The death of sustained attention isn’t new, but the fact that it’s now impacting *film students*? That’s a flashing red light for the entire industry. A recent feature in The Atlantic details how professors are struggling to get students to simply… watch movies. And not just passively, but to *engage* with them. This isn’t about a generational dislike of black-and-white classics; it’s a fundamental shift in how young people consume narrative, and it’s happening as blockbuster runtimes balloon.
- A market research poll found 92 minutes is the preferred film runtime for most Americans, while only 15% accept films over two hours.
- Film professors report students are increasingly unable to focus during screenings, even of relatively short films like François Truffaut’s “Jules and Jim” (105 minutes).
- Streaming data from a campus platform shows less than 50% of film students start assigned films, and only 20% finish them.
The numbers are stark. The Atlantic piece cites a professor who showed students “Jules and Jim” and found over half failed a basic multiple-choice quiz about the film, confusing details with Hemingway and WWII. And it’s not just older films. We’re talking about students who can’t even commit to watching assigned material, often resorting to two-times speed or multitasking. One professor noted that “Even students who are interested in going into filmmaking don’t necessarily love watching films.” Ouch. That’s a brutal indictment of the current state of affairs.
This coincides with a trend towards longer and longer films. “Avatar: Fire and Ash” (197 minutes), “Killers of the Flower Moon” (202 minutes), and “The Brutalist” (215 minutes) are all recent examples. Studios seem to be operating under the assumption that audiences *want* epic experiences, and are willing to invest the time. But if the next generation of filmmakers can’t even sit through a 105-minute French New Wave masterpiece, what does that say about the future of cinematic storytelling? Are we heading towards a future where only bite-sized content can hold anyone’s attention?
The industry’s response will be fascinating. Will we see a course correction, a return to tighter narratives? Or will studios double down on spectacle, hoping to overwhelm dwindling attention spans? The fact that this is happening *now*, as streaming services battle for dominance and theatrical releases struggle to justify their ticket prices, feels particularly significant. It’s not just about shorter films; it’s about the very future of how stories are told, and how they’re received.
Discover more from Archyworldys
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
