From Craig Mod in Ridgeline:
Back to the movies: When a movie ends in Japan, a miraculous, truly miraculous, almost otherworldly thing happens — nobody moves. The credits roll. The lights stay off. Nary a smartphone light can be seen. I went to MI:7 (FUN) last week and the IMAX theater was packed. The movie ended, the credits began and I looked and looked — I was seated in the back row with a view of pretty much every seat. Hundreds of people. Nothing. No shifting. No peeking at messages. No rushing back to scrolling. And the credits were long! These were not quick credits. And yet, we all sat in spectacular shared boredom.
Two things:
First, I really love how Craig tells these stories. Always a delight to read.
Second, the appreciation for the craft by all these people staying seated is otherworldly! Yes, we should all be doing this! But I can not recall that I was ever in a theatre where this happened. Not even with the incentive of a “post credit scene” – we could always just “watch it on YouTube” later.
Having moments where we can cultivate this appreciation – and share it with other people in the same location – are increasingly rare, I find. Even museums feel like just another chance to “snap a post for Insta”.