Level Orange

Yeah, yeah, it’s not about presents and all that, but still… I mean, look at it!

Get anything interesting?

I walked into a Blockbuster for the first time in months the other day and before I even made my way to the new release wall, it hit me that places like this probably won’t be around in another ten years. If they are, they’ll be the quiet, dusty places that little old ladies and people who only carry cash will frequent.

The first thing that struck me was the amount of people in the place, as in the place was packed. It was totally counter to what I had expected, but it was a Friday night and seeing the lines of people waiting for a single register to check them out with their copies of Superman Returns and Cars and whatnot was immediately disheartening. I was dreading even renting anything simply because of the wait to check out. It made me miss Netflix that much more.

While I’d used Netflix and even Blockbuster’s own mail rental service, there were times when I had plenty on TV to keep me occupied and couldn’t see the value of paying a monthly fee and finding something to watch. So I went without and just resorted to picking up a movie or two every once in a while. It worked out fine for the most part, but as I saw the people waiting in line and did “the walk” around the store’s outer wall looking for something that would most likely not be available, this was not one of those times

It made me wonder at what point people will get tired of the whole video store process. I can remember a time when video stores were a new thing and people were excited to go to the video store and pick up a movie. That doesn’t seem to be the case so much these days. You could say it’s less about the search and more about the transaction now. I get the feeling that people are far more versed in movies and so it’s not about finding something new or interesting to watch. It’s just about finding whatever’s new, taking it to the register and leaving.

And that’s where the magic of Netflix’s business model comes in. With the help of a web site, the search is powerful and easy. With the profiles and credit card transactions, the renting is nearly invisible. It would seem that the only downside is the wait time for receiving a DVD, but without having to hassle with driving, waiting in lines and even dealing with Tarantino-wannabe clerks, it’s usually worth it

I’ll probably still continue to go to the video store from time to time, but every time I see a crowded store, I can’t help but wonder how long it’ll be before that starts to fade away.

Today, I received an e-mail from video director/animator Matt Schilling on about how he found another great way to use Bad Blocks. The typeface can be seen in the titles at the beginning of the music video for “This Right Here” by War Party.

Thanks Matt for sharing your work, and as I’ve mentioned before, it’s always a pleasure to see how others can find uses for my typefaces.