Downsizing, the New Economy and Pulp Entertainment...A New Pyramid ?

I had the pleasure and the shock to see a segment on the Oprah show today from veteran video journalist Lisa Ling regarding the tent cities that are springing up around the country. Ling's doc video focused on her home town of Sacramento (capitol of California, the entertainment capitol of the world) where homeless shelters are overflowing with families that one year ago were "Middle class."

Just outside the city corridor in the industrial side of Sacramento, middle class families are now living in tents to survive. Many of these people interviewed were in construction or related industries that collapsed when the house of cards, excuse me, homebuilding industry collapsed due to poor financial management.

Everyone has taken a hit in this new economy. Everyone. Your mad pulp bastard included.

Thank goodness that I have no major debt load and a single lifestyle (or maybe not so good depending on your perspective), but yeah - I took one to the money sack.

This isn't about me, and I'm not whining about all this... misery. What I am slowly getting around to is the fact (YES, FACT) that vast amounts of the movie-going audience are NOT going to be going to the theaters. They're going to switch to Netflix or Amazon's download system or cable or VOD....

Or they're just going to pick up a good book (either from the library or on their Kindle 2) and read... Or play a game....

It's called Downsizing, Prioritizing and plain, old fashioned "saving."

That has many people scared (me included) , but it shouldn't prevent us from going forward and making cool stuff. We're just going to have to suck it up and make it for cheaper. Sure we'll still make a profit - just that the margin is going to be tighter. As people are going to save, we're going to have to invest in a bit of D-I-Y.

It also means that we're going to have to use the web more - it's a great delivery system for all sorts of media - books, video, audio, games and comics. It's cheap and fast and...

It's pretty much everywhere- or soon will be.

Please read the article linked above, and this quote below and ask yourself:

"We started inventing technology for the bottom of the pyramid," Jepsen says, "but the top of the pyramid wants it too." This bit of trickle-up innovation, this netbook, might well reshape the computer industry—if it doesn't kill it first."

What would happen if, instead of creating entertainment from the TOP of the pyramid DOWN, we created entertainment from the BOTTOM of the pyramid UP?

I leave you with the thought that as our entertainment delivery systems become less and less expensive so our opportunity to entertain (the market) grows proportionally -- the wide base of the pyramid.

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FYI - I will be discussing this further in my newsletter THE PULP LEGION ELECTROGRAM coming in March. Subscribe in the sidebar.

Happy New Year!

Just in case you haven't seen The Spirit movie let me save you 10 bucks and give you the highlights.

We are in a depression, and it's my sacred duty help you get the most entertainment value possible.

You're welcome.

(Take that, Will Dixon with your Sarah Shahi / Moon Bloodgood-ness!)

Using New Media to Give Old Media a Face(book) Lift

One of the great things about using the internet is you can reach a lot of people at once (or nearly at once) with your message. Combine that with a compelling design and hook and you have something that generates its own income.

We've been designing a lot of the promotional email blasts for clients because they are more targeted and compelling than receiving a piece of paper in the snail mail, or an all-text email with image attachments. Who doesn't watch animated elements? Email blasts like these are also far less expensive than other forms of sales tools -- an important consideration in today's new economy.

Inexpensive. Expansive. Entertaining.
(Not necessarily in that order)

Now to put it into the "pulp" domain:

What if you were to receive one of these in your email box with a full page comic or story in it every week? Or an embedded video or animation?

What if you could click on one of the links embedded into the strip to order the print version?

Or you could click on the link to go to the forum to discuss the story, or the art or whatever?

What if you could use the characters in the strip or story to create your own content to upload back to the community?

What if it were paid for by advertising and sales?

Discuss.
(Thoroughly please. I want your whole two cents worth)

I'm Going Home...

and going to sleep so I can get over this Los Angeles Flu bug-virus- sign of the coming apocalypse.

Rest assured I will be dreaming of this image. Isn't she gorgeous? >>>>>


But in the real world, I leave you with this.
(Courtesy Newsarama)

Free is the New Black

We've talked about the internet and free before, gang and it seems that everyone has read the Wired article and leaped onto the new internet economy or pointed the way to the land of the free...

But really I didn't expect these.

And in fiddling around, I didn't expect to find these either.

Nor these.

Wow.

I am spent.