The Interviews: Yoda

[r3port3r66]

About 2 or so months ago a little trend began here at Movie Forums, where any member could ask another member about anything. It became popular for a while, but soon faded out when there was nothing more to ask.

I would like to bring that back. Sort of. As some of you know I am a reporter in real life. Freelance at the moment, but there was a time when I conducted interviews on television and in print. I have interviewed such people as Wesley Snipes, Nathan Lane, and Ally Sheedy, just to name a few. I did all of this in San Francisco where I did the entertainment report for a local cable news station. I eventually became the reporter who covered local government issues. I followed the mayor around for awhile, then decided I wanted to do the travel reports. I got to travel alot in those days, seeing places in and around the Bay Area for 3 years. I had a great time!

But enough about me. I would like to conduct interviews with Yoda and some of the other members here. They would be strictly professional, meaning I wouldn't editorialize or make opinionated comments to responses. I would just inteview the member in question.

I want to start with Yoda. Now, how this would work is that I'd ask Yoda some questions and he'd respond to them. I would like other members not to comment on anything until the interview is over. It will be clear as to when the interview is over because I'll ask the interviewee for some final thoughts and thank him/her for their time.

If there is any question you wish not to answer simply say so and we can move on. I feel this is a way for us to get to know each other better, and who knows I might submit the interviews (upon your consent) as a story to a publication.

So Yoda what do you think? Can I interview you here in front of all who read these boards?

[LordSlaytan]

~gulp~

[Piddzilla]

...coool...

[LordSlaytan]

Um, yeeaahhhh. That's what I meant to say. :indifferent:

[Caitlyn]

HeHe... LS... I saw that face and thought Holden had been here for a minute... ;) … r66, I think it would be fun… :yup:

[Aniko]

Sounds like a great idea r66. :yup:

[Yoda]

"If this is indeed the will of the council..."

...then Yoda will see it done. :)

[r3port3r66]

Chris Bowyer, better known as Yoda among his forum members, first registered at his own site on July 14, 2000. He oversees the site called Movie Forums along with a council of members called moderators. From what I can gather his control center is located somewhere in Pennsylvania, where he logs in and out, responding to such threads (topics for discussion) as "The Heart or The Intellect" and "Quote of The Day". But perhaps it his love of movies that generated an interest in him to start a forum dedicated to the silver screen. His proflile contains a list of some of his favorite film titles including Dial M for Murder and The Shawshank Redemption.

Yoda, I understand that you live in Pennsylvania. Are you originally from there?

[Yoda]

Yoda, I understand that you live in Pennsylvania. Are you originally from there?
Yes. I've lived in or around Pittsburgh most of my life, and have come to love the area.

[r3port3r66]

Having been a member here myself for a while now, I've noticed that you have a way with words. What was school like for you growing up?

[Yoda]

It was a bit unusual.

I spent some time in public school, but was educated more at home. My parents allowed me to do what came naturally, but always made sure it was ultimately constructive. Thanks to this philosophy, they didn't put up too much of a fuss when I started tinkering around on the Internet for hours on end each day. My family is big on the "give a man a fish/teach a man to fish" line of reasoning, and as such they taught me to teach myself.

The gift of gab is something we all seem to have. I think most of us feel a deep-seeded satisfaction in hearing a good idea well-articulated. It's in our bones. Hobbits make good gardeners and farmers, and Bowyers make good speakers and writers. My parents always created an atmosphere conducive to discussion, too, so I think nature and nurture share the credit on this one.

[r3port3r66]

How and when did it first dawn on you that might be interested in "tinkering" with computers? On which kind of computer did you first start exploring this curiosity?

[Sexy Celebrity]

Originally posted by r3port3r66
I have interviewed .... Ally Sheedy

Did you ask her how she lives with that funny name? I think she's got a funny name -- just like Uday Gunjikar.

[Yoda]

How and when did it first dawn on you that might be interested in "tinkering" with computers? On which kind of computer did you first start exploring this curiosity?
I was introduced to computers at a young enough age that I don't really recall being introduced to them at all.

One of the first computer-related memories I have, though, is of watching my mom use a decompression program called PKUNZIP from the DOS command line. I watched her as she did this and, later on (when my parents weren't around) I tried to duplicate her commands to unzip a game I wanted to play. It was the first Duke Nukem, which was in 2D back then. I'm pretty sure I was around 8 or 9 at the time.

[r3port3r66]

So I take it your mother was using a computer long before they became a necessity. Clearly you have an interest in movies. How did that come about?

[Yoda]

Right. Both my parents used computers for work before it was commonplace...though my dad was an accountant at the time, and my mom's a typesetter; so I imagine it partially stemmed from their professions, at least originally.

I don't think I can tell you why I started taking such an avid interest in movies, exactly, and even if I could I imagine it'd be a bit pretentious of me, because I'm not a movie buff by any reasonable standard. If I had to guess, though, I'd say that they intrigue me because of their multifaceted nature. They combine so many art forms: cinematography, writing, and music, just to name a few. A good movie is like a painting, a novel, and a song all at once. It's the ultimate form of storytelling.

I've also always taken a special interest in photography, so I assume that has something to do with it, as well.

[r3port3r66]

Do you think that your appreciation for art will culminate and you will become a professional artist in the future?

[Yoda]

I doubt it. I'm more of an entrepreneur at heart. I do think, though, that if I ever establish myself firmly in a financial sense, I'll almost definitely take up at least one art form (almost certainly photography) in my spare time.

I don't think I could derive a feeling of genuine accomplishment and usefulness through art alone, though, no. I need to feel I've done more pragmatic things. That's probably that's why I enjoy creating websites; they're often a hybrid of utility and aesthetics.

[r3port3r66]

Well let's talk about creating websites. When did you first come up with the idea to create Movie Forums? And what sort of differences did you want it to have compared to other forums available on the web?

[Yoda]

Ironically, I didn't set out to create a movie website at all! I set out to create a forum of some kind, but I hadn't decided what subject it was to focus on. So, I went domain-name hunting.

Obviously, MovieForums.com was among the names I found, and ultimately it appealed to me the most. The funny thing is, I doubt I would've started a forum about movies if I hadn't been lucky enough to stumble across such an ideal, valuable domain name.

I don't think I had any ambitions to set the site apart from others early on. I just wanted very much to own and run an active community. The idea of creating something that could grow and eventually thrive on its own was appealing to me. It seemed fun and challenging, so I went for it. I'd been running it for roughly a year before I made any real attempt to turn it into something unique.

[Yoda]

Originally posted by Herod
Do you think you admire me more for my charisma or massive intellect?
I admire you more for your complete lack of reading comprehension.

Originally posted by r3port3r66
I would like other members not to comment on anything until the interview is over.
:D

[r3port3r66]

Herod does bring up some interesting questions, but we'll get to those later.

I understand that your mother and sister are members here.

When you started the site did you take them into consideration? Knowing that your family would be participating might have influenced you a bit on which things might be inappropriate. What exactly is inappropriate here and how do you monitor it everyday?

[Yoda]

Originally posted by Herod
when JRS is done.
I'm beginning to suspect that you're the forum's only illiterate regular.

[r3port3r66]

Time for me to log off for the evening. Please, let's continue this in the morning...

[LordSlaytan]

Did I miss something here? Or did Herod delete his post?

[Herod]

I did. I posted the first time with some valid questions. When I was informed that I should wait until R3 is done to enter questions, I deleted that post and put up a short explanation something to the tone of:
"My questions were valid so I intend to re-post them after R3porter is finished. This message will be deleted as well witrhin ten minutes of my posting it."
At which point Yoda viciously attacked me.

And made an unfair poll in which he faked all the results under the guise of regular users.
And I post gay erotica in sci-fi forums.
Uday's a cool name.

[LordSlaytan]

Um, maybe what he meant was that you are wrong with the name of the reporter?

[Herod]

Oh, then he'd be right.
Yeah, I'm a real idiot.

I'm not even all too sure why I thought it was JRS.

[LordSlaytan]

You a funny Dude.:laugh:

[Yoda]

I understand that your mother and sister are members here.

When you started the site did you take them into consideration? Knowing that your family would be participating might have influenced you a bit on which things might be inappropriate. What exactly is inappropriate here and how do you monitor it everyday?
Yes, I absolutely took that into consideration. My grandmother's posted a few times, too, actually. I wanted this place to be a place where most anyone could come and feel welcome, and some folks (for better or worse) just can't feel welcome around harsh language.

The ironic thing, though, is that my family isn't too uptight about language, and these policies ended up setting the site apart in a way I hadn't intended: it became an oasis of intelligent disagreement in a desert of bitter intellectual conflict. Over time, I think many members absorbed this policy, to the point at which I doubt the rules are even all that necessary anymore.

As for what is and is not allowed: I usually say that if it's permissible on network television, it's permissible here, but the site hasn't grown enough to stop me from making judgement calls on a regular basis. I suppose it will someday, at which time I'll need more moderators and written rules, but for now I plan to play it by ear and try to walk the tightrope that is community management on the Internet.

[Sir Toose]

A sidebar to the above:

It's so ingrained that I edit my own f**king language.

Also, we talk about everything here... we've had threads on porn, rape, murder, guns, abortion, god, and e=mc2.

What's inappropriate? Maybe posting articles and pics from hustler online?

I know a site that was spurned from people complaining about the rules of another site. Several people migrated there and posted porn for a few days and then it dried up. Even taboo becomes boring after over exposure. Here I think we do a good job of keeping discussions fresh and interesting.

Sorry to intrude.

[r3port3r66]

I know there was a time when a member criticized you for using the term "MoFo" because he thought it had an ethnic undertone. I think the offended person was an African-American, and sited that the use of the word "MoFo" should be reserved for use by People of Color. How did that get resolved?
And can you name a time when a member severely disrupted the site? What is your action plan when things like that happen?

[Austruck]

Butting In: R3, I know I had some misgivings about the nickname "MoFo," but not because of any ethnic derivation. I just wasn't comfortable with what it's short for -- since there are at least a handful of younger folk on the site (including my daughter). Was there someone else who didn't like the nickname??

[Yoda]

I know there was a time when a member criticized you for using the term "MoFo" because he thought it had an ethnic undertone. I think the offended person was an African-American, and sited that the use of the word "MoFo" should be reserved for use by People of Color. How did that get resolved?
And can you name a time when a member severely disrupted the site? What is your action plan when things like that happen?
Actually, I'm relatively sure that the member in question was not a racial minority. But yes, someone did put up a big fuss, and even threatened to contact the FCC. This, not coincidentally, is the same person who lost their cool in a discussion about racial quotas and likened me to a member of the KKK.

It was never really resolved; the claim was almost certainly hollow and ultimately I ignored it. Personally I think the phrase "MoFo" is an amusing, clever abbreviation, and to this day I don't understand the objection. It's racist to use a word that you think is used more often amongst another racial group than their own?

I don't really recall anyone disrupting the site much, no. Just the occassional spammer, flamer, or something else of the sort. Some of the flamers disrupt in the sense that the regulars'll all stop and take notice, sure, but it's generally a source of amusement, so it doesn't really disrupt things in a frustrating or undesirable way.

[r3port3r66]

I've never heard the term "flamer" before. What is it?

It's no secret here at Movie Forums Yoda, that when it comes to politics you lean to the right. You sometimes make this very clear in your discussions about religion, war and family values. Why would you incorporate a personal political view into a website called "Movie Forums"?

Aren't you afraid you might be offending some of your members? What do you think stops those that are offended from logging off, never to return? Does it bother you that some of the newer members, especially those that disagree with you, might take offense and leave for good?

[Yoda]

On the Internet, a "flamer" is someone who "flames" -- that is, stirs up trouble intentionally. The word's definition has fluctated over time, though, and its encompasses all sorts of troublemakers now.

I don't believe I've incorporated my political views into the site at all. You'll notice no ideological slant in any of the reviews or news stories, for example. My views remain in my posts, which is precisely where they belong. If anyone is offended by someone merely for disagreeing with them, then they're in the wrong place. I consider myself argumentative, but rarely, if ever, genuinely offensive.

I am not bothered by the idea that some people might not choose to post here solely because the owner generally holds conservative viewpoints. If they've read enough to know what my ideology consists of, they ought to have also noticed that dissent is welcome, and those who argue respectfully receive the same respect in return. I don't think I'd miss the presence of anyone who finds those terms disagreeable.

[The Silver Bullet]

The word's definition has fluctated over time, though, and its encompasses all sorts of troublemakers now.
Henry Hill and Django, for example, were/are both flamers, though at polar opposite ends of the spectrum. One of them, for all their flaws, was an intelligent guy. The other was Uday.

[r3port3r66]

Thanks for taking the time to answer my questions, we're almost done.

This site always looks nice. The graphics and colors go well together. Who helped you design the website? I often hear of a member named Spudly, who seems to have had at least a small part in your inspiration. Are there any other members here who helped you put "Movie Forums" together?

"Movie Forums" must need constant care. 24 hour updating, monitoring and review writing must not give you much time for a social life.

How much of your time goes into making "Movie Forums" happen? Do you sometimes think it's just too much work for a young man like yourself to handle?

[Yoda]

Kent (AKA "Spudly") is one of the few members who contributed content on a regular basis. Credit for the site's design goes to Jackie McGhee, a friend of mine from Scotland and quite possibly the greatest web designer I've ever come across in any form.

Amazingly, despite the time I spend here, I find myself more than able to spend ample time with friends, family, and on other various projects, both professional and personal. I imagine this is thanks to two things: my ability to check in on the site periodically throughout the work day, and my two moderators, Matt and Matt, who do a wonderful job of keeping an eye on things when I can't visit as often as I'd like.

Ultimately, I've arranged things in many ways so that the site does not technically require me to spend more than, say, 20-30 minutes a day to monitor it efficiently and effectively. Still, yes, sometimes I do look back on all the time and effort I've put into this place over the last several years and wonder if it's been worth it. So far, though, I've always had to answer "yes."

[r3port3r66]

Knowing what you know now about creating a website, what advice would you give to someone looking to create a forum-style site of their own?

[Yoda]

I'd tell them that, unless they already have a significant amount of traffic at their disposal (and sometimes even if they do), that they need to be prepared to treat the forum like a bad car. It'll need constant, intent monitoring to avoid stalling. You can't just turn the technical keys and cruise down the community freeway.

Running a successful forum is about patience above ALL else.

[r3port3r66]

Tell us what plans you have for the site in the future.

How about your future? Will "Movie Forums" always be a part of your life?

[Yoda]

Well, I'm hoping to finish re-working the content's basic layout sometime before the summer really kicks into gear next month (though technically I ought to have it up before The Matrix: Reloaded). I'd really like this community to, in a sense, run itself, and even run the other areas of the site in time. Call it a sociological experiment. Can this thing take on a real life of its own that could sustain itself if and when I walked away from it?

As for my future, if Movie Forums isn't always a part of my life, some of the people on it will be. If I did ever leave the site behind, or shut it down, though, I doubt I could stay away from community management for long. I love the dynamics of cybersociety, and I owe all the people who've spent time here, as a group, many thanks, for making me a wiser and more open-minded individual through my interaction with them.

[r3port3r66]

Chris, this may sound a little funny, but it is my belief that you have given alot of people comfort here. Giving them a forum in which to cyber-socialize. I'm sure you have provided a space where like-minded people with open-minded personalities can discuss, discover and debate over, not only movie issues, but current events as well.

What would you like to share with your little community here? Those members who have made you laugh, contemplate and ultimately learn a little more about yourself. Any final words to us, the visitors: the people waiting in the green room for a chance to participate on the stage of what is your creative mind?


After Chris' response members, please feel free, now, to ask him any questions. Thanks for your time Chris. The interview is over.

[Yoda]

It sounded funny the first time something of the sort was said to me, admittedly, but these days I've come to believe it unequivocally. No, it's not real life...but it's not nothing, either. We have something here. I've felt just about every emotion under the sun towards various members at various times over the last couple of years.

The only thing I'd like to say, is thank you. As cliche as it sounds, none of this would have been possible without all of you. In this place, the visitors ARE the site. Or, to use a fitting analogy: I may be behind the scenes, but they're the ones in front of the camera. I wouldn't have it any other way.

[Sexy Celebrity]

Originally posted by r3port3r66
I've never heard the term "flamer" before. What is it?

An interior designer named Christopher Lowell.

[Piddzilla]

There are a couple of things I'm curious about...

Yoda,

How old are you?

What do you do? What's your occupation? Or, are you a student? If you are a student, what do you study?

[Yoda]

I don't think I realized what I was getting myself into.

I'm 18. I produce a few local radio and television shows.

[Caitlyn]

Originally posted by Yoda

I'm 18.


I missed that one by a few years… ;)

[Sir Toose]

He's legal... just be gentle with him.


:laugh:

[sunfrog]

To Yoda:
Have you ever been to Neverland?
Would you agree to letting your son sleep in Michael Jackson's bed with him while you are not around?
Will you name your other sites?

[Yoda]

It's Never Never Land, actually, I believe, and no, I've never been there. And no, I would not agree to that. And no, this is not a "ask Yoda" anything thread. :p

Name my other sites? Whatcha mean? As in, list the other sites I run?

[r3port3r66]

And no, this is not a "ask Yoda" anything thread.

Sorry Yoda. That was not my intention. My intention was to have serious, maybe professional discussions about you, and this website. I thought the interview would appease some curiosity about you, and provide me with some information in which to base a possible story. I didn't expect people to ask you stupid questions, only ones that I may have missed inside the context of this thread. Even Django respected that. Hmm....

[Yoda]

No apology necessary at all. I was just mentioning that pre-emptively, as I think Sun may have made that assumption.

I appreciate your interest in me and my site, and I very much enjoyed the interview. I think many view things like conducting interviews as very easy, but anyone with any experience in such matters knows better. As such, I'm quite impressed with your abilities in this field. I think you did a wonderful job and am flattered that you'd ask in the first place. :)