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How the Entertainment Industry is Lacking Creativity...essay/speech by 14 year old girl.

Posted by: Rocket123 on Feb 18, 16:30

Grade 9 English Assignment: write a 5 minue speech about something you believe in strongly. This was the "essay/speech" submitted.

How the Entertainment Industry Is Lacking Creativity

Even though the global entertainment industry is worth a staggering $2 trillion, movie ticket sales are through the floor compared to previous years and television networks are facing severe budget cuts. Why might this be? Perhaps one of the largest reasons why the entertainment industry is in decline is because the public is not satisfied with the current films and television shows due to their lack of originality. Like a writer with writer’s block, Hollywood is having trouble coming up with new ideas. Think about the types of new movies and television shows that have premiered lately. A majority of these movies (96% of those created to be exact) and television shows frustratingly elaborate other stories, leech off of a popular phenomenon or former success, or are reformatted in order to make more money.

Many of you are probably familiar with the Star Trek franchise. This franchise is a perfect example of how the entertainment industry is extending storylines to make more money. Star Trek started out as a single television series- a brilliant concept but it flopped. Over time, attention grew after people began watching reruns and a fan base developed. From there, one original idea Hollywood had was milked for all it was worth. 5 television series, 11 theatrical films, numerous books, games, and products later we can see how Hollywood re-uses great ideas instead of making new ones. Although Star Trek is a wonderfully entertaining series, do we really need a sequel to a sequel of a sequel of another sequel of Star Trek? And that is just for the number of television series. Imagine how many times the word “sequel” would have to be repeated to describe the twelfth Star Trek film planned for 2013!

When Hollywood is not extending storylines, they are leeching off of the success of other works. Think about the popular cartoons Family Guy, American Dad, and the Cleveland Show that were all created by Seth MacFarlane. They may not seem very similar at first but they have a lot in common. Each television show features a lovable yet dumb father, an attractive mother, an outcast son, a daughter who despises her father, a comically-sized sadist, and a non-human best friend. In the end, is any of this original? Remember the Simpsons featuring a lovable yet dumb father, an attractive mother, and an outcast son?

Another way Hollywood tries to make money off of previous successes is by remaking movies or television shows. Perhaps last October you went to see the film Footloose. This film was a higher-budget, lower-earning version of the 1984 Footloose and had only slight modifications. Footloose is only one example of a cookie-cutter remake and there are many others including those on television such as Hawaii 5-0. The original Hawaii 5-0 lasted twelve long seasons from 1968 to 1980. The new Hawaii 5-0 is virtually the same as the classic, with the remake using the same premise of a procedural police drama, an identical catchphrase, and similar theme song.

Occasionally, Hollywood will not even attempt to deceive the viewer into believing their product is new and original, and instead re- releases the exact same product. We can see these attempts in everyday life when a film is re-released in a higher quality. Think about Disney films and how many times you turn on your television and see a commercial about how Disney has upgraded its beloved classics to Blu-Ray. Movie lovers already own these movies but they allow themselves to be manipulated into buying The Lady and the Tramp, for example, on Blu-Ray when they already have it in VHS and DVD format. Hollywood also takes old films and allows them to be replayed in theatres for a limited amount of time, such as in the case of The Lion King. Finally, when re-releasing or replaying does not bring in the audiences; the entertainment industry will turn its product three-dimensional. Titanic, for example, is a film that has experienced all three of these money-making tactics and is available on Blu-Ray, been re-released to theatres, and has undergone the three-dimensional treatment and will be available in theatres to take your money on April 24^th, 2012. Other examples of movies that have undergone the three-dimensional treatment include Star Wars Episode 1 which is currently in theatres and the Lion King which released in September 2011. On the back of the success of the Lion King 3D, Disney decided to give 3D treatment to Finding Nemo for re-release on September 14^th, 2012.

The general public deserves more than to be only offered countless opportunities to see the same film over and over again. Shows and films that leech off of previous successes are nothing more than manipulative, money-making schemes. How can the entertainment industry rake in the cash and only give the public an inferior product? The public has started to send the $2 trillion dollar industry the message that they will no longer allow themselves to be further manipulated into buying uncreative products, causing a serious decline in the entertainment industry. Is it that Hollywood does not believe the public can understand new ideas or has Hollywood lost their imagination? Regardless of the answers to these questions, the result is clear: the general public is waking up and are starting to insist on better movies and new ideas. Either the entertainment industry will provide the product that audiences are starting to demand, or they will suffer the consequences of continued loss of revenue. I hope they wake up soon, because I miss going to the movies.

The 14 year old girl in question is my daughter, and I did not prompt her or help her with choosing her topic or submission. This is cut/paste without edit.

How the Entertainment Industry is Lacking Creativity...essay/speech by 14 year old girl. Rocket123 Feb 18, 16:30

Your daughter misses going to the movies. Come on Rocket, that's your cue. {nm} JMT-NL Feb 18, 16:50

I know, I feel terrible about it too. I drive by the theatre from time to time to see what is showing and just am not inspired. Rocket123 Feb 18, 20:28

Most impressive. Looking forward to her follow-up essay (tongue firmly in cheek). {nm} RotoHockeyYTD2012 Feb 18, 16:50

Barney Stinson's oldest rule: New is always better! {nm} Austinmh Feb 18, 17:06

She's 14 and she wrote this? Wow. (IM) Paul2k Feb 18, 17:08

I think you and your wife did a good job teaching her to think for herself, Rocket. That essay was extremely well-written. {nm} accountant_4_Jesus Feb 18, 17:23

We encourage free thought in my house. It's the only thing people can't control. What we think is ours alone. "Analytical" is in 'da genes. {nm} Rocket123 Feb 18, 20:43

That young lady has been granted an honorary Little Sistership at Delta House. She describes deftly the reason the Deltas see approximately DTXbro Feb 18, 17:37

Thanks for the sentiment. Rocket123 Feb 18, 20:38

Very impressive! Will you let us know how the speech/essay did , meaning what grade did she receive. You should be very proud! {nm} damenchipguy Feb 18, 17:40

She did a magnificent job. Loved the essay. Now she should write about how it sucks to pay over 10 dollars to see a movie MasterofPinball1983 Feb 18, 18:00