Computer Media and Its Impact on the Cinema Industry
Computer media is a type of recorded data and information that is recorded and played using computers. Information contained and transmitted to people via computer media can take the shape of transcripts or recorded CDs and tapes that aid in the storage and playback of the material.
A cinema is a public gathering place where people may watch movies and have fun. The film business was formed to allow people to assemble in one public space and see the most recent films on the market. The enjoyment of such activity is when majorities of the people come together and form a group that aims at being entertained. Traditionally, people could travel miles to attend to concerts and watch films from one place, but the computer era has made so many changes to the sector that can allow every person to watch the films from the comfort of their homes with the connection of the internet and a computer or laptop.
Arguments supporting the claim
The computer media has enhanced portability in the cinema industry. Some of the people who own laptops and computers have managed to enjoy watching from the comfort of their homes provided there is a strong internet connection. Cinema was an event that was meant for interaction and spending leisure time with friends and family in a gathering that was set for watching. However, the introduction of the computer media has enabled people from different regions across the world to interact and exchange ideas regarding specific cinema films that can be watched online by people from all over the world.
The film producers have increased their revenue due to the use of computer media, unlike the previous periods when the people could gather in a theatre and watch. The streaming of the uploaded and encrypted films on the internet via channels such as YouTube enable the patent owners to earn from the streams made by viewers. Other forms of earning include downloads that consume a lot of bundles that are converted into monetary value when the owners check the reviews of the films and downloads (Betancourt 2013). During the period when people had not incorporated the use of computers in the film industry, hard disks and other diskettes that held the information could be pirated and sold without the knowledge of the producers hence running at huge losses that discouraged.
The use of computer media has reduced the period taken for films to be made available in certain regions of the world. For example, when a film is produced and released, the trailer of the film is uploaded online, and anyone who has access t the internet can view and search to download the films at the set cost. In such a manner, the cinema industry has made improvements in delivering the latest films to the people within the shortest time possible. The countries that the films are produced were the first to watch and enjoy the films before they can be viewed by other people in the world due to the logistics of delivering the films to other nations and places that are far located.
The use of computers has enabled the film makers to replace the parts played by individuals by animations. The animations help children to concentrate and learn from the information passed through the films. Children like cartoon-like things that make them laugh and keep watching. The act of keeping them attracted to the screens and following the stories enables the children to learn and know how to act within the community (Berry & Berry 2015). For example, the formation of friendships among the creatures used in the animations and the manner they relate creates some sense of humor to the children. When films are viewed on the cinema theatres, and they get attended by adults the children fail to understand the concepts due to the lack of an attraction point to the films. Hence, the incorporation of the animated films to the industry has enhanced the whole community, both young and old to learn from the films without struggle due to the use of appropriate features and concepts.
Arguments against the claim
The changes made to the industry caused many artists to lose their jobs. The computer programmers generated programs that could design models that can be displayed on screens hence denying the artists the chance to earn a living from designing such models. The unexplored computer-generated models were new and had not included all the techniques that were in the market before hence creating a decrease in the productivity of the activities done in the cinemas. The artists used the background effects hence the use of computers changed everything to the blue screens that brought a sense of uniqueness to the cinema sector.
The argument that the technology people have made on the use of computer media on cinemas is that the information cannot get scratches and grains, but the level of projection can be degraded over time as the pixels of the projectors go for long distances. Apart from the innovations to the use of projectors, the projections do not offer a big difference as they are like the analog films that were projected in the past (Grant & Meadows 2016). The traditional ways of attending cinema was a way of preventing pirates from making sales of the pirated CDs and other disks that do not enable the content owners to earn from the hard work. However, the goodness of attending to a cinema is that the image projection creates a natural sense, unlike the computer, generates animations that are much of fiction.
The effect of material manipulation of the image
Material manipulation of images is a way of changing the original quality of images to make them presentable based on the presentation they were captured. For example, a fight scene must be apparent to enable the viewers to see all the actions and movements made by the people on the fight without blocking the important scenes that people look for in any fight. Another reason for the manipulation of images is to clear those that are burred and make them stand out to be clear when projected to the screens of the theatre. The use of computers has a lot of effects on the cinema industry because several scenes can be captured and later modified to the desired quality and manner of presentation intended by the producers. For example, the color of the images can be changed to match the storyline, and the manner of appearance can be altered depending on the target audience (Danesi 2017). As much as the manipulation can bring better images and scenes that attract the attention of the people, the originality and natural effect of the old cinema images do not get to be experienced by the people hence the taste of the screens fail to make the people feel what the author of the scripts intends, and the manner of presentation can lead to a reduced number of people who can purchase the films for further viewing at their homes on the computers.
The role of 20th-century experimental filmmaking
The 20th century has been described by a lot of technological innovations that are now making big changes in the film industry. The introduction of the digital transmission of films has enabled people from different locations to view the same content with the help of connected networks and satellites that offer the fastest way of transmitting content. An example of such transmission speeds is shown by the commonly broadcasted live matches in the sports industry that are aired as they take place and everyone across the world can watch depending on the connectivity. The distribution of movies and films was done by a difficult means of transport due to the complexity of the disks, and the reels contained. The complexity was a way of preventing piracy and ensuring that the products to the films earn the expected profits depending on the number of purchases made by the people.
Another major role of technology in the 20th century to the filmmaking industry is the digital projection. The decline of brightness and color that were long experienced in theatre rooms while watching cinemas has been improved and modified by the projectors that can maintain the same intensity of brightness from start to end of a film without affecting the eyes of the viewers and the change of color due to the manner the stage was set. Apart from image presentation and colors, the quality of the sounds transmitted is well balanced with the current stereo devices in the market that help to bring the exact message in a sound that can be heard by the people (Savage 2017). The ascent of some actors could not be heard well in the traditional period, but the use of the digital platform has enabled the quality of the sounds to be clear and audible enough.
The effect of the 20th century in the film industry is the increased cost of production and efficiency of the films made. When the use of technology is involved in many of the activities, the cost of such things increases but the efficiency and effectiveness of the results satisfy the needs of the people. For example, the maintenance of the brightness and color of the projected images is a result of additional resources that require capital. Another effect that needs more finances is the use of quality sound production tools like amplifiers and other sound system tools. The use of computers has moved the virtual reality of the filmmaking industry from black and white screens to bright screens that offer real-life experiences that add flavor to the films. The advances made by the invention of computers, mainly in the cinema sector, have made a lot of improvements and made the films produced to be more clear and audible for the people to follow the storylines contained in the films.
References
Berry, T., & Berry, V. T. (2015). Historical dictionary of African American cinema.
Betancourt, M. (2013). The history of motion graphics: from avant-garde to industry in the United States.
Danesi, M., 2017. Understanding media semiotics. Bloomsbury Publishing.
Grant, A. E., & Meadows, J. H. (2016). Communication Technology Update and Fundamentals: 15th Edition. Florence, Taylor and Francis. http://public.eblib.com/choice/publicfullrecord.aspx?p=4732402.
Savage, J., 2017. The effect of video on demand services on the cinema Industry.
