Every week or two, my husband and I have a conversation about the publishing industry in relation to electronic texts and ebook readers. Every other conversation leads to Eric making the following point: movies are continually becoming easier to make and distribute. Historically, television and the movies haven't "killed" the written word, but what if instead of writing the story you want to tell, you could make the movie instead?
Tor and SF Signal have been showcasing a plethora of well-made independent short films. I'm not saying that movie-making isn't hard work or as cheap as writing, but I'm happy that services like YouTube and Vimeo are allowing film makers to distribute their work. A particular standout is Whitestone Motion Pictures' Heartless: The Story of the Tin Man, posted at Tor in early May.
This is film well done. The look is great, the performances are pretty good, and it's worth twenty minutes of your time when you're looking for a steampunky fairy-tale escape. All of Whitestone's projects have this lightly magical (and musical) sensibility to them. I'll definitely be keeping an eye on them.
Personally, I never worry about whether one method of storytelling will supercede another. As long as tales continue to be told, I'm happy.
