Entertainment Stock

As you would expect, the movie “Titanic” is set around the luxury cruise ship called “Titanic”, which sailed across the Atlantic Ocean in 1912, hit an iceberg in the middle of the night and sank, taking 1,517 people to their death.

The story involves a young, free-spirited woman, who is about to be married to “the rich jerk”, in order to save her family from financial doom, and a young, street-smart man, who is sailing to try his luck in another country. They are attracted to each other, have a good time together, including several memorable romantic moments, and eventually he dies while saving her life.

Nevertheless, to me, although “Titanic” is a Hollywood epic for the general public, this movie is all about resisting change. Yes, yes, resisting change.

You see, the Titanic was designed as an “unsinkable” luxury ship for the “upper class”, a group of people mainly distinguished by the amounts of money they had. The people who operated the ship were poor, yet when disaster hit, their behaviors did not change and the poor people kept giving way to the rich and helping them, even when it was clear they were in danger themselves.

The Titanic was built to be “unsinkable”. As such, there was no need to put too many lifeboats on board. In the unlikely event these boats had to be used, surely the rest of the people could remain on the ship until help came. Unfortunately, the Titanic DID sink, and as soon as this was apparent, you would have expected everybody to do their best to occupy one of the lifeboats and the hell with everybody else, right?

Wrong!

Throughout the film, the young lovers got all sorts of strife from the people around them, who wanted them to conform, even if it meant giving up on what they wanted most and becoming miserable in the process, as long as those other people didn’t have to accept something different.

The band, which was playing on deck at the time, kept on playing. The poor musicians, who had spent their lives in artistic expression, saw their life’s purpose as bringing music for other people’s enjoyment. Even as everybody else was scurrying to the boats, they continued to “be musicians” and play music, rather than change their thinking and save their lives.

The crewmembers, who knew better than everyone else about what was going to happen, directed traffic to the boats. Old women went first, then rich people and the “lower class” (coming from the same places as the crew) were locked in the lower decks to die. They did not stop to think how long the old ladies had to live, or that rich people had no more right to live than anybody else, even in the face of clear and present danger.

Our young couple seemed to be almost the only people on board the ship, who were accepting of differences and flowing in life, as long as what they did made them happy, but in the end, they were powerless to change their world. The forces of habit crushed everything around them and left one of them frozen and the other alone.

The Titanic is a great metaphor for staying on a collision course, despite an obvious need for change. Unfortunately, many people behave like large ships every day, too.

Florida has always been a popular destination for travelers. Warm weather, a great location and endless attractions make FL a great vacation spot.

Recently there has been a rise in the number of people traveling to Orange County though. The Orlando airport has recently experience a surge in traffic. The number of visitors jumped more than 34% compared to last year this time.

Brits are particularly fond of taking their holidays in Florida. Since they typically take two-week trips, they have the opportunity to fully explore the theme parks and still have time to enjoy shopping, nightlife, dining and beaches. The mild year round temperatures make it a great destination any time of year.

Orlando Attractions

The nice thing about Orlando is there is something for everyone. People of all ages can find something to do in Orlando.

Disney World is a prime example of this. There is so much to do and see for boys and girls, parents and grandparents. Experience thrill rides, meet Disney characters, stay in exclusive resorts, take in theater performances, or visit museums. Choose from a long list of activities that just scratch the surface of things to do in Orlando.

* Disney World

* Seaworld (including Aquatics, the new water park)

* Universal Studios

* MGM Studios (now Disney Hollywood Studios)

* Busch Gardens

* Discovery Cove

* WonderWorks

* Wildlife Safari Tours

* Cirque de Soleil’s La Nouba

* Blizzard Beach Water Park

* Ripley’s Believe it or Not!

* Sky Venture Orlando

* Universal’s Island of Adventure

* Gatorland

* Florida Everglades

* Epcot

* Cypress Gardens

* Orlando Science Center

* Typhoon Lagoon Water Park

* The Holy Land Experience

* Pirate’s Dinner Adventure

* Disney’s Animal Kingdom

* Medieval Times

* Wet n’ Wild Water Park

* Titanic, Ship of Dreams Exhibit

Mix up your holiday by having some wild adventures and then balance them by taking in some of the calmer attractions, like shows and cultural exhibits. When you’ve done everything you came to do, take some time to relax on the beach or take a dip in the pool which most Florida hotels have.

Rising Gas Prices Makes Airfare Seem Affordable

Another possible reason for an increase in airport traffic to Orlando may be the rising gas prices in the U.S. It is actually cheaper to fly a family into Orlando than to pay to fill the gas tank multiple times as they make their way toward FL. Gas prices are expected to soar over the summer, making airfare a sensible alternative to driving.

Package Deals Make Orlando Trips More Affordable

You really can’t go wrong with a package deal to Disney. Some resorts include hopper passes to all four major theme parks and several water parks. It is also convenient to catch a bus from your hotel to any of these attractions throughout the day.

This means you can easily depart from your resort in the morning and head for the Magic Kingdom, take a bus over to the Animal Kingdom for the evening, return to the Magic Kingdom for the fireworks display, and catch the bus back to your resort at night for no extra fees.

Check for resort and airfare deals to Orlando when you are planning your holiday. Sometimes it pays to book multiple things at one time.

The Centre for Content Protection (CCP) conducted the Digital Future Seminar Series Dec 2 to engage the digital distribution industry at the Asia Television Forum(ATF) in Singapore.

Speakers reiterated that paramount to the success of media industries is the role of music. “It is critical that musicians can earn income,” said Mike Ellis, President, Motion Picture Association (MPA) Asia Pac. Music can help media industries to grow and vice versa. It costs USD $200 million to make a movie, yet the majority of movies that go out are losing money. The challenge and opportunity lies in the fact that 16% of movie revenues come from cinema, and the remaining 84% from home entertainment. “Our collective futures depend on (our ability to adapt to) the digital transformation that’s going on,” Ellis told the industry players gathered at the conference.

Five times Golden Rooster winner Li Qiankuan emphasized to the audience of media industry players how the integration of music with regional and national features was crucial for a merger between western and eastern music. Dick Lee referred to his personal experience in championing the inclusion of Asian elements in pop music. He cited Japan for becoming the undisputed leader of Asian pop culture by picking up the best of American pop culture and “refitting it to Japanese size.”

Qiankuan, who is the President of the Shanghai International Film Festival’s Jury Board, and Xiao Guiyun, member, China’s National Film Approval Board, later conducted a film masterclass and workshop Dec 3 with MDA support. The masterclass provided an understanding of China’s film industry followed by an overview of opportunities for partnerships and proposals in the industry.

Looking to the film industry

Panelist Nina Ossoff, who has been writing successfully for movies and TV, including American Idol, advised musicians in the audience to “make your master sound awesome.” She bemoaned the fall in the number of movies with soundtracks. Philip Wu, Exec Chairman, GRID MMS, conceded that it is a very tough game to live off music. Go around and get yourself known, he advised, submit your lyrics to the movie industry and put up your talent for review.

Singapore is one of the easiest places to make networking connections, says the director of Yong Siew Toh Conservatory of Music, Bernard Lanskey. He observed that the educational opportunities here are immense from an international perspective. “We underestimate the professional dimension of musical work,” he said. “Training in professional awareness and maintaining quality should be your priorities,” he told the listening students of music and film in the audience.

Cutting to the recession, Charles J. Sanders, Esq. Songwriters Guild of America, who moderated a panel, recalled how Hollywood came to the rescue when the Great Depression nearly wiped out songwriting in the 1930s. “Now again we’re looking to the film industry,” he stated. Panelist Malcolm Young finds that the challenges are emerging more rapidly than the answers are coming back, with the film industry downturn predating the current economic downturn. Young is soon to produce The Durian King, a zero-budget film set in Singapore.

New media are taking eyeballs off traditional media, says Wu. This makes it imperative that the movie industry work across all industries. Creating legitimate business models rapidly would enable survival on ever-emerging new platforms.

The Singapore opportunity: Networking and self-belief

Panelists pointed out that Singapore is uniquely placed in world terms. As a modern bilingual society, it is uniquely connected to South East Asian countries. The Singaporean awareness of the global community is unparalleled, says Lanskey. “What will drive internal passion is networking and self-belief.” He compared Singapore to where Paris was in 1900, or to Vienna in 1750. “Change can happen fast. The speed at which Singapore’s evolving is phenomenal.”

Wu touched on the country’s three strengths: trust, technology and the financial system. “We might not make a Titanic,” he said, “but there are niche areas we can come into with these strengths: post production and songwriting, for instance.” There are many who dare to dream, but many other Singaporeans are pragmatic. Singapore has not reached the critical mass of talent and we should aspire to reach that, said Wu.

“We are always calling ourselves too small and berating our lack of a long history. We must think big; we must think differently,” observed Joshua Simon, a student at Ngee Ann Polytechnic.

Spell out rights: IFPI

As music is the primary driver of the entertainment business, be it karaoke or nightclubs, it is important to clearly spell out rights, concluded the panel on copyright and legal issues.

Leong May Seey, Regional Dir(Asia ), International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) recommended the ISO standard to identify country of origin and the first owner in every commercial sound recording, and the embedding of the ISWC(International Standard Musical Work Code) to protect composers.

Frank Rittman, Regional Legal Counsel, MPA – Asia Pac, suggested a centralised licensing corporation which would allow a producer to pay a single fee, rather than needing to conform to varying structures in each country of release. Complicated sets of rights exist separately in different countries for the two pieces of intellectual property in music: the underlying musical composition, and the performance. For instance, said Sanders, US law has so many anomalies, despite being a pro-copyright country. Compulsory licensing exists, but once the song is released, anyone can make a cover of it. The licensing also does not extend to synchronization rights.

Embrace local artistes

The panel on Asia strategies recommended that Singapore embrace local artistes. “There’s great music in Singapore; you just have to play it,” observed Allan Nicholls, Department of Graduate Film, Tisch Asia( Singapore). A Stefanie Sun had to leave the country and be endorsed by Taiwan before she got accepted here.

“We are not hungry enough as a nation. That said, I’d rather have the security of Singapore, than professional footballers and recording artistes if they come at the cost of security,” says Michael Hosking, CEO, Midas Promotions. He suggested introducing a radio station that played local music.

To meet the challenge of changing the Singaporean mindset, Lim Sek, Chief Exec, Music & Movement (S) Pte Ltd, said that the Republic of Pop has been started with MDA support. It is an umbrella of local talents and a movement to appeal to the Singapore audience. The website will launch in the first quarter of 2010, detailing agents, contacts and a step by step guide for talents.

Talks are on with MediaCorp to get airtime for local talent, said Yeo Chun Cheng, Chief Information Officer, MDA, and the second round of proposals for music has just opened. “But I don’t think the government is the solution to everything,” he said. “Be careful of government officials telling you what is to be done.” The solution was instead, to be “really, really good at what you do.”

The DFS seminar is an initiative under the MoU signed with the Media Development Authority(MDA) Sept 9, as part of MDA’s agenda to develop a conducive business environment with a robust intellectual property regime and a pro-business regulatory framework.