Epic 2015

[youtube=[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0fUHtc37MC8&hl=en]

More required viewing.

This is EPIC 2015, made by Robin Sloan, who is the CIO at Current.TV

Sloan made the film along with Matt Thompson in 2004, and it is remarkably prescient and still holds up well. The difficult part here is determining where historical fact drops off and fiction kicks in. Most of Sloan’s predictions (save Googlezon – so far at least) have come to pass.  Sloan did not anticipate either Youtube, nor the impact of video – but he still does pretty well.

Sloan says the impetus to make the film was hearing a lecture by Martin Niesenholz, founder and President of NYTimes. com, and one of the smartest guys in the business.

Take a look.

Michael Rosenblum

For more than 30 years, Michael Rosenblum has been on the cutting edge of the digital video journalism revolution. During this time, he has lead a drive for video literacy, and the complete rethinking of how television is made and controlled. His work has included: The complete transitioning of The BBC's national network (UK) to a VJ-driven model, starting in 2002. The complete conversion of The Voice of America, the United State's Government's broadcasting agency, (and the largest broadcaster in the world), from short wave radio to television broadcasting and webcasting using the VJ paradigm (1998-present). The construction of NYT Television, a New York Times Company, and the largest producer of non-fiction television in the US. Rosenblum was both the founder and President of NYT TV, (all based on this paradigm (1996-1998). The President and Founder of Video News International, a global VJ-driven newsgathering company, with more than 100 journalists around the world. (1993-1996). Other clients include Spectrum News, Verizon and CBS News.

4 Comments
  • Eric Blumer March 31, 2008

    Or will computers serve in that function – sifting through the bits of information and providing a macro look into the new micro world?

    Is that what’s predicted to happen?

    😉

  • EB March 31, 2008

    Very interesting. I did see this quite a while ago. But it is worth revisiting.

    I understand the fractionalization, micro media, cross pollination of information, etc…

    But I still can’t give up the notion…that society needs a central hub to gather. A townsquare.

    Does this video concept… imply there will be no major media? I think it does. I am not sure I am at that point yet…. because I think it is human nature, to want to belong to a society – which is united in some way. Media has provided that for the U.S. society. I think human nature’s needs and wants to belong to a larger group…..may insure the demand (and supply) of some central media outlets.

    I don’t know… but technology can, does and will allow for niche, fractionalized, personalized, localized, hyperlocalized, and individual media outlets.

    But what about human nature and the needs and wants to belong to a larger concept – called society? Won’t that drive the supply and demand for big media??

  • Cliff Etzel March 31, 2008

    I see this paradigm shift as a major threat to the traditional way of acquiring and distributing video content. When it was the defacto standard, these shooters typically have done their jobs to the best of their abilities. But the profession is seeing huge upheaval and the walls burning to the ground in this profession in its current iteration is difficult, and disconcerting, to watch I’m sure for those who believed things would stay status quo. I myself am finding difficulty in accepting that stills are not what they once were. I truly enjoyed capturing a decisive moment and using that to illustrate a story – or let it stand on it’s own. It was easier to manage shooting stills since I have done so for many years. But video is the new story telling medium in a way that has never been fully realized, and the cost of entry has dropped dramatically. In contrast, the new language of video, along with the gear that is required makes the transition uncomfortable. Add to that the urgency of learning this and finding marketable venues only adds to the stress of this new paradigm. Change is never easy for me it seems.

    The one major hurdle I see is effective content distribution. Independent shooters like myself are searching for a way to bypass the gated fortresses of what has been deemed the holy grails of broadcast distribution of long form video content (Discovery, A&E, TLC, Travel Channel, BBC, etc). The flip side – how does one monetize a longer form project via IPTV to an extent that one can derive a financial living from said projects? It’s not about repurposing existing content – it’s now about a new language of original material specifically created for viewing via the Internet on multiple devices. Once effective business models can be found and put into place that allow for Internet broadcasting to truly be financially viable, all hell is going to break loose.

    Many shooters like myself are still in that zone of knowing what to shoot and how to shoot it, but the lack of financially viable markets that allow for fair monetary compensation – that is the critical component still missing.

    Cliff Etzel – Solo Video Journalist
    bluprojekt

  • Carol Lane March 31, 2008

    Wow–the best SciFi is art guiding paradigm shifts