One of the signals we’re tracking in our Great Unrotting report is the shift away from passive content towards more intentional experiences that reward attention.

Alongside that is the rise of ‘friction maxxing’ — adding a bit of resistance back into culture to make it feel more valuable again. Less instant, more earned.

For a long time, culture has been optimised for ease. Endless choice, constant availability, and algorithms designed to remove any sense of effort. But when everything is frictionless, it often becomes forgettable.

What we’re seeing now is a growing appetite for the opposite. Experiences that ask something of the audience. That require a bit more commitment. That feel considered rather than consumed.

This feels like a good example.

The Little White Lies team is curating a short run of mystery screenings at the Rio Cinema, each presented on 35mm film.

No endless choice. No algorithm.
Just a room, a projector, and you only discover what the film is when the lights go down.

It’s a simple format, but that’s the point. By removing choice and reintroducing a sense of uncertainty, the experience becomes more deliberate, and ultimately, more rewarding.

Find tickets here, and to request The Great Unrotting zine here.