Underplayed Gems

Paperback Dreams (2008)

Paperback Dreams poster
Directed by
Alex Beckstead
Genre
documentary film
Country
United States
Runtime
57 min
Elsewhere
IMDb
The 3D catalogue: film cases on wooden shelves, with the cat sitting at the counter next to its greeting.

The catalogue in 3D

The film shelves have a room of their own that you can walk around in. The cat behind the counter is the AI Catbot, and they pick real films from the same catalogue when you tell them what you feel like watching. Nothing is for sale, here or in there. Go in from here and this film is already out on the counter, with more like it waiting on the shelf next to it.

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How it feels

This documentary follows two independent bookstore owners in California over two years as they try to keep their businesses alive. It shows their struggles against chain stores and changing reading habits.

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What happens

Paperback Dreams is a 2008 television documentary film about the fate of bookstores in the new economy, that was part of the KQED (San Francisco's PBS station) documentary film series, Truly CA. It is "the story of two landmark independent bookstores and their struggle to survive. The film follows Andy Ross, owner of Cody's Books, and Clark Kepler, owner of Kepler's Books, over the course of two tumultuous years in the book business." Publishers Weekly notes that Beckstead became interested in the topic after becoming a "fan" of Cody's and Kepler's. While working in Menlo Park, California, he frequently shopped at Kepler's. Beckstead stated: "When I heard Kepler's was closing [briefly in 2005], I was shocked: it's in one of the most affluent, educated cities in America—just 15 minutes from Stanford University—and it made me realize that if an independent bookstore couldn't survive there, there must be a larger story." After making the documentary, Beckstead stated that he discovered "four elements essential to the survival of an independent bookstore: Own your own building [...] Hire experienced staff [...] Sell used books [...] Figure out some way to sell books online." (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

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