Texting in movies

From Tony Zhou, A Brief Look at Texting and the Internet in Film.

Michele Tepper wrote about Sherlock’s display of texts in 2011.

The rise of instant messaging, and even more, the SMS, has added another layer of difficulty; I’m convinced that the reason so many TV characters have iPhones is not just that Hollywood thinks they’re cool, but also because the big crisp screen is so darn easy to read. Still, the cut to that little black metal rectangle is a narrative momentum killer. What’s a director trying to make a ripping good adventure yarn to do?

The solution is deceptively simple: instead of cutting to the character’s screen, Sherlock takes over the viewer’s screen.

And just today, a trailer for Jason Reitman’s Men, Women & Children, which movie seems to consist entirely of texting and social media interaction:

(via @tcarmody)

• film school
• Jason Reitman
• Men Women and Children
• Michele Tepper
• movies
• Sherlock
• SMS
• Tony Zhou
• TV
• video