RopeofSilicon Goals and Resolutions for 2009

Without goals we don't get anywhere

By: Brad Brevet
Published: Thursday, January 1st 2009 at 9:03 PM

As 2009 gets underway there are a few things I have committed myself to in terms of movie coverage on RopeofSilicon as far as what I plan on bringing you over the course of the next year as well as how I plan on forwarding my personal movie knowledge. There isn't much more to say than that as the explanation for each "resolution/goal" pretty much explains it all.

1. Finish Watching the IMDB Top 250, AFI Top 100 and All Oscar Best Picture Winners

For anyone that reads this site regularly you know that I am continually trying to play catch up on many classic films. I recently made a list of the IMDB Top 250 and I had seen 193 of them and of the AFI Top 100 I still have 30 left to see on that one. Of the 30 AFI titles, 15 of them are also on the IMDB list, which will make it quite easier cutting those lists down. I have not yet taken a look at the Oscar Best Picture winners, but rest assured I plan on having that list polished off as well. My goal on this one is to have it done no later than the end of May.

This one is particularly important to me as I think it is quite valuable to let the people reading your reviews know you are actually studying the art form and not simply paying attention to the films that are released now. Also, once I have the so-called "classics" out of the way I can begin digging deeper into the myriad of films that inspire the directors we come to love that may not make it onto such lists. So many classic directors have discussed the films that inspired their work and I personally think watching those films is just as, if not more, important as watching the films that are considered classics by the masses.

2. Get the BAFTA Award Winners into the Database

About two years ago I compiled a spreadsheet of all the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) winners, but, of course, I didn't have all of the films in the database. Prior to doing this I had already done the same thing for the Oscars, Golden Globes and SAG Awards, which is why RopeofSilicon is one of the few movie sites to have the complete histories of those three award programs listed in an easy to browse format. However, I felt like leaving the UK's version of the Oscar out of the equation was silly, but it is quite a bit of work. I would say half the job has already been completed with the list of winners from 1948-2005 set up in a spreadsheet, but I have approximately 240 movies I must add to the database before I can do anything else. This involves getting all the information on each movie (studio, release date, poster, synopsis, etc.) as well as casting each one, which is always the hard part because I need to make sure all the necessary actors, actresses and directors are set up in the database. I believe this is a doable goal, it will just take a solid week of hard work to get it done.

3. Read at Least One Book Related to Movies and/or Movie Making

I already know where I am going to start with this goal and it is going to be "Fellini on Fellini" as I have slowly fallen in love with his films and afterwards I hope to move further into Italian filmmaking, more specifically into studying the Italian neorealist movement. The latter being a much deeper subject and what I hope will be my first step into studying specific movements in filmmaking. One book isn't asking for too much, and you have to start somewhere.

4. Figure Out a Personal Top 100 List of Films and Learn How to Help Others Do the Same… Easily

Back in May of 2008 I began working on a formula to help me compile a list of my favorite films. The formula utilized such things as watching frequency, emotional stimulation, etc. It's actually a pretty good formula, but it involved so much work on the part of the person watching the movies it wasn't really feasible. Sure, it may have gotten a few people interested, but it wasn't easy enough for people to use. I am still unsure of how I am going to do this one and perhaps it will come down to a simple process of listing them out, but I think it would be a lot of fun for all of us to have some way of showing off our personal favorites and hopefully passing on movies to watch to others.

5. Judge the Product Not the Person

This is an important one, I believe, and will add additional credibility to my reviews and opinions on what I am reviewing. Too often critics, bloggers and journalists can get wrapped up in their reviews and commentary and they forget there are actual people involved. Sometimes this can come down simply to a difference in words used; it's just a matter of remembering there is a separation between the product and the person that made it. A filmmaker releases a movie for an audience to judge the movie – not the director, actor or even the producers.

So there you have it. Nothing special, just an idea of some of the things I would like to bring to the site in the New Year and the ways I plan on personally growing my film knowledge in an attempt to bring you better and more comprehensive news, notes and reviews of all the films coming out as well as those that may have been forgotten.

Also be on the lookout for some new names coming soon to the site as some new writers have recently come aboard!

If there is anything at all you would like to see added, fixed, changed, etc. about RopeofSilicon please tell me in the comments and I will see what I can do about each request.