, such as mystery boxes, which are not common occurrences.

“In whatever it is that I do, I find myself drawn to infinite possibility, that sense of potential.” (J.J. Abrams)

Reference: http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/en/j_j_abrams_mystery_box.html

Rating Hollywood

Since its formation in 1922, the Motion Picture Association of America, or MPAA, has gotten a lot of scrutiny from filmmakers and patrons alike. It has always been judged for acting as a monopoly for the largest and most successful studios in Hollywood.  This is partially why it was created, to help further the business ventures and interests of the original three studios who formed the organization. One of the policies the MPAA quickly adopted was the Motion Picture Production Code, or “Hays Code” nicknamed this for head of the MPAA at the time, Will H. Hays. This system helped determine what was acceptable or unacceptable to show in films. If a film was deemed as unacceptable, the material in question either had to be edited out, or it would not be properly distributed.

The Code was amended in 1968 and replaced with the modern day rating system. Not only did this new system deem what was proper material for films, but also, it determined the age range best suited to attend the film. This was helpful because it gave filmmakers the option to make a conscious decision to make adult, or R-rated films, and not have the looming fear of rejection by the MPAA because it did not suit everyone’s needs. Though this was also trying because the MPAA became very cautious and stern about what levels of sexual and violent content were acceptable for each rating.

The MPAA has always been notorious for allowing harsher levels of violence to be seen as opposed to highly sexual content or extremely harsh language. Many of the films that have managed to wiggle around the rating board have had to fight for years in order not to edit their content. There is an excellent documentary about this flaw in the rating system aptly named This Film is Not Yet Rated. Many have always felt that films should be judged more harshly based on the level of violence as opposed to sexual content, as this is a normal function of life, while violence seems to have a more negative affect on impressionable individuals.

The MPAA’s other large campaign has been its anti-piracy work that began in the early 1980’s. This is to help stop copyright infringement, and more recently file sharing. This helps protect the rights of the filmmakers and artists, and helps try to funnel money back into the industry. While piracy may be a cost-free and effective way to get movies in very little time, it robs theaters and the entire movie industry of valuable revenue needed to keep the entertainment industry functioning. While this campaign has been successful overall, it has caused uproar with the young, modern generation, as more file sharing sites are being taken off the internet and closed for good.

While the MPAA has been doing its share to help keep piracy down and inform the general public about what content may or may not be suitable for them and their children to watch, many argue it is not necessary. There are those out there who believe that the MPAA is just a monopoly of production companies trying to keep as much money as they can within themselves, and that parents should be informed and do research on their own to be able to judge what movies their family can see. While it has been highly controversial since it’s founding, it is unlikely that the MPAA or its rating system will be shut down any time soon.