I would like to ask you to take a personal assessment in two parts. The first question of the assessment is easy: when was the last time you sat down and watched a movie in the comfort of your own home? This could be with the time-honored ritual of a big screen, low-light viewing with a bowl of popcorn, or simply on your laptop snuggled under your warmest blanket. For most readers, I’d wager you have engaged in that activity once or twice in the last week or two. It’s not an uncommon occurrence, nor do I believe it should be. Now for the second part of the assessment: when was the last time you watched an entire movie at home without checking your phone? I can confidently say you probably don’t even remember the last time you watched a movie without doing so unless it was in a theater.
I’m not attempting to call anyone out. Despite my undying love of all things cinema, I scarcely recall there ever being a time when I didn’t reach for my phone a handful of times while I was watching a movie. Lately, however, I have seen my friends and family do far more than simply check their screens for new messages. More commonly, I peer over to find them consuming a second video or form of content while we are watching a movie. It almost seems impulsive these days to reach for the screen in our pocket—our little self-soothing devices— instead of focusing on something of more substance. This habit has become so ubiquitous in society that experts have even coined a term for it: second screening.
This “second-screening” default has become an epidemic. The constant closeness of our devices mere inches away from our fingertips with the vast expanse of unlimited knowledge and entertainment is a tantalizing thought and not an easy one to resist. Unfortunately, companies are aware of this and know that instant gratification is exactly what we’re looking for. They pump out TikToks, Instagram reels, Snapchat stories, and more—all short-form content with no end in sight. As a result, the world has collectively begun to fry the precious part of our brain that handles our attention span. Legendary Italian filmmaker Federico Fellini once said:
To watch four films at the same time may seem like the endeavor of a brainiac—of a gifted person with extraordinary powers. Actually, it is just an incapacity to pay the slightest attention to the speaker or an incapacity to let yourself be seduced and enchanted by a story.
We now struggle to watch something as short as a 30-minute tv show, let alone sit through even the most compelling of films due to the compulsion of gratifying short-form media. People have lost the feeling of enchantment and wonder that can only come from watching a movie.
What is the solution to this? How do we reverse the vicious cycle and return to a more regulated and healthy balance of short and long-form content? The answer is in the problem: allow yourself to watch more films while leaving the phone behind. It may seem counterintuitive to consume more media in order to curb an attention deficit, but it is easy to see when likened to how we eat. A film is one of the three square meals a day: breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Endless Instagram reels or TikToks are the guilty pleasure snacks we nibble on throughout the day. When we are nibbling on snacks between meals, it becomes unhealthy; it’s unregulated and unbalanced, and we’ll never be able to digest more when we need to. Only by preventing yourself from snacking, and instead waiting to feast, are you able to truly enjoy the meal in front of you. The same is true for movies. Watching them, without distraction, will help regulate your brain into being able to digest longer-form content with ease.
Return to the comfort of film. Cinema used to be ritualistic and exciting. You’d leave your house and park your car, wait in line for tickets, get inside, and be transported to new worlds! Nothing could pull you out of the moment. Although more people cannot afford the luxury of going to the movies anymore, take pleasure in the rituals of the home theater, no matter the size. Relish the smell and sound of popcorn popping in the microwave; find the perfect divot in the couch to fall into; dim the lights low, leave the phone behind, and bask in the enjoyment of a grander story than one that can be told in 60 seconds.
Interesting reflections
One of the reasons that can lead to using the smartphone with high intensity and frequency is certainly the infinite quantity of content and materials that can be accessed; free access to the web significantly increases the possibilities of entertainment, increasing the desire to use and spend as much time as possible with the smartphone. and this also ends up influencing the attention span. During the use of this device the very concept of temporality is eliminated, limiting only the contact between the individual and the smartphone. There is a tendency to use the cell phone as a reassuring and consolatory tool, preferring telephone communication to direct interaction and compulsively seeking notifications that convey virtual contacts.
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Great ariticle Chase, and spot on with the assessment of viewing today. Fortunately, my wife and I are of the ‘binge watching’ category and thoroughly enjoy long-form interviews as well as movies. We love content and, although she checks her phone when messages arrive, the distraction is minimal. She runs her piano studio off her phone. I’m more of a sit in front of the computer type and can leave my phone alone. I even leave it at home at times, on purpose. 🙂 I do notice that in my long-form interviews, even with good numbers, the view time average is only about 30 seconds; disappointing, at best.
Thank you, Zen! I definitely can fall victim to binge-watching if I am not careful and mindful of the time. I love the idea of leaving it at home on purpose, and I am going to use that technique if I ever feel my intake is getting a little too high!