Topic: My Resignation
Effective immediately, I am resigning from the review panel (or more accurately, I resigned over a month ago but didn't bother to post this publicly until now).
This is partially due to my inability to continue to perform my duties. A number of new commitments leave me no time to visit a website dedicated to making films with children's toys.
However, my decision is also largely linked to my increasing disappointment with the direction of the site. The target audience for brickfilms has long since shifted from "other BiM members" to "YouTube," and with this, BiM as it used to be died forever. The old BiM was a small community of filmmakers producing large-scale projects and critiquing each other's work. Now, things like view counts and subscribers and the Partner Program have enticed most brickfilmers to churn out a neverending stream of one-minute "comedy" shorts rather than attempt to produce anything substantial. Any sort of critical analysis is practically impossible.
The review panel (as it exists currently) is no longer needed or even wanted. The world at large is the target audience for brickfilms these days, not a select group of critics, and I feel the community should be the ones sifting the wheat from the chaff. With this in mind, I have recommended that Sméagol replace the current review system with one that uses a film's public rating to determine its "recommended/all films" designation. If and how he decides to implement this change is up to him.
Lastly.... this is not an "I'm leaving" thread, though it is an "I'll be around a lot less" thread. I plan on continuing to help out wherever I can, including contest judging if asked. You're not quite rid of me yet.
- Noodle



