Over on CNet they have a few words from director Doug Liman (Swingers, Bourne Identity) about the state of entertainment on the web:
“The reality is that the quality content isn’t there yet,” Liman said in an interview following the speech. “It’s no different than going to Sundance (Film Festival) this year and people saying, ‘The great independent film wasn’t there this year.’ That doesn’t mean it won’t be there next year. Given the direction the Internet’s going– with more and more people working in that arena–you’re going to see an Internet equivalent of Swingers.”
I totally agree with Doug that the internet has yet to see its breakthrough hit, although I’m not sure it’s a “Swingers” that’s needed as much as for people to continue to develop compelling storylines that take full advantage of what the web has to offer in terms of both interactivity and originality.
Too much of the web programming out there (and that I admittedly contribute to) is still basically very short-form TV. The breakthrough will be in the form of more evolutionary entertainment that combines elements of traditional entertainment with social media and ARG’s and other emerging forms.
There is a brief look over on PSFK at the willingness of the fashion industry to explore web video as a marketing tool.
“While a runway show lives for 30 mins at the most, and may be viewed a couple thousand times online, a short video can be created for mere pennies (of course, costs can run into the hundreds of thousands), uploaded to YouTube, gather millions of views around the globe, and live on forever.”
They have links to a few examples, as well. I have to say that most of the stuff I’ve looked at has tended to be very pretty but not very original or remarkable. The fashion industry is a great world for video since it is so visual and dynamic. Now they need to pair up with some good writers to take it to the next level.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0AjJnsnklbI&hl=en]
Wow, NewTeeVee’s Chris Albrecht is on a tear. First, he has this rather tongue-in-cheek guide for those looking to make their own funny web videos:
“1. Use Webcams
Your show is online, and so is your character, thanks to your webcam! So meta. Sure, this method of storytelling has lost all its novelty, but what better way to dispense with showing us any action than by having the main character describe the action in their vlog?
Steal from: lonelygirl15, Dorm Life, quarterlife”
He’s got five more gems in the post.
Then Chris is on BeetTV with some more thoughts on this developing genre and let’s just say he’s not all that impressed. His main feeling is that there is certainly a glut right now of comedy-centric sites and that this leads to a lot of scattershot content.
Check out the whole interview here.
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April 16, 2008 2:46 pm | 
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