About DavideAndrew Papa Expertise DavideAndrew Papa is able to answer specific questions relating to Acting, Script wiriting,production,directing and Producing 35 mm motion Pictures for International distribution,based on AMPAS protocols,and personal opionions based on experience.
Experience
Past/Present clients Have dealt with Los angeles biggest talent agencies,and hollywoods biggest distribution companies...too numerous to mention here(due to confidentiality clauses)
Expert: DavideAndrew Papa Date: 2/28/2003 Subject: FIlm Violence
Question Mr. Papa,
My name is Scott Uhlfelder and I attend University of Central Florida. I am doing research for a paper about violence in the media and its effects on people for my composition class. Your expertise would add a unique opinion to may paper. If you do not wish to participate I completely understand. I have included a few questions and feel free to answer which ever one you like. Thank you for your time.
Sincerely,
Scott Uhlfelder
1.Does the media influences people's day to day lives? If so how does it affect you?
2.How do you feel about violence on Television and in film?
3.Many believe that extended periods of viewing violence in various medias can trigger the viewers to become violent people, do you agree or disagree and why?
4.Should parents have more control over what their children watch through electronic blocking systems etc? Or should parents take the responsibility to monitor their children's viewing choices?
5.Do television and movie ratings help parents make choices in what their children watch? Or do does it not make a difference?
6.What do you think is the main cause for violent children today? Television, Movies, Video games, mimicking what they see at school or home life?
7.Does the television media monitor the times of day that violent programming is aired appropriately?
8.Who is influenced the most by the media? Children, Adults, or Mentally Unstable Why?
9. Are children more likely to become violent from the media or from being abused?
Answer Dear Scott
Although this is an open forum,I am willing to participate to your request.Please bear in mind that I know what type of answers most would like to give,but on this occassion I am going to give my own personal opinions in reply to the questions below..based on my own experiences and perceptions as both a Parent and a film maker.
(1)Yes to a certain extent..but..?People in general have become cautious in accepting media representations,as a reliable source of information maily due to misrepresented and sensational promotion and advertising,especially in programs geared as News or Current affairs...As such many including myself view such events as only a general indication regarding to the issue at hand..as presented by the media at any one time.
(2)Violence on television and film..?Do you mean some like Daffy Duck getting his head blown off by Elmer..? I'm O.K with Violent depictions,but then again I'm an Adult...,so lets really get down to the nitty gritty.."The Children"... I do understand why some some parents are not. O.K with such violent depicts..!! What I don't understand is how the realtionship between Violent depictions in any form can be associated with humans being Violent to each other...?
Once again I think parents have a duty and responsibility in controlling what children see in life and in television...Education to me is the key...Protecting children from Violent events is nonesense in a world continually depicting Violence on a daily basis...I call it the "Big Mac Syndrome"..You know the story,"Take out food" is making our children and society in general fatter and in turn less healthier and yet the "take out "industry is growing yearly at a tremendous rate..If we all know that "take -out " fast junk type foods are no good for you,and such foods are indeed here to stay..forever,then wouldn't it be better or even prudent to incorperate such foods within a "healthy" diet...in a controlled manner... A few hamburgers a week is not going to hurt anyone..If combined with healthier types of meals..If such products are here to stay,then take control of it..burying our heads in the sand,while we are all getting sicker and fatter is just as sensless as trying to promote "heathly eating" to people who just don't want to know...more so children...Junk food is addictive..All the best tasting foods are the ones that are bad for us...!!Thus educating the masses to diet plans which
MUST incorperate these type of "Junk foods" would do more good than bad...promoting only "healthy" diets to the ever increasing majority of unhealthy citizens..is probably doing more harm than good...because what is being preached has nothing to do with the reality of the situation..which is.,That every year after "Pritiken"(as opposed to AD)children are increasingly eating more junk food,and hence becoming sicker.
The "Big Mac" protocol is applicable in describing that Citizens from every country in the world are becoming more and more aggresive and Violent , shielding children from Television and Media events because of Violent depictions does nothing in preparing such children confronting such depictions to the reality of real life situations..Making excuses doesn't help either..Violence in any form..,is just that..In a childs mind there are no distinctions between different types of Violent depictions... Thus controlling the amount of Violence and educating children about bad qualities of such Violence is a far more better approach,than just
not confronting such issues at all..issues which will cross the path of us all in various forms as we all travel through the rigours of childhood into the reality of adulthood.NOTE:My daughter is 13 years old,she only watches videos which are considered violent or sexually orientated with us being present..This has been the case for the last two years..We sit through the films as a family unit,we explain the events,and also explain how such events are made using ACTORS..She is an "A" grade student...she sleeps extremely well...and she is well liked at school...and she can clearly distiguish between a genuine act of Violence and a Violent depiction on television...She now is allowed to watch M15 rated video's on her own...something she has very little interest in doing anyway...because to her a violent type of movie..is now also considered on most occassions to be a boring movie...
(4)Definately control the situation of what they are watching..in partcular the amout of time spent watching such programs...I think the first rule is simple to understand.. When and of what age..?When the child is old enough to clearly understand what is happening on screen or when the child insists or nags that they want to watch such films or programs,is the time when parents MUST become involved...Allowing your child to bypass the parental guidance in watching such programs,if favour of watching such programs unsupervised somewhere else is a mistake of the adult and not the child..
5)Not at all...I have watched films which I loathed,and where others have loved..and visa versa.. ratings are a total waste of time.eg:."The Blair Witch" project...rated extremely well..and made millions..Part two,failed miserably...So tell me, was such a film,really a good watchable product..or was it all based on nothing more than the ability of some highly skilled promoters..to offer something to an audience which ended up being nothing...?? Once you've paid your ten bucks in the theatre,there is no refund...And since everyone thought they were going to get the same of the second film as they did of the first...they kept away in droves..Not even the best promotion that money could buy...could convince the masses to watch part two,like the did for part one...
6) I've answered this question..but let me say this,sure I'm a baby boomer and in my time these violent Media depictions didn't exist...even owning a television set was a rarity..but the Violence on a more personal level did exist..Primary school fights,Youth street gangs,Violent acts of destruction based on issues of race were indeed prevalent 30 or forty years ago...I can still clearly remember the next door neighbour..the husband violently bashing his wife in the back yard,while I peered over the fence...I remember seeing a man pick up a dog in the back streets and kick it in the head...I remember a day at school,when a year 4 bully held a seat of a swing,and waited for another student to pass before aiming it into her path...smashing her teeth...etc..etc..Apparently the modern parents of today, thinks its "all different now"..and we "oldies" have no idea of todays violence...when in fact the opposite is true..Contemporary jails are full of "Todays people"..more so than any other time in history.and sure most of these inmates have watched violent movies...What the experts forget to mention is that there are far more people in society that live a good life,and who have also watched or even were participants in acts of violence..who have never seen the inside of a jail...
7)No not at all..like I said..even the humble cartoon can be branded as being violent...most of which are aired when children are at home.
8)Everyone equally...
9)Neither...Both can be clearly attributed to parents who leave children unattented,for self indulgent activities...Parents more so today are seeking to fulfil their own pleasures without considering the consequences of their actions...Children are growing up with violence, unexplained and unattended...,because parents are too busy staying out all night gambling,wining and dining and entertaining friends...They are to busy to provide the attention young minds need...and hence by default children are growing up wiuthout supervision and without punishment..creating children who fear nothing..creating future Adults who are fearless...Fearless of authority and hence fearless of consequenses...The primal instinct of fear is being withered away and with it comes Violence..Where once
a primate would raise itself from all fours to run on two legs run away from danger because of fear...,today, children are being raised and encouraged to take advantage of those who are frightened..,with fearless savagery...If a child is raised not to respect fear,then they will grow up to become fearless..
Scott I hope the above gives you an insight and all the best on your studies...
