Difference between revisions of "Theater Discussion Night"

Revision as of 10:59, 23 December 2017

File:Tdn theater.jpg

Theater Discussion Night

Theater Discussion Night Event Procedure:

9:00 PM (21:00): Pre-movie discussion starts of the movie which may last for 15-30 minutes.

9:30 PM (21:30): Movie presentation starts. Movie will last for it's known duration.

After Movie: Post-movie discussion starts. The discussion will last until the topics have been addressed or attendees wish to conclude the event.

• Attendance: As long as a single person attends, the event will proceed. Additionally, the discussion will still be done even with one person.
• Who organizes this event: Dustin and LloydBlack organize this event. Lloyd conducts this event.
• Movie breaks for comfort (aka intermission):

For the comfort of attendees, an intermission or short break may be requested so that people may use the bathroom, retrieve food and beverages, take a break to walk around or for whatever people want to do.

This may be planned before the event or if the group decides they need a break it may be requested during the movie.

For movies that exceed 3 hours, an intermission will be pre-planned. These movies will be noted with "Note #2".

One movie that's a good example is "Rose Red" which spans 4 hours and 14 mins. It's already in two segments due to it's length.

If/when "Rose Red" is shown during an event, an intermission will be mentioned before the event starts.

The duration of the intermission will be decided upon by the attendees for the general comfort of everyone.

Additionally, during intermission, a mid-movie discussion is optional depending on the movie and attendees are in favor of a discussion.

During the movie:

• During the movie playing, there is to be NO discussion or talking for the comfort and sanity of everyone watching the movie.
• Anyone objecting to the movie being shown, in part or in whole, at any of the events may leave the classroom during the movie as it's not mandatory for anyone to stay for the duration of the movie.
• This event is adults only due to the potential for the content of the movies to be of an adult nature (Non-Rated, Rated R, Rated NC-17, and Unknown).

Movie selection process:

1. Movies to be shown are not voted upon by attendees or outside parties. Movies for showing are decided upon by the organizer of the event, Lloyd.
2. If someone has a strong desire to see a specific movie they may request it by speaking to Lloyd. However, no promise can be made that the movie will be shown.
3. The decision making process has other factors involved which may not be apparent to others.
4. All movies being considered for showing are previewed first by the organizer(s).
5. All movies being considered must be legally obtained by Lloyd before being shown. Only original DVDs will be used, copies will not be considered.

Movies may be shown more than once if there's a desire and request to do so. Please contact Lloyd if you wish to have a movie shown again.

Mini-Schedule for Upcoming TDN Events

Movies with a strikethrough ("Movie") means it's been shown.

Any event slot with Open means no movie has been planned for that day. Suggestions are welcome for that event.

Next Movie

300px

The Suggested Movie List

Movies to be suggested should be primarily from the 80's science-fiction genre but can also range to other eras and genres as well, depending on the content of the movie.

Just because a movie is in the list doesn't mean it will be selected to be shown. This list is just to give options to pull from.

Current movies in the list being considered are in not of any particular meaningful order or priority.

"Unrated" and "Unknown" movies will be considered "Rated R" unless other information can be provided indicating what it should be rated as or equivalent to.

About the list table:

• Movie titles are linked to their IMDb pages.
• Movies are listed alphanumerically for ease of searching.
• The additional information listed is for those who wish to look for certain ratings, genres, or time length.
• Movie titles with a 'strike through' are movies which have been shown. They remain on the list for reference purposes to track what movies have been shown.

The Suggested List:

("The Suggested List" table is maintained carefully by Lloyd. Please do not edit it without permission.)

Much of the information about the movies is retrieved from IMDb.

Some inaccurate information is possible and has been discovered.

So, please report any inaccuracies to Lloyd so that they may be corrected.

You may reach him via Slack, @lloyd.black or in the #theater_discussion Slack channel.

"Note #1" Information:

"Note #2" Information:

Star Wars Night

"Star Wars Night" was merged into Theater Discussion Night and therefore the Star Wars series will be shown occasionally during TDN events.

These movies are listed in chronological order based on the story of the series:

"The Last Jedi" will be listed here when it's released on DVD.

The animated series shown on TV are a TV show and therefore will not be shown during TDN events.

Suggesting A Movie

Movies can be suggested but the movie needs to be previewed by one of the organizers to know the nature of the movies before its selected to be shown.

The movies shown are for the enjoyment of everyone therefor they will be previewed to prevent unexpected objectionable material.

If you have a movie you'd like to be considered, you may suggest it via the below methods:

1. Post it in the Slack channel #theater_discussion and post it as "Movie Suggestion: (movie title)"
2. Send a Slack DM (direct message) to @lloyd.black with the message "TDN-Movie Suggestion: (movie title)"
3. Email Lloyd at lloyd.black999@gmail.com.
4. Or manually email lloyd.black999@gmail.com, with the subject "FamiLAB - TDN" and in the body of the message: "Movie Suggestion: (movie title)" and if possible give a brief description.

There's no promise it will be selected for watching, it's just to be suggested.

Lloyd Black organizes which movies are to be selected and the suggestions in general. You may reach him on Slack at @lloyd.black .

Please send suggestions to him and discuss suggestions with him.

Some restrictions when it comes to suggestions:

• The MPAA movie rating would be beneficial when suggesting a movie so it may be properly listed. However, it's accepted that some movies, such as "direct to video" types, may be "Unrated".
• Historical or "Based on true events" movies are likely to be rejected as this event is for fictional movies only.
• TV shows will NOT be accepted into the suggested movie list. This event is for movies only. However, Dustin and Lloyd may override this for special situations.
• Very short 'made for TV' series (TV movies) are allowed, like 2-6 episode for the entire series, like many 'Stephen King' TV movies. "Rose Red" is a good example as it's split into two segments.
• Additionally, segmented movies will include an intermission between segments for the comfort of attendees to the event.
• Romantic and romantic comedies are extremely unlikely to be accepted as they are outside of the original scope of the purpose of the event.
• Overly positive and 'feel good' movies are also extremely unlikely to be accepted.

Keep in mind, this event was originally supposed to be for fun 80's era Sci-Fi B-movies.

It has been expanded extensively but was never intended to be for uplifting movies.

Serious restrictions - (Movies that will NEVER be considered):

1. Actual porn, hardcore or softcore. Porn is totally unacceptable for our events, no exceptions are made for this. This includes hentai style anime, it will NOT be shown at all.
2. Any movies that are literal or approximate reenactments of real past events. Again, this event is for fictional movies only.
3. Any movies that are religious or have strong political themes. Example: "The Passion of the Christ" will never be shown. This will be enforced.

The avoidance of these topics are to avoid arguments during discussions. Even if it's agreed that arguments wouldn't be initiated, religion and politics are usually avoided anyway.

Please understand this is event is for peaceful discussions about fictional movies and not for anyone's strong views on topics whether they're related to the movies or not.

Discussion

Basic Discussion Rules:

• Please use some common sense when discussing the movie.
• Please keep discussions peaceful, no arguments are to start. The whole experience is to be educational and enjoyed by everyone.
• If the discussion is political due to the politics in the movie, please keep it reasonable.
• Do not bring current day real politics into the discussion unless they're relevant to the movie.

This is NOT a platform for anyone's opinion of our current political state.

If an argument does start you will be required to leave immediately.

• Do not bring your ego into the discussion. Nobody is right or wrong in discussing fictional movies.
• Keep in mind that most everything discussed during a fictional movie is theory, so please do not take opposing theories as fact or personal.

Possible general discussions could include the following:

• Compare the ethics that existed in the fictional reality of the movie to ours.
• Compare the fictional reality to our actual reality we're dealing with currently, is it better or worse.
• How would the movie reality would evolve in it's future.
• Compare the technology they have to ours. Is it better, worse, totally fictional, a joke, etc..
• (Optional:) Compare the types of people. Are they even comparable in intelligence, etc..
• Are the main characters likeable? Do you identify with the antagonist or the protagonist?

Apocalyptic Movies:

• In an apocalypse movie, what could've changed to prevent the apocalypse that occurred.
• What will happen to that world after the apocalypse. (Providing the world still exists in some capacity.)
• Could one person have been instrumental in changing the course of events.

AI (Artificial Intelligence):

Example Movies: "2001: A Space Odyssey", "2010", "Colossus: The Forbin Project"

• What type of AI was featured in the movie.
• What did the AI have in mind for the humans and could it have been changed.
• What kind of OS could it have been running on or was it totally fictional.
• Was the AI actually sentient and at what point did it become sentient.
• Did it have assistance from a human to become sentient.
• How did the AI evolve over the course of the movie and how long did it take.

Androids (also related to AI):

Example Movies: "Android", "Automata", "Bicentennial Man", "Ex Machina"

• If androids looked similar to real people would you accept them as other people or just machines?
• For men: If there were female looking androids that could pass for human (and anatomically correct) would you date them or avoid any romantic involvement?
• For women: If there were male looking androids that could pass for human (and anatomically correct) would you date them or avoid any romantic involvement?
• Do you believe androids can achieve sentient status or do you believe they can't obtain that status because they're not organic?
• Could androids obtain sentient status by being sufficiently complex to obtain a soul?
• Have you considered the implications of AI in androids becoming equal to or better than humans in intelligence?

Aliens (if applicable):

• Are they even realistic? Too human? Too alien?
• Would you accept them into our society if they were real?

False reality situations:

Example Movies: "The Matrix", "The Truman Show", "Dark City"

• If you were to find out that your perceived reality was fake how would you feel about it?
• If the situation was favorable to you, would you leave it anyway or stay?
• Would you try to find out who made the environment you live in or stay away from them?

Additional discussion questions for this list are welcome. Please submit them to Lloyd Black on Slack @lloyd.black

Movie Donations

Movie donations are welcome on the following conditions:

• They're to become permanent property of Lloyd after the movie is donated.
• Donations may be in DVD, Blu-ray or HD DVD format.
• They are to be the original disc and not a copy of the movie.
• They must be in very good playable condition. Broken or badly scratched discs are unusable and pointless as donations.

Digital download versions of movies are not acceptable under any condition. They must be on original media such as discs.

Donations are accepted during the event.

This is in no way a solicitation for donations to FamiLAB. Lloyd Black conducts this event and uses his own movie library for this event.

Needed: HD DVD Compatible Optical Drive

I'm in need of some assistance to get a HD DVD optical drive for the computer used for the TDN event.

Reasons for getting a HD DVD computer drive vs. using the stand alone player:

• Bluetooth speakers, which are used for the events with my computer.
• Carrying around the player is a pain in the ass.
• A backup can be made in the event the original disc becomes damaged.

The drive must have the following logo on it to be sure it's compatible:

File:Hd-dvd-logo.png

There are a limited supply of these rare drives. They can be found on ebay.com but they're excessively rare. I'm trying to obtain one to be able to play the donated movies that were recently given to me. The donation also included a HD DVD player which hasn't been tested yet. However, I'm trying to keep playing the movies computerized for ease of use and playing movies reliably. My current financial state has me limited until January. There's a small selection of HD DVD drives on Ebay and maybe people can find them elsewhere but they're rare. I'll be able to repay whoever gets one of these in January. I just can't buy one on my own right now, due to a situation with my elderly father's health that I had to take care of.

If anyone isn't familiar with HD DVD, it's because it was the failed format that was contending with the Blu-ray format. Naturally, Blu-ray blew HD DVD away and now there's HD DVD discs floating around without players and drives to read them. How does this effect this event? We were given a donation of a box of HD DVD discs. The donation also came with a HD DVD player, which I recently got a replacement remote and power cord for. However, it's currently untested at the time of this post.

Also, it's important to know that many Blu-ray reading drives can also read "HD DVD" but not all of them. They need to specify that they can read HD DVD or there's no promise of compatibility. There's software available to read HD DVD which I've already acquired. I'm just lacking the drive, which would be very handy in having to maintain the quality of the event I hold. It may not sound like much but I do take the event seriously when it comes to the movies and my ability to play them to my few by worthy attendees.

The reason I'm trying to get a HD DVD drive is so I may keep our movie night running from my computer which handles things well with the Bluetooth speakers and proper software. I normally make a backup of the movies to be shown so it may be played from the special HDD I bought for this purpose which is smooth and reliable. Yes, we can play the movies from the player but it's preferable to have the drive so things can be run from the computer rather than the disc. Yeah, this may sound lame but playing from the computer has proven to be faster and more reliable than a stand alone player for me. Also, the stand alone player doesn't have Bluetooth, so, that means more damned cables to run to the speakers used for the event.

I have put the word out with a friend who handles used computer equipment but a HD DVD drive hasn't come across in his company yet. So, I'm asking for assistance for this one time.

If anyone can either buy one for me or donate the money to buy one it would be great. I'd actually prefer if someone bought one for me so the transaction would be more timely rather than waiting for a money transfer to happen. I'm willing to repay the person immediately after I get my money in January. I'm just broke right now for December.

Slack Channel for Theater Discussion Night

The Slack channel for Theater Discussion Night, #theater_discussion, is for general discussion of the event and movies in general.

The #theater_discussion channel is also one of the best ways to contact Lloyd regarding the events.

It's also good for discussing the movies shown or to be shown, and talking about movies in general whether they're on the list or not.

Please do not monopolize the channel for discussing certain movies or a sequence of movies like Star Wars, Star Trek or any other movies that follow a specific theme or story line.

Movie Rating System Information:

Basic Movie Rating Information:

Rated G: General Audiences. All ages admitted. Nothing that would offend parents for viewing by children.

Rated PG: Parental Guidance Suggested. Some material may not be suitable for children.

Rated PG-13: Parents Strongly Cautioned. Some material may be inappropriate for children under 13.

Rated R: Restricted. Under 17 requires accompanying parent or adult guardian.

Rated NC-17: Adults Only. No One 17 and Under Admitted. Clearly adult. Children are not admitted.

Not-Rated or Unrated: This means the movie has not been rated by the MPAA or is the "Unrated" version. Viewer discretion is advised.

For "Theater Discussion Night":

Unknown: No rating information was able to be found about the movie after many searches were conducted. Viewer discretion is advised.

The Fine Print (Disclaimer)

• All movies being shown are for educational purposes.
• Anyone objecting to the content of the movies are welcome to leave the event. (If you don't like the movie, don't watch it.)
• In no way will this event ever be for sharing movies.
• For all events, the movie being shown will be coming only from Lloyd's laptop computer. (The only exception being if his laptop isn't functioning.)
• Movies that are unable to be shown from Lloyd's laptop will be played from a player that Lloyd will be owned by Lloyd.
• The movie, in whatever format it may be, will not be available for sharing/copying.
• All movies being shown are will be legally owned by Lloyd and will only come from his own DVD/Blu-ray collection.
• The contents of this page are subject to change frequently without notice.
• If anyone likes the backgrounds used for the wallpapers I make for the movies just let me know and I'll make the source images available.
• Last but not least, Lloyd reserves the right to override anything stated on this page.

Some Informational Links Regarding Movies

IMDb (Internet Movie Database) - Popular Searchable Additional Movie information

MPAA Film Ratings Guide

FilmRatings.com (Searchable Movie Ratings)