Editor’s note: I’d like to welcome Mark Maurer, a new writer on our site. In this Spotlight he takes a look at Twitter and asks what filmmaker’s life would you want to follow most?
Twitter has gradually become little more than an extension of celebrity worship, as millions of users compulsively check up on the likes of Ashton Kutcher’s daily activities. The celebrity craze has blossomed so much so that Twitter’s even launching a celebrity impostor protection plan.
But wait there are some cool people who use it. Paste Magazine assembled a list of ten filmmakers with the best Twitter pages. Is it wrong for an East Coast cinefile to crave David Lynch’s Los Angeles weather reports?
Kevin Smith landed in the top spot, and borderline tweeting addict David Wain was named the runner-up. Wain, whose web series Wainy Days won the 2008 Webby Award for best comedy series, was so elated by the ranking he posted a note on Facebook this morning:
I’m proud to say that Paste Magazine has called me one of the ten filmmakers to follow on Twitter. Specifically I’m #2. But I’m comfortable being #2. Like when I play squash with my brother-in-law Bob, I’m always the 2nd best player on the court. It keeps me on my toes. Whether it’s Cheney or Avis or poop, I’ve always related more to #2.
About half of selected directors have a comedy background. Creative minds like Smith, Wain, Paul Feig, Greg Mottola and Jon Favreau are good at finding the humor in daily life, so their tweeting more or less avoids that of a recitation of menial chores. If only Stanley Kubrick was still alive – I’d love to see what was going on in his head….or where he bought groceries.
Which filmmaker – dead or alive – would be your ideal choice for reading about his or her daily life?