Director Steven Spielberg told an audience Monday at the International Emmys board of directors meeting, “in a free-ranging hour of interview with former NBC News correspondent Garrick Utley [amid] questions from the audience, [that Apple’s] iPod video may be all the rage, but count his films out from tailoring his films to fit the small screen,” Paul J. Gough reports for The Hollywood Reporter.
“‘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,” Gough reports. “‘I don’t think movie theaters will ever go away,’ Spielberg said.”
Full article here.
Just make the movies and TV shows, Mr. Spielberg, and we’ll watch them however you choose shoot them. We wonder what percentage of people watch movies they’ve purchased from Apple’s ITunes Store on their computer monitors and larger screens vs. their iPods. Most would probably tend to watch them on bigger screens and save a movie/TV show or two for the plane flight or train ride to work, if we had to guess. How do you watch your iTunes Store video content mostly? On your iPod, via iTunes on a larger monitor, or do you use Apple’s $19 iPod AV Cable to connect your iPod to a television set?
Related articles:
Mossberg: Apple’s new iPod is an excellent music player, surprisingly decent video player – October 19, 2005
Watching episode of ABC’s ‘Lost’ on 2.5-inch iPod screen surprisingly compelling – October 13, 2005
i watch all of spielberg’s movies with the sound turned off so i don’t have to listen to his version of what dialog should be. the movies make more sense that way too.
Yeah, and I didn’t think video arcades would ever go away, either. And now look at us — nowhere to hang out socially anymore.
Damn! No A.I.
I love going to the movies. Or at least I did before it was considered acceptible to bring crying babies into grown up movies and before talking on cel phones during movies became the rage. The overall experience has really gone down hill. Most of my friends refuse to go with me because they leave pissed off at the rude people they shared the theater with. I think movie theaters will remain relevant to a certain audience. To parents who want to get rid of their teenagers for a few hours, and for parents too cheap to spring for a babysitter on a night out. For those who can afford plasma, movie theaters are out until they improve the experience.
How do you prefer to listen to yor music? In large Speakers, small earphones, headphones, 7.1 surround systems?
I believe that listenin in a surround system is the best, but you will listen to it whit the device that you can carry with you. It is the same for the movies, you will watch it where ver you can.
I’m waiting until Apple debut’s Dolby Digital 5.1 surround sound on the ipod.
Interesting, but a total non-issue, the iPod’s resolution is already as high if not higher that TV.
Man, when Spielberg, of all people, doesn’t get it what can you say!
@ABQ Peter
You must be thinking Lucas, his dialogue is very stilted and awkward, Spielberg’s stuff is fine.
I watch them on TV when home, especially let the kids watch their Disney movies. For the rest, watching a movie on the iPod on a late flight home is priceless. How many times could you read the news over and over again. Makes for the mind to wander and relax after those tiresome business trips.
I was a bit skeptical at first but the image is crisp, sharp, bright and clear. Heck, I can see better details on the iPod than on an average TV screen.
I watch iTS movies on my 17″ LCD monitor. Looks great to me!
Since I don’t yet own a video-capable iPod, I watch on the computer screen.
I watch tons of downloaded movies and TV shows on my iPod. The clarity is amazing! Sometimes, if I’m watching it with a number of people, I’ll connect my iPod to a TV.
Actually, here’s the part of the article that caught my eye:
“He also said that when his favorite TV show of the new season, NBC’s ‘Heroes,’ showed someone cut in half in the 9 p.m. hour, he sent his younger children out of the room. ‘I’m a parent who is very concerned,’ he said.”
I went back and checked my copy of the episode. It’s rated TV14 for violent content.
I guess Steve is not so concerned that he’s going to check the ratings.
(This also from the guy who did a movie where a guy rips out the heart of a helpless victim and it’s rated ‘PG’)
Bah. His movies all went downhill after Jaws, if yer ask me. Here’s to swimmin’ with bow-legged women. We’re going to need a bigger boat….
Spielberg is jealous.
Pixar became succesful, Dreamworks (animation) didn’t.
Speilberg only creates for the big screen and TV, but not the iPod? Get a clue Steven! By creating for TV you ARE creating for the iPod, since the iPod now supports 640×480 resolution, which is what a 4:3 TV set supports. Using Handbrake you can even get a widescreen movie on your iPod at 720×400 resolution. Take that iPod and an A/V cable and plug it into an HDTV set and you’ll be hard pressed to tell the difference between it and the DVD version. Now THAT is reality Steven, not your notion that you dictate where and how we watch your movies. We are the consumer. We are King! All power to the people!
I watch iTMS/iTS video content via Front Row on my 20″ Core Duo iMac, which is also my bedroom TV. I have an EyeTV EZ for NTSC and an EyeTV500 for ClearQuam HDTV, which also works in Front Row. It’s actually a pretty nice setup.
If Apple and the cable companies will get their act together and allow Cable Cards to work with Macs or EyeTVs it will be perfect.
“Actually, here’s the part of the article that caught my eye:
“He also said that when his favorite TV show of the new season, NBC’s ‘Heroes,’ showed someone cut in half in the 9 p.m. hour, he sent his younger children out of the room. ‘I’m a parent who is very concerned,’ he said.”
I went back and checked my copy of the episode. It’s rated TV14 for violent content.
I guess Steve is not so concerned that he’s going to check the ratings.
(This also from the guy who did a movie where a guy rips out the heart of a helpless victim and it’s rated ‘PG'”
Actually it is the first film to get a PG-13 rating. The rating was created for Temple of Doom because they where worried about giving it an R rating thus hurting box office. They obscured more of that guy’s frying when he was lowered into the lava pit to lessen it as well.
Frankly I hate that too many movies shoot with TV in mind. THough it is less than before, when home video was new, many films composed their scenes more with TV formating in mind to lessen “pan and scan”. And more TV is being shot via widescreen formatting or letterboxed to take advantage of wider screen TVs and to achieve a more cinematic look. Odd how it all comes around.
Anybody shooting anything to look good on an iPod or similar device would be an idiot.
I love going out to the movies Mr Spielberg and enjoy it socialy, though not the stink of other people’s food.
However, the combo of late working, school-age kids, and a 50-mile return journey to the nearest silver screen mean that I’m forced to watch most movies at home.
Small, medium, large screen? All the same to me, but realistically home’s the place, sad to say.
It’ll change eventually but not just yet.
errr … our old television is the same size as our old iMac. Small. As for watching movies on either? Well, when we do they aren’t from the iTunes store, that’s for sure. The iTunes store doesn’t sell movies. None. Quit with the bullshit already, will ya?
P0rn. iPod is a P0rn machine
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no iPod content at all. Watch DVD’s and HD on my 110″ Front projection setup. Get me that experience in a reasonably downloadable file and I might try it.
Driver, download the image of a blue ray disc. 30-50GB shouldn’t take more than two hours or so.
Of course, this requires you to have a 100Mbit connection but as long as you’re not living in a third world country, who doesn’t have one?
I don’t suppose that ANY filmaker IS making films FOR the iPod. What a ridiculous idea.
Spielberg is not as bright as I imagined…
Time for him to
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“We’ll shoot for television and the movies and let there be a wide gap between that and the small 3-inch screen.” — Spielberg
And let there be an even wider gap between reruns of “The Terminal” and screens of any size in the future.