Different Media; Different Strengths
Even media that are quite similar can have different properties and different things they are good at.
Television, movies and theatre all basically show human actors in costumes who read scripts in front of stage sets. All are very different from comic books, novels, conference panels or a list of the first one million digits of pi. Yet, the focus of the three media is different:
- Television is about characters. tv is shown on a small screen that presents faces and close-ups better than landscapes. Because viewers sit in their living rooms with many distractions, shows tend to be at most one hour long; meaning they cannot evolve complex plots. tv series' are common because the audience likes the convenience of tuning in every week at the same time. In addition, because viewers can easily watch because the tv set is in their house. Seeing the same characters week after week leads to extensive character development during a season;
- Movies are about stories. Viewers have gone to the trouble of going to the cinema, so they want more than a half-hour show. However, most films are still less than two hours long due to human biology. Because viewers are in a dark room for the duration of the film, the storyline can be developed further than is possible on tv. On the other hand, because of the expense and bother of going to the movies, people rarely do so on a regular basis, meaning that continued series are rare (except for one or two sequels to popular films). Because of the lack of series, characters are developed less and the film rests more on a strong plot;
- Theatre is about ideas. The audience sits far away from the stage and cannot see the actors as well as on film. Nor can the stage show be elaborate sets or landscapes. These differences lead to prominence of dialogue over visuals. In addition, the added expense of live actors for every performance makes the tickets significantly more expensive than movie tickets and attracts a more elite and intellectual audience. At the same time, the start-up cost of putting on the performance is less than the cost of producing a film; meaning that theatre is more suited for experimental expressions.
Furthermore, television has a substantial news and non-fiction component not present in movies and theatre due to the ability of tv to deliver content in real time.
Given the many ways in which the Web is different from tv, film and theatre, it will not emulate any of these legacy media too closely.
