Ignorance is not bliss.
First off, welcome to all my new subscribers! I'm so glad you all are enjoying this as much as I am. Please feel free to shoot me a note if there is a particular topic you'd like me to discuss.
Ignorance is not Bliss
One of the main reasons I started Vision Craft Brew, aside from the joy of being my own boss for the first time, was to help other people. I often find myself drawn to helping others succeed, and to be honest, cutting trailers wasn't exactly scratching that itch. So when I moved to Philadelphia, I decided I needed to figure out a way to combine my love of "the biz" and still help others succeed. Thus, Vision Craft Brew was born. Granted, there was another stop before VCB, but that will be the subject of another newsletter.
I bring this up to reference one of our more popular strategies at VCB, the Career Advancement. Now, this isn't just another piece of paper that tells you how to get your elevator speech down to under a minute. This strategy is built around the saying that "Knowledge is Power." I've been a part of many meetings during my studio days where the talent seldom fully understood the marketing strategy the studio was implementing for their particular project. Often, it was because they wanted to be adversarial, but most times, they didn't understand what was happening behind the scenes. This is why I created the Career Advancement strategy. To help illuminate what's happening behind the scenes and position the studio/talent relationship as more of a partnership than me vs. you relationship. My clients quickly realize that they become better partners and creators through a better understanding of the ins and outs of strategy, the role of tracking, and the studio marketing process.
Of course, this doesn't just apply to the entertainment space. Admitting what you don't know and being open to learning is a genuine key to success. Walking into a meeting thinking you know everything means you will accomplish nothing. As organizational psychologist Adam Grant notes in his latest book, Think Again, "If we're certain that we know something, we have no reason to look for gaps and flaws in our knowledge - let alone fill or correct them." He includes this sentence under a section entitled: "Stranded at the Summit of Mount Stupid." In other words, looking for the gaps in your knowledge and potential flaws in your reasoning will ensure your ascendancy to Mount Success. Leave Mount Stupid to the ignoramus. But, should you find yourself preparing to climb Mount Stupid, be sure to contact the outfitters at Vision Craft Brew. We'll turn that around right quick.
A Hit and a Miss
I have to confess I'm rarely surprised by anything I watch anymore. Most of the shows I watch because they're pure comfort food. Others because it's almost become a habit at this point. Thus, I was languishing in a cycle of show boredom until I caught Midnight Mass. What a revelation. For those of you who don't know, Midnight Mass is the latest show from Netflix's horror maestro, Mike Flanagan. Granted, I went into the show thinking it would be another typical horror series where every move is predictable, and every character is a cliche. Whoa, was I wrong (that thud you heard was my wife falling over because I admitted IN WRITING I was wrong..SHHH, tell no one.) Just when you think it's going to zig, it zags, and I was pleasantly surprised that it was respectful to faith and believers while also exposing the downsides of both. The acting is spectacular, especially from QB 7 Matt Saracen (Zach Gilford for those who are not FNL initiates), and Hamish Linklater, who plays Father Paul. Now, I know this show has lingered in Netflix's Top Ten, but their metrics for success are all over the place, so it may not be a typical hit. It is, however, a very original show and will keep you thinking for days after you finish it. Not to mention it makes a near Scorcese-esque use of Neil Diamond's hit, Holly Holy, not something you typically see in horror. All this makes it a hit in my mind. Kudos to everyone involved. You did your craft proud.
And now for the Miss. Eternals at $71 million is a definitive miss. Now, you will see mostly everyone say, particularly in the trade press, that is an excellent COVID result, but I'm not buying what they are selling. I'm not even going to wager a guess on the budget and P&A. I imagine the studio was hoping for 85+ if not more. The biggest reason this is a concern for the Marvel folk is that the bloom may be coming off the rose. The reviews were terrible (an anemic 47% on rotten tomatoes/80% audience score, which isn't great) and a CinemaScore of B, a death knell for a strong run. As Matt Belloni has pointed out in his newsletter, What I'm Hearing, one stinker out of 20-plus movies is not a panic-inducing incident. Still, it should warn Marvel/Disney that the audience may be tired of the "world is in peril until superheroes show up" storyline. Perhaps, they should read Vol.3 of the Founder's Brew?
Pages from the Commonplace Book
As some of you may have figured out, I'm a huge history buff, particularly when it comes to Revolutionary history. My son just had his birthday party at the Museum of the American Revolution (His idea, I swear, he's just a chip off the ol'block, as they say.) Let's stick with the Revolutionary period but move on to another source. This week, it's Major General Nathanael Greene in writing to the Marquis De Lafayette:
"I have only one word of advice to give to you that is not let the love of fame get the better of your prudence and plunge you into a misfortune in too eager a pursuit after glory."
Some pieces of advice are just timeless. If the Major General were alive today, I imagine his email would say something like, "Hey MDL: Don't climb up Mount Stupid just because you want to be Insta-famous and be glorified on Twitter. You should reach out to Keith Rauch at Vision Craft Brew and he'll get you on the right path."
Huzzah, Major Greene, Huzzah!
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