What's needed most right now?

When it comes to improving the state of cinema in America & the World, where do we start?

so much depends upon…

It’s Saturday morning as I start this. Up above, there is that nice gray marine layer softening the fierce sun; I sure do like when the light is dull.

I have my coffee and fresh fruit to bring me some satisfaction. I am not alone and have a special someone to share it all with, thankfully. So, thankfully. On top of all that, the birds are singing! Or are they just talking? Their chirps are damn delightful, regardless! And I can look out into a lush, green garden. Perhaps this is all any of it needs to be about.

But my mind goes elsewhere… to what is missing. I have all I want, really, but can we make it better? I still want to make it better.

So this is what I do: brainstorm. And of course I start by building a list. Got to ten. Then twenty-five, and then wham! Seventy-five. One hundred is now within reach. Should I go for it? Why not? Should we vote on them? Prioritize them! And what do I think about it all?

My immediate takeaway is how we how no American institution has as its mandate: make sure authored cinema continues to exist, its practitioners can sustain careers, and audiences continue to grow. What the effs up with that? How did we go so long with so little? How have we grown to accept that no one should make it their responsibility? Their mission??? And you wonder why I say Indie Film is dead? Sigh…

Maybe Sundance, Film Independent, The Gotham, Tribeca, and SXSW need a sit down. And far more than just those institutions too; I have about twenty-five or so on my list. And maybe they all need guidance from the foundations; quite a few on that list too. Or at least they need a regular check-in on the state of the industry, art form, and community with each other. What do their Boards do, if they don’t demand this sort of thing? Couldn’t these orgs all take a piece of the pie and figure out how to solve a few things? Or maybe they should all be dissolved and then built up back from the ground-up? Maybe we need a plan for that!

Do you think you could ask the Executive Directors or Board Members of any of those institutions what the ten things we need most right now are, and they would have a clear cut answer? I certainly hope so; I have those answers all currently accessible on my phone of course. And you will soon too — once I share that list. It’s coming soon, friends, soon.

And as I said though, the list is getting close to one hundred long. It will surpass that — but don’t worry: I will restrain myself. And to be clear, this is not a test — not of the EDs, not of you, and not of us. One is not “better than” because of such lists. It is just how our culture and industry has evolved that we don’t set and keep priorities for the community or culture or industry. We don’t shape incentives based on our values. We generally don’t even determine if our actions are aligned with our values. And if we don’t decide we want a change, it won’t ever change.

My point is: someone must be responsible for the health of the whole cinema ecosystem. It is kind of a big deal that we don’t have that, right?

Anyways, that was my Saturday morning waking realization, and I thought I should share it.

I am going to get started on the new series. It is looking like five parts right now, which based on past experience, means I will likely get to ten. I hope you want to read them all. I am going to need your help if we are going to build something better. The only way it will work is if we work together, after all.

Unfortunately for you though, I have to delay that. Why? Because in contemplating what should be done, it made me wonder what all those support orgs actually think their mission is — and then what can we surmise from examining that further. And guess what? That too, is a multiple part post.

I’ve got a lot of work to do! Stay tuned.