Liz Shannon Miller, based in Los Angeles, is a writer for the screen and the web, her work including G4's Attack of the Show and the tech blog GigaOM. She also co-hosts the podcast Timey Wimey TV, contributes to the video curation site Here's Some Awesome, and tells her friend Frank about stuff at Liz Tells Frank.
The upcoming Rev3 series Distort offers not only rich, compelling footage shot at high frame rates, but the on-camera presence of former Rev3 employees, who’ve struck an unusual deal for distribution. Read more at paidContent »
Jane Austen scholars know “Sanditon” as a posthumously-published unfinished novel, but for Lizzie Bennet Diaries fans, it’s the springboard for a new bridge series that promises unprecedented audience interactivity. Read more at paidContent »
This week, famous faces, new shows and pleas for advertising dollars brought many web video companies to web video’s version of TV’s upfronts. Here are just a few of the biggest stories to emerge. Read more at paidContent »
What happens when friends and former collaborators get together for one last big hurrah? That’s the story documented by “The Exquisite Corpse Project,” which reunites one of web video’s early comedy troupes for a final film project. Read more at paidContent »
It’s now common practice for canceled shows to find their way to fans via digital means, but there’s a big difference between uploading unaired episodes and truly coming back to life. Read more at paidContent »
“Watch the Show, Play the Game, Change the World” is how “Defiance” bills itself, but the combination of video game and television could be a game-changer in its own right. Read more at paidContent »
Short films released online have become an increasingly common way for filmmakers to break into the studio system — the latest example being an upcoming action film produced by Mark Wahlberg. Read more at paidContent »
Thanks to a successful Indiegogo campaign, Hannah Hart of My Drunk Kitchen will be touring around the nation — while also trying to redefine her brand beyond “the girl who drinks and cooks.” Read more at paidContent »
It’s breaking records and changing paradigms — but what impact will Veronica Mars‘s studio-supported but fan-funded feature film have not just on the Kickstarter economy, but Hollywood in general? Read more at paidContent »
Last summer, one woman’s Kickstarter project made her the target of a hate campaign — but the cybermob didn’t keep her from creating an original web series on female characters in gaming, which launched this week. Read more at paidContent »
Everyone uses YouTube, but how exactly do people discover new videos? We asked both web video professionals like Amy Pham and Zadi Diaz as well as your average 12 year old girl to find out. Read more at paidContent »
YouTube has built an epic production facility in Los Angeles for creators, but it’s the Residency program which helps established YouTubers reach a new level with their content. Read more at paidContent »
This year’s Streamy Awards featured a wide range of content made just for the web. Here are four shows to check out (if you haven’t already seen them). Read more at paidContent »
The first season of House of Cards is full of intrigue and plot twists — but the drama it’s created for the television industry is almost as compelling. Read more at paidContent »
Netflix’s got a unique approach to distributing its original content: Post all the episodes at once, then encourage the audience to mainline it. But what’s the actual experience of binge-viewing like? This reporter boldly investigates. Read more at paidContent »
What motivates 70 people to spend two days in a conference room, coding their hearts out? For the participants in this weekend’s Google hackathon, the answer was a lot bigger than just winning a new TV. Read more »
You might not have ever anticipated going to the movies to see a documentary about YouTubers, but for one night only, fans of folk like Daily Grace and Mystery Guitar Man will have that chance. Read more at paidContent »
It’s been common for web series to never make it past a first season. But this year, there are four notable examples of shows continuing their runs, from independent teen dramedies to Jerry Seinfeld chatting with comics. Read more at paidContent »
CBS is touting the upcoming Hawaii Five-0 episode “Kapu (Forbidden)” as a television first — the ending will be picked by those watching in real time, via Twitter and site voting. It’s an interesting experiment, but maybe not the right audience for it. Read more »
While the future of Current’s programming is up in the air following its acquisition by Al Jazeera, one guy’s not freaked out — on Twitter and YouTube, “Young Turks” host Cenk Uygur is reminding his fans that he and the “TYT” team will be just fine. Read more »
Two of the funniest women in comedy today. A channel that brought together cop show parodies and sci-fi drama. A series that created a community. And a brand that pushed the boundaries of serialized content. For those who like web video, 2012 was a great year. Read more »
Even those who don’t crave pounds and pounds of bacon might check in on Epic Chef, as YouTube’s most famous gluttons have found a way to take their massive appetite for booze and meat and make it into an entirely new web series. Read more »
Dynamo’s proprietary player was one of the first to give creators the option to directly charge viewers for their content. Now, the company is closing the player to the public, instead refocusing on a white label offering for filmmakers, continuing the trend of pay-to-play services. Read more »
Battlestar Galactica: Blood and Chrome might have ended up like many television pilots — abandoned and never again seen. SyFy opted to instead premiere the series through Machinima Prime on YouTube. It’s a great treat for Battlestar fans – and a potential precedent for future projects. Read more »
Creator Scotty Iseri describes his new educational interactive web series and app experience as “gamified narrative” — he also approaches it as a start-up. The Digits, available on Android and iOS, frames math concepts for the elementary school set. Read more »
Thanks to public access television, comedian Chris Gethard has found a way to bring the New York alt comedy scene to the web with The Chris Gethard Show, one of the strangest and funniest interactive talk shows you’ll ever see. Read more »
The Lizzie Bennet Diaries might be one of the most important web content stories of 2012: The YouTube adaptation of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice has not only secured its financial future thanks to DECA, but has built an intense fanbase for future literary adaptations. Read more »
The web’s most popular Jane Austin adaptation gets a big deal. The value of mainstream celebrities might not measure up to web celebrities. Some people actually miss Myspace. And other things learned from the New York Television Festival. Read more »
The internet has never wanted for dance videos, but DS2DIO seeks to create a central hub for dance-related content of all genres on YouTube, guided by a guy who knows a little bit about making the art of dance cinematic. Read more »
As long as there’s been Internet video, cats have dominated the medium — which is why it’s surprising that it took until 2012 for two separate entities (one branded, one independent) to finally give cat videos the serious consideration you may or may not think they deserve. Read more »
If you saw The Avengers more than once in the theater, and still ended up buying the film on Blu-ray or DVD this week, then you are exactly for whom Marvel designed this deliciously nerdy two-screen app experience. Read more »
Only six months after its first digital release, the VHX team is now actively looking for creators with independent projects to distribute. What is VHX looking for in potential clients, though — and what do its clients get out of it? Read more »
All summer, AMC has been pushing its Story Sync real-time viewing experience for Breaking Bad like it’s 99% pure crystal — but does a second screen subtract from one’s enjoyment of television’s most meth-y drama? This reporter boldly investigates. Read more »
To help build its Google+ audience, Google worked with Make Magazine to create Maker Camp — 30 days of DIY tutorials and cool science experiences targeted at kids aged 13-to-18. The camp was so successful that Make has already committed to a repeat in 2013. Read more »
As plans for Arrested Development‘s return spread, many details indicate that thanks to Netflix, the popular cult series has the opportunity to not only legitimize the world of web content, but create a new business model for an industry that desperately needs it. Read more »
Whether you spell it “theatre” or “theater,” any fan of classic or contemporary theatrical works ought to check out the full-length productions available through VOD site Digital Theatre. Though, while the pricing is equivalent to iTunes, the user experience is not. Read more »
Quality production value and a star-studded cast have propelled the YouTube channel WIGS to the top of the scripted content charts in a short period of time — and proven that there is an audience for adult drama online. Read more »
NBC’s Olympics coverage online, streamed through YouTube, features some quality technology, a deep catalog, a strong user experience — but the ad load on archived and broadcast coverage is massive. Which feels excessive, especially given that it’s limited to cable subscribers. Read more »
What happens when a creator uses a highly-anticipated web series to launch a new website? The creators of Video Game High School found out when the highly-anticipated web series debuted on Rocket Jump — bringing millions of views to a platform they fully controlled. Read more »
YouTube star Michael Buckley has emerged triumphant in the Live With Kelly co-host challenge, winning the grand prize during last Friday’s broadcast. That’s right: At least for next Tuesday, What the Buck is the new Regis. Read more »
