Recently in television Category

Just as there are lots of lawsuits about television based material ending up on the web, the same challenge occurs when you try to make a TV show based around web content.  

MTV is about to launch it's new show 'It's on with Alexa Chung', the repacement show in the US for 'Total Request Live'.   They plan to have the show include links through social netowkring sites, such as Facebook and Twitter so that the audiece can interact live on air, they also plan to highlight viral videos on online content.   Yet this casues them a whole bunch of interlectual property and copyright challenges.

Read more here.

Continuing our look into the move to digital

A few weeks ago news came that Western Australia is leading the way in the uptake of digital television, we've been the leaders in buying up big screen televisions that allow us into the world of ABC2 and ONE.

In the US as they approached the 'turn off' date for the analogue signal it was highlighted that in the move to digital some people would be left behind especially those people who could not afford a new television and those additional television we have around the house.   As they prepared to turn off the analogue signals on Friday there were still almost three million households were unprepared for the change over.

The average Australian household has between two and three televisions, so what happens when the second one is no longer working.   It's a concern for childrens television and late night programming especially.   Could these markets lose their entire audience when the analogue signal is turned off.

Well no need to worry, looking and the US situation again, now that the annalogue signal is n longer transmitting, the stores apparently are filled with smaller digital ready sets, perfect for the study, the porch, the kids room and the bedroom.       

One of the most commonly stated reasons that Australian viewers don't engage with new television programs is the difficulty they sometimes face in staying with the show as networks switch the days and times that the show is on, show's disapear for sports, and sometimes just plain disapear (Yes, I am looking at you, Channel Nine).

More often than not, we figure I'll wait for it to rerun of Foxtel, or binge view on DVD.

ADVERTISING AGE report that CBS in USA is taking a new approach with their new show, 'Harper's Island'.   The audience has been told two things about this show, every episode someone will die, and it will run for just 13 episodes.   The show is not just a traditional TV presentation either, it also has a strong online component.

It kind of makes sense, in our busy modern lives we all have to plan more, schedule more, have busier lives.   Maybe in the future the TV schedule will not need to cover the next 7 days but the next quarter.   Foxtel publishes their TV guide monthly, should free-to-air be aiming for the same.   Viewer loyalty built through reliable and dependable programming.

But is this all that new, is Australian ahead of the game for once, 'Sea Patrol', 'Underbelly', 'City Homicide' and 'The Circuit' are all short run series and Australian audiences are responding well to these.   The days of shows that run for 40 weeks of the year are definately on the way out.   

Channel Nine this week are showing the Oscars at 9:30pm on Monday, after all with over 2.5 million viewers last week and some additional publicity courtesy of the Australian Family Association, that's a viewership you don't want to rock the boat with.

Additional digital channels also provide networks with an opportunity to improve programming, while not disgruntelling viewers, unsuccessful shopws could move down onto secondary channels, while popular shows could move up to the primary channel.

Shorter series allow for more creative storytelling and more engaging productions, a great example of this is any comparision between a British show, which can be as low as 6 episodes, and the same show be remade in the USA, where the concept might be pulled out to as many as 22 episodes.   Take a look at 'Queer as Folk' for an example.

That's the guarantee I want from my broadcaster, if you begin watching this show, it'll be played all the way through.

The Independent Television Service in San Francisco has just released a new report which looked into new ways of creating distributing and promoting films.    The report focuses on 10 case studies, and it's well worth a look.   The focus is on social filmmakers, but not strictly documentary.

They also highlight the Top 5 stategies in each area.   I particularly like the sugggestion that you could make an international film by collaborating with other idependent filmmakers in other countries.

Source: CinemaTech

Channel 9 is offering the first two episodes of their new drama series 'Canal Road' for free download.   They encourage you to share it, burn it to DVD and even but it up as a bit-torrent.   The idea is that word of mouth advertising for the new show will spread and it will get personal and positive reviews, building a loyal audience before it's TV debut.

If you missed this week's debut of Sea Patrol II: The Coup, it's also available for download.

In November we posted a link to a story about webisodes, FTI Member Justine Smith provides this guest post in response to the article.  

I think the article is focussing on points which are not completely relevant. What they are referring to, I think is the re-packaging of material and putting a price on this for creative development. If you want to understand more about this have a look at the current negotiations in Hollywood between the Writers’ Guild and studio execs. Hollywood is on hold waiting for this to be resolved. The Directors’ Guild of America are coming in behind the Writers’ as their agreements are also up for negotiation soon.

But if we’re talking purely content generated for on-line viewing I have a lot to offer. I was recently a participant in the Portable Screen Academy in Melbourne which is directly exploring this territory.

The first point is: People are already making money from creating webisodes.

{Have a look at this surprise hit story of a one-off http://www.catfish.net.au/index.php?h=NewMedia} 

The main examples that we studied were extremely profitable enterprises. We met and were mentored by the creators of these success stories.

In North America Miles Beckett and team started the “Lonely Girl 15” phenomenon. They looked at what works on YouTube, mostly copyright rip-offs and video-blogging. Obviously the only profitable area was focussing on video-blogging.  Lonely Girl created a video blogger identity. A short series began, with Bree complaining about her parents and not being able to go out as much as she would like. 

A buzz was created. People started to wonder who this person was, where they lived, what her parents did for work, which religious sect they belonged to. And those people were asking these questions on-line in forums and on Lonely Girls profile pages.

Eventually the Lonely Girl team came out and stated publicly this is a fiction, we have created Bree and her story.  It was a scandal without too much bite, a victimless crime, and Lonely Girl’s buzz increased as word got out. 

Now Bree has loads of fans and followers and the story still continues 18months after it started.

Next step, the spin-off.

The Lonely Girl team noticed that they had world popularity, but the most impact was close to home where users has more opportunity to interact with the characters and story. So they created a new series in the UK, Kate Modern. 

Luke Hyams is a key writer and producer for the Kate Modern series. Using the same format profile, but new characters and storylines the new UK series was created. But this time they started with a big budget. Due to the notoriety of Lonely Girl, the team garnered immediate sponsorship and alignment with the social-networing site, Bebo. Bebo is the primary social-networking tool in the UK, and they saw this as a way keeping there difference and excitement for consumers. They held initial first- run of all episodes, before the ep’s could then be re-distributed in ‘traditional’ on-line areas, such as You Tube – a virtual free-to-air distributor.

Highly successful. Highly interactive.

A standout story for me was hearing how they held an Art Gallery opening of Kate’s work. Only 12 viewers showed up as no-one really believed it was for real. The writers had devised a double-whammy for this event and thus staged an abduction of another character at the Opening. Some savvy viewers recorded this on their mobile phones and effectively scooped the Kate Modern team by uploading that night. But it also created a greater buzz and there are loads of loyal viewers and participants in this show week-to-week.

Profitable Webisodes Downunder

The local version of this type of online serial is the Melbourne based “Forget the Rules”. Their second series is uploading as we speak. 

They started out in the first series offering viewer participation by giving a choice of 3 endings which would be voted on, chosen, written, filmed, edited and uploaded all within a week. Loads of fun and very vital filmmaking.

They are linked with Optus for the second series and also received development funding  from Film Victoria.

Portable Screen Academy

We produced in two teams of 12, two separate on-line serial formats. Then we broke our teams down and in smaller groups to create individual episodes. Bearing in mind that we filmed in about an hour and half, and edited in an hour then compressed and uploaded all in one day, a mighty effort. All our work was fitted around seminars and speakers, but it feels great to have put it into practice and see how possible it all is. The other West Australian on the course was Kane Jason. He was on the Help Me Get Karen team, and I was on the Forever storyline. 

Follow the links below to learn more about these on-line serials. And if you are going to look at my story (Forever – Episode 3) please put in a comment and favourite it, and give it 5 stars. Support local content, harnessing these new delivery forms.

Cheers,

Justine
 

YOU TUBE

Forever – Episode 1 http://youtube.com/watch?v=x0mwaCd5yY0

Forever – Episode 2 http://youtube.com/watch?v=HqYPZwQLlBU

Forever – Episode 3 http://youtube.com/watch?v=zjLB8luUDRQ

 

Forever Productions http://youtube.com/user/foreverproductions20

 

YOU TUBE

Help Me Get Karen – Episode 1 http://youtube.com/watch?v=SN-pvoTA9vQ

Help Me Get Karen – Episode 2 http://youtube.com/watch?v=oBuklV1YA70

Help Me Get Karen – Episode 3 http://youtube.com/watch?v=W6Kfkj6I1ZI

Help Me Get Karen – Episode 4 http://youtube.com/watch?v=pzq5k6JI5m8

 

It is what it is what it is http://youtube.com/user/itiswhatitiswhatitis

 

PORTABLE FILM FESTIVAL

http://portablefilmfestival.com/

 

Forever – Episode 1 http://portablefilmfestival.com/video.php?video=206

Forever – Episode 2 http://portablefilmfestival.com/video.php?video=209

Forever – Episode 3 http://portablefilmfestival.com/video.php?video=207

 

Help Me Get Karen – Episode 1

http://portablefilmfestival.com/video.php?video=202

Help Me Get Karen – Episode 2 http://portablefilmfestival.com/video.php?video=203

Help Me Get Karen – Episode 3

http://portablefilmfestival.com/video.php?video=204

Help Me Get Karen – Episode 4

http://portablefilmfestival.com/video.php?video=205

 

Also of interest:

Have a look at our actor Oliver Clark, in another online creation…

http://portablefilmfestival.com/video.php?video=167

 

Australian made webisodes, generating an income, and harnessing the form.

http://www.forgettherules.com/

 

Lonely Girl 15 – from the USA

http://youtube.com/user/lonelygirl15

www.lg15.com

 

Kate Modern – the UK spin-off

http://youtube.com/user/KateModernLG15

http://www.bebo.com/katemodern

 

We love the way TV show 'LOST' uses additional material on the internet to extend the viewing experience.   Now in the USA in advance of Season 4 begining people have started spotting billboards for the fictional Oceanic Airlines.   Providing viewers with yet another mystery to unravel.

The billboards aren't everywhere though, just in towns and cities that have been included in the shows spralling and complexly interlinked flashback sequences.

A new study has just revealed what visual content Australians were downloading via bit-torrent in 2007, television programs 'Heroes', 'Lost', 'Battlestar Galatica', 'Top Gear' and 'Prison Break' were popular.    While in Australia it is easy to draw a comparison between TV programming delays and downloading in the USA downloading still reamins a problem, so it's not just the fact that we get the shows months later.

Obviously in Australia one of the biggest contributing factors to a high level is downloading is the many months or even years between when a show airs in the USA or UK and when it finally reaches Australia.   Australians have always been frustrated to wait, before we just lived with it, now we don't have too.

That dosen't explain why people download so much in the US though.   The real reason for this is not just changes to technology, but changes to the way we live.   The days when people worked 9-5 and Monday to Friday are long gone.   Many people now are not getting home until late in the evening - yet both free to air and PAY-TV still fail to cater audiences outside the standard primetime viewing hours.   

If I'm free to watch TV from mindnight to 2am, what are my choices,

1. Get a DVD
2. Record things on my VHS
3. Wait for Tivo to arrive
4. Turn to my computer

The point is that I wouldn't reach choice number 4 unless all my other options are closed.   Televison providers who want to build and maintain audiences in the future will have to open up some options for me.   Bring the advertising dollar to where I'm watching, rather than sheparding me to 'traditional appointment viewing'.   I'd like my appointment to be at 2am please.   

The SYDNEY MORNING HERALD has an article about Foxtel using advocates to build hype around new shows.   In the USA around 10% of a marketing budget for a product may be spent on swaying the influentials - the people who tell the other people.   FOXTEL has used the approach to build audiences for it's new show 'The Gossip Girl'.

We've seen similar approaches in Australia before, earlier this year Channel 9 allowed people to see the first episode of 'Sea Patrol' in advance online, hoping the reactions of the people who logged on would generate buzz ahead of the shows launch.

FOXTELS approach takes it one step further though, they are targeting the influentials, the people who form opinions and influence other people.    The people who have enough friends to invite around to  a opening night house party for a new TV show.

In the SMH article others are quick to dismiss this as an effective approach for marketing television in the free to air world because of it's reliance on making big numbers quickly to guarantee the success of a show.   BUT this is the model that needs to change in the new media world.

For a television show to be success there are two models of program development, firstly you can do the big bang approach, start big and get a big audience.   That plane crashed in Episode 1 of 'Lost' for precisely this reason.   A nuclear bomb went off in Jericho.   The new BBC soapie set in Manly is going to start with a murder.   Alternatively you can stick with a show for a period of time and allow it to develop.   Everyone is chasing 'The Chaser' at the moment. It’s a ratings powerhouse and it's on the ABC - strangely commercial networks were never chasing the same team as CNNN four years ago.   The ABC stuck with the Chaser boys and let them grow.

So if your going to let a show grow, the media world is all set for you - you just have to change everything in your programming mentality.   You have to show a new show several times in it's first week, give me lots of chances to tune in.   You have to let me know a new show is on, give me lots of notice - I'm busy and not really paying attention.   I need a countdown - 5 days to the new Jimmy Smits show.    I need a chance to catch up if I decide I did want to watch the show after all - 5 weeks into it's run - so give me a marathon of episodes on a Saturday afternoon.    Re-play the show on your Digital channel or time shifted channel a few hours or days later.   Before Season Two starts - replay Season one late at night.    Basically give me lots of chances to engage.   

If your working in that world - which Foxtel and to a lesser extent Channel 7 are, the use of advocates makes so much more sense.    

There are lots of books recently on this topic, 'The Tipping Point' by Malcolm Gladwell, 'The Influentials' by John Berry and Ed Keller or 'Cool Hunting' by Peter Gloor and Scott Cooper.   There a good read if you want to delve further.        

In TIME Bill Tancer reflects on thie growing practice of surfing online while watching television - admitidly nothing new in this observation - just a mainstream media catch up  

The growing pracice of media multi-tasking that results in new mental state of the viewer, the constant partial attention syndrome and creates challeges for the makers of television.   How do you link the dual usage of the mediums and create a product that syncronises them together?   Shows like 'Australian Idol' and 'Dancing with the Stars' just ask us to vote, that novemty wil lsoon wear off, if it hasn't already.   True interactivity and cross platform delviery will need to be far more complex, involving the viewer in multiple narative streams or allowing them to interact live with the program.   Maybe the next generation of quiz show will just have contestants linked by their PC-cam to the studio - live from your loungeroom.

I remember a few years ago when Tim Beeson and I went to the AEAF festival in Sydney we stayed at my brothers house, my brother Dave and his partner both work in computing, they have wireless broadband, and laptops galore.   As we sat watching TV, and four of us surfing on the internet simulteneously, sending stuff to one and other,  we commented on this becoming the norm in the future.

The challenge though will be to make a program that keeps televison in the centre of the action, rather than a peripheral device at the centre of the room.