[Weekly Update] Screen X and Bad Marketing

Delaying this update to Tuesday so I can write it after I finished watching Mission Impossible... In Screen X!

CHANNEL UPDATE

Maggie Cheung:
Our Maggie Cheung video is ready to be published soon, after I finish the minor text graphics and adding subtitles. It feels a little surreal to finally finish this video about a year of on and off editing. And I hope the final video is enjoyable!

Mommy Economic:
Our next video is a shorter one (I hope) about a hidden reason behind why Chinese movies are doing so well domestically. It's not shady accounting or money laundering (maybe), but the fact that Chinese cinema has discovered a new audience base: Chinese moms and dads. I call it Mommy Economic. By attracting millennial moms, new Chinese movies are raking in multiple times the box office, because these moms can bring their own moms and also their daughters to the theater together. Sounds crazy, but I promise you the video will make sense.

Summer Horror:
Finally, we'll get to our voted topic of Japanese Urban legend in the second half of June! Do you have any other movie suggestions beyond slit-mouth woman, teketeke, and closet baby? Let me know!

MEDIA TALK

So, I'm watching Mission Impossible on Screen X. This is actually my second time viewing this format. Funnily enough, my first time is also with Mission Impossible.

Screen X is one of the newest gimmicks in cinema. Instead one big screen, select sequences are presented in super wide panoramic view across 3 screens, similar to how gamers have a triple monitor set up.

It's one of the more inoffensive gimmicks. It can be distracting, sure, as I constantly find myself looking around the edge screens looking for details. But technically I'm still looking at the movie, which is already better than D-box, which just distracts you from the movie itself. I'd say I'd like it a bit better than 3D, even. I don't have to put glasses on top of my glasses. That's already a win.

To produce a film in the Screen X format, filmmakers need to film their selected sequences with a triple camera set up. Meaning the view is at least somewhat decided and intended by the filmmakers. The extra screen let's me see the set more, which is something I can't do at home, nor with a big IMAX screen in most scenarios.

As such, Screen X is a neat incentive to watch the film in theaters, since you can't get this format at home. It can make cinema attractive again!... If people know what the hell it even is!

Yeah, here comes the rant. Have you ever noticed that cinema is really bad at naming their setups? I don't know if it's for trademark purposes or anything, but UltraAVX, Dolby Sound, IMAX, and now Screen X, none of it tells you ANYTHING about what it is. Who named this? Elon Musk??

No, seriously, why not name it Tri-Screen, Ultra Wide Experience, Surround Screen System, or anything that directly attracts film goers in the ticketing booth? Instead, a YouTuber has to spend multiple paragraphs just to explain what it is and what it offers.

Anyway, I brought up 3D earlier for a reason. In a way, Screen X is an easy format for theater chains to adopt. Unlike IMAX, which requires a specific screen and seating arrangement, Screen X can be adopted by retrofitting old standard large screen. This makes it essentially the next gimmick after 3D to attract people back to the theaters. And like 3D, it's likely going to fail, as it is merely a gimmick, and not an essential part of the experience.

Still, I feel like the format could've been so much more popular if weren't for the "boomer thinks it's cool" name.

And that concludes our update this week. Have you seen movies in Screen X before? How do you feel about it? I'll see you with a new video in a few days.