Pitchfork swallowed whole by GQ. Mass layoffs at Sports Illustrated and the LA Times. The end of Cinemascope.
Good journalism is dying. In its place is something uglier, shittier and completely lacking personal flair.
Film criticism is near the bottom of this food chain. There are plenty of great critics out there — I hire a lot of them — but the rates are terrible and the job security is non-existent. Some editors also, in the year of our lord 2024, think unpaid work is fine?
And while the horse race aspect of awards shows — some highlighting necessary work, others merely copy and pasting the consensus — can be entertaining, it sidelines the many bold and brilliant things happening in the margins of the film world; directors with unique visions: stuff to say and a cool way of saying it.
I also believe that critics write better when they are given the chance to explore and write about what they like, as opposed to feeling obliged to cover something dull or to have a thesis point before they even watch the movies. That’s why Journey Into Cinema has a pretty loose brief for festival coverage, allowing journalists to engage with film naturally.
Last year, my commissions led to excellent coverage on the Berlinale Forum section, — including work by James Benning and Claire Simon — environmental critiques at CPH:DOX, interviews with upcoming directors Elene Naveriani and Sofia Exarchou, and a look at the queer offerings at BFI: Flare.
Avoiding the obvious and embracing the alternative, Journey Into Cinema wants to go even further in the upcoming year.
Over the next few months, I plan on investing way more time and money into this project, giving passionate writing about new and exciting cinema a chance to thrive. Expect Rotterdam, Berlinale, CPH:DOX, Cannes and beyond — if there is a wonderful new voice out there that deserves a spotlight, we will be there. As for the latest blockbuster, superhero movie, straight-to-streaming slice of content or Oscar-bait nonsense — go somewhere else!
I’m British. I find it cringe to ask for money. This was a very cringe thing for me to write and put out in the world. But I found the courage to do it anyway.
For one thing, there are thousands of causes out there way more deserving than film journalism. But film journalism is not unimportant, mostly because, done well, it means passionate people get paid for doing what they love. And the more money this site (ad-free, looks cool, no gambling links) has, the more people can get paid and write more cool shit. And if you choose to donate in honour of a particular person’s writing, they will get 50% of the donation as a bonus. Isn’t that nice? I certainly think so.
If you are so inclined to throw the site a couple of kopecks, feel free to do so at our Ko-Fi Page. Or you can just subscribe/check out the site. That’s also pretty cool. Thanks.