CULTURAL SATURATION IN THE NEW WORLD

NEW YORK, New York -- Eight years have passed since Mike Figgis' Timecode first appeared in American theaters, combining soapy drama with Hollywood satire, using the highly ambitious arrangement of four screens to reveal multiple scenes at once -- but, despite claims to the contrary, the British filmmaker doesn't think his romp with mini-DV cams heralded a new age. "The digital revolution has hit, but behind the scenes," the frequently witty and insightful Figgis told the audience at the DGA Theater in midtown Manhattan earlier this week, appearing for the Tribeca Film Festival's "Tribeca Talks" series. "Film is still the best way of making a big movie...but, in the meantime, digital has crept into our lives."

Mike Figgis' 'Timecode' (2000)

Figgis certainly isn't opposed to the technology -- he wrote a great book about it -- nor does the sixty-year-old director display any trepidation towards the internet. Quite the opposite, actually: He helped start the online social networking community Shooting People, which helps connect filmmakers across the globe. Still, Figgis said he has serious reservations about the so-called democratization of filmmaking caused by the popularity of digital aesthetics. "Digital technology has accelerated the problem of cultural saturation," he said, rather bleakly. "You see a steady progression toward the lowbrow."

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