Renowned film theorist, Jonathan Beller, has set forth an interesting theory, in which cinema has transformed into deterritorialized factories in which spectators work-i.e., they perform "value-productive labor" (Beller 1). Beller goes on to argue that corporations make a profit from other people's "looking". What does he mean by "looking?" I believe Beller implies that human attention to images is productive of economic value or capital. Below I will discuss some of the issues that arise with the concept of "Attention Economy." We live in an era in which life revolves around images and the competition for attention the re-defining how films are produced and exhibited. As access to content continue to grow, competition tends to limit the amount of information one consumes. So, as it relates to the body, in what way are our bodies asked to do Beller's value-productive labor? The answer lies in Thomas H. Davenport and J. C. Beck's definition of attention as: "Attention is focused mental engagement on a particular item of information (.) we attend to a particular item, and then we decide whether to act" (Davenport & Beck 20). What captures our attention today, is explicit to our personal preferences. That is, the information one consumes today is designed for customization or personalization to the point where an individual only sees what is relevant or of interest to him or her. Thus, we, as consumers, give the Media the power to create and manipulate user-specific content or images. If we constantly consume and demand certain products, images or advertising, we indirectly produce them at no extra cost to corporations. Another concern is that personalized filters like Google, Facebook and Netflix are limiting culture and news we're exposed to. Therefore, the same technology designed to give us unlimited access to the world and control over our day-to-day lives, is actually taking control away little by little.
