Reinvigorating the Entertainment Forum

[Ganondork]

The Entertainment forum is our area for discussing a wide variety of topics - from music, to movies, to books, etc. Unfortunately, the forum itself is tethered to a handful of topics that dominate that area's discussion. These include, "Which Song Are You Currently Listening To?" "Rate the Last Movie You Watched," and "Which Book Are You Currently Reading?" These are very broad threads, where members give their input, but seldom comment on one another's choices. In comparison to the more community feel of General Discussion, this is very strange.

But it goes beyond that. More niche threads, like my thread on Sublime, has no replies. We see very few comments in a lot of threads, as well. For example, "[Movies] Do You Think Expectations Are Becoming A Bit Too Low Nowadays?" received only three replies. While I'd usually say it's because the thread doesn't offer much discussion, this is far from the case. In fact, Chimera wrote a very thought provoking post, and it deserves a lot of attention. Yet it hardly got any.

And why is this? I think it's because people see the Entertainment forum as a place to just say, "I'm reading 'Book X'," or, "I'm listening to, "Song Y'," and that's it. People have almost no interest in the forum at all, regardless of a thread's quality. The Entertainment forum is a place that offers many areas of discussion, as it spans across many forms of media. Zelda Dungeon isn't a homogeneous group, either. Our different walks of life lead to different tastes, so you'd expect more diverse discussion. Yet, the forum usually receives broad topics, and the more specific ones get ignored.

So how can we fix this? I think that the best way to do that is by having weekly threads, highlighting different aspects of media. For instance, we could have a weekly thread dedicated to a single band, another for an artist, another for a genre of films, etc. This would do a number of things:

1. It would encourage coming out of your comfort zone and enjoying new music, movies, books, etc.
2. More community involvement
3. Boost activity in the forum
4. Get to know each other's tastes in various forms of media in a friendly environment

There are so many different art forms that can be discussed in the Entertainment forum that we could have a new weekly discussion thread each day! It would appeal to everyone, too. For instance, I'm not a big movie fanatic, but I love discovering new music. For that reason, I'd look forward to, say, Wednesday, when the next band discussion thread is posted. And maybe you don't like music, but you love reading. Well, we can have a weekly discussion thread for it!

I think it would be really cool to have a rotation for who does what, as well. This would prevent a bias towards a certain genre. For instance, if I was in charge of the weekly music thread, it would be mostly Radiohead or The Antlers. If I was in charge of the movie thread, it would be mostly Goodfellas, Casino, and Wolf of Wall Street kind of movies. If there's a rotation, we'd get a much larger variety. So, for instance, I do the music thread one week, then Sydney does the next, then Kenpari, and so forth. We all like different genres, so people would get a different taste each week.

I figure there'd be a rotation thread stickied in the forum, allowing for people to ask to take charge of a certain week, alongside which thread, and what genre they're doing. Usually, it would be first-come-first-serve, but if the same genre has already been done in the past month, then they should be rejected. For instance, if I featured the works of Franz Kafka one week in the book thread, then no one would be able to feature him again for a month or longer. I hope that this won't be a problem, as there are plenty of authors and genres out there.

Once someone has been approved, they'll be edited into the OP, with the date of the thread being posted, as well as who/what they are featuring. Once their week has passed, they'll be removed from the queue.

I think the Entertainment forum has a lot of potential for great discussion, and I hope that this suggestion will be accepted.

 

[Big Octo]

+1 for this idea. I've stopped really checking on the stickied threads in this forum because it's always the same thing and the discussion is nonexistent. This model tailors to individual tastes and promotes discussion.

 

[Stitch]

I think this would be a really cool idea and I would like to help if it is used. I've tried to make threads about separate musical artists and movies before with some moderate success in making conversation. I think being able to have threads featured would really invigorate people to make threads and post on them.

 

[Justac00lguy]

Thing is, the actual section doesn't tend to draw a big audience. I would label it one of the niche sections of the forums, including Zelda Theory and Science and Technology. Maybe it's preference thing, I guess the other sections are more thought provoking for the majority of members.

I think this is a good idea in theory, I'm just curious in how it would play out and if people would lose interest in a couple of months. No problem in trying, it just needs support and dedication.

 

[David]

Thing is, the actual section doesn't tend to draw a big audience. I would label it one of the niche sections of the forums, including Zelda Theory and Science and Technology. Maybe it's preference thing, I guess the other sections are more thought provoking for the majority of members.

I think this is a good idea in theory, I'm just curious in how it would play out and if people would lose interest in a couple of months. No problem in trying, it just needs support and dedication.

It doesn't draw a big audience because its conversations are limited. If there were discussions going on, there would be more interest. If the discussions were more of discussions and not just lists of a billion different ideas and topics thrown into one thread, things would be better.

 

[Firice da Vinci]

I'm all for it as long as Leonardo da Vinci is the first featured artist!

In all seriousness, I do think this is a good idea. It could definitely add more activity to the Entertainment forum. I agree with JC that, while the forum is not the most "mainstream" compared to others, but weekly threads are at least worth a shot. Otherwise, that little section could probably be merged with General Discussion, seeing as it only gets new threads every now and then.

That being said, I do have a couple of concerns. Because I might be thinking about this idea too deeply, I have decided to include my questions in the spoiler below. I would like to apologize in advance if I am over-analyzing an already simple enough concept.

Spoiler

I would like to ask a few questions regarding the subject of the art forms to be shown. For one, I would like to argue that it might not be a good idea for an artist to be featured. This sounds weird coming from me, I know, but hear me out here. There are many drawings and paintings throughout history that involve nudity and other sexual themes. Though I have no qualms with it, but I am not sure if the artworks in question would comply with the other members, or even the rules. For example, Michelangelo's works include mostly male nudes and it would be quite the difficulty trying to appreciate him from the fewer "decent" pieces he created. I would also like to point out this is an issue that is basically a global one. It is not uncommon for figure drawings classes to be ended by the authorities under pretext that it was a strip club in disguise.

With that in mind, there are also plenty of artists that hardly have any sexual themes. Johannes Vermeer comes to mind, as well as landscape painters like William Turner. There are also contemporary artists on sites like deviantART that focus on more family friendly themes, if that is what these weekly threads' focuses are to be on.

I am also curious as to what genres of literature will be shared. For example, would an author focusing on mathematics, maybe Euclid or Descartes, ever get the chance of being the subject of discussion? The topics they discuss likely will not suit the majority of the community and would presume threads highlighting Euclid would garner the attention of only a small section of members, rather than the larger masses that are intended. And what of philosophical, theological, and religious texts? Would any book from the Bible be too likely to start heated debates that should stay within the MD? Would the Toa Te Ching or Confucius ever get a thread? I would be fine if they never did, but I think it would at least be interesting if some Eastern philosophy could be the subject, despite quite a bit of unfamiliarity with it.

 

[Ganondork]

I would like to ask a few questions regarding the subject of the art forms to be shown. For one, I would like to argue that it might not be a good idea for an artist to be featured. This sounds weird coming from me, I know, but hear me out here. There are many drawings and paintings throughout history that involve nudity and other sexual themes. Though I have no qualms with it, but I am not sure if the artworks in question would comply with the other members, or even the rules. For example, Michelangelo's works include mostly male nudes and it would be quite the difficulty trying to appreciate him from the fewer "decent" pieces he created. I would also like to point out this is an issue that is basically a global one. It is not uncommon for figure drawings classes to be ended by the authorities under pretext that it was a strip club in disguise.

With that in mind, there are also plenty of artists that hardly have any sexual themes. Johannes Vermeer comes to mind, as well as landscape painters like William Turner. There are also contemporary artists on sites like deviantART that focus on more family friendly themes, if that is what these weekly threads' focuses are to be on.

As this website is family-friendly, we're going to have to work with artists that don't show nudity. However, I wouldn't be opposed to featuring an artist that has some nude pieces of art, but we explicitly do not show them, nor link to a website that shows them. While nudity in art is common, there are still plenty that don't have any. You mentioned landscape artists, and that is certainly a step in the right direction. As long as it doesn't have nudity, I'm sure the artist will be fine, and I don't doubt that we'll have plenty of them to work with.

I am also curious as to what genres of literature will be shared. For example, would an author focusing on mathematics, maybe Euclid or Descartes, ever get the chance of being the subject of discussion? The topics they discuss likely will not suit the majority of the community and would presume threads highlighting Euclid would garner the attention of only a small section of members, rather than the larger masses that are intended. And what of philosophical, theological, and religious texts? Would any book from the Bible be too likely to start heated debates that should stay within the MD? Would the Toa Te Ching or Confucius ever get a thread? I would be fine if they never did, but I think it would at least be interesting if some Eastern philosophy could be the subject, despite quite a bit of unfamiliarity with it.

Well Descartes has some works that don't revolve around mathematics. The Passions of the Soul, from my understanding, is one such work. I'd heavily advise against featuring authors that go heavily into mathematics, as it may have a chance of people not being very interested. Philosophy, Eastern or otherwise, is completely fine with me. I was planning on featuring Herman Hesse as the first author, heavily discussing Siddhartha. I'm not sure how much you know about the book, but it has a lot to do with Buddhism, and Siddhartha's journey to that point.

I'm not entirely sure how religious texts may go over. On one hand, they could gain some traction, but on the other hand, some members may not be comfortable with them. However, if people are interested in the topic and handle it civilly, I don't really see why not. If they are featured, I would like to stress that we are handling them from a literary perspective, not a religious one.

I think a good starting point would be trying a book like Dante's Inferno. If people are alright with that topic, then perhaps we can try other religious books. I think it's more up to the community than me, though.

 

[Garo]

I would caution against most of this. Namely, devoting an entire week to authors like Herman Hesse, or even a work like Dante's The Inferno. Not because those books do not merit good discussion, but because I imagine so few people will have read them, and the threads will inevitably be short, three-reply wonders like the ones we're seeing in the forum currently.

I like the idea of weekly, focused discussions, but this idea of letting a single user pick something so niche and specific leads me to believe that it's not going to pan out well at all. Perhaps a ZD Book of the Month club, where a book is collectively agreed upon and everybody is given time to read it, might work better.

 

[Jamie]

It doesn't draw a big audience because its conversations are limited. If there were discussions going on, there would be more interest. If the discussions were more of discussions and not just lists of a billion different ideas and topics thrown into one thread, things would be better.

I disagree. Take a look at the Science & Technology board. What is going on there?

Loz's fantastic thread on extraterrestrials ended up being pretty much a back and forth discussion between the two of us. Can you really say the conversation is limited here? Some things just aren't interesting enough to a wide enough audience to talk about, I think.

 

[Ganondork]

I would caution against most of this. Namely, devoting an entire week to authors like Herman Hesse, or even a work like Dante's The Inferno. Not because those books do not merit good discussion, but because I imagine so few people will have read them, and the threads will inevitably be short, three-reply wonders like the ones we're seeing in the forum currently.

I like the idea of weekly, focused discussions, but this idea of letting a single user pick something so niche and specific leads me to believe that it's not going to pan out well at all. Perhaps a ZD Book of the Month club, where a book is collectively agreed upon and everybody is given time to read it, might work better.

I wouldn't be opposed to this. It could certainly be the kick in the rear that I need to finish some books that I'm interested in. If that's what we need to do, then I'd be more than happy to use this idea in lieu of my previous one. My only question is this: would we still have weekly threads for bands, artists, and anything else people can come up with? Those don't require much in-depth activity short of listening to an album, or looking at a gallery.

 

[Garo]

I like the idea of weekly threads, but they need to be broader rather than focusing on a single work. Perhaps focusing on a genre and talking about that genre; e.g., "Superhero Week," "Murder Mystery Week," "Dark Comedy Week," etc.

 

[Ganondork]

Alright, that sounds like a good idea for movies. And what about music? A lot of genres are very blanket terms. The sounds of two rock bands can be very different. Would focusing on a single group work fine, as we have full albums to work with?

 

[Mercedes]

Alright, that sounds like a good idea for movies. And what about music? A lot of genres are very blanket terms. The sounds of two rock bands can be very different. Would focusing on a single group work fine, as we have full albums to work with?

I don't think we have to limit it to just genres, there's lots of ways we could perhaps organise every discussion. Could do "60's Rock" instead of just 'Rock', "90's Pop", etc. and we could probably have threads dedicated to big names like Elvis and Disney which have a lot to discuss. Could do more wider ones like "Childhood bands" to talk about stuff we listened to as kids. Limit the discussion a little bit but not too much that there's not enough to discuss. I'm not sure though but is just what I think could work.