Author: Tamara Mrázová

Max Joseph, a name synonymous with cinematic creativity and innovation, has left an indelible mark on the world of film. He delighted his audience with the newest documentary “15 minutes of shame” directed by him in cooperation with Monica Lewinsky. He visited Slovakia, and we got the unique chance to meet him. In the interview, he mentioned: Why he chose Slovakia, His biggest inspiration when filmmaking, His journey to become a director, His own definition of success. What did you expect from Slovakia? I had studied in Prague for four months when I was 20 years old. I spent a lot of time travelling the Czech Republic and was always curious about Slovakia. I also have a cousin who lives in Prague, so I am happy to go visit him after my tour in Slovakia. I am even interested into making a movie about Czechoslovakia during World War 1, which led to Czechoslovakia becoming a democratic state. I was immediately excited to do some research on that, by simply coming here. What was your biggest inspiration when creating a movie about online bullying and behavior on social media? In past years I witnessed the rise of online toxicity and hatred in the form of trolling, pylons, revenge porn, harassment. It was gradually getting worse and worse, turning into a fever. Nowadays, normal people are getting sucked into the anger and the outrage daily, it’s almost like a phenomenon. There exists this kind of anger that is meant to tear anyone apart. Sometimes deservedly so, and sometimes not. I was curious about what happened to all of the individuals shown in the movie. I wanted to know what is it like to be in the eye of storm and what truths about humanity could that discover. “Why do we like seeing people getting taken down? What is it in us that makes us like that kind of stuff?” We needed 90 minutes to uncover all of the hidden systems of the online world. What kind of content gets amplified and why, how do social media companies benefit from drama, but primarily, how can we let this perfect storm grow and incubate all over the world. Can you describe your journey into filmmaking? I used to be a child actor for a while. I was in the school plays and went to some auditions. What really prevailed was my uncle working for Jim Henson. He made his career look so much fun, not like the boring jobs of other adults. I wanted to discover the magic behind the filmmaking. Instead of playing video games like my peers, I would use my dad’s camera to film little scenes and them put them to music using my computer. That is how I got into editing. I always had one and only question: Who is this mysterious person whose name is the most important name in a movie, and yet, you never see them? “It all starts with the coolest hobby from your friend group and develops into something big.” What are the biggest life challenges that you have to overcome? It was the whole realization that maybe I bit off more than I could chew. The overthinking thoughts that maybe I’ve misspent all this money. Maybe I’m going to let everyone down. Maybe it’s all taking me too long, and now I have to make it all even better when I finish it. It is a never-ending spiral. You can’t train yourself into getting used to it. With all of this worrying, I always need to keep in mind, that I have been in these struggling positions before, and I always got through them. It might take longer than you expected, but you have to keep on going. That’s the process. How would you motivate young people striving for success? It all depends on how you define success. Getting the success is one thing, but continuing to be successful requires a lot more than just a hustle. Hard work and drive can only take you so far before you burn out. Especially, if you are a film person, you have to make sure you are experiencing non film-related things in your life. It’s tempting to only focus on what you love. Get out of your comfort zone and indulge into different topics. If you don’t know anything about living life, you’re not going to make good movies about living life. Go and put yourself out there. “Have a real life. Do things in real life. Make mistakes and fail in real life.”

Infestival of 2024 in Slovakia did not disappoint a single participant. Hundreds of people came to gain some valuable information about the world of a famous business social platform called Linked in. We enjoyed the meaningful talks and interesting speeches given by famous Linked in speakers. One of whom, was a well known star of mentioned social site- Jasmin Alić. We got a chance to interview him. He talked about: his career experience, benefits of his job, Linked in power, effect of social media on others. What do you do for living? Right now, I’m a content coach specifically for Linked in creators. I used to be a copywriter and I believe that is what most people know me for. I am still one though, but my main stream is the Linked in coaching. I have to tell, it’s going amazingly well. What are the best aspects of your job? The thing I love the most is definitely the flexibility I am given. I can pick my “when”, my “where”, my “how” and my “how much” as well. For me this aspect is more than crucial, since I am a single father and I spend 90% of my time with my son. Another aspect I enjoy would be the fact that I am able to reach people in places I couldn’t have imagined existed before. ” I SIMPLY ENJOY THE FUN THAT COMES WITH MY JOB.” Have you met anyone special thanks to Linked in? Honestly, I meet so many amazing people every single day online. Whether it’s the ones with whom I want to work or just simply my followers in the comment section. Then later, when you finally get to meet them in person, you feel like you have a genuine relationship with them. For example Richard van der Blom is one of the biggest Linked in stars on the planet. We’ve known each other for years but we have never sat down in person. This conference is the first time we had a chance to do that and the connection is simply there. “I DISCOVERED THE BEAUTY OF NETWORKING.” What are the tips you would give someone, when starting a Linked in profile? The most important thing is to pick a lane, where the person feels strongest at. Don’t post anything about everything. Giving your audience 15 different topics, makes it hard for them to connect with you. They don’t know what to follow you for. Pick two or three themes and stick to them. The other thing is investing your time into commenting every single day. Engage with the audience. A lot of people simply don’t understand the power of comments. Everyone feels like they need to post, but that is not necessarily true. The best way to increase your reach is networking and connecting with others. “Linked in is different from other platforms, because it thrives on building relationships instead of consuming content.” What is your favourite social media? I’m not going to say this just because it’s my job, but it truly is Linked in. It’s definitely because other platforms make you feel bad. People there feel discouraged. It’s a constant drama and negativity. On the other hand, here, on Linked in, everyone tries to represent themselves the best way possible. They get to have civilised conversations, be nice to each other and show what they are good at. What I also love about Linked in is that people post for free. I can learn from world’s greatest experts. For instance, I learned how to sell without selling. To this day I have never written a sales post nor mentioned my services in a single post. I understood that if people like you, they are willing to work with you and they reach out first. What was your dream job when you were a kid? I always wanted to be a rapper. I’ve already accomplished that. I was touring, having concerts, appearing in newspapers and television every day. But after a while, even though I enjoyed that job, I realised that that particular lifestyle wasn’t for me. I simply redirected my creativity elsewhere into marketing and copywriting.