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Have smart phones changed the way the viewer experience films?


In recent years the advancements in cellphone technology has had a large impact on the way people make movies. As screens get smaller, it has changed the way the viewer experiences a film. Rather than being in a large theater watching the latest film on a 45 foot screen and listening to the film in 7.1 surround sound, they are watching movies on their 4.5 inch screen and listening to it in stereo through a pair of Apple Earpods. For filmmakers to adapt to this small screen market they have to change the ways they make movies. The length of shots have been shortened due to data usage. Shots such as the long shot are being used less and less because the viewer can no longer see the fine details that would show up on a larger screen. And the close up is being used more and more, so much so that a classically trained filmmaker would implore that the close up is being used carelessly and incorrectly. All of these problems were raised by the new medium on which people now enjoy films, their phones.

What are your thoughts? Do you have examples? Are there other filmmakers saying the same thing?

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Which filmmakers have adjusted their process to accommodate an audience who is watching on an iPhone and concerned about data usage? Can you point to any specific films for examples of this?

As an independent filmmaker I'll be honest - none of this has ever been a factor in making a movie. I recognize that most of my audience will have my films delivered digitally but expect them to watch on a TV, or at least a laptop or PC. I get that some will watch on a smartphone (many of which now have displays that exceed the resolution of an HDTV!). But I can't fathom changing everything I've learned about filmmaking just to accommodate a guy with an iPhone 4 and a 3GB data plan.

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