My first experience of anything even remotely related to “living in public” happened in Los Angeles at an after, after party. It was a warehouse with art, music and a BYOB situation.
There was one bathroom and unknown to most of the occupants there was a camera in the corner of it that was broadcasting onto a TV set, everything that happened in the bathroom. I saw everything from girls doing lines, to couples getting it on, all while the unsuspecting people in line waited to pee.
I’ll admit, the idea of being watched kinda excited me. Even though I was aware of the camera, I still made my way into the bathroom. I wanted to see what it felt like to be watched. Call me a voyeur, call me an exhibitionist, but there is at least some small part in all of us that likes that feeling. Otherwise you would be spending your time in front of the TV and not on the computer.
Photo from weliveinpublic official photostream
We live in Public, winner at this years Sundance Film Festival, is a must see. I attended the screening in LA and was absolutely blown away. I had never heard of Josh Harris or his crazy parties and experiments in New York, but watching it all unfold under the direction of Ondi Timoner really opened my mind to the dangers of exposure on the Internet. Some of us don’t realize what we are putting out there for the world to see, and others don’t care as long as they get recognition for it.
When I was offered the chance to see an online screening of the movie I jumped at it. Interloper Films had received permission from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to perform a live, private password-protected online screenings for press only. Never before had something like this been allowed. Academy eligibility rules dictate that for a film to be eligible for Oscar nomination, it mustn’t be shown to the public in any venue or medium other than in theaters for 60 days after the initial theatrical release. This was the first time in film history that the Academy granted special permission to do so.
Eager to see it again, I sat riveted to my screen as I watched Josh’s life unravel in his quest for fame. Instead of trying to describe what the movie entails I thought it would be better for you to see for yourself. Here’s a look at what We Live In Public is all about:
*Some footage may be NSFW
We were given a chance to do a Q&A with the director, Ondi Timoner, after the screening. It was fascinating to hear her talk about Josh and the film and how it all came together.
“The internet is the most powerful invention in our lifetime. We are connecting to more people with less depth, this movie raises consciousness about how we raise our kids.”
This statement could not be more true. Everyday I see more and more people who spend their time trying to promote themselves on the Internet and get their 15 minutes of fame. Two recent examples would be Balloon Boy’s family and the solider who live tweeted the events at Fort Hood. These people were not concerned about how their actions would affect others, they just wanted to be noticed.
Photo from weliveinpublic official photostream
It took quite some time for this film to come to fruition. After viewing the rough draft of the film, Josh told Ondi that he didn’t like the way he looked. This was during the time when he was living in public with Tanya and it had all fallen apart. He had lost his money and his fans were turning on him. So he threw it out and left Manhattan. That was the last contact Ondi had with Josh until 2008, when she received an unexpected phone call.
It was Josh, he wanted to start the movie up again. He was offering 50% of the profits from the movie and full creative control, something that had not been an option before. Ondi was intrigued and took the bait. Josh was ready for the film to be made. He told Ondi:
“I dont care how you make me look just make a great film”
According to Ondi this was around the same time that Facebook status updates came out. She said that this made her realize she needed to make the film. The internet space had changed.
“I couldn’t have put this movie out without the internet and things like Twitter and Facebook.”
In August of 2008, they were able to get independent financing and won the Grand Jury Prize at this years Sundance Film Festival. An amazing feat for Ondi as she is now the only director that has a double win at Sundance, the other for DiG!. Josh flew out for the event and was supposed to be in town for just one week. Last I heard he is still living “off the grid” in Jason Calacanis’s pool house and driving his yellow corvette.
His house in Ethiopia is unoccupied and Josh has grand plans for it as well. He wants to lend out his house to people who need to get away from the Internet for a while. They can choose how much money they want to pay and then go stay in Josh’s house. More info regarding this endeavour should be on the website soon.
Josh’s next project is called Wired City, a studio of self surveillance. The idea is for a group of people to document themselves, then Josh would take the best bits of film and turn it into entertainment. The group would consist of 400 hand-picked people at a time, then a new group would come in. Think of it like the Truman Show, it would be live 24 hours a day 7 days a week. Kind of a new wave for reality tv.
Personally this idea sounds just as damaging as the first two to me, but I doubt he will have any trouble finding people who want to be involved in something historic.
The movie is tentatively scheduled to be released on DVD and iTunes on 2/10/2010, and will contain tons of extra footage from the bunker where “Quiet” took place. Until then you can check out their website which is releasing a new 15 second clip each day with never before seen footage from the film.
Follow them on Twitter @wlip and check out video interviews and extras on the official website, weliveinpublicthemovie.com. If you’d like to help promote the film, there is a special widget featured on the site for you to use.
