Catfish task...Gabi

Catfish film

The film was made by Yaniv Schulman and his brother Ariel Schulman. The production companies involved in the film were ‘hit the ground running’ and ‘Rouge’. The directors were Ariel Schulman and Henry Joost.

What kind of shared experiences are there in the online world and what are some of the issues surrounding this 'global media'?

Global media and in particular brings positive points, such as the easy communications worldwide, the wide variety of choice of entertainment. One outcome of the online world that could be seen as an advantage is the sense of collective identity that people feel, as different people from all around the world can have similar experiences online, as they all have access to the same information and websites. This is showed in the film Catfish, as the two characters Nev and Angela have never met and lead very different lives feel that they have a connection after meeting over facebook. They both share the same online experience as many other facebook members from all around the world, as there are over 500 million active facebook users, and the website is available in 70 languages. This means that around the world people are sharing the same experience online, therefore they may all feel a sense of collective identity as facebook users. However, it also has many negative points, such as that due to the global advertising of worldwide companies, it is increasingly difficult for independent companies to compete. Another issue is that with the internet in less economically developed countries, it can force westernisation upon countries that may not be ready for such changes, and the influence of the media is very strong, therefore western aspects such as fashion, lifestyle and diet being exposed in foreign countries may cause their culture to become diluted. A further problem with the online world is the ease of deception, as the 2010 film ‘Catfish’ highlights. The film begins by showing a relationship beginning to form over the internet website ‘facebook’, that seems very normal on the surface, as the two people, Nev and Melissa, speak over the internet, over the phone, via text message and even by letter. The supposed documentary is filmed from the viewpoint of the character Nev and he is also talking to other members of the girl’s family, creating a complete picture of Melissa’s life. However, Nev starts to fine clues to question Melissa’s existence, and finally, when he tries to visit her, it is revealed that Melissa does not exist, but that her mother ngela, who he had also spoken to over the phone etc was pretending to be Melissa, and all of Melissa’s friends that he thought had existed. This film cleverly demonstrates how we trust in the internet, yet we can never be sure who we are talking to, as the internet makes deception so easy. This theory of deception over the internet can also be extended, as it also applies to situations when people believe that they are buying goods online, or transferring money through false websites that pose as online shopping sites or bank websites, that are set up to scam people out of their money/ bank details. This also happens because people often do not question the website they are using, trusting the online world, yet just like the Catfish situation, deception is a danger.