From the Chair . . .
- “Man will never reach the moon regardless of all future scientific advances.”
- –Dr. Lee DeForest, inventor of the vacuum tube and father of television
- “Louis Pasteur’s theory of germs is ridiculous fiction.”
- –Pierre Pachet, Professor of Physiology at Toulouse, 1872
- “The wireless music box has no imaginable commercial value. Who would pay for a message sent to nobody in particular?”
- –David Sarnoff’s associates, answering his plea for investment in radio, 1920s.
- “There is no reason why anyone would want a computer in their home.”
- –Ken Olson, president, chairman and founder of Digital Equipment Corp., 1977
- “We don’t like their sound and guitar music is on the way out.”
- –Decca Recording Company, who rejected the Beatles in 1962
What do all these people have in common? Myopia! They were too focused on the perceived limitations of what was in front of them instead of the wide-open amazing possibilities. Vision is a funny thing–it’s often more about faith than technology, diligence than creativity, necessity rather than inspiration. The MCA-I Carolina Silver Reel Festival celebrates vision, and the people who turned vision–be it a training program for social workers, a tv commercial promoting sandwiches, or a cd-rom selling a software solution–into award-winning media productions.
Future-Rama couldn’t be a better theme for the 22nd annual Carolina Silver Reels. For one, we’re in the beautiful, new, state-of-the-art School of Communication Arts @ Digital Circus, and have had the privilege of collaborating with the talented students (our industry’s future leaders), who produced the awesome category bumpers for the show. Next, we have new awards, designed by Chapel Hill glass artist Sallye Coyle of Good Harbor Bay Glass. And, of course, there’s the Silver Reel Committee, the perfect combination of past and future–seasoned Reels veterans with baptized-by-fire newcomers, all sharing the same vision: a successful gala that celebrates the cream of North and South Carolina’s media communications crop.
Mark Twain said “The art of prophecy is very difficult, especially with respect to the future.” I beg to differ: I can confidently predict that tonight will be wonderful. Enjoy!
–Melanie Raskin, Chair
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