In a world where events like natural disasters, terrorism, and human rights issues are so commonplace, it's remarkable how little attention is actually focused on these things. Either modern-day humans have always avoided the things that should worry us, or we've just developed a tolerance to them. Given the struggles that we all go through on a daily basis, it's logical that we avoid these things-- we don't need anything else to stress out about. But I think it's worth investigating and understanding why so many people choose to numb themselves with celebrity culture instead. Perhaps we're too busy, too preoccupied with our daily tasks to worry about the problems our country is facing. Sure, it might be more relaxing to plop down on the sofa at the end of the day and watch E! News. But I think it's kind of troublesome how instead of just avoiding the serious topics, people are dumbing themselves down by giving their attention to pop culture. How and why did twerking become a headline on the news? Why is Kim Kardashian a more popular keyword on Google than Gandhi? My art gives viewers a chance to make their own conclusion about this phenomenon.
What makes strangers lives so interesting to us, and why do we have such an appetite for this information? Working at a teen magazine, I ask myself these questions daily.
Writing is the outlet I've always used to answer life's questions. There's something about jotting my thoughts down on paper that never fails to help me answer my own questions. With this course I am now challenging myself to use film rather than paper not only to answer my own questions about society's fascination with pop culture, but to help viewers understand it and hopefully open some minds along the way.
