Inside America's dead shopping malls | Dan Bell

翻译人员: Mengyu Zheng 校对人员: Lipeng Chen

In the last couple of years,

在过去的几年里，

I have produced what I call "The Dead Mall Series,"

我制作了所谓的“废弃的商场系列”。

32 short films and counting about dead malls.

32部关于废弃商场的短片， 数量还在增加。

Now, for those of you who are not familiar with what a dead mall is,

如果你们不熟悉什么是废弃的商场，

it's basically a shopping mall

它就是一座商场，

that has fallen into hard times.

陷入了艰难的境地。

So it either has few shops and fewer shoppers,

所以要么它里面的商店和顾客越来越少，

or it's abandoned and crumbling into ruin.

要么它被弃置，坍塌成一片废墟。

No sale at Penny's.

Penny's不打折了。

(Laughter)

（笑声）

I started producing this series

我开始制作这个系列的时候

in early 2015

是2015年初，

after going through kind of a dark period in my life

在我经历了人生中的低谷之后，

where I just didn't want to create films anymore.

我那时候不想再做电影了，

I put my camera away

我收起了相机，

and I just stopped.

直接甩手不干了。

So in 2015, I decided to make a short film about the Owings Mills Mall.

在2015年，我决定做一个 介绍Owings Mills商场的短片。

Owings Mills Mall opened in 1986.

Owings Mills商场开业于1986年。

I should know because I was there on opening day.

我应该知道这个， 因为开业那天我就在现场。

I was there with my family,

我和我的家人一起，

along with every other family in Baltimore,

和巴尔的摩的每家每户一起，

and you had to drive around

你得开车绕来绕去

for 45 minutes

45分钟，

just to find a parking spot.

就为了找到一个停车位。

所以你能想象，

So if you can imagine,

that's not happening at the malls today.

今天的任何一个商场开业 都不会再有这样的盛况了。

My first mall job that I had as a teenager

我少年时期的第一份商场的工作

was at a sporting goods store called Herman's World of Sports.

是在一家叫“Herman的体育世界”的 运动用品店里。

Maybe you remember.

可能你记得。

(Singing) Herman's World of Sports.

（唱）Herman的体育世界。

You guys remember that?

你们记得这个吗？

(Laughter)

（笑声）

Yeah, so I worked in a lady's shoe store.

是的，我在女鞋店里工作过。

I worked in a leather goods store,

也在皮革制品店里工作过，

and I also worked in a video store,

还在影像店里工作过，

and not being one who was very fond of the retail arts --

作为一个并不是很喜欢 销售艺术的人——

(Laughter)

（笑声）

I got fired from every single job.

每一份工作我都被炒鱿鱼了。

(Laughter)

（笑声）

In between these low-paying retail jobs,

在这些薪水低廉的销售工作中，

I did what any normal teenager did

我做了90年代每一个正常的青少年

in the 1990s.

都会做的事。

I shoplifted.

我偷东西了。

I'm just kidding.

我开玩笑的。

我和我的朋友在商场里逛。

I hung out with my friends at the mall.

(Laughter)

（笑声）

Everyone's like, "Oh my God, what kind of talk is this?"

你们可能觉得，“我的天呐， 这是什么演讲啊？”

(Laughter)

（笑声）

Hanging out at the mall could be fun, but it could be really lame, too,

逛商场可能会很愉快， 但是也可能很没品，

like sharing a cigarette with a 40-year-old unemployed mall rat

比如和40岁的无业游民 分享一根香烟，

who has put on black lipstick for the night

而他昨天晚上还涂了黑色口红，

while you're on your break from your crappy minimum wage job.

而那时候你刚从最低 工资的工作中歇口气。

As I stand here today,

今天我站在这里的时候，

Owings Mills has been gutted

Owings Mills已经被彻底清空，

and it's ready for the wrecking ball.

拆迁的大锤已经准备好了。

The last time I was there, it was in the evening,

我最后一次去那里的时候是个傍晚，

and it was about three days before they closed the mall for good.

大概是他们关闭商场的三天前。

And you kind of felt --

你感觉好像——

they never announced the mall was closing,

商场倒闭的消息从未公开，

but you had this sort of feeling, this ominous feeling,

但你就是有这种感觉， 这种不祥的预感，

that something big was going to happen,

有什么事要发生了，

like it was the end of the road.

就像一条路走到了尽头。

It was a very creepy walk through the mall.

我在商场里走过了一段非常可怕的路。

Let me show you.

我给你们看一下。

(Music)

（音乐）

So when I started producing "The Dead Mall Series,"

当我开始制作“废弃的商场系列”时，

I put the videos up onto YouTube,

我把这些视频放在了YouTube上，

and while I thought they were interesting,

当时我觉得它们很有趣，

frankly I didn't think others would share the enthusiasm

可是说实话我不觉得 别人对于一个如此

for such a drab and depressing topic.

单调而压抑的话题也会感兴趣。

But apparently I was wrong,

但是很显然我错了，

because a lot of people started to comment.

很多人开始评论留言。

And at first the comments were like --

一开始留言是——

basically like, "Oh my God, that's the mall from my childhood.

基本上都是“哦我的上帝， 这是我小时候就在的商场。

What happened?"

发生了什么？”

And then I would get comments from people who were like,

然后我开始收到人们的留言，

"There's a dead mall in my town. You should come and film it."

“我们这儿也有个倒闭的商场， 你应该来拍一拍。”

So I started to travel around the mid-Atlantic region

于是我开始在中大西洋地区往来，

filming these dead malls.

拍摄这些倒闭的商场。

Some were open.

有些还开着门。

Some were abandoned.

有些已经被遗弃了。

It was kind of always hard to get into the ones that were abandoned,

想进入那些被遗弃的商场有点困难，

but I somehow always found a way in.

但是我总能找到办法进去。

(Laughter)

（笑声）

The malls that are still open,

那些还开着门的商场，

they always do this weird thing -- like the dead malls.

他们总会做一样的奇怪事情—— 像倒闭的商场一样，

They'll have three stores left,

他们会留下三家商店，

but they try to spruce it up

但是他们会尽量好好装扮，

to make it appear like things are on the up-and-up.

让这几家店看起来 蒸蒸日上的样子。

For example,

比如，

you'll have an empty store

你会看到一家空空荡荡的商店，

and they bring the gate down.

大门被拉下来了。

So at Owings Mills, for example, they put this tarp over the gate.

在Owings Mills，比如说， 他们给大门罩上防水布，

Right?

对吧？

And it's got a stock photo

然后上面有一张宣传照片，

of a woman who is so happy

一个看起来非常开心的女人，

and she's holding a blouse,

她拿着一件衬衫，

and she's like --

就像这样——

(Laughter)

（笑声）

And then there's a guy standing next to her, with, like,

然后她旁边站着一个男人，拿着

an espresso cup, and he's like --

一个咖啡杯，他就这样——

(Laughter)

（笑声）

And it says, "What brings you today?"

然后照片还写着，“哪阵风把你吹来了？”

(Laughter)

（笑声）

I wanted to be scared and depressed.

我是想要觉得害怕压抑的好吗，

Thank you.

拜托。

So the comments just kept pouring in

所以评论一直大量地涌来，

on the videos,

堆积在我的这些视频下面。

from all over the country, and then all over the world.

评论来自全国各地， 后来甚至覆盖到全世界。

And I started to think, this could really be something,

这让我开始思考，这可能是个好事，

but I had to get creative, because I'm like,

但是我必须有创意，因为，

how long are people going to sit and watch me waddling through an empty mall?

人们坐在那里看我在空荡荡的 商场里晃悠，能看多久？

(Laughter)

（笑声）

So the original episodes I filmed with an iPhone.

一开始的几集， 我是用苹果手机录下来的，

So I'd walk through the mall with an iPhone, and, you know.

我拿着手机在商场里走来走去，

Like that.

就像这样。

(Laughter)

（笑声）

And security -- because malls, they don't like photography --

保安们——因为这些商场， 他们不欢迎摄影——

so the security would come up and be like, "Put that away," and I'm like, "OK."

所以保安们就走过来说，“把那个收起来。” 然后我就说，“好好好。”

所以后来我必须更有想象力，更狡猾，

So I had to get creative and sneaky,

so I started using a hidden camera and different techniques

我开始用隐藏摄像头和不同的技术

to get the footage that I needed,

来获取我需要的素材。

and basically what I wanted to do

基本上我想做的，

was make the video

就是制作这个视频，

like it was a first-person experience,

会像第一人称角度的经历，

like you are sitting --

就像你坐着——

put your headphones on watching the screen --

戴着耳机，看着屏幕——

it's like, you're there in the video,

你就感觉自己在视频里面，

like a video game, basically.

基本上就在玩视频游戏。

I also started to use music,

我也开始用音乐，

collaborating with artists who create music called vaporwave.

和一些制作蒸汽波音乐的艺术家合作。

And vaporwave is a music genre

蒸汽波是一种音乐类型，

that emerged in the early 2010s among internet communities.

从2010年初开始在网络上流行。

Here's an example.

这里有一段。

(Music)

（音乐）

That's by an artist named Disconscious

这是一位名叫Disconscious的 艺术家制作的，

from an album he did called "Hologram Plaza."

在他的专辑《全息广场》中收录。

So if you look that up, you can hear more of those tunes.

如果你搜索一下， 会听到更多的这种曲调。

Vaporwave is more than an art form. It's like a movement.

蒸汽波不仅是一种艺术形式， 它更像是一场运动。

It's nihilistic, it's angsty,

它是无政府主义的，它是焦虑的，

but it's somehow comforting.

但是它也是舒缓的。

The whole aesthetic is a way of dealing with things you can't do anything about,

整个的艺术都是一种 面对你无能为力之事的方式，

like no jobs, or sitting in your parents' basement eating ramen noodles.

比如失业，比如坐在你父母的 地下室里吃方便面。

Vaporwave came out of this generation's desire to express their hopelessness,

蒸汽波被这一代人用来表达他们的绝望，

the same way that the pre-internet generation did

就像互联网出现前的人们

sitting around in the food court.

在美食广场里呆坐着一样。

One of my favorite malls

我最喜欢的商场之一，

I've been to

在我去过的商场里面，

is in Corpus Christi, and it's called the Sunrise Mall.

是在Corpus Christi一家 名叫日出商场的地方。

When I was a kid,

在我小的时候，

my favorite thing to do was watch movies,

我最喜欢做的事就是看电影，

and I used to watch movies over and over and over again.

我会把电影来来回回反复地看。

And one of my favorite films was "The Legend of Billie Jean."

而我最喜欢的电影之一 是《比利金传奇》。

Now, for those of you who have seen "The Legend of Billie Jean,"

你们当中看过《比利金传奇》的人，

都知道这是部伟大的电影，

you'll know that it's a great film.

I love it.

我很喜欢。

And Helen Slater and Christian Slater --

海伦·斯雷特和克里斯蒂安·斯雷特——

and if you didn't know, they are not related.

如果你不知道， 他们其实没有血缘关系。

Many people thought that they were brother and sister. They're not.

很多人以为他们是兄妹，但其实不是。

总之，日出商场作为拍摄地之一 出现在这部电影里。

But anyway, Sunrise Mall was used in the film as a filming location.

The mall is exactly the same as it was in 1984.

日出商场和1984年的样子一模一样。

We're talking 32 years later. Let me show you.

已经32年以后了，让我给你们看看。

(Video) Dan Bell: And here's Billie Jean running across the fountain,

（视频）丹·贝尔：比利金跑过喷泉，

being chased by Hubie Pyatt's friends.

被胡比·派特的朋友们追着。

And she jumps over here.

她从这里跳过去。

And you can see the shot right here is what it looks like today.

你能看到这里的镜头， 就和今天看起来一样。

It's pretty incredible.

这很神奇。

I mean, honestly, it's exactly the same.

我是说，真的，完全一样。

And there they are falling in the fountain,

还有这里他们落进喷泉里，

and she runs up the stairs.

她顺着楼梯跑上去。

This is a nice shot of the whole thing here.

这里的镜头把一切都拍得很好。

Dan Bell: I love that so much.

丹·贝尔：我太爱这个了。

(Laughter)

（笑声）

I always think in my head, if I owned a dead mall --

我一直在脑海里想， 如果我有一座倒闭的商场——

why don't they embrace their vintage look?

为什么不让他们 保留那些原始的样子呢？

Put in a bar,

开家酒吧，

like, put vegan food in the food court

在美食广场开一家素食店，

and invite millennials and hipsters

邀请千禧一代和嬉皮士们

to come and drink and eat,

来吃吃喝喝，

and I guarantee you within three weeks

我跟你保证三周以内，

H&M and Levi's will be banging on the door trying to get space.

H&M和李维斯都会砸着门想进来开店。

I don't know why they don't do this,

我不知道他们为什么不这么做，

but apparently,

但是很显然，

it's only in my mind, it goes all day.

这只是我的想象，整天都这样。

(Laughter)

（笑声）

Anyway, in closing --

总而言之——

(Laughter)

（笑声）

When they first asked me to do this talk,

当他们请我来做这个演讲的时候，

I said,

我说，

"Do you have the right person?"

“你们确定没找错人？”

(Laughter)

（笑声）

These talks are supposed to be kind of inspiring and --

这些演讲应该是发人深省的，而且——

(Laughter)

（笑声）

I remembered something, though.

有的事情我还是记得的。

I put my camera down three or four years ago,

我三四年前放下了摄像机，

and it took going to these malls

走过了这些商场

for me to be inspired again.

才再一次振奋起来。

And to see my audience

看到我的观众们，

and people from all over the world writing me and saying,

还有全球各地给我留言的人们说，

"God, I love your videos,"

“天啊，我爱你的视频，”

is incredible.

这感觉棒极了。

I don't know how to even explain it,

我甚至不知道怎么解释，

as an artist,

作为一名艺术家，

how fulfilling that is.

这是多么有成就感的事。

If you would have told me a year ago

如果你一年前告诉我，

that I would be standing on this stage

我会站在这个舞台上，

talking to all of you wonderful people,

给你们这些超棒的人演讲，

I would have never believed it.

我根本不会相信。

I am humbled

我很惭愧，

and so appreciative.

并且非常感激。

Thank you very much.

谢谢大家。

(Applause)

（掌声）