By Mike Fegelman
Been to the movies lately? Well, if so you’ve probably seen those corny and hackneyed anti-piracy ads sponsored by the motion picture industry. You know the ones that depict how the “regular Joe” movie industry worker is the one who truly financially suffers from the piracy of films, not the high paid stars and executives.
First, there’s the story of the set designer who is losing business because fewer movies are being made, purportedly because the movie industry is losing heaps of money due to copyright infringement.
Then, there’s the one about a stunt man whose craft is being put into jeopardy, because piracy supposedly leaves no incentive for stunt work to be done anymore, as the costs are apparently too high.
Without looking at the content of these advertisements, which in my opinion, leaves a lot of falsehoods lingering in the minds of the receiving audience with regard to its validity. But doesn’t anyone see the essential paradox that lies within the delivery of these advertisements?
Isn’t it obvious?
Think about it for a second: Let’s say you go to the nearest multiplex and pay close to $15 to watch a cheesy melodrama about… oh, I don’t know, a woman’s obsession with her own feet, for arguments sake. You enjoy the film for the most part and feel satisfied that you got your money’s worth.
Herein lies the problem… you paid to watch the movie.
You didn’t go online and download the film and you didn’t take out your camcorder and bootleg a copy. You did everything in a legal and just manner and as a result you’re forced to watch these inane advertisements.
Does the movie industry not understand that they’re playing these commercials to the wrong audience? We’re not the ones ripping off these films, we’re the same “regular Joes” who work hard for our money and we want to be treated right.
No matter how lame these commercials actually are, they do make a point. No one can truly say that piracy is a justified means; it’s simple opportunism at its worst, as individuals are downloading movies so they don’t have to pay for the theatre admission prices.
However, for these ads to be effective, they need to reach their intended target audiences.
The movie industry has to reassess their anti-piracy ad campaign and come up with a new strategy.
For instance, why not cast Tom Cruise as the spokesperson for the motion picture industry, in a commercial that would be played on television, not in the theatres? Here’s where the gusto comes in: the setting of the commercial would see Cruise sitting on top of a pile of money saying, “end piracy, the rich need to stay rich and the poor… well, they can read books free of charge at the public library.”
This campaign, although potentially controversial, would at least speak some truth to the true agenda of movie production companies. And who knows, maybe brute honesty could work its charm. Surely it stands a better chance than the propaganda they’ve got playing right now.