The Social Network
In this weeks blog I chose to watch the film The Social Network, this film was inspired by the creation of the social-networking website Facebook in 2003 and the subsequent fallout between the key players involved. In a summary it's about a Harvard university student called Mark Zuckerberg as he finds himself in "legal hot water" when he is accused of stealing the idea behind the hugely popular site. I believe it shows a harsh reality of Zuckerberg being a stab in the back kind of guy who is only out for his own self worth, but on the other hand it shows how if he didn't make them sacrifices where would we be now without the likes of Facebook and Twitter and Instagram and all the social networking apps we use frequently on a day to day basis, technology is becoming part of us and shows no sign of change.
From the outset of the film I feel Mark's character is portrayed as a socially awkward nerd who is very big on computing and coding. From the opening scenes I felt when watching him interact with people he is a person who is contradictory in a number of ways and almost condescending shown when he speaks to the senior members of Harvard and top professional lawyers. However I also believe this is the genius of Zuckerberg, he is always looking ahead to Facebook's future and the bigger picture. I personally think this is shown best as he stabs his best friend in the back- takes money to expand Facebook then as it becomes a business Zuckerberg reduces his shares so they're worth nothing. All of this is to aid in the evolution of Facebook and ensure it's growth.
As I proceeded to watch the documentary I felt there was a more sinister plot developing, you get the feeling that Mark is going to become the next big thing in computing but at what cost. Well the cost is being sued by multiple people on multiple charges, over a settlement worth multiple millions of dollars. This topic interested me as it really sheds light onto why Zuckerberg carried out the actions he did, I think that some of the decisions he made were very sly and some may say they were all about personal gain however I believe they hold a higher value. The Winklevoss twins came to Mark about an idea which was exclusive to Harvard, Mark took this idea and altered it so that the rest of the world would become connected whilst also keeping the profiles of these people private. This was the niche idea for Facebook and why it made it so cool and so different. I can only imagine what it would have been like to be one of the first people involved or even on Facebook or "The Facebook" as it was called when it was first built.
I can picture it now, prehistoric Facebook. A small network which would have had a few hundred people on, now it has a following of 1.8 billion people across the globe. I personally think this is astonishing, this was done by student who wouldn't have been much older than me and look at him now, worth around $50 billion with a social networking empire which he built with his very own fingertips inside his university house. I also feel a major scene in the film is when Sean Parker played by Justin Timberlake tells Zuckerberg to drop the "The" from "The Facebook. In my opinion it is such a minute change which has such a major impact on the imagine Facebook has, the definite article "the" is just unnecessary, some may say that it is the most crucial business decision ever made and really they wouldn't be wrong, look at Twitter or Instagram. The simplistic and direct approach all adds to the brands image and also allows for it to flow smoothly when it is the topic of conversation.
I personally feel The Social Network is a great piece of cinematography and captures the real problems Zuckerberg faced when creating Facebook. It delves into the realms of obsession and desire to succeed and captivates you as you become more intrigued with the plot. It also showed me the harsh reality of an entrepreneur who knows he has an idea which so innovating nothing can compare to it, this is why Zuckerberg basically said screw the consequences and went ahead building Facebook. I believe he always had the bigger picture in mind and knew Facebook didn't really have any limits, now 13 years later it is still growing and doesn't show signs of stopping.
Let me know how you feel about some of the choices Zuckerberg had to make below.
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