MPAA’s Propaganda Contest
Written by Ernesto on November 04, 2006The MPAA announced their second annual anti-piracy propaganda contest. The goal is to create the most effective anti-piracy public service announcement (PSA).
The contest is open for all students of US “students in free enterprise” (STIFE) Universities.
Piracy is the greatest obstacle the film industry currently faces the according to MPAA Chairman Dan Glickman. “We remain committed to educating students, parents and all consumers to aggressively tackle the threat of piracy,” he said.
The MPAA has been very successful in recruiting America’s youth for their war on piracy. A few weeks ago they teamed up with the LA Boy Scouts, who can earn a “merit patch in respecting copyright” when they write an anti-piracy pamphlet or brochure.
Here’s one of last years entries to the anti-piracy contest. I don’t really get the message, but perhaps some of you do…
Previously: Classic Superman Cartoons, Free and Legal on BitTorrent
Next: Google Torrents
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I can’t get the audio to work on YouTube videos, so i googled MPAA’s Contest, when i found this:
[quote]Billy and Timmy are in a car on the highway. Billy, who is driving, has two laptops perched on his lap and a third on the dashboard. Timmy, the passenger, has five laptops of his own.
Billy: [Furiously typing, switching from one laptop to another in an effortless display of multitasking.] Dude, this is amazing! I’m downloading all six Star Wars at once!
Timmy: [Similarly excited.] And I’m downloading every episode of Farscape ever recorded!
Billy: What a rush! And do you know what the greatest part about online piracy is, Timmy?
Timmy: No, Billy—what is it?
Billy: The fact that no one is harmed in the process! To put it another way, no bad will ever come from our actions!
Timmy: Billy! LOOK OUT!
Timmy & Billy: AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
A shot from the side of the highway shows Timmy and Billy bearing down on a Blond Pigtailed Girl humming as she skips in a carefree manner across the interstate, a pink backpack slung over her shoulder. Cut back to the inside of the car, where Timmy and Billy both have horrified looks on their faces as the screeching sound of the car’s breaks intermingles with the thud of steel against bone.
Timmy: Jesus Christ.
Timmy and Billy get out of the car and walk towards the victim. There is a girl-shaped dent on the hood.
Blond Pigtailed Girl: Help … me.
The Blond Pigtailed Girl coughs up blood onto Timmy’s shirt.
Blond Pigtailed Girl: [Motioning to her backpack, which sits next to her.] Must … deliver … hot … meals … to … [cough, cough, more blood] quadriplegic …
The Blond Pigtailed Girl fades into unconsciousness. Timmy shakes her.
Timmy: Must deliver hot meals to quadriplegic … who? WHO, GODDAMNIT?
Blond Pigtailed Girl: War … widows …
The Blond Pigtailed Girl dies.
Timmy: No. NO. [Shakes his fist at the heavens.] NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!
Billy: Dude, look at this.
Timmy: What?
Billy: Her license. It says she’s the daughter of George Lucas.
Timmy: [Stunned.] No. No. It can’t be. I—No.
Billy: Yes. We, through our blatant disregard for both common sense and international copyright law, have just killed the daughter of one of our heroes.
Timmy: No.
Billy: Yes.
Timmy: No.
Billy slaps Timmy.
Billy: Yes, goddamn it! Now what are we going to do?
Billy and Timmy are distracted by a large truck pulling over to the side of
the road. The driver’s-side door opens and Chewbacca, wearing a
trucker’s hat, jumps out.
Chewbacca: Eeeeeeaaaaaghhhh!
Chewbacca walks to the back of the truck and opens it up. He helps George Lucas down. George Lucas assumes a position at the side of the road staring stoically at Billy and Timmy while a single tear rolls down his cheek. Cut to a shot from Chewbacca’s P.O.V. as he bears down on Billy and Timmy. The two boys try to ward him off with their arms, but Chewbacca’s brute strength, forged from millennia of evolution on the harsh forest world of Kashyyyk, quickly overwhelms the two.
Billy: No, Chewie! Please! Ow!
Timmy: Please, ow! Ah, Chewie! No! He crashed the car, not me!
Chewbacca ignores their pleas for mercy and mauls Timmy and Billy to death. He walks over to George Lucas, who strokes his blood-soaked fur.
Chewbacca: EEEAAAGHHHH!
George Lucas: I know, Chewie, I know: the killing never gets any easier. But until online piracy stops, this sort of tragedy is bound to repeat itself endlessly. Now let’s give my daughter a proper burial.
Chewbacca goes to pick up the Blond Pigtailed Girl while George Lucas gets back into the back of truck. Shot of the truck driving away. Overhead, a small squadron of X-Wings rocket past, skywriting the message:
END ONLINE PIRACY.
[/quote]
I’m not sure what to think. Should I laugh or cry? I feel empty inside… as though something is missing in my life… I know! I’ll become an Online Pirate so that my life will be more interesting and I won’t write absolute crap like this commercial and become a lap dog of the MPAA. Why does all this smack of the Hitler Jungen?
Looks like a cheap student movie pathetic.
It probably makes more sense when you’re high.
Ever been in a theater when one of those Don’t Pirate Movies ads comes on and someone shouts “stop charging 13 bucks to see a movie, retards!” It happens to me a lot.
Arrrr… Pirates kick ass, vampires like the MPAA suck. Fuck vampires, and fuck the MPAA!
since which starwars episode chewbacca startedn to fight for the empire?
arrg bobby harhar
I almost fell off my chair ;P
Thank you for posting our video. This was actually part of a contest with several hundred other schools participating. Our video did not place near the top. These videos actually were not used as actual commercials by the MPAA. The entry was used to try and win some prize money. You make several important points that we also agreed upon.
The use of piracy instead of going to a theatre, for example, is an almost natural consequence of the motion picure industry not adapting to new social and technological changes in the past several years.
For this video contest, we were encouraged to focus on point of piracy in terms of the amount of money/jobs lost each year and the potential punishments (fine / prison) involved. I agree that this approach is largely ineffective for several reasons. I find the now often used “you wouldn’t steal a car / purse / dvd” message to be pretty off the mark and most of what resulted from the PSA contest didn’t look much different.
I believe that it is the responsibility of the motion picture industry to make particularly the moviegoing/viewing experience more convenient and enjoyable. I don’t go see a movie because I am stimulating the economy, because I think it creates jobs, or because I am somehow a good person for not downloading it. The purpose of movies is entertainment. That is what should be focused upon.
Our video was intended to get attention, not as a useless attempt to convince people in a minute or less to never download a movie again. It was intended to start a discussion, similar to how you have.
-John
La Sierra University SIFE
Since when has piracy terrorized people in dorm rooms?
And ooh, you downloaded a movie, what a pirate you are.
Jerry Seinfeld appeared here in my hometown a few months ago, he had this to say about movies.
(i’m paraphrasing here.)
“The theatre and the theatre goer, we have somewhat of an agreement these days.
You rip us off? and at the end of your film, we out stretch our arms open our hands, and let our trash roll down seven floors.”
The criminal it’s the one working a lifetime in a mine with tortured hand to check 500 dollars each week.Or the guy with plastic face checking 10,000,000 and sniffing cocaine while drooling over it.
I’m not going to the cinema for the story .I’m going to the cinema for the sound and the ambiance.Watching a camcorded film never is realy for the ambiance.I hope!
I guess we’re also thief when we record a movie from the t.v.If you lose the cd-key of a video game and you use a cd key gen i guess you’re also a thief.Trust me they use some way to gain the money they lose by stealing Johny doe with john doe outcome.
But when i see those super-star on red carpet with 1,000,000 of chirurgy on their face and pants that would cost me an entire lifetime of work to paid it , i realy wonder who’s the fucking thieves
I don’t pay 13.00 buck for a story.I pay 13 buck for the huge ass screen and the kick ass sound .
That why peaple tend to go see movie with special effect at the theater.
OR if it’s seem to be a boring movie.Or without much cool effect.
I just wait for the dvd release and rent it.If they are lucky i might purchase it.King Kong was popular in theater worldwide.The first one.it’s certainly not for the story.
When Star Wars was remasterized i went to the theater to watch it.I had seen this movie already 10000000000000000 time . So i did not go for the story.I paid 13 buck for the kick ass sound and the pimp ass screen.Because i did not had the chance to pimpozor see it in a pump screen.
i hope it’s pimp ass clear!
To be honest, that ad was hilarious.
I mean, it didn’t convince me of anything, and I probably won’t even bother discussing it past this, but it certainly amused me.
I think I’ll go rip it from YouTube now.
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