How’s this for a holiday mish-mash: On July 4th, I’m posting a story about how Brad Bird wants movie goers to stop spoiling their Christmas presents by trying to find out where all of the Easter Eggs in new Pixar films are BEFORE they then head out to the theater to see these movies.
To explain: Late last month, I was out in Hollywood, covering the world premiere of “Brave.” And as I’m standing at the edge of the press barricade, who comes strolling up the green carpet but the director of “The Iron Giant,” “The Incredibles,” “Ratatouille” and “Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol.”
Mind you, Brad’s not really there to do the celebrity interview thing. He’s just there to be supportive of his fellow Pixarians. So I call Bird’s name and he then comes over to talk to me. And I then tell Brad that I had really enjoyed a series of tweets that he’d made back on June 6th.
Where this acclaimed filmmaker vented his growing frustration with people who just can’t wait to blow key plot points and/or reveal where all of the Easter Eggs are hidden in soon-to-be-released motion pictures:
The Press: What are all the hidden surprises in your latest project, and where exactly are they hidden? Me: (exasperated sound)
@Pixar Times: Been wondering where they put A113 on#Brave. Why not WAIT TIL FILM HAS OPENED AND FIND OUT instead of asking?
When I mentioned the above tweets, Bird seemed eager to revisit this topic, talking about how it used to be that people didn’t like to spoil surprises for other moviegoers. Which is why — out of courtesy for others who hadn’t yet seen that film — you didn’t blurt out what Rosebud was in “Citizen Kane,” or talk about the end of “The Usual Suspects.” As recently as the 1999 release of “The Sixth Sense,” people were still honoring this unsaid agreement with their fellow moviegoers. That you don’t reveal major plot twists ahead of time, that you don’t blow the ending for people who haven’t yet seen that movie.
But with the rise of social media over the past 10 years, all of that has changed. Now our culture is seemingly obsessed with spoilers. We want to know everything that’s going to happen in a movie well in advance, learn about every little surprise before we actually go to the theater, buy a ticket and then sit down to watch that movie. Worse than that, there’s now this huge rush to be first. To be the one who then gets to claim credit for having spoiled that cinematic surprise for everyone else .
As a filmmaker, Brad just believes that this now all-too-common practice is wrong. He spoke with great passion about how he and his team work for months, years even on these motion pictures. Making sure that the stories that they’re trying to tell unfolds in a particular way, that all of the plot twists & surprises get revealed in the precise order that the production team originally intended. And to now have people using social media as a way to blow those surprises well in advance for potential audience members who haven’t yet seen these movies … Well, as Bird put it when we talked:
Brad Bird chats with the press at last month’s world premiere of “Brave” at Hollywood’s newly renamed Dolby Theatre. Photo by Jim Hill
That’s just wrong. It’s like peeking at your Christmas presents.
Look, I realize that social media is here to stay. This technology is now such a big part of our everyday lives. I just wish that
people were more responsible with the information that they have access to,
that they could be a little more respectful when it comes to other members of
the audience.
Bird then talked about what was now going on at the studio level to help combat this issue. How — in order to prevent key story points from being revealed well ahead of time on future productions — filmmakers were now being forced to put safeguards in place. Throw would-be movie spoilers off the track, if you well.
Brad Bird on set with Tom Cruise, Jeremy Renner and Simon Pegg during the production of “Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol.” Copyright 2011 Paramount Pictures. All rights reserved
And since Brad brought up the topic, I then asked “So have you and Damon Lindelof already put some safeguards in place for that sci-fi project that you’re supposed to be making for Disney. What’s it called again? ‘1954’? “
” ‘1952, ‘ ” Bird replied. Brad then smiled cryptically and made a point (as politely as possible, mind you) of not answering my question. He then shook my hand and continued on up “Brave” ‘s green carpet.
Again, I appreciate that Bird was willing to take a stand on this issue. But I have to wonder what Brad would make of a recent development. Which is that the Studios themselves are now getting involved with revealing where Easter Eggs in a particular motion picture are hidden.
Case in point: These images that Walt Disney Studios’ publicity department released just yesterday, which show exactly where the Pizza Planet truck can be spotted in “Brave” …
Copyright Disney Pixar. All rights reserved
… not to mention revealing that Sulley from “Monsters, Inc.” has a quick blink-and-you’ll-miss-him cameo in this Pixar Animation Studios release.
Copyright Disney Pixar. All rights reserved
So how do you folks feel about the above images? Granted, “Brave” has been out in theaters for almost two weeks now. Which means that tens of millions of people worldwide have already seen this Mark Andrews / Brenda Chapman / Steve Purcell film. But what about all of the other people who have yet to get around to seeing this new animated feature? Does putting this info out there now kind of spoil some of the fun of seeing this film for those folks who have yet to purchase tickets for “Brave” ?
So what are your thoughts on this matter? Do you believe as Brad Bird does and that — as a courtesy for your fellow filmgoers — you shouldn’t ever reveal plot twists in advance and/or reveal where Easter Eggs are hidden in a movie? Or are you the type who’s just mad for movie spoilers? So the more, the better?
Your thoughts?