The Rise and Rise of BitCoin

1) WHAT INSPIRED YOU TO MAKE A FILM ABOUT BITCOIN?

My brother, Daniel Mross, became very involved in Bitcoin mining in 2011 and it was all he could talk about. As a filmmaker, I decided to start capturing his story, and I quickly developed an interest in Bitcoin myself. The film just expanded from there as the popularity of Bitcoin grew, and we traveled all over, meeting the top Bitcoin entrepreneurs and enthusiasts.

2) FOR SOMEONE WHO IS NOT FAMILIAR, CAN YOU TELL US IN LAYMAN’S TERMS WHAT IS A BITCOIN?

Bitcoin is a peer-to-peer digital currency, meaning it is controlled by individuals and not tied to a central authority. It is a fully transparent monetary system, where each transaction is posted to a public ledger which is shared and maintained on a network of computers. Using Bitcoin, you can send money over the internet to anyone in the world as easily as you can send an email.

3) WHAT DO YOU THINK MAKES BITCOIN SUCH A FAST-GROWING REVOLUTIONARY CURRENCY AND TECHNOLOGY?

Bitcoin is a great advancement as a payment system, especially for the billions of people around the world who don’t have access to a bank account. But just as important is the cryptography behind Bitcoin, which has the potential to significantly change the way our society functions.

A technology like this has never existed before, and the idea of taking control away from centralized authority structures and bringing it back to individuals is very powerful. Think of how Email or Facebook changed communication, and now imagine that happening with money…

4) WHAT KIND OF PREPARATION AND RESEARCH DID YOU DO PRIOR TO SHOOTING?

The majority of my research actually occurred while we were shooting. Bitcoin is such a complex subject that I was constantly learning more about it as filming progressed. In addition, our documentary unfolded as time went by so I was constantly chasing the latest story and news related to Bitcoin and therefore preparation was never ending.

5) WHAT ARE SOME OF THE DIFFICULTIES YOU AND YOUR TEAM FACED DURING PRODUCTION, AND HOW DID YOU OVERCOME THEM?

The biggest challenge in making this project was learning the ins and outs of Bitcoin, so that we were able to make the most comprehensive documentary possible. Bitcoin was, and continues to be, an ever-changing subject matter with an unknown future. Because of that, we filmed anything and everything we possibly could and never turned down an opportunity. New developments were happening practically every day, so by the end of production, the challenge became, “When do we stop filming?”

Gaining the trust of the Bitcoin community was probably the other most difficult challenge we faced during production. Many Bitcoiners are naturally guarded and private with their lives, but we were lucky enough to break through that barrier and capture the true story.

I think the big factor here was that we were filming early enough so people didn’t see us as a “band wagon” documentary, but instead, filmmakers that truly cared about the potential of Bitcoin.

6) HOW WAS IT WORKING WITH YOUR BROTHER, DAN MROSS, AND TELLING HIS SIDE OF THE STORY?

My brother and I have wanted to work together on something for the longest time, and this turned out to be the perfect collaboration. I won’t lie, we had our moments when having a camera constantly rolling became a little old. It can be tough mixing filming and family life, but we knew this was a once in a lifetime opportunity, and my brother was always willing to go the extra mile for the greater good of the project.

7) HAVE YOU COME ACROSS ANY ANTI-BITCOINERS DURING THE FILMMAKING PROCESS? AND WHAT WOULD YOU LIKE TO TELL THOSE PEOPLE WHO ARE INITIALLY SKEPTICAL ABOUT BITCOINS?

We reached out to a few skeptics of Bitcoin and included some of their opinions in the film. They were hard to find, and many who are anti-Bitcoin wouldn’t be on camera because of the risk of Bitcoin proving them wrong. Bitcoin can be an extremely intimidating concept to grasp and it’s still in an experimental stage, so most people are understandably cautious. Many have predicted the end of Bitcoin, but time and time again it’s proven resilient and only grown bigger and stronger.

One of our biggest goals in making this film was to help the general public expand their knowledge of Bitcoin in an informative and entertaining way.

8) WERE THERE ANY FOOTAGE OR SPECIFIC SCENES THAT WERE LEFT IN THE EDITING ROOM THAT YOU THINK WOULD HAVE BEEN BENEFICIAL TO INCLUDE IN THE FILM?

Absolutely! Bitcoin is too big a topic to condense to a 90 minute story. We have hours upon hours of extra footage that unfortunately couldn’t make the final cut, and hopefully we’ll get a chance to release those stories as well.

9) DURING THE FILMMAKING PROCESS, WHAT WAS ONE THING YOU LEARNED OR SURPRISED YOU? WHAT WILL YOU TAKE AWAY FROM THIS EXPERIENCE?

Oddly, the one thing that surprised me the most was how willing people were to be on camera. Sure, we had plenty of people ask to not be filmed, but we had many more that were enthusiastic about the opportunity to be in a documentary on Bitcoin. I think because the subject matter is so cutting edge and there’s so much momentum behind Bitcoin, people were just excited to be a part of it.

10) WHAT WOULD YOU LIKE THE AUDIENCE TO TAKE AWAY FROM THE FILM AND BITCOIN?

Bitcoin is incredibly innovative and has the potential to bring positive change to millions around the world. We hope the audience will learn about the possibilities of digital currency and the early innovators fighting to make it happen. Ultimately, we made this documentary for the faithful Bitcoin community, and hope they enjoy watching it as much as we enjoyed making it.

source: http://www.cryptoarticles.com/crypto-news/kewe9br6y5mnob3eeop6lnw7em2w13

The Rise and Rise of BitCoin