The truth about why Hollywood shifting to social media and influencer culture makes me sad
It's not exactly what you think.
Yesterday, I saw a statistic for social media “view time” stats, while noticing how quickly a post on my own TikTok would either take off or flop, and I would have a notification for stats a few minutes later. I would love to see the data behind timing on posts for TikTok.
This is from another SubStack, which I have linked below:
Click here for the research referenced.
I have been feeling an internal war within myself lately to, “get myself out there where the trends are and grow and audience”, and everyone saying that the audience is on Tiktok, previously it was on Instagram, and in a year we will be talking about another new platform. In order for people to see what I create, and to be of “value” to projects, you now have to show that beyond being talented and the right fit for a part, you can bring an audience.
How do we do that in today’s day and age? Does social media truly matter with any of this? Do eyeballs from TikTok mean anything when it comes to film or television?
Many are arguing no it does not, but my deeper argument goes beyond that. The two mediums are not the same, other than maybe if you are considering reality television.
In this, I do not want to shame content creators, because they are fun and entertaining and creative, but while I would agree that it is entertainment, I would argue that it is not all art. Much of social media follows “trends” and how quickly one can develop a concept or quick video that is entertaining and follow that trends, but that is not the same thing as development on a script, film, play, song, etc that can take days, weeks, and even years to develop to become a masterpiece.
Taylor Swift has written more text worth of songs for her albums than Shakespeare wrote in plays in his lifetime (to give you an idea of words in a lifetime, as I do love Taylor Swift), and we are still performing his plays hundreds of years later. Amazing art that impacts for lifetimes and generations takes TIME and isn’t churned out every single day.
How does art stay relevant and valued and in a culture dominated by continual quick hits of trends?
Two weeks ago, any content that was relevant to the kicker for the Chiefs “speech” (we can get into opinions on another day), Taylor Swift in Europe launching the TTPD section of her Eras Tour, and Bridgerton was the peak of my scrolling. When you take algorithms, studying audience habits, what you linger on versus what you pass on, the algorithm is not meant to challenge you, provide you art, or even provoke-thought, they are designed to keep feeding you more of the same of what you already spend time watching. We have seen in multiple cases now in history where that it not only hurtful, but dangerous to our society, and social media companies do anything possible to shift the narrative that they are not to blame.
By the time I am even in the mood to put on make-up to possibly participate in one of these “quick to come, quick to go” trends, we have already moved on to this week’s viral trends, and I missed the train as it flew by the station.
Does anyone remember “Who TF Did I Marry"? Or chick-fil-a girl? Those were a couple of months ago, and I haven’t seen either in my feed in weeks! Chick-fil-a girl signed with one of the mega talent agencies, UTA, simply because an entertaining/funny video of her smacking her lips, rolling her eyes, and making some comical facial expressions while saying “No-chick-fil-a sauce?” while her sister was recording her blew up on the internet.
Is she comedic? Absolutely! But, I now hear actors saying they need to be social media famous, and myself included being told I need to be, in order to make it in this business. The problem with TikTok, is that by the time any meaningful, fulfilling project could happen after the time of someone going viral, they are no longer viral anymore, and a year later no one knows who they are anymore, unless they subjugate themselves to creating entertaining content that remains relevant and viral.
When I talk to actors, many of them do not want to do that. They want to be actors because they want to tell stories and make a meaningful impact. There are definitely ways to do that within content creation and social media, but it still will never have the same team work, collaboration, and time diving into the art that film, theatre, a music album, museum collection, etc has.
I don’t deny that content creators don’t work hard - they do! They work hard and fast to be able to deliver content almost instantly when the moment strikes. I mean, honestly, the guy that delivered a full music video to “But Daddy I Love Him”, and the other Tik-Toker who made a video with Ariel and all the characters of Little Mermaid to “But Daddy I Love Him” and had those videos up same day, call me impressed. It takes so long to dress up, set up, script, edit, and post, and that’s if the app doesn’t crash on you 1209839208 times in the process.
I don’t believe that is because no one cares about you anymore, but the slingshot effect doesn’t work in this scenario, because someone else is always there to continue to inundate you with information and more content every time you can click on the app. We miss out on desire or longing. We fill the void of missing something because an algorithm is already prepared to pump more blood into that vessel.
Then, there is the reality that the algorithms are always changing what they are favoring and prioritizing. Did you line-up content for a month, filming in batches to post? Oh great, TikTok just decided that they now prioritize 60+ minute videos for long form content, landscape, so forget all of those vertical quick videos you just made when everyone said “7 seconds” was the perfect video length. META is now only prioritizing accounts that spend money on ads, so if you are not also spending money (When lol, you should be making money, and you were told “creators would be rewarded) then why bother spending all that time making content if no one will see it?
Big creators are moving the bulk of their platform off of social media and into their own hands through email lists, SubStack, Patreon, Only Fans, etc because they too are fed up with the constant changes in the algorithm. You cannot control your success on these platforms, because you are at the whims of when and how the algorithm changes, and no one calls all the creators into a board meeting to explain the changes before it happens.
In most cases, everyone is behind the tide. If you have ever surfed, you quickly learn that missing a wave means you are not going to surf it. No amount of paddling hard enough is going to get you into the wave once it has passed you. If you stand up too quickly before the wave has arrived, you also will not surf. There is a second or two (or depending on how big the wave is, sometimes more) of the sweet spot where you can catch the wave and ride it. A moment too soon, or a moment too late, and you have to wait for the next one. But hey, at least you can look behind you to best judge when you should start paddling or if you are positioned correctly to try to catch it.
Many social media influencers are now going bankrupt. Brands and profiles built around a singular person cannot survive when that person decides to stop making content. The ugly truth no one wants to hear, is that when you are no longer posting content, you are no longer relevant. “Work for yourself” is great until you realize that unless you have some solid passive income streams, you have to work almost every day of your life.
Not to mention, as mentioned in GRLS, is social media making us worse humans? Obsessing over ourselves, and the “need” to catch every trend, whether it is a dance, or pop culture moment, or something else happening. The need to document everything about our lives, and share every moment to make ourselves seem more intersting to this world and platform, that frankly, could not give two shits about us other than the revenue it brings them. And if you do not bring it? Don’t worry, the next young person will.
The entire model is unsustainable, and built to exploit us in any means possible. Not to mention, they have now equated the brains of people who scroll on TikTok for hours on end to that of the brain of someone addicted to Cocaine.
What does that mean for us as a society?
We spend so much time posting about climate change and nature, but are we actually going outside and enjoying it, and spending time in it, and getting real one-on-one time with nature to value her and slow down our brain going a million miles an hour?
One of my favorite things about Broadway shows, is that for 2-3 hours, my phone would be off or in airplane mode, as I am transported to a world and story far away from mine, and completely forget everything about real life. But now, I am seeing this beautiful art, and all of these incredible shows, being put on social media with trends to be “relevant” to whoever is scrolling TikTok.
How do we get our art out there, remain relevant, without becoming self-absorbed artists in the process?
We are here to make money for these platforms, and like the streaming systems of Hollywood, our work does just that.
I fear, that because of the way this continues to change, we will never have someone like Meryl Streep again. Not just because of things shifting to self-tape auditions, but also because if this “requirement” to not only be an actor, but to have an audience and be well-known too is the new norm, who will have time to truly practice and trail-blaze in their craft?
One incredible thing to come out of this is that art is no longer as much of a gate-kept system. We have a way to reach the masses that didn’t exist 20+ years ago or when the studios were being formed, or when film was first made. But, I think we have to find a balance.
We do not need more “influencers” that are single-handedly trying to be influencers. Being a true artist involves a tremendous amount of empathy, especially as an actor, where we choose to step in the shoes of complex and complicated characters. We need more art where we get lost in the character, not watching a “known influencer” or “celebrity” play a character. We need more people who want to grow and collaborate on incredible art, that want to leave a positive impact on humanity. I want to live in a world where we value our impact on humanity and the earth more than our social count. I hope that we find that again.
Xo M
A couple of other SubStack articles to check out:
“The Dark Underbelly of Creator-Brand Partnerships on TikTok: Check out Gillian Follett’s piece for AdAge to learn about ethically dubious practices TikTok creators commonly navigate when dealing with brands and what creators are (or aren’t) doing about it. Here’re four common issues creators face: (1) Brands pushing creators to lie to their viewers about their experience using products or services… or asking creators to omit the fact that the content is sponsored; (2) Brands setting unreasonable deadlines or not adjusting them when a creator has a personal emergency; (3) Brands using creators’ content without their permission and trying to ‘pay them in exposure’; (4) Paying creators months after they post. One of Follett’s takeaways: It’s no wonder that dozens of creators have subverted the “Get Ready With Me” trend and began divulging their negative experiences with brands with their audiences (brands better watch out). And my (grim) takeaway: Since we’re entering an era where brands and creators depend on each other across multiple channels and mediums from YouTube to TV/Film, to Gaming…etc, respect for creators should be paramount… until it isn’t and AI influencers take over. (GSH)
The strength of the new model was using the algorithms to offer more of what a customer already showed they like, leading to a practice of producing a tsunami of mediocrity. - Ted Hope
PS - For all the content creators and influencers out there creating amazing communities, thank you. I hope that you use your platforms to inspire creativity and collaboration and for good.