GUEST EDITORIAL: Five Lessons from "The Fault of Our Stars"

“My greatest fear in life is oblivion. I wouldn’t want to live without being remembered after I’m gone.” This line is from Augustus Waters, One of the lead characters from the movie The Fault in Our Stars which is an adaptation of John Green’s teen novel, “The Fault in Our Stars.” The movie is a heartbreaking story of a young girl Hazel Grace whose battle with metastatic thyroid cancer has left her with little rays of hope for life. Her condition and constant battle for her life defines the storyline of the movie.

2020, Column, Editorial, GUEST EDITORIAL, Home Media, Independent FilmDon ShanahanJanuary 9, 2020Comment

GUEST COLUMN: 7 Best Movies to Watch While Being On a Winter Break

Winter breaks are awesome because they give you the time you need to spend with yourself and your family and friends. Some people love visiting their friends or family, while others love spending time indoors, drinking mulled wine and enjoying the cozy atmosphere. Winter holiday is the perfect moment to relax and chill, and how can you better do this otherwise than watching some movies? Some movies are full of action and thrill, but some movies inspire you to be good and calm. When it is snowing and the weather is cold, you can enjoy a cup of hot chocolate, some cookies, and a movie.

Column, Editorial, GUEST EDITORIAL, Home Media, SPECIALDon ShanahanDecember 27, 2019 Comments

COLUMN: Looking for Some of the Best Classic Movie Posters? Buy Online

According to Forbes, movie enthusiasts are always looking for novelty. However, they are obsessed with only those films that match with the conventional genres they seem to be used to and comfortable with. They would like to enjoy something new, fresh and original within the same genre. Movie buffs love original stories that present unique visceral experiences, visuals, and viewpoints. Over the years, many Hollywood movies have won the hearts of millions of viewers. Let us explore some of the classic film posters that are still in huge demand among movie buffs, auctioneers, and collectors. If you are thinking of adding to your collection of classic movie posters, buy online for an amazing selection.

2019, Column, Editorial, Home Media, Social Media, SPECIALDon ShanahanDecember 23, 2019Comment

EDITORIAL: How Do People See AI in Movies?

AI in the real world isn’t remotely advanced enough to allow it to have a true personality. But in movies, AI has been a constant source of interest for many people since the very beginning. Movies allow filmmakers to explore a world in which AI is truly sentient. But that sentience hasn’t always been good.Interestingly enough, when you spread out AI in movies by intelligence and morality, you may start to see a strange correlation. In general, childlike robots tend to be typed as “good,” while superhuman robots tend to be typed as “evil.” Walk through this ranking of AI in movies and see how people tend to type AI across the board.

2019, Column, Editorial, GUEST EDITORIAL, Home Media, LIST, Social Media, SPECIALDon ShanahanDecember 23, 2019Comment

EDITORIAL: How to Create a Perfect Female Character to Grab Millennials' Attention to Your Movie

Everyone sees millennials as the young generation who gets bored very quickly and is continually looking for something new to do or watch. When it comes to movies, the industry changed in the past years, given the millennials' appetite to spend more time in front of the TV, watching Netflix, than going to the cinema. Still, the film industry manages to reach incredible peaks and attract millennials’ attention in different forms. When you write female characters for millennials, you need to keep high standards. Even though the cost of quality might be high when trying to meet millennials’ needs, the benefits will exceed all the efforts.

2019, Column, Editorial, GUEST EDITORIAL, Home Media, Social Media, SPECIALDon ShanahanDecember 23, 2019Comment

GUEST COLUMN: Christmas Movies for Couples: Make Your Christmas Ideal

By Cheryl Hearts

When the weather outside is cold, the best way to enjoy your stay with your partner indoors is by watching a romantic Christmas movie with them. Nothing beats having a homemade dinner or a well-baked pizza, a bottle of quality wine, a dark room, and a huge TV for Christmas with your partner. This kind of romantic atmosphere helps you build a new level of intimacy that would strengthen your relationship and make you cherish the value of being with your partner.

2019, Column, Editorial, GUEST EDITORIAL, Home Media, Media Appearance, LIST, Social Media, SPECIALDon ShanahanDecember 23, 2019Comment

GUEST EDITORIAL: Best Movies for Teachers to Watch with Their Students During Lessons

Movies act as a great source of entertainment; however, what many of us don’t notice is the impact they have on the audiences. Every movie has a story to tell, a message to give. It is due to this and various reasons that academic instructors/teachers should watch movies with their students. There are some movies that teachers/professors can watch with their students in making sure they leave a positive impact on them. The following movies are 21st century’s best teacher films. Teachers can watch these movies with their students while showing them the importance of leadership, mentorship, and other hidden meanings.

2019, Column, Editorial, GUEST EDITORIAL, Home Media, LIST, SPECIAL, Social MediaDon ShanahanDecember 19, 2019Comment

GUEST ESSAY: Determinism verses Free Will: The Mythic and Secular Architecture of "Minority Report"

By Truman Hood

Minority Report is a dystopian warning of a police-state, big brother-esque surveillance society that has experienced a complete destruction of free will. This central idea of the film is told not only through exposition throughout the film, but also by the built environment where the storytelling architecture assists in creating a narrative of a self-fulfilling prophesy. The built environment of Minority Report conveys how humans have abandoned the belief that their fates are determined by greater powers than themselves, such as gods or karma. Instead of mystic powers responsible for the repercussions of those actions, the contemporary worldview shifted.

2019, Column, Editorial, Essay, Home Media, Social Media, SPECIALDon ShanahanDecember 16, 2019Washington State UniversityComment

GUEST ESSAY: Authority in Architecture: An In-Depth Look at "The Adjustment Bureau"

By Hannah Thayer

The concept of only being able to move a predetermined number of ways within buildings, and within life, is challenged in The Adjustment Bureau. The people in the adjustment bureau are able to defy what architecture is and how it rules us by traveling through space using only doors; they open a door and choose where it leads to. Architecture has no authority over them as they get to use buildings how they see fit and use them to their space-traveling advantage. The built environment can be very demanding and incredibly intimidating. This movie addresses the idea of what is out of our control and how far are we willing to go to get it, while using the built environment to emphasize just how small we really are in the grand scheme of things.

2019, Column, Editorial, Essay, GUEST EDITORIAL, Home Media, SPECIAL, Social MediaDon ShanahanDecember 16, 2019Washington State UniversityComment

GUEST ESSAY: "Cidade de Dues:" A Manipulated Reality of Favelas

By Omar Cardoza

In 2002, Cidade de Deus, otherwise known as City of God, was released in Brazil. It did not take too long before the film became internationally acclaimed, in fact this film was nominated for multiple Oscars although it did not win. The film’s narrative, filming techniques, and setting provide for a compelling argument that the whole story is in fact a true depiction of the favelas Brazil. Films and cinema can be a means to generate discourse between a reality presented to us through the screen and the actual reality of the world. This can cause changes not only to the individual but through enough exposure to a broader audience can cause changes at the societal level and “is extremely important and carries tremendous responsibility since believing that films can shape the collective imagination can (re)affirm or deny a preconception or even reinforce…”

GUEST ESSAY: Who I Am, Where Do I Come From: The Ontology Behind "Westworld" and the Life of Choice

By Shanle Lin

By the 17th century, when Galilei noticed that the earth goes around the sun instead of the opposite around. Many people were in shock. They couldn’t have believed that human wasn’t at the center of the universe. Generally, it is not the various great ideas that subvert the way of people thinking, but our ignorance of yesterday. People are afraid to accept the impact a brought by the solidified-mind revolution, although this is born with human nature. In the movie Westworld (1973), John Michael Crichton bravely used “technophobia” to express what may happen if robots made for hedonism or recreation purpose generate their own mind.

2019, Column, Editorial, Essay, Home Media, GUEST EDITORIALDon ShanahanDecember 13, 2019Washington State UniversityComment

GUEST ESSAY: The Plague of Exile in "District 9"

By Steven DiGiorgi

After analyzing Neill Blomkamp’s District 9 (2009), the setting of the film capitalizes on the post-colonial setting in Johannesburg, South Africa. What we viewed in the film as a representation of South Africa’s past, through an alternative perspective that identified the oppressed African people as aliens, known as the ‘Prawns’. The isolated community of District 9 represents oppressed living conditions for the millions of people negatively affected during the Apartheid rule (1950-94) (Weaver). For half a century, the South African people had faced dehumanization and discrimination by xenophobic Europeans. The caricature of the European colony was portrayed as the private military, MNU. They followed a typical method of a dystopian society, where power was diverted from the people to the hands of the government.