4 ms·

It is always the businesspeople at fault for it. Creatives don't naturally want to create bland and uninteresting work any more than software developers want t

by slg 3y ago

It is always the businesspeople at fault for it. Creatives don't naturally want to create bland and uninteresting work any more than software developers want to naturally build CRUD apps for ad-tech companies. The employees go where the businesspeople and their money lead because working class folks need to make a living and most Hollywood creatives are working class.

thworp 3y ago
Hah! They might be low-paid and on a salary, but they snub their noses at the "working class" and share none of their values or beliefs.
- cafard 3y ago
  HN is definitely where I go to get a finger on the pulse of the working class.
  - shoubidouwah 3y ago
    Add a /s so nobody's confused. That's inclusivity!
  - JimtheCoder 3y ago
    Well, most of HN probably does interact with the working class often, seeing as everyone here loves public transit...
- Timon3 3y ago
  How many of them have you talked to or worked with? The ones I know don't "snub their noses at the 'working class' and share none of their value of beliefs". But I have a feeling that you're not looking at the whole working class, only a subset.
  - suoduandao2 3y ago
    Anyone who complains about “toxic fandom”, particularly for a franchise they inherited (which includes all of marvel and Lucas film) is thumbing their nose, you can call it what you like but the behaviour is evident. It used to be, when an adaptation was bad, writers and execs would blame each other and audiences would sorta side with writers. Then game of thrones proved it was possible to make an adaptation that was both faithful and good cinema, so now writers and execs blame audiences when they fall short.
    - pjc50 3y ago
      Some of the fandoms are toxic, although that's more an internet/social media issue and those involved tend to be teenagers more than "working class". > Then game of thrones proved it was possible to make an adaptation that was both faithful and good cinema .. up to the critical point where they couldn't be faithful because GRRM hadn't written the ending, so they wrote one which everyone got mad about.
      - triceratops 3y ago
        It wasn't the ending per se that everyone got mad about. It was how the ending was written. Silicon Valley has showed us that execution matters as much or more than ideas.
    - Timon3 3y ago
      > Anyone who complains about “toxic fandom”, particularly for a franchise they inherited (which includes all of marvel and Lucas film) is thumbing their nose, you can call it what you like but the behaviour is evident. A bunch of people who didn't inherit a franchise also complain about "toxic fandom". What's the problem with saying that? Do creatives have to butter up their fans? I know the cases you're referencing, and I don't disagree with you that "toxic fandom" was a fake complaint in those specific cases. But it's not the writers who use this to deflect from criticism, it's the investors behind the scenes. The writers (the ones that are part of the normal work force) want to write good stuff and create good entertainment. But, say, the actress of Rose from Star Wars? She has every right to complain about a toxic fandom. Christ, they sent her death threats because she performed as asked for by the studio!
- danaris 3y ago
  If you'd been paying attention to what the writers and actors on strike right now are saying—including some of the A-list ones who are genuinely quite rich and famous—you'd see that, at least as a class, they do not, in fact, snub their noses at the working class. The idea that Hollywood actors and writers are arrogant elitists who look down on "regular" working folks is, to a large extent, propaganda, specifically intended to destroy solidarity in moments like these.
- wittycardio 3y ago
  [dead]
atchoo 3y ago
> Creatives don't naturally want to create bland and uninteresting work Hmm. I've seen a few "passion projects" that reach new heights of uninterestingness. Detach the creative from needing to bring in an audience and we get projects that "explore the liminal space of boredom" and such. Once directors get the "make whatever you want" power it's not always a happy outcome. Same thing with authors - they get famous with a tightly edited 300 pages and use that to release a 1200 page barely edited brick. Sometimes the balance of the two really works - the money man is the only representation of the audience and can cut out that nonsensical 45 minute dream sequence. I guess what I want is not a money man as such, just an editor with a bit of power as an objective source of improvement.
- lacrimacida 3y ago
  It’s normal to have creative flops too, but generally the landscape looks much better and healthier than now. And some of those dreamscape flops are likely low to mid budget or self funded projects.
- mschuster91 3y ago
  > Detach the creative from needing to bring in an audience and we get projects that "explore the liminal space of boredom" and such. If there is a project that literally and perfectly matches your description, it is "Paint Drying", a 2016 protest film against censorship and classification mandates in the UK [1]. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paint_Drying https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paint_Drying
- ghaff 3y ago
  I generally am not a big fan of the CGI-dominated action film catering to international audiences. But I'm mostly not a huge fan of art house fare either.
- pessimizer 3y ago
  > Hmm. I've seen a few "passion projects" that reach new heights of uninterestingness. This is what happens when the money men also think of themselves or their buddies as creatives. Extremely high production values on extremely stupid movies.

by slg 3y ago

thworp 3y ago

Hah! They might be low-paid and on a salary, but they snub their noses at the "working class" and share none of their values or beliefs.

cafard 3y ago
HN is definitely where I go to get a finger on the pulse of the working class.
- shoubidouwah 3y ago
  Add a /s so nobody's confused. That's inclusivity!
- JimtheCoder 3y ago
  Well, most of HN probably does interact with the working class often, seeing as everyone here loves public transit...
Timon3 3y ago
How many of them have you talked to or worked with? The ones I know don't "snub their noses at the 'working class' and share none of their value of beliefs". But I have a feeling that you're not looking at the whole working class, only a subset.
- suoduandao2 3y ago
  Anyone who complains about “toxic fandom”, particularly for a franchise they inherited (which includes all of marvel and Lucas film) is thumbing their nose, you can call it what you like but the behaviour is evident. It used to be, when an adaptation was bad, writers and execs would blame each other and audiences would sorta side with writers. Then game of thrones proved it was possible to make an adaptation that was both faithful and good cinema, so now writers and execs blame audiences when they fall short.
  - pjc50 3y ago
    Some of the fandoms are toxic, although that's more an internet/social media issue and those involved tend to be teenagers more than "working class". > Then game of thrones proved it was possible to make an adaptation that was both faithful and good cinema .. up to the critical point where they couldn't be faithful because GRRM hadn't written the ending, so they wrote one which everyone got mad about.
    - triceratops 3y ago
      It wasn't the ending per se that everyone got mad about. It was how the ending was written. Silicon Valley has showed us that execution matters as much or more than ideas.
  - Timon3 3y ago
    > Anyone who complains about “toxic fandom”, particularly for a franchise they inherited (which includes all of marvel and Lucas film) is thumbing their nose, you can call it what you like but the behaviour is evident. A bunch of people who didn't inherit a franchise also complain about "toxic fandom". What's the problem with saying that? Do creatives have to butter up their fans? I know the cases you're referencing, and I don't disagree with you that "toxic fandom" was a fake complaint in those specific cases. But it's not the writers who use this to deflect from criticism, it's the investors behind the scenes. The writers (the ones that are part of the normal work force) want to write good stuff and create good entertainment. But, say, the actress of Rose from Star Wars? She has every right to complain about a toxic fandom. Christ, they sent her death threats because she performed as asked for by the studio!
danaris 3y ago
If you'd been paying attention to what the writers and actors on strike right now are saying—including some of the A-list ones who are genuinely quite rich and famous—you'd see that, at least as a class, they do not, in fact, snub their noses at the working class. The idea that Hollywood actors and writers are arrogant elitists who look down on "regular" working folks is, to a large extent, propaganda, specifically intended to destroy solidarity in moments like these.
wittycardio 3y ago
[dead]

atchoo 3y ago

> Creatives don't naturally want to create bland and uninteresting work Hmm. I've seen a few "passion projects" that reach new heights of uninterestingness. Detach the creative from needing to bring in an audience and we get projects that "explore the liminal space of boredom" and such. Once directors get the "make whatever you want" power it's not always a happy outcome. Same thing with authors - they get famous with a tightly edited 300 pages and use that to release a 1200 page barely edited brick. Sometimes the balance of the two really works - the money man is the only representation of the audience and can cut out that nonsensical 45 minute dream sequence. I guess what I want is not a money man as such, just an editor with a bit of power as an objective source of improvement.

lacrimacida 3y ago
It’s normal to have creative flops too, but generally the landscape looks much better and healthier than now. And some of those dreamscape flops are likely low to mid budget or self funded projects.
mschuster91 3y ago
> Detach the creative from needing to bring in an audience and we get projects that "explore the liminal space of boredom" and such. If there is a project that literally and perfectly matches your description, it is "Paint Drying", a 2016 protest film against censorship and classification mandates in the UK [1]. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paint_Drying https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paint_Drying
ghaff 3y ago
I generally am not a big fan of the CGI-dominated action film catering to international audiences. But I'm mostly not a huge fan of art house fare either.
pessimizer 3y ago
> Hmm. I've seen a few "passion projects" that reach new heights of uninterestingness. This is what happens when the money men also think of themselves or their buddies as creatives. Extremely high production values on extremely stupid movies.