Posts tagged “e.t.”

Henry Thomas and the Power of Silence

Henry Thomas’s audition for E.T. is making the rounds in the blogosphere this week. It’s a pretty incredible bit of emoting, improvising, acting. I’d like to highlight one thing that struck me: as the scene begins, the offstage actor sets up the conflict with his first line, and then turns it over to Henry (aka Elliot). And Henry doesn’t say a word. But he does a lot. His silence is very active, even his minimal facial movement is highly active.

In interviewing users, those small moments where we choose to be quiet are powerful. We can maintain an active engagement with the participants even though we aren’t talking. We can move the interview forward without using our mouths.

Park Your Media Property Here

frankenstein
Frankenstein Parking, Universal Studios Hollywood, February 2009

jurassicparking
Jurassic Parking, Universal Studios Hollywood, February 2009

legend
Parking Legend, Universal Studios Hollywood, February 2009

Universal leverages their brand properties in and around their theme park. “Jurassic Parking” is clever, but does Frankenstein really convey the right attributes for valet? I think there’s a real sense of fun here, but I wonder about devaluing the emotional resonance that these characters have.

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