Commentary

The Nerve...

As I was struggling to find something intelligent to say this week, I stumbled upon an article about a young indie director by the name of Joe Swanberg. Now, Joe has made quite a name for himself as a pioneer in what is being referred to as the mumblecore genre of indie films.

What is mumblecore, you may ask? Well, according to Wikipedia, mumblecore is defined as "an independent film genre based in New York City characterized by ultra-low budget production, focus on personal relationships between white twenty-somethings, improvised scripts, and non-professional actors, living in the Williamsburg section of Brooklyn. Filmmakers in this genre include Andrew Bujalski, Mark Duplass, Jay Duplass, Aaron Katz and Joe Swanberg. The term 'mumblecore' was coined by Eric Masunaga, a sound editor who has worked with Bujalski. It is sometimes written as 'mumblecorps,' as in press corps. Film journalists have also use the terms 'bedhead cinema' and 'Slackavettes,' a reference to independent film director John Cassavetes."

What is more interesting is Joe's online work -- in particular, an online original programming series titled "Young American Bodies." Not that this content is for everyone, but the spirit of the community and the viewership is what I find most intriguing. Now, take a look at this content movement for yourself and also check out www.nerve.com while you are at it. And again, forget the nature of the content and focus on the ingenuity, the brashness and the draw that independent content creators have online, and apply it to television. Imagine the possibilities. Imagine the opportunities. Just imagine.

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