"Give It To Them:" Kevin Spacey Advocates For a New Ubiquitous Audience-Controlled Data-Sensitive Model for TV

Delivering the keynote address (known as the James MacTaggart Memorial Lecture) at the Guardian's Edinburgh International Television Festival on August 22nd, 2013, Kevin Spacey spoke about the future of TV.

"We need to surprise, break boundaries, and take viewers to new places."

True, some of what the star of Netflix's House of Cards had to say was not news to readers of this blog: "For kids growing up, there's no difference between watching Avatar on an iPad or watching YouTube on a TV and watching Game of Thrones on their computer. It's all content. It's all story."  But Spacey was addressing his remarks to TV's powers-that-be. And his criticism of the US network-approved system of piloting shows before committing to a full series (saying this forced writers to establish characters, create arbitrary cliff-hangers and prove their concept will work and attract an audience in just 45 minutes) was refreshingly bold.

The video above excerpts a couple of key moments.

The description that the Guardian provided to YouTube for the video of the entire 45 minute speech (below) sums it up pretty well: “From his unique perspective as a director, producer and actor working across the world on stage and screen, mainstream networks and the internet, Kevin Spacey considers the changes sweeping across our industry and the opportunities for innovation and creativity for those who live to tell stories and engage audiences."