Now we can know how you really felt about this scene.
Move aside focus groups, there’s a new way to measure how entertained we are! And surprise surprise, it involves looking at our brains. Looking at them real close. That’s right, the future of the movie industry (at least the editing and directing aspects of it) may soon involve regular MRI brain-scanning of sample audiences to help directors to tweak their films based on our emotional responses measured by brain activity. Check out the video below or article from Wired Magazine about MindSign Neuromarketing, a San Diego based company exploring this area.
It’s a cool concept that’ll raise questions about the weight we put on physiological measures versus subjective self-reporting. “I don’t care what you thought you felt – you brain was on fire during the opening scene. Lit up like a fire-cracker. You were scared straight!” That fine line that many of us like to draw between body and mind continues to blur.
