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The Emoji Story

Staff Picks • 1h 19m

Directed by Martha Shane, Ian Cheney • Documentary • 2021 • 79 minutes

The rapid rise of emoji (Japanese for 'picture character') is a global phenomenon without precedent. Their widespread use and ability to convey complex messages have not only cemented emoji's place as an emerging digital language, but prompted difficult questions about the creation of a language and digital communication's fraught ties to identity and inclusion.

In THE EMOJI STORY, directors Martha Shane and Ian Cheney lead viewers on a deep dive into the ever evolving world of picture characters, from their humble beginnings in Japan to mobile keyboards the world over, and shed fresh light on the private consortium that approves new emoji offerings and the individuals fighting to make the language more representative of its billions of users.

'Enlightening...Clever...Everything you always wanted to know about emojis, but were afraid to ask.' Frank Scheck, Hollywood Reporter

Tags
"The Emoji Story", Angus King, Book of Kells, Bullfrog Films, Carmen Barlow, Craig Cummings, Dan Gould, Diane Gottsman, Francis Mason, Japan, Jennifer 8 Lee, Jeremy Burge, Lisa Moore, MOMA emoji installation, Mark Davis, Michael Everson, Paul Galloway, Petra Theman, Plan International, Rayouf Alhumedhi, Skigetaka Kurita, Susan Herring, Tyler Schnoebelen, Utopia Select LLC, colors, digital language, digital pictograms, emoji, emoji creator, emojination, emojipedia, emotions, head scarf, identity, inclusion, joy, language creation, language destruction, mate, new emojis, ovid, period pants, picture character, representation, skin tones, social media, social media campaign, unicode consortium

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