In the last couple of days, we’ve got news and pictures of Marvel & DC’s upcoming 2011 superhero movies which is really great, because comic book fans the world over get to see their favorite characters go from paper, to live action heroes on the big screen. And writers, artist, and publishers of such books are working hard on their titles knowing that one day Hollywood will come knocking on their door looking for that new story, that could be turned into a feature film. So overall, the comic book industry will pick up new readers, get reacquainted with the older fans, and the creators of those books can get some recognition and perhaps some Hollywood cash to play with.
But not every good superhero story is told on paper and transferred to the big screen by Hollywood studios. Thanks to internet video sites and the democratization of technology, we can see people share with us their own original stories and superhero fan films.
Michael Ashton just released his version of a superhero film on YouTube, and I must say…this is the best superhero film of 2011! Do I have to wait and see Thor, Captain America, and Green Lantern before I can claim Lazy Teenage Superheroes as the best movie of the year? No. Is it ok for me to compare a short film that had a $300 budget, to a film that has a $150 million dollar budget? Yes, of course it is!
As I said earlier, there has been a democratization of technology. It’s all around us. Comi Girl would not exist if it were not for the democratization of technology. The music industry has changed because of the democratization of technology. The Blair Witch Project, 28 Days Later, District 9, and the hundreds of films on Vimeo are an example of the democratization of technology. Robert Rodriguez, remember El Mariachi, which was produced for a reported $7,000 and his subsequent films and even his studio is an example of the democratization of technology. And now, a well-known South Korean filmmaker is releasing his 30 minute fantasy-horror feature film on the big screen, and that was filmed with just a couple of i-Phones! Have I made my point yet?
Some people are hoping that the superhero films being produced by the Hollywood studios get the respect that they highly deserve, while others are expecting the worst and don’t want their favorite superhero characters getting the Hollywood treatment. I can care less either way. When I see a movie be it a short film or Hollywood blockbuster, I want to be entertained and transferred into that film, that’s really all I want, it’s not too much to ask for, is it? So I gotta give it up to Michael Ashton and everyone that was a part of his film Lazy Teenage Superheroes. For 12 minutes I was entertained and I wanted more, it didn’t have anything to detract from the story, yet it had everything needed for it to succeed. The look, the feel, the special effects, the acting, the dialog, and most importantly, the sound. It was all there. I’m not crazy for declaring this the best superhero movie of 2011. But what is crazy, is that YouTube (Google) hasn’t figured out that if they put a PayPal button next to all these short films that we like and set a minimum of like $0.25 cents, we wouldn’t need Hollywood to entertain us.
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