Happy Holidays, See You in 2011!

via Echo Park Time Travel Mart

Mice Two Dads: Scientists Create Mice With Two Genetic Fathers

By e3000 via Flickr

We've got lots of critters here on the TWM blog lately...

It was announced yesterday that reproductive scientists in Texas, led by Dr. Richard R. Behringer at the M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, have produced male and female mice from two fathers using stem cell technology. Quite a few news outlets have sensationalized the news by frightening readers or painting campy scenarios not too different from the Schwarzengger film "Junior."

Rather than highlighting these wild projections, Discover Magazine's straightforward explanation describes how this was done and that for human reproduction this is a long way from being achieved.

Where would this be useful? One benefit we could think of is to preserve highly endangered species. Another would be the creators of the '80s sitcom My Two Dads could also make out well by resurrecting the show with this updated twist.

Clone of a clone: Dolly Lives On

Professor Keith Campbell, one of the scientists who cloned Dolly the sheep, recently announced that four sheep cloned from Dolly's tissue are alive and well. If you recall, Dolly was the first clone. She lived to six years, about half the life span of most sheep. In 2003 she died and about four years later, these four Dollies were created. These new clones apparently do not have the health issues that Dolly had and advancements in technology made the process of making them much easier. 


Read more about it at DailyTech.

Photos from You, Me and We Premiere

Thanks to everyone who came out to the W Hollywood on Nov. 16 for the first public screening of You, Me and We. This was the first time we showed the finished piece to most of the cast and crew. We were thrilled with the crowd's response - there was laughter and uncomfortable throat clearing at all the right moments. The Q&A after also proved the short's appeal with the audience, we had a lot of thoughtful questions and comments. There really is nothing like having a collective group of viewers watch your work and totally get it! A big shout-out to Film Independent for organizing the event and providing the free Stella Artois beforehand.

Dubai as a Backdrop for Star Wars

Photographer Cédric Delsaux took real photos of Dubai & composited Star Wars imagery for his new exhibit Dark Lens.

My VCR collection VHS recorder

Panasonic best
Then comes next is JVC
And three is Sony

The most perfect tech-haiku ever...

You, Me and We Screening Nov. 16 @ W Hollywood

Film Independent has been kind enough to screen our short You, Me and We as part of the Cinema Lounge series on Tuesday, Nov. 16, 7:30 p.m. at the W Hollywood. We're looking forward to showing it to the cast and crew who worked so hard on it. The short was inspired by one of  the group therapy scenes in Things We've Made. With such great performances we found there was ample material to make this into a short. You, Me and We has helped greatly as a tool to establish the world of TWM (some exciting news about that later).

You can come check it out too, along with a few other shorts made by some talented filmmakers. Click here for more info on the screening.

See you there!

Don't Mess with Lil' Robocop

Here at the TWM blog, you know we are all about embracing low-tech and being creative with limitations. It's more out of necessity but when done right, it can simply be rad. So we loved finding these pics of Lil' Robocop! The costume was created by an industrious parent using plastic containers and a bike helmet. Saving the earth and making a miniature badass at the same time.

 

More pics here.

Timberlake in Futuristic Immortality Movie

Shooting began a few days ago on Andrew Niccol's (Gattaca, Lord of War) latest film, which was originally titled I'm.Mortal and is now called, well, Now. Starring Justin Timberlake and Amanda Seyfried (what isn't she in?), the premise makes for an engaging thriller:

Timberlake and Seyfried filming a scene

From IMDb:

"In the not-too-distant future the aging gene has been switched off. To avoid overpopulation, time has become the currency and the way people pay for luxuries and necessities. The rich can live forever, while the rest try to negotiate for their immortality. A poor young man who comes into a fortune of time, though too late to help his mother from dying. He ends up on the run from a corrupt police force known as 'time keepers'."

Gattaca addressed eugenics and genetic discrimination in the near future. The concepts were thought-provoking; the film was also visually striking so we're thrilled to hear Niccol is teaming up for the first time with one of our favorite cinematographers, Roger Deakins (Shawshank Redemption, The Assassination of Jesse James, Barton Fink). Deakins has shot well over 50 films (including almost all Coen Bros. movies), but he hasn't done much sci-fi. Add to that Timberlake's last album was called FutureSex/LoveSounds and we're definitely looking forward to seeing what this new collaborative team does together.

Gabe on Blade Runner

Blade Runner is one of Trevin's favorite movies. It's not as liked by his dad Gabe, or mom Lynne. Some very good observations are made by Mr. and Mrs. Matcek, including the heavy use of gigantic fans and what weather is like in the future.

Enjoy.

ACLU Study Looks at Human Rights in the Future

"Sometimes, science fiction isn't as futuristic as we might think." 

That's the conclusion of Humanoid Rights, a recent article from American Prospect on a 2002 study by analyst Jay Stanley for the ACLU. Titled Technology, Liberties, and The Future, the report was never released to the public. Stanley drew "insights from scientists, legal scholars, and political theorists, gaming out the ACLU's possible response to everything from cloning to artificial intelligence to genetic splicing to nanotechnology." He also found inspiration from the film world, citing Gattaca, Blade Runner, 1984 and many others.

In the same article, journalist Adam Serwer recounts past court cases, showing how technology has been discussed in the courtroom and how dangerously close we've come to gene patenting. The dialogue could have been lifted from a sci-fi movie:

Chris Hansen, an ACLU staff attorney, balked. "What?" he said. "You're telling me ... the U.S. patent office is granting patents on human genes?"

"Chris," Simoncelli explained, "it's been going on for about 20 years."

Indies Need a Reboot

Ted Hope and Jeff Lipsky recently spoke during IFP Film Week:

Hope and Lipsky warned that independent film today is increasingly aimed at older audiences, namely white women over the age of 45. He wants to counter the shift with his latest film, “Super” (which was just sold to IFC Films at the Toronto fest).

“How do we make sure we are not relegated to the land of dance and chamber orchestras?” asked Hope, “That’s where indie film is heading.”

...Where are the movies that connect sex, drugs, rock-n-roll, anger and rebellion? How come independent film has nothing that represents Public Enemy or The Clash?”

Hell to the yes, it's about time someone pointed this out (not that there's anything wrong with white women over 45). You can read the whole recap here from Indiewire.


We've been told that TWM isn't a "real" indie film because it's genre. The project has been noted as "youthful" and "weird." We've even been advised to produce with an older age demographic in mind (because that's who is going to art houses these days). We appreciated these notes, thinking long and hard about them. In the end, that would be a movie none of us wants to make.

Move along people...We're making something fun, poignant and poppy. Thanks for the encouragement, Ted and Jeff.

Recommended Viewing: Never Let Me Go

Over the course of many development meetings, one film was consistently mentioned as an off-the-cuff comparison to TWM called Never Let Me Go. We read the acclaimed book by Kazuo Ishiguru, we followed the talent that was attached and couldn't wait to see how this would be translated for the screen by director Mark Romanek. It's quite different from TWM, but at its core, there are underlying themes that are shared when dealing with characters who are clones. Now in theaters, it's one of the best films of the year thus far, a touching tearjerker that is stark and austere as only British school children do best.



Romanek is so restrained, he deftly allows Ishiguru's story to shine. The film really is the novel through and through. For those who didn't read the book, some of the reveals may be confusing. Nevertheless, it is haunting and beautiful and so very, very sad. Never Let Me Go proves there is such a rich depth to the characters because of what they are and the performance by the cast is outstanding.

Don't miss this one.

Watch BBC's Humans v2.0

One aspect of TWM discusses Transhumanism. For some, this concept seems far-fetched -- more science fiction than what is in reality in our world today. Back in 2006, the BBC aired a program titled Humans v2.0 and I just found the full episode on Google Video. It's a probing look at what lies in the future -- not coming soon to a theater near you, but what your children's children will face.

Here's what the BBC said about Humans v2.0 when it was first broadcast:

Meet the scientific prophets who claim we are on the verge of creating a new type of human - a human v2.0.

It's predicted that by 2029 computer intelligence will equal the power of the human brain. Some believe this will revolutionise humanity - we will be able to download our minds to computers extending our lives indefinitely. Others fear this will lead to oblivion by giving rise to destructive ultra intelligent machines.

One thing they all agree on is that the coming of this moment - and whatever it brings - is inevitable.

Where Computers Go To Die

Ever wonder where that bulky PC you got rid of ended up when you bought the laptop? From the time it left your desk and was donated, it has changed many hands and logged many miles. Its final destination was most likely on another continent in a dump where some of the world's poorest people dissected it for the precious metals inside. We recently saw this sobering photo essay by Pieter Hugo titled "A Global Graveyard for Dead Computers in Ghana" during our research for the TWM hotspot scene.  

The majority of the e-waste comes from the U.S. and Europe, where it is exported to developing countries. At the end of the line, people scavenge dumps to recover components with great risk to their health simply to survive. Hard drives are sometimes sold to gangs who mine them for info such as Social Security numbers and credit card information. These are visuals for the setting of a post-apocalyptic movie, but sadly, it's a reality today in the Third World.

National Geographic also did an article titled "High Tech Trash" in 2008 with images of the staggering number of electronics that have become disposable. It's a horrific problem with no quick, easy answer. Programs like E-Stewards are trying to put a stop to these exploitative practices but it will take much more for consumers to stem the tide of forgotten gadgetry.

Yasmin Gate "Go On Remix" Video

Keith Ruggiero, our mega-talented ally in sound design and music composition for Things We've Made, just finished a remix for Yasmin Gate under the Le Rouge moniker. Titled "Go On," the song is a sparkly dance track depicted in this video with candy-colored lights and star-filtered dancers. Keith also directed the video with Charles Roxburgh. Take a look and listen...

Discovery Magazine Finds Cloning Has Terrible Trade-offs

The UK beef scare in the news is admittedly worrisome, but many forget that cloning does take place naturally in species. The aspen tree, for example, can reproduce by growing clones of itself. Discovery magazine talks about a recent study of the species that have remarkably created "large stands of trees of more than 100 acres that are essentially the same tree grown over and over again. Some aspens may have used this tactic to survive up to a million years..."

With this ability to duplicate itself over and over again, these trees do experience fundamental changes in the DNA.

Perhaps the biggest disadvantage is mutations, or genetic errors, that gradually and steadily build up in the genetic material of the plants' cells. "The longer you clone yourself the more mutations you build up," California State University, San Diego biologist Dilara Ally explained.

Read the full article here.

More Experimenting Thru the FIND Screenwriting Lab

Just wanted to report that Things We've Made has been accepted into Film Independent's 2010 Screenwriters Lab. For an intense five weeks lab mentor Meg LeFauve will tear apart the latest draft of my script! Meg produced The Dangerous Lives of Altar Boys, which I'm a big fan of. I'm looking forward to fine tuning some more even though I'm really happy with where the script is at. 

I'm off to Austin tomorrow for some location scouting and meetings. We'll be looking at an e-waste recycling center, laboratories and some other fun stuff. 

I'll call you when I get back. 

Arcade Fire and Spike Jonze Team Up on Sci-Fi Short

Pitchfork did an interview today with Arcade Fire's lead man Win Butler, where he mentions working with Spike Jonze on a sci-fi project inspired by their latest album, "The Suburbs." He explains:

Basically, we played Spike some music from the album and the first images that came to his mind had the same feeling as this idea for a science fiction film I had when I was younger. My brother and I and Spike wrote it together, which was really fun-- it was like total amateur hour. We shot it in Austin and a lot of kids are in the film, and it was great just hanging out with these 15-year-olds for a week and writing down all the funny things they said. It was cool to revert to being a 15-year-old for a little while.

You can listen to the album here, courtesy of NPR.

Alarm Spreads in UK over Cloned Beef

Carlos Lujan for the International Herald Tribune

Several outlets have reported outrage in the UK over news that meat from the offspring of a cloned cow had been sold to consumers. The cause for concern does not seem to be the safety of the meat itself, but how this "slipped through the cracks" in a country where this is illegal.

Here in the US, these products have been legal since 2008 without any labels distinguishing cloned strains. But in Britain, where mad cow disease is still fresh in the public's mind -- many fear allowing this will open a Pandora's box of genetically modified organisms for consumption and other uses.


Read the BBC article about the discovery here: 

Meat of second cloned cow offspring 'in UK food chain'

 

5 Reasons Not To Clone Yourself

When forecasting the future, the attention is often on how technology will physically effect our lives. But what about once these technologies are adopted, how will they impact us morally? Enter the Institute for Ethics and Emerging Technologies (IEET), a think tank discussing issues of this sort from a variety of angles and doing it now. 

From bioconservatives to technoprogressives, already there are factions throughout the spectrum trying to secure rights for either side.  In this latest IEET debate on cloning, Akansha Bhargava talks about "Five Reasons Not To Clone Yourself." 

#2 cracked us up: 

Cloners are Arrogant Narcissists

Modular Blocks by Azalea Lee

There's a whole lot of talent behind Things We've Made, including Azalea Lee - our costume designer from the Director's Lab scenes and You, Me and We. She recently directed this short as her submission to Diane Pernet's A Shaded View on Fashion Film contest. It's a fun study on personal style and her subjects' interaction with a set of wooden blocks.

Huffington Post Discusses Cloning and the Singularity

In "Science and the Future of Cloning: Is Immortality Possible?" writer Patrick Takahashi poses that when human reproductive cloning is accomplished, computer technology will be at the point where one's consciousness can be downloaded into this new body. He estimates, "...this fantasy for immortality could be possible in 25 years." 

But the best part of this article are the comments (over 180 last count) left by readers. Seriously, take a look and see the ideas people have about cloning, the future and modular consciousness. There are poignant musings about the soul, references to Star Trek, Neuromancer, vampires, and it wouldn't be the internet without snarky comments about everything in between.

"Your Hair Smells Like the Sunset"

Jamie Hardt, the amazing sound designer on our latest short You, Me and We, pointed out this ad campaign for Koleston Naturals hair products. It's a really smart and whimsical use of the environment and design. Creative Billboard notes:

In order to capture the natural aspects of their products, they used a billboard using nature itself to represent their product.  A perfectly placed billboard that uses the sunset and moonlight to illustrate their superior hair color products and change the hair color of the billboard.  

This is much more clever than a beauty shot of a model with great hair. What really made us smile is because in You, Me and We, there's a clone named Proctor with a creepy moustache. He welcomes Coco, a newcomer to the session with the compliment, "Your hair smells like the sunset."

Hello Bina48

Created by the Teresam Movement, Bina48 is a robot based on the physical features and intelligence of one the machine's owners, Bina Rothblatt.

This isn't artificial intelligence that is being developed by a huge technology company like Honda or iRobot, but a privately commissioned robot based out of a not-for-profit organization in a small Vermont town. The blonde wig on Bina48 isn't by chance either.

Beautiful Booze

Science isn't usually associated with artistry, but a closer inspection at every day objects can reveal a naturally occurring beauty that is usually overlooked. Bev Shots has produced these amazing photographs that are 35mm prints of alcoholic beverages put under a microscope. The colors and formations are truly - for lack of a better word - intoxicating. The company was founded by Lester Hutt, who has a background in chemistry. The vibrant molecular structures are shaped by the purity of the alcohol, in addition to the sugars and juices found in mixed drinks. 

Science can be whimsical and creative.

Seen here are: Margarita, Tequila and Rosé

All photos by BevShots.

From the Time Magazine Archives

This cover issue about cloning was published more than 15 years ago in 1993, detailing the strong public reaction when scientist Jerry Hall announced that he had taken 17 microscopic embryos and multiplied them into 48.

Click to read Cloning: Where Do We Draw the Line?

Big Vision on a Lil' Budget: The Red Machine

We love ambitious indie films that don't limit their creativity because of small budgets. Our friends, filmmakers Stephanie Argy and Alec Boehm, have a fantastic film playing now at the Edinburgh International Film Festival called The Red Machine. It's a feature set in 1935 depicting a U.S. military operation to steal a Japanese code machine. Period costumes, a great ensemble cast and careful use of visual effects all make The Red Machine really stand out.

Stephanie and Alec also have a great article on their blog about the use of matte paintings on the project, which were created digitally in Photoshop and After Effects. Check it out.

TWM > YMW

Here are some teaser pics for the short that was inspired by one of the scenes in Things We've Made. More to come later, promise!

Splice Slices into Theaters

An saw Splice at Sundance earlier this year and recommends checking it out. She described it as "morally indefensible," "awkwardly funny" and "entertaining." The sci-fi horror film follows two scientists (played by Adrien Brody and Sarah Polley) who secretly blend human DNA with animal DNA to raise a creature. What could happen?

Say hello to SYNTHIA

Dr. Craig Ventor, maverick biologist & entrepreneur (wanna know who pushed the human genome project - here's your guy), recently announced the design of a microbe from scratch. Nicknamed "Synthia", this marks the first documented account in the creation of artificial life.

Ethicists and Theologians globally are weighing in, calling it a "Pandora's box of ethical questions, including concerns that researchers are playing God, tampering with the very essence of life". It's a solid argument and one that should definitely be considered. But the fact of the matter is, we've been headed down this road for a long time.

In fact, consider this - humans have been altering genetic life since the invention of agriculture. Cross-pollinating seeds to form newer, more robust strains of foods.

The question isn't if we should continue, but how. With proper funding and motivated, forward-thinkers like Ventor, we can set up safeguards for protection against the negative exploitations of such technologies. And yes - there are many: biological weapons, potentially toxic agricultural crops and of course, the ever-impending grey-goo swarm.

But think about the positive impacts: advances in medicine, fuel production and the flip-side of the agricultural coin.

A few years ago, when he first publicized his endeavors in this direction, Dr. Ventor used a more prescient example for this technology's use - introducing manmade, eco-friendly, algae into an environment to eat/fend off toxins. If that promise still holds true, there's a certain body of water off the Louisiana Coast that jump at the chance to cuddle up with Synthia...

Meet Amy French and Jeff Parise

As mentioned before, we shot a few scenes from the script for the Directors Lab which gave us the chance to work with two amazing actors: Amy French and Jeffrey Vincent Parise.

Beyond a versatile set of acting chops, Amy is a talented writer/director (look for her feature directing debut El Superstar: The Unlikely Rise of Juan Francés out this summer). We knew she could bring an ethereal depth to the role of Tamaran. Jeff, who is also a painter and director in his own right, played the role of mild-mannered Christopher. For Jeff, this role was a departure from many previous roles as criminals or off-the-wall, morally questionable characters.

There's nothing quite like hearing actors take the words you've written and say them out loud for the first time. Even though it was an exterior shoot on what seemed like the coldest night in LA in a long time, Amy and Jeff brought these characters to life and reminded me why I started all of this to begin with.

21•C Magazine Rises Again

In the '90s, there was a magazine called 21•C created by the Australian Commission For The Future (a short-lived governmental organization). Regarded as an Aussie version of Wired that was more high-brow and less conservative, the publication focused on technology, science and social issues that would affect the near future. Contributors and interviews featured the likes of R.U. Sirius, William Burroughs, Mike Davis, Philip K. Dick, J.G. Ballard and much much more. Sadly, the magazine folded in 1999, ceasing to continue into the century it was named after. Until now.

 21•C is back from the dead with a website and a new online issue titled Apocalypse Noir. Editor Ashley Crawford explains Apocalypse Noir as, "...the trend toward the apocalyptic, or at the least extremely dark – in contemporary writing. If earlier 21•C’s tended toward the darker aspects of cyberpunk, then the newer crop of writers have given up any pretense of a happy ending. Good luck!"

The site also features amazing archives from the much-loved print editions.

The Van

The test trailer for Things We've Made featured this vehicle as the van that Christopher takes on his life-changing road trip. This trusty van also transported the crew from the urban landscapes of Dallas and through the deserts of West Texas while shooting these scenes. Since then, we've developed a certain fondness for vans and we've been thinking about the design of the film's picture vehicle. While researching, we came across this modification kit for the Volkswagen Bus called The Phoenix...

EU Rejects Clone Food Plan

AFP reports that on May 4th, an EU parliamentary committee rejected a proposal to allow food from cloned animals and their offspring onto the European market. However in the U.S., meat and milk from the offspring of cloned animals has been allowed into the American food supply since 2008 and do not require labels stating this distinction.

The Federal Dept. of Agriculture also produced this guide "Animal Cloning and the Food Safety" to reassure consumers that these animals are fit for human consumption. If there were labels on food, would you still eat these products?

Al Jarnow in person @ Cinefamily - 04/24/10

Al Jarnow is this amazing animator/alchemist/mathematician/sorcerer. If you watched Sesame St. in the late 70's - early 80's, I guarantee you'll remember his stuff. Just watching it gives me these crazy pre-natal feelings of nostalgia:



Cinefamily is screening his work this Sat, April 24th @ 7:30pm. Jarnow will be there in person.

Check out Cinefamily's website for more info:

http://cinefamily.org

This. Is. MindBlowing.

I had to share.

...And We're Back!

Sorry it's been quite a while for an update at the TWM blog, but we've been incredibly busy with the Film Independent Directors Lab. The amazing program gave us a very small budget to shoot three scenes from the script. It gave me the chance to experiment and play around on scenes that I wanted to flesh out more. Here's a still from the group therapy shoot. I'm  really happy with how everything turned out. Big thanks to all the crew who donated their time over the weekend and for the awesome cast that brought my clones to life.

1987 XMAS IN MARCH 2010

So one of my best friends, Joe Ballarini, showed up today with a bunch of old tech gear he wanted to donate to the film. In my wildest dreams I could never have imagined the awesome scope of epic radness that lay hidden in those 4 boxes. BEHOLD...

What we have here is the evolution of the poor man's gaming systems:

Intellivision, Commodore 64, Texas Instruments, Sega, Sega Genesis.

If Carter had won a second term, or Mondale had kicked ass in '84, these would be the systems kids remembered...

Archaeology Magazine Asks, "Should We Clone Neanderthals?"

Five years ago 454 Life Sciences in Branford, Connecticut partnered with the Max Planck Institute in Leipzig, Germany to sequence the full genetic code of a Neanderthal woman who died 30,000 years ago.

 Zach Zorich writes:

[John Hawks, a paleoanthropologist at the University of Wisconsin], believes the barriers to Neanderthal cloning will come down. "We are going to bring back the mammoth...the impetus against doing Neanderthal because it is too weird is going to go away." He doesn't think creating a Neanderthal clone is ethical science, but points out that there are always people who are willing to overlook the ethics. "In the end," Hawks says, "we are going to have a cloned Neanderthal, I'm just sure of it."

Read the complete article here.

Photo by:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mharrsch/ / CC BY-NC-SA 2.0

Living with Robots

One of the highlights of An's Sundance trip was being introduced to Asimo, Honda's "humanoid robot." Since Honda is one of the festival's sponsors, the child-sized droid made an appearance during the festival. Asimo was able to shake An's hand, wave back when she waved, and walk in the direction she pointed to. The company also premiered the documentary short "Living with Robots" at the festival, directed by Joe Berlinger of Radical Media. The film talks about the history of Asimo's development, how robots have been viewed by society and what the future holds with new technology. This is the sixth short as part of the Dream The Impossible series commissioned by Honda.

View it here:

EARTHLING

In the thick of the Directors Lab so I apologize for the posts being few and far between. Just wanted to clue people in to a trailer for what could be an interesting project...


EARTHLING, written and directed by Clay Liford, tells the story of a handful of individuals trapped on a space station who come to realize they may (or may not) be aliens.

It looks to be ambitious, thoughtful and (our fave 3 words) low budget sci-fi. It premieres at SXSW in March so if you're in Austin, check it out and let me know.

Heading to Sundance

Before you get too excited, Things We've Made isn't premiering at Sundance (yet), but producer An Tran is in Park City, Utah for this year's festival in an effort to get TWM -- made. Among the meetings, movie watching and parties, An was also invited to the Sundance Producer's Lunch. She reports that producer Lynette Howell (Half Nelson, The Greatest) offered an inspiring keynote speech:

Independent producing is not a job you can interview for, nor does anyone really give us a road map. But what we all have in this room is an entrepreneurial spirit that you cannot teach.

You can read the entire transcript of Howell's speech, here.

TWM Goes Back To The Lab For Further Scientific Studies...

Thrilled beyond belief to announce that Things We've Made will once again be participating in Film Independent's prestigious Filmmaker Lab series. Producer, An Tran was selected for the 2009 Producers Lab back in October. And now I'll be bringing our sad clones into the 2010 Directors Lab!

More info soon, but in the meantime...

http://www.filmindependent.org/content/directors-lab

49% of Americans Believe Cloning Organs To Be Routine By 2020

 

From Reuters: 

Many expect organ cloning could be routine by 2020

Forty-nine percent of 2,841 people questioned in a Zogby interactive survey said use of stem cells and cloned organs will be commonplace in the next decade.

"Also, more than one-third say it is likely by 2020 that computer chips will be implanted in humans, robots will perform manual labor, and virtual reality will be a staple of home entertainment," the polling group said in a statement.