How can people with ADHD possibly enjoy movies if they daydream and can't focus on the movie?

Comments

• lepinkainen@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

  A good movie will keep your attention.

  Also watching it in the movie theatre where second screening is a social faux pas helps

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  • corsicanguppy@lemmy.ca ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

    Is “second screening” a name for people bringing bright screens into the theatre? Like, so they can watch tiktoks and disturb everyone else? Is every so ridiculously inconsiderate that they can’t even go to the movies anymore?

    I sense if I still went to the theatre after covid that I’d quickly hate something new about it.

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    • guynamedzero@piefed.zeromedia.vip ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

      “Second screening” is just when you’re doing something on one screen, (watching YouTube, playing a game, etc), and you’re also doing something on another screen at the same time, (browsing Lemmy, watching a move, etc)

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• Rhynoplaz@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

  You should do some real research on this.

  Your understanding of ADHD is so far off, this question doesn’t even make sense for many of us.

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• brucethemoose@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

  It doesn’t work like that.

  I hyperfocus on movies, personally. I literally can’t go to sleep watching them.

  When I was younger, and I’d watch movies with a big group of friends, I’d always be the last one to turn it off as the credits roll, and they’re all snoozing away.

  ---

  Now… if my brain had some other thing it decided to be preoccupied with, focusing on the movie is a forgone conclusion.

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• sbeak@sopuli.xyz ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

  I don’t have ADHD, but I can tell you that most people with the condition aren’t constantly daydreaming. They can watch a film.

  In order to watch a film, you have to actually pay attention.

  I don’t know if it was the intent, but this gives me bad vibes. You are implying that they are rude because they have ADHD.

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  • HoneyMustardGas@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

    Yeah, having ADHD isn’t always about paying attention, sometimes it is about distraction which is completely different than paying attention.

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  • DarkMayhemXIII@sopuli.xyz ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

    You are implying that they are rude because they have ADHD

    I didn’t say they were ‘rude.’ Them not paying attention to a movie does not affect anyone else. I’m not saying that’s ‘rude.’ I’m saying not paying full attention to a movie, a play, a show, or whatever is a waste of time and no way to watch a film.

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    • anon137@piefed.social ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

      who the fuck are you to judge how someone else can spend their time when it has no impact on anyone else

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    • sbeak@sopuli.xyz ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

      Still, your point is that those with ADHD simply cannot watch a film because “they can’t pay attention” and that it is a “waste of time” for them doesn’t feel right to me.

      As somebody who happens to be neurodivergent as well (ASD), I’ve heard my fair share of similar comments used in a negative connotation.

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    • Psythik@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

      Well that’s exactly why I don’t watch a lot of movies. If it isn’t the most interesting thing I’ve ever seen, then I’m not going to be able to pay attention to it no matter how hard I try.

      Unfortunately that applies to EVERYTHING in an ADHD person’s life. Chores are boring, which is why we’re messy. Our brains treat boring tasks as a sentence worse than prison time. Really makes it difficult to hold down a job, and can lead to ADHD people using various drugs to artificially give themselves the dopamine they need to be functional adults. Neurotypical brains have plenty of it, which is why they’re able to get shit down without any sort of chemical influence. Dopamine is the motivator, and the ADHD brain is constantly starved of it.

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• Kolanaki@pawb.social ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

  I can’t watch a movie if it’s boring.

  I can hyperfocus on one that isn’t.

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  • BenLeMan@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

    Note that boring is a very subjective assessment but yes, interest is key.

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• Blackfeathr@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

  This exact question was asked by user Darth like two months ago. Almost exactly word for word. 🤔

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  • MonaySimpson@lemmy.ml ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

    From one of their 4 posts “Is it possible for someone in America to not know who Cristiano Ronaldo or Lionel Messi is?”.

    So I’d say yes.

    Or possibly they are 14

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  • FreshParsnip@lemmy.ca ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

    One of the posts on this account also brings up age gaps

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• watson387@sopuli.xyz ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

  Watch a movie you’re actually interested in.

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• phoenixarise@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

  The movie has to keep my interest. If it’s not interesting to me, I just cannot focus.

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• derek@infosec.pub ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

  The reason this is attracting flame is mostly that you’ve included assertions in your question.

  There is no “right” way to experience art, people with ADHD are not a monolith, and ADHD is symptomatically diverse.

  I believe the heart of your question, if presented in good faith, is “do people who experience movies differently than I do still enjoy movies?” and the only correct answer is: it depends on the person.

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• BradleyUffner@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

  Since of us have no trouble focusing on a movie. Personally, I feel like I tend to focus more than most typical people.

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• supermurs@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

  I have the tendency to start looking into things within the movie. I’ll look into what car they are driving, the city they are living in etc. If I don’t pause the movie, I will miss a lot while I’m on the quest.

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  • real_squids@sopuli.xyz ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

    I don’t have adhd and that’s pretty normal to me. There’s so much detail in a (good) movie it would be a disservice not to pick all the details apart.

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• mavu@discuss.tchncs.de ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

  watch movies that are not boring?

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• Psythik@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

  Here’s the neat thing: I don’t. I have to watch movies with the girlfriend next to me to explain things. And I often re-watch things too to catch the things I missed the first or second time around.

  On the bright side, if I’m rewatching something I haven’t seen in a long time, it’s completely new to me again.

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• wreckedcarzz@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

  I already paid $18 for the ticket and $14 for a 10oz drink with 9oz of ice, and now you expect me to pay attention, too?!

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  • modus@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

    That’ll be $12 please.

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• snooggums@piefed.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

  Back in middle and high school I would get so hyperfocused on novels and read them in a single day. This was well before getting diagnosed and starting meds. Hyperfocus is absolutely a thing.

  If a movie is engrossing then I don’t get distracted. It might be due to being good, or just interesting, or maybe it is doing a great job of making me anticipate something without giving it away so my mind gets to do some speculation but when well made it pulls me right back into it.

  I only lose interest when the plot is obvious and has been done a bunch before or the way they are doing it pulls me out of the movie. Badly done jump scares that are obviously there to be surprising will break my immersion.

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• NotASharkInAManSuit@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

  If there is an actual interest in something then it’s not hard to do, if it’s something you have no interest in then you’re not going to be able to maintain focus.

  I can watch, focus on,enjoy, and dissect Tetsuo: The Iron Man, Blade Runner, or Event Horizon because that’s my bag, but Lawrence of Arabia, Citizen Kane, or any sort of biopic can all fuck right off.

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• webghost0101@sopuli.xyz ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

  1. I rarely watch tv cause i can’t pay attention.
  2. When watching anything its usually short form content, i keep going back and forward sometimes on (twice speed) and may watch a video over multiple sessions.
  3. i may pause in the middle of watching, a 30 min show, spend and hour researching a tiny detail on my phone and then go back.
  4. i cannot pay attention to watch while eating unless its at a desk.
  5. i can watch a +1h movie that is interesting enough with others in a single sitting but i will be mentally exhausted and in need of a break after.

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• Swaus01@piefed.social ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

  Good question

  • First let’s clarify how I’m actually watching films:

  I am very discerning as to whether I’ll enjoy a film or not. Currently I will only go to the cinema or sit down to watch something in one sitting if I know I’ll like it.

  Nowadays I have the privilege of getting to put something on from Netflix, then browse my phone - if it’s good, I’ll put my phone down. If it’s bad, I stop the film. No chance for daydreams there.

  • The “talking over the top of it” strategy.

  My sister, I think, introduced me to the idea that you can make jokes about a film while watching, and make people laugh. I loved doing that as a kid. A bit too much. I massively disrupted my middle school film club by talking through most films. Feels bad. But with the right company it’s hilarious, it’s good for rowdy film watching sessions with your friends. Nowadays I know how to limit myself and do it to a more charming, non-interruptive, frequency.

  • snacks maybe?

  I don’t need snacks for films but I think some people choose snacks on the basis of needing them to actually enjoy and focus on the film/ get into the mood of it.

  • Personally: I just like films

  I don’t daydream often when in a task, and movies actually feel like a task. Since watching a movie has dialogue, it feels like being talked to, and that helps not daydream

  Movies probably are the daydream to our brain in that moment. They probably help to encourage daydreaming, and by extension, control over daydreaming, among all types of people.

  There must be some movies that would see people daydream in, though. Too boring. But as I said earlier I’m super picky about what I’ll watch. I stopped watching The Prestige earlier just because the sound mixing was bloody awful.

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• Arcanepotato@crazypeople.online ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

  ADHD means I am incapable of paying attention to something unless my brain decides I should be paying attention to it. I love watching a very slim collection of movies lol.

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• new_world_odor@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

  If the movie is interesting, I have little problem focusing. But sometimes no matter how interesting it is, I have squirrel moments anyway. If I’m at home, simple, just rewind. Being in a theater helps a lot - the environment helps the brain focus on the screen. If I have a problem paying attention to a movie in a theater, it’s probably just not very good.

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• Twinklebreeze@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

  Someone asked almost this exact question about a month ago. It was a stupid question then, too.

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  • Swaus01@piefed.social ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

    The sub name isn’t “no stupid questions allowed!” it’s “no questions are considered stupid here.”

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• Zannsolo@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

  Really bad ADHD with an super ability to hyper focus I love movies, and books. I could literally read a book I like in one sitting nite the code I’m working on right now is boring so I’m having a crazy difficult time working on it.

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• LunarLoony@lemmy.sdf.org ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

  Subtitles.

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• trackball_fetish@lemmy.wtf ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

  So its not as bad since I’m medicated but when I was young I would have to watch a movie uhhh like 6 or 7 times to get the whole thing because I’d either fall asleep or start thinking about something else.

  Reading was incredibly aggravating because I’d read a few sentences, eyes scanning the words and all before realizing I was daydreaming, start over, same shizz again 🫠

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• AstroLightz@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

  I daydream a lot when I watch film and TV. It’s usually about me self-inserting myself into the story. So, while I daydream, I “follow” what’s happening on the screen.

  I still enjoy the stuff I watch when this happens. Plus, this mainly happens during parts of the film/show I enjoy, like fight scenes or confrontations.

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• queermunist@lemmy.ml ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

  I haven’t watched a movie in ten years.

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• ickplant@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

  If I’m home, I knit during movies and take frequent breaks. Yes, I routinely miss chunks of the story because I’m distracted.

  I rarely see movies in the theater, precisely because it’s hard to focus. Some movies grab my attention, then I hyper focus and it’s not a problem.

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• Rocketpoweredgorilla@lemmy.ca ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

  Watch it several times. (Not necessarily in a row) Each time it’s like a whole new movie because of all the stuff you didn’t notice before.

  I half joke there, but until I was in my 40’s I never could sit still long enough to watch an entire movie from start to finish. Still enjoyed a lot of them, just in bite size pieces.

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• HoneyMustardGas@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

  I have ADHD and I have trouble even watching really exciting movies. I prefer 45 mins episodes of shows to movies. That being said I have to use a lot of willpower to sit down and force myself to watch them.

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