The Cineteca Nacional, Mexico’s national film repository, is known as one of the country’s national treasures. Founded in 1974, it has been a key entity is preserving and documenting cinematographic art. The official Twitter account boasts over 3 million followers, but this week began to trend due to an impostor account and a joke many have claimed as tasteless.
The tweet in question stated the following (in Spanish): “On Friday, September 2nd, we will have a chat with North American actor Philip Seymour Hoffman using a Ouija board, 5:00pm, Room 2″. The account, clearly mimicking the real Cineteca Nacional (and using the same description and similar handle), began to gather steam, created anger and confusion amongst users who thought it was the real account.
The tweet that angered Mexican Twitter users, and was deemed as ‘tasteless’. -Twitter
A Ouija, also known as a spirit board or talking board, is a tool used by spiritualists who believe they can communicate with the dead. The parody account, using the format of a usual interview announcement made by the ‘Cineteca’, made a joke poking fun at the actor being dead and this being the only means of communication with him.
The tweet in question had over two thousand interactions, many of which were negative. Ranging from “I get dark humor, but this ain’t it” and “WTF”, to “this is really messed up, let the dead rest”.
Hoffman: a tragic death that left an enormous film legacy
Philip Seymour Hoffman was only 46 years old when he was found dead in the bathroom of his Manhattan apartment on February 2nd, 2014. The world mourned the loss of the Academy Award winning actor, and his memory still lives on through the dozens of films he featured in. He was once described by CNN as being “the most in-demand character actor of his generation”.
His supporting work, in particular, gained critical acclaim: Scent of a Woman (1992), Twister (1996), Boogie Nights (1997), Patch Adams (1998), The Big Lebowski (1998), Magnolia (1999), The Talented Mr. Ripley (1999), Almost Famous (2000), and Along Came Polly (2004). Once he started to be the lead, the praise only went further and he won an Oscar for his portrayal of Truman Capote in Capote (2005).
