Tuesday 30 June 2009

Online Comedy - ADAM ON THE ROAD



From Adam on the Road's twitter DM:-
5 min comedy episodes about a college grad kicked out by his mom on grad day, after she gives him a tent, trying to find his way www.adamontheroad.tv
MORE HERE:-
http://twitter.com/adamontheroad

SHOW HOME SITE HERE:-
www.adamontheroad.tv
and here
http://www.unpaid.tv/

and at the moment it all redirects to here:

ADAM ON THE ROAD YOUTUBE CHANNEL HERE:
http://www.youtube.com/unpaidTV

ADAM ON THE ROAD TWITTER HERE:
http://twitter.com/adamontheroad


LATEST EPISODE HERE:

"Puppy Love" Adam on the Road #4
There is one perfect match for every person on this earth. But that's a lot of ground to cover!


"Kinky Mom" Adam on the Road #1
PREMIERE EPISODE!
Starring - DJ Kemp, Featuring - Matt Corboy & Tamika Simpkins, Animation - Yuri Fain



CLICK HERE for more SHOWS

http://storygas.blogspot.com/search/label/shows


*****STORYGAS INTERACTIVE RATING*****
ADAM ON THE ROAD
Can you embed? YES
Can you comment? YES
Also on youtube? YES
Forums? not found
Blog? not found
************************************

What do you think?
Sum it up in 3 words, or scores out of 10...
See COMMENTS below

Monday 29 June 2009

What does "CAN YOU EMBED?" mean?!

Sorry things have been a bit quiet on the storygas front recently - been busy setting up a web series. I'll be posting some behind the scenes news here soon (man, some things to share with you).

So, slowly going through the inbox, and got this great email from Justin.

It's great because sometimes I make assumptions on here that everything is clear and makes sense... when of course, not always.

Also - reminds me to remind you that I go through my emails very very slowly - so feel free to leave a comment anywhere, so anyone else on here can field your question too...


On Sun, Jun 28, 2009 at 11:42 AM, Justin wrote:

Hi Neil,

In the interactive rating, what does it mean " Can you Embed ?"

*****STORYGAS INTERACTIVE RATING*****
THMBNLS
Can you embed? YES
Can you comment? kind of - seem to be heavily moderated
Also on youtube? YES
Forums? not found
Blog? not found
************************************

I'm really curious.

Thanks,
Justin

###

Hi Justin

thanks for getting in touch -- good question - maybe I should have a link on the phrase explaining the rationale...

Can you embed? is whether or not you can "embed" the show on your own blog or site.

Some videos allow this,
some have the embedding disabled,
some videos don't provide it at all.





When you click on a video, there's sometimes a "Share" or "Embed" option along the bottom.
And sometimes it offers the option "embed".
If you click on this, it offers you a code that you can paste into your own blog, or website.



On YouTube videos, it's at the bottom of the "more info" box. (Unless the video owner has "embedding options disabled").

The code looks like this:



This is a picture of the code.

If I pasted the actual text into this blog post, the video would have appeared instead.


There's a Glossary entry for this on YouTube, but it's not very prominent and on reading it now isn't entirely clear what it is.
http://www.google.com/support/youtube/bin/answer.py?hl=en-uk&answer=95366


Does this help? If not, leave a comment below!

CLICK HERE for all posts labelled TIPS
http://storygas.blogspot.com/search/label/tips


And click here to get these posts in the form of an email!

http://feedburner.google.com/fb/a/mailverify?uri=StoryGas

Wednesday 24 June 2009

Origin Trailer

Friend & supporter of StoryGas, DANNY STACK, who writes the awesome "Scriptwriting In The UK" Blog has just launched a trailer for ORIGIN.

Even more relevant for us - it was funded by donations on his blog and twitter...

http://dannystack.blogspot.com/

Wednesday 17 June 2009

JJ Abrams talking about writing for mystery shows

Huge thanks to http://www.twitter.com/toodlepip of Chinwag.com for putting me on to this.

It's been up since January 2008, - but this isn't a news site, just a collection of useful cool stuff for web series writers, producers, and fans.

J.J. Abrams traces his love for the unseen mystery –- a passion that’s evident in his films and TV shows, including Cloverfield, Lost, Alias and the new Star Trek -- back to its magical beginnings.


From TED.com:-
So the amazing thing was, we were able to do this thing. And part of that was the amazing availability of technology, knowing we could do anything. I mean, we could never have done that. We might have been able to write it; we wouldn't have been able to depict it like we did. And so part of the amazing thing for me is in the creative process, technology is, like, mind-blowingly inspiring to me. I realize that that blank page is a magic box. You know? It needs to be filled with something fantastic.
MORE HERE:-
http://www.ted.com/talks/j_j_abrams_mystery_box.html

AUDIO AS MP3 TO DESKTOP:-
http://www.ted.com/talks/download/audio/125/talk/205

HERE'S ONE FINAL INSPIRING EXTRACT:-
The most incredible sort of mystery, I think, is now the question of what comes next. Because it is now democratized. So now, the creation of media is -- it's everywhere. The stuff that I was lucky and begging for to get when I was a kid is now ubiquitous.

And so, there's an amazing sense of opportunity out there. And when I think of the filmmakers who exist out there now who would have been silenced, you know -- who have been silenced in the past -- it's a very exciting thing.

I used to say in classes and, you know, lectures and stuff, that -- to someone who wants to write, "Go! Write! Do your thing." It's free, you know, you don't need permission to go write. But now I can say, "Go make your movie!"

There's nothing stopping you from going out there and getting the technology. You can lease, rent, buy stuff off the shelf that is either as good, or just as good, as the stuff that's being used by the, you know, quote unquote "legit people."

No community is best served when only the elite have control. And I feel like this is an amazing opportunity to see what else is out there.


And here's one of the videos J.J. Abrams plays in his presentation: car chased by a plane on the road.




CLICK HERE for all posts labelled Mystery
http://storygas.blogspot.com/search/label/mystery

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Tuesday 16 June 2009

Ignore Everybody - the book of how to be creative

Thanks to Sex And The Beach, I found out that Hugh McLeod has a book out based on his awe-inspiring blog posts on How To Be Creative.

gapingvoid book hugh mcleod hugh mcloud hugh maccloud huw mccloud how to be creative gaping void

Maria reviews the book here:-
Hugh tackles the obvious subjects that shore up for many creative types: ignoring those negative voices (the ones inside your head and the ones coming from others), recognizing and honoring your creative passions, prosperity consciousness, loneliness, frustration, boundaries and most importantly -- sticking to your guns, being true to yourself, no matter what the obstacles or maybe precisely because of the obstacles.

Hugh encourages readers to develop their own "creative sovereignty," which is something I whole-heartedly believe in. If you are really driven to pursue your art, no matter what it is, you will find the way to do it and not dilly-dally with distractions: "If you're arranging your life in such a way that you need to make a lot of fuss between feeling the itch and getting to work, you're putting the cart before the horse."

But it does take time to figure it out: "The most important thing a creative person can learn professionally is where to draw the red line that separates what you are willing to do from what you are not."
MORE HERE:-
http://sexandthebeach.blogspot.com/2009/06/book-review-ignore-everybody-by-hugh.html


LINKS TO "HOW TO BE CREATIVE" HERE:-
http://storygas.blogspot.com/2008/12/how-to-be-creative-by-hugh-macleod.html


HUGH MACLEOD'S BLOG HERE:-
http://www.gapingvoid.com


CLICK HERE for more posts labelled RECOMMENDED READING

http://storygas.blogspot.com/search/label/Recommended%20Reading

Monday 15 June 2009

RTE STORYLAND RESULTS

Spare a thought for the 4 RTE Storyland finalists tonight...

Link to RTE STORYLAND


The voting on round 3 ended at 5pm today (5 hours ago), and now's the time of the nail-biting wait for who goes through.

HappySlapper
Hardy Bucks
Psych Ward
Rental Boys


*** UPDATE from www.rte.ie/storyland ***

Episode 3: Results

1st Hardy Bucks
2nd Rental Boys
3rd Psych Ward
4th HappySlapper


If you voted on the poll here, here were our unofficial poll results(!)
Hardy Bucks 19 (48%)
Rental Boys 13 (33%)
Happy Slapper 4 (10%)
Psych Ward 3 (7%)
***


Show some love to HappySlapper -- anyone know if the show will go on independently?

The makers' bebo profile, Screenworks, is here:
www.bebo.com/ScreenworksF

Leave COMMENTS below with any news!


CLICK HERE for all posts labelled RTE STORYLAND

http://storygas.blogspot.com/search/label/RTE%20Storyland

WEB TV sucks - HOW TO MAKE A HIT INTERNET SHOW #4



Here's a thought - just putting it out there.

(DEEP BREATH)
There seems to be no general consensus on an accepted term for the genre of content that's being described as online show, web show, web series, online series, online drama, online comedy, online (insert genre here), digi novel or diginovel, webisodes, social shows, Internet narratives, social media series and many many more...
- you can probably suggest some more terms floating out there in COMMENTS below.

But there's one term that is really bugging me. And I find it very difficult to use it on this site.


WEB TV.

Web TV.

webtv.

The problem is, - it does actually instantly convey what a show is.

It's the most understandable of all the terms, and yet there's something about it that doesn't feel right.




In the 1950's, we didn't instantly backdate the new medium of television by calling it VisionRadio. Though that is pretty much what TV is, technically.

But the content, - the CONTENT - of TV managed to develop beyond "recording a radio series in a television studio". Genres evolved in ways that can only exist on television.


So what to do with WEB TV.

There are shows which properly describe themselves as Web TV.

They are TV shows "broadcast" on the web.
Or short films, broken up and uploaded to the web.


But if you have a stream of content (even if it is mostly video, and episodic), and are trying to build a community, and a 2-way relationship with the audience...

...Do you really want to hobble your show with the phrase "Web TV"?

Aren't you attempting to create something beyond TV?


CLICK HERE for all the HOW TO MAKE A HIT INTERNET SHOWposts.
http://storygas.blogspot.com/2009/03/how-to-make-hit-internet-show.html
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Friday 12 June 2009

LUNCHTIME WATCHALONG - Psych Ward - Round 3 RTE STORYLAND



Here's the third show in the third round of voting in RTÉ STORYLAND which ends on Monday.

Had hoped to also link to third episode of Rental Boys, but can't find episode three on the net too (outside of the unembeddable RTÉ Storyland episode).


So here's PSYCHWARD, - episode 3.

Psych Ward Episode 3


Danny O'Hagan works as an emergency Psychiatrist on the night shift in a busy city centre hospital. One night Danny is forced to make an impossible decision. The consequences prove worse than he could have imagined. Pressure is building, and Danny soon finds himself in the biggest battle of his life.

PSYCHWARD RTÉ STORYLAND PAGE is here
http://www.rte.ie/storyland/finalists/psychward.html


PSYCHWARD LINKS HERE:-

http://storygas.blogspot.com/2009/03/rte-storyland-contender-psych-ward.html


Voting on all shows is at the RTÉ STORYLAND site here:-

http://www.rte.ie/storyland


CLICK HERE for all posts labelled RTÉ STORYLAND

http://storygas.blogspot.com/search/label/RTE%20Storyland

Thursday 11 June 2009

LUNCHTIME WATCHALONG - Hardy Bucks - Round 3 RTE STORYLAND



Four days left on the third round of voting in RTÉ STORYLAND.


Had hoped to link to third round of happyslapper, but can't find episode three on the net (outside of the unembeddable RTÉ Storyland episode).


So second on the list is HARDY BUCKS, - episode 3.

PART 1

Having tried and failed to attract women using their wit alone, the lads go along to a Speed Dating night in the hope of meeting some gamey, slightly desperate girls.

Despite having studied ‘The Game’ – a how-to guide about picking up women – both Eddie and Boo struggle, while French Toast manages to turn on the charm.

Buzz comes face to face with his ex Ladybird, who has been spotted around the town ‘prising herself’ on the Viper.

Things take a turn for the worse when the snaky miscreant shows up with his henchman ‘The Dragon.’


PART 2




PART 3





HARDY BUCKS RTÉ STORYLAND PAGE is here
http://www.rte.ie/storyland/finalists/hardybucks.html

HARDY BUCKS LINKS HERE:-
http://storygas.blogspot.com/2009/03/rte-storyland-contender-hardy-bucks.html

Voting on all shows is at the RTÉ STORYLAND site here:-
http://www.rte.ie/storyland

CLICK HERE for all posts labelled RTÉ STORYLAND
http://storygas.blogspot.com/search/label/RTE%20Storyland

Wednesday 10 June 2009

Help! Free Forum hosting - any hot tips?

Here's a call out to the community...

Can anyone out there recommend a good free host for forums?

If so, I'd be hugely grateful for any tips left in COMMENTS below!

I'm especially looking for one that can start threads automatically from blog posts.

When I set out to look for some, here's a few I found:-

LEFORA FORUMS
http://www.lefora.com/

web producer tips British free forum hosting forums hosts

In the absence of any advice or tips, I'm probably most tempted to try here - if only for the funkiness and Britishness of this welcome page - anyone actually used a Lefora forum hosting? Let me know what you think!

Here's a random forum hosted there:-
http://mastcelldisorders.lefora.com/



And here's an example of their support, which seems pretty attentive.
http://support.lefora.com/2009/05/30/your-ads-are-destructive/page1/



FORUMER
http://www.forumer.com/

forumer free web forum hosting for web show producers

Forumer is the first site that came up on a basic google search, and claims it
provides a high quality and 100% free phpBB3 hosting service. By choosing Forumer to create your online community you are guaranteed a great reliable service and no surprises.

Forumer is the largest phpbb hosting company and we have been growing explosively services since 2003!
Here's a random example of a forum hosted there:
http://gzh.17.forumer.com/


At this point, I'm now feeling slightly overwhelmed, and scared of their font.
Probably not the best way to choose a host... who knows.


FORUMOTION.COM
http://www.forumotion.com/



Anyone out there use these guys?


So now the head is starting to spin... let's pile on a few more options, courtesy of this blog post here:-



Best Free Forum Hosting Solutions
http://webhostingcase.com/best-free-forum-hosting-solutions


Which put me onto...

MAKEFORUM.ORG
http://www.makeforum.org

makeforum free forum hosts for web productions and online shows

Funny how a .org on a domain makes you feel warm and fuzzy like it's a piece of altruism - must remember that when setting up shows. Scared of both the font, and their logo that seems to imply the United States formed through bolts of electricity.

There's a nice FREE DEMO here
http://demo.mybb3.org/
which... if you click through to some threads, links to some very very very filthy sexually explicit threads (and why is it the Japanese teens who seem to get it?)




And very distrating if you're trying to find a free forum host. This might win it for them... Because they do look like 'forums'. But I'm torn between that and the funkiness of lefora forums.


But here's the thing, if you are kind enough to leave tips below -- I don't like ning.com - apologies to everyone who uses them, and who's happy on there...
and I know it's about configuring your settings right - but having signed up to a couple of communities there...
there's just something a bit full-on about it. (And features I've ended up switching off completely).


So, what do you think?

Can you recommend any good free forum hosts?

Any tips now or in the mists of the future HUGELY appreciated in COMMENTS below -

THANKS!


CLICK HERE for all posts labelled PRODUCTION

http://storygas.blogspot.com/search/label/production


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Coming Soon... EXIT Stage Left Season finale LIVE!

online shows web producers online comedy exit stage left stageleft

Received a great headsup from the team at EXIT Stage Left.
Been a busy time for us here. I was hoping you would be able to help get the word out. ...we are officially announcing that our season finale (episode 13) will be streamed live, performed completely without a net and on stage to a LIVE studio audience.

...we will be doing a LIVE four camera production, that will be sent out worldwide, streaming on June 25th at 7pm (pst) ((3AM BRITISH SUMMER TIME)), which will include a live chat with cast and crew after, plus a few other surprises.

For people in the SF Bay Area, they can even get FREE tickets for the show, just by sending an email request to: tickets @ lowrytheatercompany . com and joining us at San Jose State University's Main theater.
MORE HERE:-
http://www.blogger.com/www.exitstageleft.tv

ALL EXIT STAGE LEFT LINKS HERE:
http://storygas.blogspot.com/2009/01/new-online-drama-exit-stage-left.html


Special Announcement - Season Finale Promo




Good luck to EXIT Stage Left with the finale -- and it raises a good question on which shows can lay claim to the first live webisodes...

...the earliest I'm aware of are the KateModern eps which ran during the Season 2 Finale "THE LAST WORK", and allowed for fans to 'chat' with the characters, in character during that day's live storyline. An example can be found here

http://www.lg15.com/katemodern/?p=365

More live episode links here:- http://www.lg15.com/katemodern/?s=live+chat

Maybe it's the first as a four camera production?
With a live on-set audience there?

CLICK HERE for all posts labelled ONLINE COMEDY
http://storygas.blogspot.com/search/label/online%20comedy

.

Tuesday 9 June 2009

How to build your brand - Online Comedy - One Line On The Sopranos

This is a textbook example on how to use your work as a writer, performer, whatever to direct traffic to your content stream.

Thanks to INSULTS BLOG for pointing me to this video by Erik Weiner.


One Line on the Sopranos - Erik Weiner

Written by Erik Weiner and Jordan Allen-Dutton. Featuring Bryan Greenberg. Beat by Yung Mars. Directed by Paul Miller ©2008 Rickmill Productions


SHOW HOME SITE HERE:-
http://www.erikweiner.com/


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The Free Music Archive: Online production resource

The Free Music Archive offers free downloads under Creative Commons and other licenses.

free music archive free music online music for web producers licencing licensing

From Free Music Archive .org:-
The Free Music Archive is an interactive library of high-quality, legal audio downloads.

The Free Music Archive is being directed by WFMU, the most renowned freeform radio station in America. Radio has always offered the public free access to new music. The Free Music Archive is a continuation of that purpose, designed for the age of the internet.

Every mp3 you discover on The Free Music Archive is pre-cleared for certain types of uses that would otherwise be prohibited by outdated copyright law.

Are you a podcaster looking for pod-safe audio? A radio or video producer searching for instrumental bed music that won't put your audience to sleep? A remix artist looking for pre-cleared samples? Or are you simply looking for some new sounds to add to your next playlist?

The Free Music Archive is a resource for all that and more, and unlike other websites, all of the audio has been hand-picked by established audio curators.

The Free Music Archive is a platform for collaboration between WFMU and a group of fellow curators, including KEXP, dublab, KBOO, ISSUE Project Room, and CASH Music. The site combines the curatorial approach that these organizations have played for the last few decades, with the community generated approach of many current online music sites.

Inspired by Creative Commons and the open source software movement, the FMA provides a legal and technological framework for curators, artists, and listeners to harness the potential of music sharing.

Every artist page will have a bio and links to the artists’ home page for users to learn more about the music they discover via the Free Music Archive. We also seek to compensate artists directly.

Artist, album and song profiles will contain links to buy the full album from the artist and/or label’s preferred vendor(s). Users can also “tip” an artist if they like what they hear, sending a donation directly to the artists’ PayPal account. Artist profiles include tourdates, encouraging users to step away from the glowing computer screen and see some real live music.
MORE HERE:-
http://freemusicarchive.org/about/

Any other online music resources you like?

In COMMENTS below...
.

Monday 8 June 2009

LUNCHTIME WATCHALONG - The Year The Media Died (American Pie)



Mad Avenue Blues:-
Sung to Don McLean's "American Pie", this 19 stanza song was written and produced in just one day. I did this so that I could answer those who respond to my video projects with the knee-jerk "you obviously have too much time on your hands".

Mad Avenue Blues was produced for non-commercial amusement purposes only and is not intended to offend any people or companies appearing in the video. All images were found on the internet and are the property of their rights owners.

L. McDuff
(pen name - for my Yellow Labrador, Lady McDuff)




.

New Online Studio... AG8

Thanks Sam Michel of chinwag.com for putting me onto this:

It looks exciting... especially as I don't think I fully understand what it is exactly.

online web producer

From ag8.com:-
Ag8 is an independent studio developing currency for content makers, media platforms and brands.

Purefold is the first product conceived by Ag8 and developed in partnership with Ridley and Tony Scott’s newly launched entertainment division Free Scott. Purefold is an open media franchise designed for brands, platforms, filmmakers, product developers and communities to collaboratively imagine our near future.

With a central theme 'What does it mean to be human?', the franchise explores the subject of empathy - a shared theme with Ridley Scott’s most compelling Science Fiction movie, Blade Runner.

The franchise contains infinite interlinked story lines, turned into short-format episodes by Ridley Scott Associate Films’ global talent pool of directors, and informed by real-time online conversations from the audience, which are harvested through FriendFeed, the world’s leading 'life streaming' technology.

Taking place in the near future, Purefold enables participating brands to take an alternative route to brand integration than traditional product placement and embrace invention within a narrative framework.
MORE HERE:-
http://www.ag8.com/about

Questions Index:
http://www.ag8.com/questions:index
What happens when content production frees itself from the shackles of copyright?

What happens when people’s lifestreams influence and drive fictional storytelling?

What happens when storytelling becomes decentralised, grown through a collective rather than through an individual author?

What happens when product and service invention, rather than product placement, drives the development of branded content?

What happens when transmedia thinking is embedded into stories from the very beginning rather than as an afterthought?

What happens when media agencies are able to sell StorySpace rather than AirTime?

What happens when the best of Hollywood is brought together with the best of Web 2.0?

What happens when brands embrace the notion of empathy by listening to what their audiences want from the near future?

What happens to humans when we reach the Singularity?
AG8 FRIENDFEED HERE:-
http://friendfeed.com/beyond-the-truth-is-the-future


Ag8: finally someone is cottoning onto the future of storytelling.

GREAT BLOG POST REACTION TO AG8 HERE:-
http://johnnyblank.wordpress.com/2009/06/07/ag8-finally-someone-is-cottoning-onto-the-future-of-storytelling/
This is creating an interesting phenomenon. It means that we want small, bite sized pieces of information that we can consume quickly. However, the web has also played nicely into humanity’s innate curiosity. There is still something fun and magical about discovering a new interesting piece of content or story on the web that you can send onto your friends etc.

Where is this leading?

The future is clear. Storytelling will no longer be one person trying to shape a story to an audience. There will be no separation between the ‘creator’ of the story and the audience. The audience will be creating the story as much as the original creator.
MORE HERE:-
http://johnnyblank.wordpress.com/2009/06/07/ag8-finally-someone-is-cottoning-onto-the-future-of-storytelling/


CLICK HERE for all posts about British web shows labelled U.K.
http://storygas.blogspot.com/search/label/UK


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Friday 5 June 2009

Online Comedy... SPEEDIE DATE

comedy web series web tv

SPEEDIE DATE SHOW HOME SITE HERE:-
http://www.speediedate.com

EPISODE ONE
Table Four: Mike, a speed dating regular, tries to convince reluctant, first-timer Heather to give speed dating a chance.



EPISODE TWO
Table 9: Amanda and Chad are determined to be postive, but they discover a real connection comes when they express who they truly are.



EPISODE THREE
Table 5: Veronica and Moby
Married Veronica has only come to screen the guys for her single friend. It comes as a shock when she finds herself falling in love with one of her dates.



SPEEDIE DATE YOUTUBE CHANNEL HERE:-
http://www.youtube.com/speediedate

SPEEDIE DATE ON STRIKE.TV
http://www.strike.tv/show/speedie-date/


*****STORYGAS INTERACTIVE RATING*****
SPEEDIE DATE
Can you embed? YES
Can you comment? YES on strike.tv
Also on youtube? YES
Forums? YES
Blog? YES
************************************

What do you think?
Sum it up in 3 words, or scores out of 10...
See COMMENTS below

Thursday 4 June 2009

Online Drama... The End Is Nigel

the end is nigel online drama screen yorkshire

From Verity's Blog:-
It’s been a week since Nigel went missing. No one’s listening and, the louder I shout, the more people think I’m pulling some kind of student prank. The more I think this whole thing’s a joke. This is getting pretty ridiculous. No sign of Nigel and now the Police are warning me not to keep hassling them or they’ll do me for wasting Police time.
MORE HERE:-
http://www.theendisnigel.com/day1.html

SHOW HOME SITE HERE:-
http://www.theendisnigel.com


THE END IS NIGEL intro




"THE SAXOPHONE DEITY" link from the series
http://www.saxophone-deity.com/

online dramas web series uk web producer


"THE END IS NIGEL" FLICKR ACCOUNT:-
http://www.flickr.com/photos/verityabrams/sets/72157612006509299/detail/

"THE END IS NIGEL" COMPOSER Heather Fenoughty's blog:-
http://www.heather-fenoughty.com/blog/2009/02/03/online-drama-the-end-is-nigel-goes-live/





*****STORYGAS INTERACTIVE RATING*****
THE END IS NIGEL
Can you embed? not found
Can you comment? not found
Also on youtube? YES but only one video found on there
Forums? not found
Blog? kind of - show written as blog
************************************

What do you think?
Sum it up in 3 words, or scores out of 10...
See COMMENTS below

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Wednesday 3 June 2009

Bye Bye Google Friend Connect - REMOVED!

This blog seemed really slow to load, and... completely unscientifically, it always seem to hang on the "Followers" or "Google Friend Connect" widget -- so... sorry to all the followers who've kindly signed up on there... but already this page seems faster to load?

BYE BYE FRIEND CONNECT!

Online Comedy... SAFETY GEEKS:SVI




From Dave and Tom:-
SAFETY GEEKS:SVI is the comic adventures of a semi-elite force of safety experts; the P.O.S.H. (Professional Occupational Safety Hazard) team. Obsessed with making the world and bits of Canada safer, the CSI-like team investigates accidents to find out what went wrong and who is to blame. Interestingly, their involvement causes far more damage than they prevent, leaving a trail of chaos and destruction in their wake. P.O.S.H. offers an obscure, detailed and well-meaning service—unfortunately, they are a bunch of idiots.The world of P.O.S.H. is very unsafe…largely due to them.
MORE HERE:-
http://www.daveandtom.com/safetygeeks.html

SHOW HOME SITE HERE:-
http://www.koldcast.tv/index.php/show/safety_geekssvi



EPISODE ONE - "Forked up"
A hapless worker solves a problem at the Giant Provisions Warehouse store and creates another one with catastrophic consequences. Meanwhile, the Professional Occupation Safety & Hazard Team (P.O.S.H.) is joined by a new mysterious member...




Episode TWO - "Posh Team is Go!"
Sparky reveals her history and Reg's incredible joke is interrupted by an emergency call as the team takes to the air in Safety One...




Episode 3 "A Dangerous Blend"

online comedy web tv web comedy series


*****STORYGAS INTERACTIVE RATING*****
SAFETY GEEKS:SVI
Can you embed? YES
Can you comment? YES
Also on youtube? YES
Forums? not found
Blog? YES
************************************

What do you think?
Sum it up in 3 words, or scores out of 10...
See COMMENTS below

Tuesday 2 June 2009

Coming soon... DUBPLATE DRAMA Series 3 - Online Drama

uk interactive tv series dubplate drama

The worlds first interactive television drama, where the viewer decides the plot, is back on UK's Channel 4 for a third series.

Written & Directed by KateModern Lead Writer, Luke Hyams

Dubplate Drama Series 3 Trailer


Main Show Trailer of Dubplate Drama Series 3

Back on air June 2009

Channel 4 / MTVBase / Myspace


DUBPLATE DRAMA CHANNEL 4 PAGE HERE:-
http://www.channel4.com/programmes/dubplate-drama

DUBPLATE DRAMA MTV PAGE HERE:-
http://www.mtv.co.uk/shows/dubplate-drama

DUBPLATE DRAMA ON MYSPACE:-
http://www.myspace.com/dubplatedrama


CLICK HERE for more SHOWS
http://storygas.blogspot.com/search/label/shows


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Felicia Day's Web Series - Four Things To Ask Yourself Before Starting

Felicia Day storygas articles Online Comedy web comedy series web producer
Creator & Star of The Guild (and other online series) Felicia Day recently posted this great recap of the advice she would give to anyone setting out to set up a web series, online comedy or drama show...

From Felicia Day's Blog:-
1. How is My Project Unique to the Web?
Web series are all the rage lately, and yet, ironically, many Web Video production companies have shut down in the past 6 months. Why? I think one of the reasons, besides money, is that they were trying to make TV shows on the web. Their shows can’t get traction because the Web needs a different kind of storytelling.

2. How is My Web Series Unique to ME?

3. Who is My Audience and How Will I Reach Them?

4. Do I Know What I’m Getting Into?
FULL ARTICLE HERE:-
http://feliciaday.com/blog/web-series-4-things-to-ask-yourself-before-starting

My favourite is point 4 -- Here's an extract:-
Name five web series off the top of your head. Chances are those people aren’t making a living off their series, and if they are, it’s not much. Personal experience talking here. Best advice I can give you, is to assume that your web project is a labor of love and your expectations will always be exceeded.

...Web show exists 24/7 on the web and, as such, requires that much time to maintain. You will have to learn many MANY different skill sets, because there is no money to hire out the things you don’t know how to do. Along with Final Cut, Photoshop, After Effects, Excel, Powerpoint, Wordpress, HTML, Garage Band, Music Editing and Composition, Production Design, etc etc I can come up with about 50 more skills that I know PASSABLY well, because at the end of the day someone had to do it.

The internet is the Sundance of our time. Take advantage of it and don’t wait for permission to make your art.

FULL ARTICLE HERE:-
http://feliciaday.com/blog/web-series-4-things-to-ask-yourself-before-starting

ALL FELICIA DAY POSTS ON HERE, ARE HERE:-
http://storygas.blogspot.com/search?q=felicia+day

Links to THE GUILD here:-
http://storygas.blogspot.com/2008/10/online-comedy-guild.html

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Monday 1 June 2009

LUNCHTIME WATCHALONG - Google Wave Developer Preview at Google I/O 2009

google wave logo uk web producer industry

"What would email look like if it were developed today?"

"You guys like the spell-checker?"
[ROUND OF APPLAUSE]

Google Wave Developer Preview at Google I/O 2009



Google Wave Developer Preview presentation at the Day 2 Keynote of Google I/O developer conference.

Conversation playback...

ALL GOOGLE WAVE DETAILS HERE:-
http://wave.google.com/

GOOGLE wave screenshot
What is a wave?
A wave is equal parts conversation and document. People can communicate and work together with richly formatted text, photos, videos, maps, and more.

A wave is shared. Any participant can reply anywhere in the message, edit the content and add participants at any point in the process. Then playback lets anyone rewind the wave to see who said what and when.

A wave is live. With live transmission as you type, participants on a wave can have faster conversations, see edits and interact with extensions in real-time.

UK Safe Sex Campaign "Wasted Money" - Online Drama Thmbnls

This "story"... "broke" on Saturday. It raises a couple of issues which seem to be ignored in the way it is skewed.

The first is...
The assumption that online content "needs to get the biggest audience possible on day of release".

I still don't believe this is how online content works.

The second is...
The assumption of treating the internet as if it were a TV transmission mast. That if you make videos and just put them out there, that an audience of millions will spontaneously come to them to watch them.

I still don't believe this is how online content works.

want respect use a condom online series web drama uk web producer
From BBC News website:-
A government safer sex campaign aimed at teenagers has been branded a "gimmicky" waste of taxpayers' money.

"Want respect? Use a condom" campaign included a specially-made drama series, called "Thmbnls" which cost £250,000.
But only 5,576 mobile phone users signed up for the videos, which meant it cost £45 per subscriber when set against the cost of the film.
The specially-commissioned series involved 22 one-minute-long episodes featuring a group of teens discussing relationships and attitudes to contraception.

The videos are available as a free mobile download to users who subscribe through www.thmbnls.co.uk
Episodes are also posted on Youtube, but by late May, some had received fewer than 20 views.

Susie Squire from the Taxpayers' Alliance said: "Too often the government engages with gimmicky marketing and gimmicky advertising because they think they are going to reach a new audience.
A spokesman for the Department for Children, Schools and Families said: "The Thmbnls project was designed as a pilot to test an innovative approach to using personal media, in this case mobile phone technology, in delivering messages to notoriously hard to reach audiences."

The spokesman said the government would be carrying out a project evaluation looking at the impact of Thmbnls, but said the 5,576 subscribers exceeded its own target.
FULL STORY HERE:-
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/8074914.stm



So let's take a quick look at Thmbnls.


Thmbnls is coming to your mobile. Forget what you've seen before, this is all about teenage life, that you can interact with, in real life. It's gonna be one mad ride - don't miss it!!

Thmbnls is a 22-part drama on ur mob & feat. Billy, Gripper, B%ks, Jakki, Mundy & Lupe

It's well easy to sign up just txt DRAMA to 62233 & u'll get a new thmbnls episode evry Fri for FREE sent str8 2 ur mob!

Plus there's tons of otha cool stuff alng da way so dnt miss out!

"THMBNLS" SHOW HOME SITE HERE:-
http://www.thmbnls.co.uk

"THMBNLS" YOUTUBE CHANNEL HERE:-
http://www.youtube.com/user/Thmbnls

"WANT RESPECT" MYSPACE PROFILE HERE:-
http://www.myspace.com/wantrespect

Thmbnls | Episode 19: Sumfin' Fishy
Mundy meets Gripper @ his nw sushi job bt sumfin stinks - & it aint Gripper!


Thmbnls | Episode 1: Groupie Love
The crew is hanging out while Gripper is braggin bout his latest grl.



Surely this "story" couldn't have been pushed... to get extra publicity for the show... by any chance?


Funny how it has suddenly appeared exactly two weeks before the timed end of the campaign (12 June according to PR Week.com)


PR WEEK: Campaign breakdown - THMBNLS drama
http://www.prweek.com/uk/sectors/publicsector/article/875446/campaign-breakdown-thmbnls-drama
Agency: 20:20 London Client: Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) and Central Office of Information (COI) Timescale: 9 January-12 June Budget: £4.6m

MOBILE MARKETING MAGAZINE - THMBNLS - The Soap on Your Phone
http://www.mobilemarketingmagazine.co.uk/2009/01/thmbnls-the-soap-on-your-phone.html

In what the companies are claiming is a world first, 20:20 London, Incentivated and the COI (Central Office of Information) have collaborated to launch ‘THMBNLS’, an interactive, ad-funded mobile soap opera for the Department of Children, Schools and Families.


*****STORYGAS INTERACTIVE RATING*****
THMBNLS
Can you embed? YES
Can you comment? kind of - seem to be heavily moderated
Also on youtube? YES
Forums? not found
Blog? not found
************************************

What do you think?
Sum it up in 3 words, or scores out of 10...
See COMMENTS below


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UPDATES...

Great update in Brand Republic -- exploring the sourcing and the use of the viewing stats...

http://www.brandrepublic.com/Discipline/Media/News/909812/Government-defends-waste-money-mobile-campaign/
...the department argues it was acceptable to use public money to explore using new approaches to get its messages to hard to reach audiences.

A spokeswoman said: "The Government is often criticised for failing to exploit the opportunities presented by new media and technologies in stimulating behaviour change on important social issues, in this case teenage pregnancy and sexual health, so we believe it is a legitimate use of public money to explore this, in the context of a much wider cross-government teenage pregnancy strategy.

The department also claimed using the mobile channel offered "good value for money" compared with established media.

"As a campaign message vehicle the production of the drama represents good value for money when compared to traditional assets like TV, radio or print adverts.

Back in March 2009, thatcanadiangirl.co.uk blogged this...
http://www.thatcanadiangirl.co.uk/blog/2009/03/06/thmbnls-the-government-is-screwing-with-your-money-again/
There is also seemingly no effort to interact with the young people; Facebook & MySpace were used to dump video files on and left there. The MySpace account, for example, has not been logged in to for a week now. They seem to have forgotten that at the centre of any social media strategy, it’s critical to socialise with the community & be genuine, transparent and human.