Sid Kali

The Twilight Zone, The Obsolete Man and Print Media Dying



Posted: Tuesday, July 05, 2011

by Sid Kali
Slice of Americana Films

I watched an episode of “The Twilight Zone” called “The Obsolete Man” that was great storytelling by Rod Serling. What struck me most about the story of librarian Romney Wordsworth played by Burgess Meredith was not the engaging hooks of religious and paranoid state elements. It made me look at how I personally like to get my books, magazines and newspapers.

I’m working on my first novel titled “Crazy Love Story” and realize that different formats will need to be done to work with all the types of ebook readers on the market. I have a friend that only publishes their books as digital downloads for eBook devices. He basically told me that print was dying. Then I watch “The Obsolete Man” episode thinking print media could really be dying. Could Rod Serling see the future?

I’m the type of person that still likes to physically visit a bookstore to browse the shelves. I enjoy reading print versions. I still subscribe to magazines and newspapers to have them delivered. When I do buy an informational nonfiction eBook I print it out in PDF to read. I can’t bring myself to buy fiction book downloads yet. If there are other readers that still buy print media please comment and share your thoughts. The same for readers that have already buried print media and have gone completely digital.

Reading books, magazines or newspapers on a digital device or computer is something that will eventually happen for me as time goes on, but not right now. As an indie filmmaker I’ve kept up with technology from script to post production, but my reading habits have never caught up. Print media is still alive in my eyes.

As a writer I use Final Draft for screenwriting and WORD to bang out the “Crazy Love Story” novel. Technology is great and helps me be more productive as a writer. For some reason eBook devices take away from the expression, “curled up with a good book” being the print book junkie I am. I’m currently reading “Under the Dome” by Stephen King. I dog-ear pages that really grab my attention as a reader.

Today at a bookstore the person with me was very against buying books in print over their strong environmental views. The argument made sense on one hand because natural resources are harder to come by nowadays. Freelancing for environmental firms has opened my eyes to many interesting facts and myths, but that’s for another day.

Here I am standing in a bookstore thinking on the other hand that I never throw out my books. I usually pass them forward to family, friends or exchange them at used bookstores for new reading material. I never think a book is old if you haven’t read it yet.

The books that are special I keep. This really doesn’t have anything to do with filmmaking, but Rod Serling got me thinking about print media with “The Obsolete Man” episode. At the core of it as a writer is it worth having print copies of your book published. There is a massive movement happening right now with book self-publication via digital formats that’s fantastic.

It’s like indie filmmakers that find an audience using digital movie distribution. Self-publication digitally lets the creative hard work of authors reach readers. Hopefully print media and digital publication can exist together. “The Obsolete Man” is a must watch. This is indie filmmaker Sid Kali typing FADE OUT
Slice Of Americana Films was born in a pub that had a great jukebox, cheap happy hour and free freshly made popcorn. Check out the life and times of filmmaker Sid Kali to get crisp indie film production information on screenwriting, directing, producing, film editing, movie marketing and film distribution learned from the school of hard knocks.
This Article has been viewed 217 times. (Not updated in real-time.)
No comments yet.
We want your comments! If you can read this, you don't have javascript enabled, so you can't use this comment system. Please enable javascript.