From The Mouths of Babes...

Post AFM Wrap Up

There really isn't a lot to tell. Lots of product with few sales. Buyers were eager to get to Santa Monica, buy what they absolutely had to and leave. Distributors were left holding films that will be discounted at the next market where Buyers will pick up a movie or two for a song (possibly a dance too, but mainly the song).

Bill Martell has a great wrap up here and recounts our phone conversation as I drove back to Hollywood in shock. Bill and I go to AFM every year and occasionally (always) have a beer (twenty) and discuss what we've seen. This year he didn't feel compelled to go on Sunday, and I was able to wrap most of my business up then and seek out new business on Monday.

Bill calls his post "Is Cinema Dead?" and I have to disagree with the phrasing. I may be splitting hairs here, but I'd rather call his post "How has Cinema Changed and Why Hasn't the Business Changed to Meet it?" We discussed this over the phone - not only regarding a specific project we have together and how we're going to produce it well, but how we - the creative folk - are going to have to approach the business.

This ain't your father's movie business anymore. Not even at the studio level. It's not even a movie business per se, but an intellectual property business. That's due to a variety of factors we're going to have to discuss in the Electrogram. It's scary and it's exciting and it's different than to what you've grown accustomed...

But ultimately I think it's going to be far better for those looking to make their first break into media. There will be more opportunity and the possibility of more reward - more people seeing your work, more people in your genre niche seeing your work, better trend spotting, higher production value, more unusual storytelling options and choices and yes, monetization.

More later.

Now You Know...

What are you going to do about it?

Convergence Saturday

John Rogers confirms what I thought I remembered him saying awhile back that LEVERAGE uses the Sony EX-1 for a lot of their shots. The same camera we discuss here for low budget moviemaking. Hmmm... pro-quality tools in the financial reach of the masses. Wonder what's going to come of that?

Michael Patrick Sullivan is a dirty, filthy little MASTERMIND.

Cousin Trevor points us to this little digi-novel project here which I will have to dissect at a later point. A mashup of this, that and the other designed to tell a story in different ways. Kind of what I'm conceiving with DEAD MAN'S PARTY.

Chris Mills talks about his new CAPTAIN MIDNIGHT comic... pretty plane!

(Chris - more aero-porn please! Thank you)

Geekerati is coming back! Sunday nights at 6pm.

Read this from New TeeVee and Trent Reznor. We will discuss (rant, dissect, take your pick) this in an upcoming Pulp Legion Electrogram. If you aren't subscribed then you miss out. Go to the sidebar and sign up>>>>> It's free!

Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go work.

Here's a Headline that You Don't Hear Everyday...

But you will.

Watch Michael Jackson Funeral Live on Apple iPhone

Memorial Available on Smartphones & Cell Phones

From Web TV Wire.

I Love New Media...

Go here.


Download a PDF zine I made from my blog in about 20 minutes...all it lacks is advertising. But if I were to find a way to mash my Google Ad Sense ads to this...

Well, it has... possibilities.

H/T to Warren...again.

Hybrid Pulp Comics

Saw this the other day (see pic above too) and thought it might make an interesting online format for New Pulp Media.

The idea would be to converge the pulp and comic storytelling forms into an easily read online (or downloadable) format. One of the problems with reading online texts from your computer is the fact that your eye is easily swayed off the mark and you have to readjust.

However, text with illustration tends to keep the eye anchored. The brain associates the text with the specific illustration.

(The Kindle is a different animal in that it mimics print to such a degree that the anchoring isn't necessary)

So mixing in an illustration or twenty with the text provides for a more pleasant online experience.

So again, as in online video, the distribution affects the content which affects the experience.

Warren Ellis had similar thoughts re: Comics.

Add This to the New Media Logpile

Netflix shows profits as more budget-conscious Americans are embracing low-cost movie rentals over higher-priced theater tickets, a trend that helped Netflix to again deliver better-than-expected earnings.

The company says its download service, which it offers free to higher-tier subscribers, is gaining traction. Earlier this month, it announced deals to stream back episodes of Comedy Central's popular "South Park" animated series, and Nickelodeon shows such as "SpongeBob SquarePants."

But the company also noted the growing competition from cheap DVD rental kiosks.

"We're seeing a major shifting in the landscape between the content providers, different distribution models and the competitive environment," Janney Montgomery Scott analyst Tony Wible said.

Analysts asked about plans for a new pricing tier of streaming-only service, without the discs. Netflix said Thursday it's not a top priority at the moment.

Michael Pachter, an analyst with Wedbush Morgan Securities, said the transition away from DVDs will take years, but added that Netflix is smart to start weaning its customers off the plastic discs.

D2N (Direct-to-Netflix) on the horizon?

Hailey Hacks...Everything

Hailey Hacks: Press Release

via Running With My Eyes Closed

NEW WEB SERIES TEACHES KIDS COMPUTER SAVVY THEY DON’T LEARN IN SCHOOL

Thirteen-year-old web wizard, Hailey, makes technology cool

TORONTO, March 25, 2009 — Story2.OH and giraffesoft introduce Hailey Hacks, a series of web videos starring Toronto grade 6 student, Marlee Maslove. Hailey (Maslove) is the Hermione Grainger of web wizardry showing 8-13 year olds all kinds of cool things they can do with their computers.

“Kids have these very powerful machines at their fingertips,” says series creator Jill Golick, “but no one’s teaching them the incredible scope of what they can do with them.” The mandate of the series is to broaden tweens’ use of the computer beyond games, Google and YouTube to include the wider world of blogs, widgets, RSS feeds, social bookmarks and the amazing tools that exist on the web for creating, collaborating and communicating.

“Computers will become increasingly important in every aspect of kids lives – for entertainment, communication, work, everything. Yet there’s virtually no computer instruction in the classroom before grade 9,” says Golick.

By that time, many girls have already turned off maths and science and as anyone who has ever attended a geek event knows, women in technology are few and far between. Hailey presents an alternate view of technology for young girls, making it relevant, fun and cool.

Recently web series are springing up on an almost daily basis, but very few are aimed at the preteen demographic even though the age group has clearly embraced online video entertainment. Hailey Hacks fill the gap, bringing kids multiplatform entertainment. Not only can they can watch the videos, they read Hailey’s blog, share lolcats with her on Icanhascheezburger, subscribe to her YouTube channel and Twitter feed and exchange twitter-length videos with her on 12seconds. She even has a fan page on Facebook

The Hailey Hacks videos are available in two length. The shorter versions are available at no cost across the web on YouTube and other popular video sharing sites. The full versions are available for DRM-free download at a cost of $2 per episode at www.haileyhacks.com.

While some adults may have a knee jerk reaction to the word “hack” in the series title, Hailey points out, hacks don’t deserve their bad reputations. A hack isn’t about breaking or wreck ingthings. Rather, hacks are elegant but simple, solutions using technology. (Wikipedia defines a hack as “a clever or quick fix.”)

Outline of scheduled video episodes:

Hailey Hacks April Fools: Hailey demonstrates some favourite low- and hi-tech April Fools tricks, including the famous Desk Top Hack in which the desk top is replaced with a photo. (This drives parents crazy as they try to figure out why nothing works when they click on it.)

Hailey Hacks lolcats: Hailey helps viewers master www.icanhascheezburger.com.

Hailey Hacks Wish Lists: Hailey shows you how to create and share wish lists so everyone knows exactly what to buy you for your next birthday.

In future episodes, Hailey shows viewers how to make a wiki, customize Google maps for school projects, use online tools to throw a party, use privacy settings on social networks, share bookmarks, collaborate using Google docs and how to set up your own blog.

About the Story2.OH and giraffesoft:

Story2.OH is a Toronto-based digital drama production company, which specializes in cross-platform innovation and in telling stories through social media. giraffesoft is a boutique web app development shop based in Montreal, Qc.

Hailey Hacks creator, Jill Golick, and star, Marlee Maslove, are available for interviews.

Story2.OH
Jill Golick
Tel: 416-538-6509
E-mail: story2oh@gmail.com
Website: www.haileyhacks.com

links to Hailey’s social networking:
Facebook Fan Page
Twitter
YouTube
12seconds

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Okay, you're asking why this - a web video series aimed at young girls - is on Pulp 2.0. It's because Jill is not only a friend, she's a smart cookie. You can learn a lot about how Jill and her partners in this endeavor discovered an under-served niche in the web video market. This isn't a parody video series, or a 20-something series, or a ripoff of THE OFFICE. She looked to the audience first. She saw what wasn't being done and seized the opportunity.

Secondly, she's using free social networking tools to get the word out. She has a web configuration in place, but Jill's plan looks loose enough to "go with the flow." She can adapt to where they hang out (Twitter) and since she's making a series for kids that is also educational (entertaining first, educational second) she can expand her marketing to get teachers and school systems on her side if she wants. Let's face the fact that if you have an audience of kids who need to learn how to use the web and their computer and you can do it in a fun way - teachers are going to love you. It gives them a subject they can bring up and get the kids interested right away.

And I'm sure there will be Hailey merchandise to purchase soon - if there isn't already. I can see a Hailey Hack Book, a DVD of episodes with special exclusive 'hacks,' a t-shirt or netbook bag that says "I Hack with Hailey"or "Hailey taught me How to Hack...Everything," ad infinitum...

There it is guys and gals. Now go out and hack it to what you're doing.

Think Small

From Scott Kirsner's Cinematech:

A lot of times when I've written about some interesting little Internet experiment that has generated $50,000 or $100,000 for the creative person behind it, someone will e-mail me to ask, "Yeah, OK, but how does that support the media industry? A movie studio can't pay its security guards for a week on that kind of money."

Good point.

I'm very confident about digital media's ability to support individual creators, doing the kind of work they want to do, often on tightly-constrained budgets. (Constraints = inventiveness, right?)

I'm less confident that it will support the same gargantuan, diversified companies that raked in the big bucks in the days when there were only four TV networks, six movies released every weekend, a dozen important records issued on Tuesday.

Good.

For too long we've had the homogenized voice of "The Media" telling us what is what in terms of entertainment. That is, what they need for it to look and sound like so they can distribute it.

Ugh.

No more. There's a lot of stuff on the web that I absolutely loathe, but I'm not their audience... and that's okay because the way things are shaking out they don't need me. They can go along and do things they want to do, and I can do things I want to do...

and we can both profit from it.

Before, that couldn't happen. The media had to fit a wide market in order to be successful. You had so many costs associated with DVDs, books, video, audio and so forth that you had to make it palatable for a wide variety of folks. The digitization of the whole process has cut costs to the bone. Put the opportunity to say something unique, controversial or eclectic into the hands of the everyday person. Add to that the opportunity to get paid for it, and you have a whole new way of thinking about media - small.

And while that's going to lead to a lot of crap, it's also going to lead to a lot of unique, talented voices being able to say something that rings true to you.

And the studios are just going to have to deal.

Make that : Deal along a variety of media fronts.

Eavesdropping on The Conversation: Brand Building

Scott Kirsner highlights some of the speakers from THE CONVERSATION which occurred last weekend in SF.

One highlight is Ted Hope's discussion on what filmmakers need to think about. From Scott's post:

The independent film producer Ted Hope proposed that filmmakers need to be think about creating material for their Web sites to pique viewer's interest before their film's festival debut.... and more material to bridge the gap between the debut and the theatrical release...and still more between the theatrical release and the DVD... and yet more after the DVD, to keep DVD (and digital) sales humming.

To me, it sounds like the film is just one component of a story that you start telling before your first festival showing... and continue to build on and embroider even after you've released the DVD and digital download. The "movie release date" becomes just one milestone in this conversation between you and your audience. Some people who participate in the conversation may never actually buy a ticket or a download... while others may become so engaged that they buy everything you offer, and help market your movie to everyone they know.
---------------------------

This is two things:

1) utilizing the power of the internet to be different media all at once.

2) This is branding. Intellectual property building.

Filmmakers and novelists and other creatives need to figure this shit out now. Their book, comic, movie, animation, music, radio drama, is only the beginning. A book isn't just between the covers. A movie isn't just onscreen.

Don't think small. Think about how you can add to your creation. How you can translate it. How it can have further value - both to you and your audience.

A New Look for Firebrain

You'll be seeing more of this image and a few other promotional/viral/who did that? bits of media featuring this guy.

Indie filmmakers in the LA area will also be advised to watch this blog for a poster promotion for AFM.

Even if the Pay Isn't Great Now....

The internet is opportunity.

From Today's Video Business:

"U.S. consumer spending on direct-to-TV Internet video content will jump fivefold within the next five years as customers find more ways to connect their TVs to the Web with videogame consoles, video-on-demand set-top boxes and other components.

TV-related Internet-video revenue will surge to almost $5 billion annually by 2013, from less than $1 billion this year, and will account for 75% of all Internet-video revenue, research firm Parks Associates said in a report released last week. The trend is likely to benefit studios with large back catalogs, but cable companies looking to boost revenue from video-on-demand services could feel the brunt, the company said.

The forecast exceeds those of studios such as Lionsgate, which said in June that sales from digitally delivered content would more than double to almost $3.6 billion in 2013, from about $1.5 billion this year, despite U.S. home entertainment sales rising just 7% to $26.8 billion."

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Get in on the ground floor...

What I Would Sound Like On Twitter...

So Carlucci contacts me the other day via email asking to follow me on Twitter...

I am not on Twitter, but if I were this is what it would be like:

Bill goes to the can. He looks back and thinks - "It's cancer."

Bill takes a drink.

Bill curses his mad pulp life. Wishes he had a gun.

Bill types story out anyway and pours another.... it's Monday.

Does anyone need that?

You May Have Heard...

And I think there was actually a collective groan at some point, but I am now on Facebook.

Dig that pic.

I've Been Thinking ...

Very hard about what I am calling "Open Source Pulp" (1st Google reference!) and the whole "NewPulp" movement, especially as it relates to new media and production...

Apparently I am not alone in these thoughts. (referral courtesy of Warren Ellis's Whitechapel)

This is open for discussion.

Big Honkin' News...

Pay attention to this.
This speech, if not the actions after it will have major effects on the television business.
Baby steps, but steps nonetheless.

Hollywood Turns to Silicon Valley

The LA Times has a great article here on Aaron Mendelsohn's Virtual Artists and other companies sprouting up during the strike.

Stay tuned, er... logged on.

The Geekerati Year In Review

Christian Johnson, my esteemed colleague at Geekerati has given us a Year's Best List of our Geekerati Podcasts.

I just want to say it has been my extreme pleasure to work with Christian, Shawna Benson and Eric Lytle on these podcasts and I hope our enthusiasm shows through. I believe two of our personal bests have been the shows with Win Eckert and with Tim Minear.

But please, check them all out.

In 2008 I am going to solicit other members of the blogosphere to be on the show so if you have any suggestions as to who you'd like to actually HEAR from now's the time to do it.

Post Tryptophan Hangover...

So, still feeling stuffed after the big bird blowout yesterday. Now as the serotonin levels in my brain begin to lower I am left with a desire to get to work on some projects that I've been juggling lately, and yet here I am blogging...and here you are reading.


(You enablers! Damn you all)


The holidays are now officially in full swing and we will be addressing this in an upcoming Geekerati podcast with our "What I want for Christmas this year" episode. I am taking suggestions now.


John Rogers (who is experiencing the cold up north for the first time in a long time I wager) has a discussion about short online fiction and the death of the anthology following a post by Warren Ellis on the same subject. I'm also wondering what happened to our series paperback characters that seemed to dominate the drug store spinner racks when I was a kid. Does anyone here besides me remember the Richard Blade series of books?


Warren Ellis reminded me the other day about Createspace - a division of Amazon - where you can publish on demand and videopost on demand and monetize the whole thing - including selling DVDs on demand. This is an excellent step toward self-sufficiency for filmmakers. It's possible that there could be a shift toward "regionalism" with something like this set up. Imagine a group of mediamakers who aren't in LA, New York or Chicago who have their own local programs and "stars" and are able to create content for a local market that pays the bills. Possibly similar to where Quebec is in the Canadian market - separate and distinct, but accesible to those who look for that programming. Then, as an afterthought the rights to the programming is sold elsewhere as added revenue not necessary for financial solvency.


(Yes, these are the things that run through my head as the serotonin dips)


Congrats to Denis McGrath whose THE BORDER premiered in Canada last night. I will be searching the webs for it.

I've been searching the web looking for a new blog template that reflects my pulp, movie-making and new media sensibilities. If anyone has a suggestion that seems to fit the bill, please send me a link. The template must be compatible with Blogger, easily adaptable and rockin'. I'm going to be breaking things up into better categories for navigation's sake as well as providing links to my other digital shadows - message boards, networks, business related matters.

I set aside my short story for Astonishing for a week so I can go back to it over the holidays and polish it up. I wrote down a lot of notes and put the file away so I can read it with fresh eyes right before I polish it. The twist doesn't work yet as I haven't set it up properly in the story. It has to be obvious when it happens, but not so obvious that the reader gets it before I give it to him in the story. A delicate touch to be sure and I'm a freakin' sledgehammer...

Later...