In what may come as a surprise to those of you who know how passionate I am about movies...
I didn't watch the Oscars last night!
I figured (correctly) I could read a quick synopsis of what happened in the paper this morning AND all the best clips would be available for me to watch online...
... which means instead of sitting through a three-and-a-half-hour live telecast, I got everything I really wanted from the show in under 30 minutes.
(What did I do last night instead? I introduced my kids to "Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom" with a rare Sunday family movie night - and pointed out that "Shorty" was up for an Oscar that evening, which I was DELIGHTED to learn this morning that he won! - watched the latest episode of "Mayor of Kingstown" with my wife on Paramount+, then tried to get back that hour of sleep that "Spring Forward" stole from me yesterday.)
I'm old enough to remember watching television back in the days when if you missed an episode of your favourite show and didn't have the ability or foresight to record it on your VCR, there was a good chance you missed it forever!
But today we have YouTube. And the best parts of an expensive live telecast that aired last night are available to stream, for free, first thing this morning.
This is what content is today.
When a piece of content premieres is mostly irrelevant these days.
Sure, there are exceptions.
Live sports are still best watched live.
And there are a few top shows you want to watch right away before spoilers start appearing on social media. (Please, nobody spoil what happened last night on "The Last Of Us"!!!)
But for the most part?
Timing barely matters.
So if the audience most likely to appreciate your content can find and watch it at any time...
... how does that change the way you think about the content you produce? The way you create it, promote it, and monetize it?
That's something to consider before you begin your next content initiative.
P.S. Jaws. Star Wars. Superman. All of the Indiana Jones films. Schindler's List. The first two Jurrasic Park movies. Harry Potter. The list is long and very, very impressive. We should all aspire to be as prolific and as good at our jobs as the legendary John Williams, one of my very favourite film composers. Mr. Williams, with 53 Oscar nominations (and five wins) is not only (and second to only Walt Disney for most nominations ever) but also became the oldest Oscar nominee last night at 91 years old. Kudos to you, sir.
