Steven Spielberg decried the iPod's 3-inch screen and promised that he would not shoot for the medium. I'm actually pretty sympathetic to the idea that a 3-inch screen wants different kinds of material than a 300' one — and that old timers like Spielberg may not have what it takes to shoot for 3".
He also says that people are social and will always go to the cinema — another statement I largely agree with. But there are two factors working against this:
1. The arms-race for feature-film budgets means that no one takes big chances with wide-release movies. No one is going to take a flier on a $300 million movie, trying something totally unproven and radical.
2. Because the movies cost so much to make, the studios are obsessed with them as crown jewels, and they've taken to treating cinemagoers like suspected criminals, bombarding them with "anti-piracy" warnings (um, I just paid $13 to get into this turkey, I'm not a pirate), searching them and taking away their phones (that thing has my calendar, personal photos, and private rolodex in it — plus you can use it as digital cash!), and spying on them during the show (now *that's* a way to make a customer feel welcome).
In a free-ranging hour of interview with former NBC News correspondent Garrick Utley and questions from the audience, Spielberg said iPod video may be all the rage but count his films out from tailoring his films to fit the small screen.
"That's one medium where I have to draw the line," he said. "We'll shoot for television and the movies and let there be a wide gap" between that and the small 3-inch screen. He also said that he felt that people are social animals who will choose to go out to a movie rather than watch a show on widescreen.
"I don't think movie theaters will ever go away," Spielberg said.
(via Gizmodo)
