Steve Jobs on Digital Movies: Making Films You Can Share
What Jobs talks about
Jobs talks about the appeal of digital movies: not just recording more footage, but editing it into something short, emotional, and worth watching again. He describes combining clips, adding cross dissolves, titles, and music to create a film that can be shared with family and friends.
He uses his own experience making a short movie for his wife as an example of how powerful simple digital tools can be. For Jobs, the point is that digital media should help ordinary people turn everyday moments into meaningful creative work.
The conversation also touches on how far ahead Apple can plan. Jobs says the company thinks in roughly three-to-four-year windows because technology changes too quickly for long-range certainty.
An interviewer asks the questions; Jobs answers throughout.
In his words
“What you really want to do is to take it and turn it into a small film.”
“Then you can watch that film again and again.”
“You can send it to your family.”
“I don't think much about it.”
“That's the maximum distance we can see.”
Key points
- A camcorder is most useful when it helps you make a film, not just pile up footage.
- Short edited movies can be watched again and again and shared with family and friends.
- Tools like iMovie let more people become creative with video and music.
- Even simple edits—clips, cross dissolves, headings, and music—can create real emotion.
- Apple focuses on the next three or four years because the industry changes too fast for longer certainty.
Full transcript
%HESITATION I DON'T KNOW WHAT THE FUCK IS THAT sein Bro DO Not Like The BERT Hokie Seriously That It L- M- M- S- M- M- M- O M- M- M- M- O M- M- M- S- M- N- S- M- M- M- S- M- M- S- M- M- M- S- M- M- M- S- M- M- S- M- S- M- M- N- S- M- M- N- S- M- T- T- S- 3 N- N- S- M- T- T- S- M- N- N- N- S- M- T- S- N- M- N- N- N- S- N- M- N- S- M-
N- N- S- N- M- N- S- N- M- N- T- S- N- N- N- . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Do you have a camcorder? I have a camcorder, but it's not digital. But you have a camcorder. Yes, you record a lot of things.
Do you ever watch it again? Or is it always taped in the cupboard? Yes, it's hard to watch it again. You keep taking more and more. It's very boring. Because what you really want to do is to take it and turn it into a small film. Then you can watch that film again and again. You can send it to your family. You can send it to your friends. You can record it together. For example, I have children. I have four children. I made some scenes. I remember making my first movie. I combined the clips and added cross dissolves and headings. Then I took one of my favorite songs, added it and created a cover. I took about three minutes of the film. When I showed it to my wife, she started crying. But you have to be very dedicated. I don't know how many people are dedicated to making films and listening to digital music.
There may be people like you who are very digital. We can help. We now have more than 10 lakh viewers through iMovie. Some films may not be better than others. But they are all very emotional. However, our business is entirely independent. So far, we have not spoken to the people on that side. We have only spoken to the people who want to join us and write letters. But there is more to it than that. Through this digital lifestyle, I think we will start paying attention to other things that each of us do every day. That is, after 30 years, you said that you have become an old man in this business.
But how do you see yourself after 10 years? I don't know. My perspective is not that special. I don't know. I don't think much about it. I think about what will happen after 1 or 2 or 3 years. We have 4 or 5 years of plans. I will mostly see it for 3 or 4 years. Because things are changing very fast. You may be on a path. You may say that you want to be here for 5 years. But suddenly when something happens, you will say, leave it. I want to be there. Because some of the 5-year plans I have seen in my life are necessary. But most of them are changing very fast. Anyway, we are trying to see 3 or 4 years. That's the maximum distance we can see.
Anyway, your search for happiness continues. Definitely. Okay. Thank you very much, Steve. Thank you.
Transcribed from the audio with OpenAI Whisper. Timestamps link to the video above. Errors are possible.