In what some see as a sure sign of the coming Apocalypse the Dec. 1, 2011 USA Today reports that "a growing number of theaters and performing groups across the country are setting aside “tweet seats,” in-house seats for patrons to live-tweet during performances."Companies that have adopted this practice include the St. Louis Shakespeare Festival, the Carolina Ballet, and the Dayton Opera.
While many will decry the dumbing down of culture ("humanity loses its ability to process art without pausing to boil down their reactions into 140-character thoughts"), I realized that this development was inevitable several years ago. That's when it dawned on me that I was using my mobile device just like my early-adopter students. I could forbid them to text during classroom screenings of canonical films - but like them - I had learned to multitask in situations that didn't require (or merit) my total attention. If I could tweet and check Facebook without disturbing others, the only question was whether this lecture, train-ride, TV show, etc. deserved my undivided self.
The question New World filmmakers need to ask themselves about "tweet seats?": How can I use this new phenomenon to market my film?
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