A while back Uncanny Magazine filmed a pilot for Uncanny TV, a geek-focused talk show featuring hosts Michi Trota and Matt Peters and guests Keisha Howard, Daniel Jun Kim and musical guest Dawn Xiana Moon. I cut it together and you can watch it above!
Recently I’ve posted about getting out of making videos and moving more towards writing. Since then I’ve been doing a bunch of writing (you may have seen a couple of whimsical fanfics) but in the warm-up to the Radio Free Skaro live show at Gallifrey One, I put together this little number:
It got such a good response, with people cheering and laughing in the audience and Doctor Who fans saying such nice things about it online, that it’s encouraged me to rethink my previous trepidation towards filmmaking.
But it’s important to note that filmmaking will not be the dominant thing I do. I think the best approach is to tackle creative work in as many mediums as possible; comics, prose, film and audio. Not only will I learn more but it’ll expose my work, for better or for worse, to a wider array of people.
I would like to thank everyone who emailed or commented on how much they liked the video. It really means a lot.
P.S. I can’t take all the credit. The opening “Thames” ident was the work of Mel Siermaczeski.
I spent my Sunday talking to web series creators attending VCON, Vancouver’s renowned scifi convention. The convention is 36 years old, but like most sci fi types they’re always excited about new ideas like web series, especially since this new medium gives creators a chance to make science fiction and fantasy stories for a new and quite devoted audience. I recorded the panel, which I’ve included in this post, and I also interviewed a few creators on camera, so expect to see some segments going up over the next couple of weeks.
I’m also using this as a sort of testing ground for a new web show idea I’ve been kicking around. I’d like to experiment and come up with my own show dealing with movies, web series, tech, gadgets and other nerdy stuff, so I’ll probably be putting up lots of different bits and pieces before the show coalesces into its final form.
For now, enjoy the panel, and let me know if you want to hear and see more about web series, local and otherwise.
And if you’re interested in the shows that participated on the panel, check out:
Standard Action
Border Guardians of Akernon
Glitch
Mind My Brains, Darling
Causality
Lately I’ve been looking into the web series phenomenon, given my proclivities towards sticking it to the man and/or making cool things with video and computers. Here’s a few good ones to whet your appetite.
First of, here’s the Guild, the gold standard by which all other web series are judged….
and here’s Standard Action, which is filmed right here in Vancouver…
and for something a little less fantasy-oriented, here’s Andy and Chaz Bugger Off to America, a sort of Guy Ritchie meets Entourage tale of two hapless and murderous criminals from the UK who cause trouble in LA…
And finally here’s some sci-fi goodness in the form of the Mercury Men. Unfortunately, you can’t watch the series unless you’re in the US or have a proxy, so here’s the trailer.
Got any more favourites? Tell me about them in the comments!
Precisely none of you may be wondering how we make FruityGamer here at Freyburg Media. Well, I’m here to tell you the thinking, process and methodology I used. My methods and tools may differ from what’s available to you, but you’ll at least get a general idea as to how to pull of your own video podcasts.
When myself and my business partner made “This is Yaletown” we did so thinking the internet would soon push up its production values to the levels of television, and that we’d better be ahead of the curve. But in fact this has not proven to be the case. People watch internet shows for many reasons, but slick production values (to a point) doesn’t seem to be a necessary part of the equation.
I figured that given my experience creating Radio Free Skaro there was no reason I couldn’t create similar podcasts on video and in audio form, and do so in such a way that they’re quick and easy to make.
Andrew Marr, host of the excellent Start the Week and former political editor for the BBC doesn’t like bloggers. While I see his point about abusive, nonsensical and and angry commenters, his outright dismissal of new media as a legitimate medium is laughable at best.
More to the point, it’s the typical elitist broadcasting reaction to a democratized media world. The playing field, while still imperfect, is much more level than ever before, and traditional broadcasters do not like the fact that they now face competition from all corners. Some of that competition is indeed “pimply, aggressive and single” but that’s always been true. The larger point is that the self-appointed position of cultural curator has been snatched from the hands of broadcasters and put into the hands of the people. It might not be pretty, but it’s reality, and no amount of bitching from upper-class talking heads will change that.
Having worked in broadcasting myself, I completely welcome this change. Broadcasting has its role and will continue to provide a valuable service, but it’s long past time we were able to create our own content, express our own opinions, and transmit our own shows. The expansion of mobile into every corner of our lives will only accelerate the process. And if Andrew Marr doesn’t like it, tough.
All indications point to “maybe.” But The Beast from Cupertino recently purchased a huge data center, and the possibility of Apple moving into the streaming video space would be a perfect fit for not only their rumored tablet device but also for the TV in your living room. Everyone hates the cable companies, and if Apple could do an end run around them, they could repeat their successful reshaping of the music industry Throw in saving print through the tablet and the ability for anyone to broadcast from anywhere and you’ve got a media revolution. Maybe.
It looks like web video series are finally hitting the big time, but not in the way the movie studios expected. Though TV networks and film conglomerates continue to try to appeal to an online audience, they do so with the same tired, lowest common denominator formulas that work n mass media, and the end result is pap like Quarterlife.
Enter The Guild. Created by Felicia Day, the web series chronicles the misadventures of a group of gamers involved in an MMO, or rather it milks the comic potential of what goes on beyond the game. The series has already been picked up by Xbox Live, and now a music video for the upcoming third series (which will also star geek hero Wil Wheaton) has hit over 1 million views, in addition to being the #1 tune on Amazon and iTunes.
How did this happen? Only a few years ago, this kind of traction just wouldn’t have been possible, but thanks to the internet, a small production company can target a sizable niche and actually do much better than studio product that targets everyone and pleases no-one. Plus the Guild just feels genuine, interacting with its audience about something they enjoy, rather than talking down to them and getting everything wrong.