Behind the Scenes of Urban Wolf

I came upon this series at last year's iTVFest and The Web Files interviewed Laurent Touil Tartour on the red carpet.  Along with Oz Girl and MERRIme.com, this series had quite a bit of buzz surrounding it.  When it was announced in March that Sony/Crackle.com had licensed worldwide global distribution rights for Urban Wolf, no one was surprised.  The series is THAT good.  Fast forward to the iTVFest Fundraiser in April where someone whispered that Laurent had just signed a deal with Michael Bay's The Institute, and I knew we had a big web series success story on our hands.  The show launched May 13th on Crackle.com and I have to say, I was really inspired by his story.

Once the details for The Web Files interview were in place, I was asked to submit my questions to Laurent because of the language barrier.  Now let me preface this by saying I NEVER give my questions out before, but I knew Laurent was a bit nervous, so I sent some general questions over with the caveat that my interviews are free flowing.  I thought he would be fine throughout the interview, and I was right, he was.  Laurent is charming, smart, and a good storyteller.  Obviously, his charm came through on the screen as Web Series Today made a comment about my flirtatious interview with him. Hey, he's French, he's got an accent, that's a good reason to flirt!

I'm so pale, our makeup artist, Melissa Anchonodo, is doing her best to warm me up with bronzer.  I was that day glow white.

The reason this series stands out amongst the pack is its cinematic feel and the utilization of mise en scene.  You don't hear the main character utter a word until Episode 7, and boy, is it effective.  The other thing you have to remember is that Laurent is French, so he dove straight into the web series world through the festival circuit.  I think this is really important to point out. I have been talking about Publicity and Web Series lately and I truly believe that this a great way to stand out from the pack. Laurent hit Comic Con, iTVFest, AFI DigiFest, and Sundance New Media Lab all within the past 10 months.  Of course, the challenge is getting accepted into the festivals, but I think it is an avenue web creators should continue to explore. 

Finally, if you notice in the photo below, we have no poster on the wall.  Yep, that was added in post by our amazing graphics artist, Michael "Cobra" Ledin.  Cobra is one of my Technical Directors for Toyota Live during the year, and he kindly offered up his expertise for this episode.  He's a wizard with a computer and he is pretty darn funny too.   

So, go ahead, be inspired, and watch our interview with Laurent Touil Tartour on The Web Files:

Episode 38: Urban Wolf

Urban Wolf launched today on Crackle, and The Web Files has the interview with Laurent Touil Tartour.  Hear his inspiring story and how Michael Bay figures into his rocketing career:

Publicity and Web Series

A few months back I did a post on the Dos and Don'ts on the Red Carpet and I think it is time to write a companion piece called Publicity and Web Series.  I am going to throw out a few guidelines that are specific to The Web Files, but I know there are new media journalists out there that are seeing some similar issues.  Liz Shannon Miller at NewTeeVee has posted some helpful guidelines for submitting your show to her for review, but what is pure comedy is the email she received this week.  It made me realize that it was time to write the post that has been formulating in my head for awhile.  


We all know that publicity is a key component to driving viewers to your show and keeping the buzz out there in the web series world.  I would imagine most of the Streamy-nominated shows have seen a nice lift in viewership over the last six weeks, you want to keep that momentum going.  How do you do it?  Here are some suggestions:


1. Festivals:  I have really started to pay attention to what is happening on the festival circuit from ITVFest to NY Television Festival to SXSW.   Take a look at the success stories from ITVFest 2009....Al Thompson with an Atom.com deal, MERRIme.com with distribution on The Frisky, Oz Girl's Streamy award (and more news to come), and Urban Wolf's distribution deal with Crackle.  It is thrilling to watch the success happen in less than a year's time.  The festival circuit is a great place to start to create some buzz, so head on over and submit your series.


**Update:  This category continues to grow and I want to make sure to get some of those higher profile festivals out there for you to check out:  iTVFest, NYTV Festival, AFI DigiFest, Comic Con, and Sundance's New Media Lab.  Good luck! **


2.  Networking Events:  There seems to be a new media event, launch party, red carpet, screening, or meet-up each week.  While we see a lot of the same faces over and over, it isn't a bad thing to stop in and hand out a business card or two if you are ready to launch your show.  In fact, we nabbed our first two interviews for The Web Files at Geek Out 2009 by meeting Tay Zonday of Chocolate Rain fame and Brett Register of The Crew.  Without them, we wouldn't have had such a successful start to The Web Files. 


3.  Reviews and Interviews:  Now some of you are lucky enough to have new media publicists who take care of all of your publicity needs.  There are some fantastic representatives out there who are working  hard to promote the heck out of your show.  I can name seven publicists off of the top of my head that we have worked with on a consistent basis.  If you can afford a publicist, go for it.  It is tremendously helpful and it takes a lot of the burden off of your plate. 
    However, I know the reality of budgets in the web space and you are probably doing the publicity at the same time you are producing, writing, and starring in your show.  So, how do you give your series that extra push?  I have already given you Liz Shannon Miller's tips for "How to Pitch Me Your Web Series".  Everyone needs to remember this word, "pitch".  You should pitch your show in an email the same exact way you would pitch your show in a meeting with distribution executives.  In fact, this should be excellent practice for all of the meetings you will be taking after your web series is a huge hit, an award winner, and it opens doors on even bigger platforms.  That is exactly how the pitch should be handled.
    So, while I DO want links to your reviews from Tubefilter and NewTeeVee, here's what I don't particularly enjoy:  
          -"Check out my link.  You should interview me."  
          -"Why haven't you interviewed me yet?" or "When is it my turn?"
          -"The Streamys are over, so let's sit down so you can cover my show."
          -"Come interview us. We have an event tomorrow."
Yes, these are all direct quotes.  So, you can see I am getting some unprofessional emails and it is a little surprising.  I certainly can't email the studio publicists and say, "It's time for The Web Files to interview your talent.  We will be there tomorrow."  I have to pitch my show and let them know why it would be beneficial for their shows to be interviewed by us.  I submit a formal email with links, a press release and talent bios.  I want them to see The Web Files as a professional media outlet, not some hack entertainment web series.  Please treat your show with the same respect whether you are dealing with a small show like ours or a huge network like E!  You spent so much time and effort on the creative side of the business, remember that once it is completed and you are dealing with publicity, monetization, or distribution, it is all business. 
     The other issue is contacting us a day before your event.  If pre-production took a month for you, it will be the same for us.  We have a crew to organize, a show to plan, and we have to make sure I am in town. (Easier said than done during my travel season.)  I love covering events, but some notice is appreciated and it is necessary for us to produce a quality show for you.  I want to make sure I have done my research on the talent and we want to have our core crew on hand. Trust me, they are GOOD, so a little calendar courtesy goes a long way in our world.  


4.  Press Releases:   A simple and free way to get the word about your show out there on the net.  PRLog just requires a short registration and it is a fantastic way to get the word out about your news of season premieres, finales, distribution, and events.  We have utilized this service quite a bit and we always see a lift off of the press release.


5.  Timing:  Yes, timing is important in terms of publicity.  Take it from the master, Felicia Day.  When she is writing The Guild, she puts herself in a media blackout creating more of a demand for her when she returns.  I am sure she wants to avoid the distraction, but it is a brilliant idea.  When your show is launching, ending, there is distribution news, casting news, or a red carpet event, that is when you want to hit the PR wire.  That is exactly when we want to interview you too. We want launch our episode with you because it is a win-win in terms of buzz and viewership.  In fact, the next six interviews we are shooting involve: a Streamy winner, a launch, distribution news, casting news, DVD release, and a new media event.  As they say, timing is everything.


6.  Patience:  I think Liz said it best, "Please be patient with me. I eventually watch everything I’m sent, but I only write one review a day and you web series creators have been freakin’ BUSY."  I know at The Web Files, we are doing our best to keep up with your emails.  We do have an official list and we banter back and forth as to why we should do a particular series now or later.  It is an ongoing discussion and it changes each month.  The best example of that is our interview with the series, Chick.  It had been on our list for a long time, but the timing felt right in early 2010.  I even wrote about the timing in my Behind the Scenes post for Chick.  The show did extremely well for us in terms of views and we received more emails about this show than any other episode so far in 2010.  Chick has a lot of heart and I think that resonated with many viewers, so I was thrilled we gave a smaller show a boost and we felt like we did it at the right time.  


Where can you hone your PR skills? Well, I know there are several new media workshops going on in the month of May with NewMedialocity and WebTV Workshop, or you can go back to the basics with UCLA's Extension program and sign up for PR 101. I am hoping the Web TV seminars address the publicity issue in depth because it will be beneficial to many content creators.


I hope this was helpful to you from a media perspective.  I would love to hear your comments on this topic because I know many of you will have even better suggestions from a creator's point of view.  So, let's get some dialogue started! 


To submit to The Web Files:  TalkToTheWebFiles at Gmail dot com
We look forward to learning more about your web series!


**Update** I received an email from a content creator accusing me of being part of the LA web series "bubble" and some unknown clique out here.  I have to take issue with this.  We do not have a travel budget for The Web Files right now.  If you know of someone that would like to sponsor us, we would gladly take you up on that offer and cover web series all over the country. 
   Please do not accuse me of not supporting web series.  I have worked hard along with everyone else at The Web Files for FREE since May of 2009. We want to tell your stories and we are doing the best we can on our limited resources.  We are happy to cover any web series that is visiting LA and we try to take advantage of that situation whenever we can make that interview happen.  So, please keep me in the loop of your travels, especially if you are coming in for Digital Hollywood or itvfest.  Off my soapbox.  :) kb

PS.  I must be doing something right if I got my first piece of hate mail.  Yay!

Weekend Web Watch: Streamys Edition

Each weekend until Sunday, April 11th, The Web Files is running our Weekend Web Watch with one of the nominees for the Streamy Awards. This weekend, check out Best Reality/Documentary Web Series nominee, Mommy XXX. We interviewed Demi Delia in her home back in July of 2009 and it is one of my favorite episodes from 2009. So many people are quick to judge the person when they hear about their chosen profession and I don't always think that is fair. Well, I think you will see some new insights and changes with Demi when Season 2 premieres. But, take a closer look at the interview and be sure to check out the article about some of the controversy surrounding advertisers on the Crackle.com website and the power of the Mommy Blogger. It's worthy of a read before you see the interview. Judge for yourself and comment below. I would love to hear your thoughts on this one.

Article: Mommy XXX Controversy

Episode: Mommy XXX

If you missed our other Streamy Edition Weekend Web Watch Shows, click here: Weekend Web Watch Week 1 and 2.

Behind the Scenes of The Bannen Way

Ah, The Bannen Way. So much excitement, so much buzz, so much.....controversy? Yes, controversy. We stepped into this interview during a heated week of discussion by the web series community on the internet regarding The Streamys nomination process. SONY decided to launch the first three episodes of The Bannen Way before the scheduled launch date in order to qualify for the 2010 awards. Jesse Warren, the director/creator of The Bannen Way, dove right into the controversy at the beginning of the episode and I really appreciated that. I think we addressed the issue and answered any lingering questions. We did delve a bit deeper than what you saw, but I do think the Streamys will update their rules for 2011. It is a constantly evolving nomination process and just like The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences updating their rules year to year after 82 years in business, this will be no different.

So, let's push that aside, and talk about how much fun this web series is: slick, sleek, and sexy. Mark Gantt and Jesse did start this project independently and I was fascinated how they even procured a Jaguar for their shoot. It was a process that was all new to them as this was an idea developed by them to gain more ground in their film/TV careers. Once SONY jumped on board, they really hit the ground running with name actors to flesh out some of the roles. I might add that I think this is the best role I have seen Vanessa Marcil in yet. The web series model is constantly changing, but I believe The Bannen Way is going to change the web series scenery as it has set a new standard for web series production. Now is every web series going to look like this? No, of course not. I do think it will challenge all of the independent creators to set new goals for themselves. Let's see what happens to the web series landscape in the next 12-18 months. I am excited to see what the future holds.

It is always fun to unmask the crew behind the scenes, so let me introduce Perry Payne, who may be familiar to some, but he is our editing guru and DP on The Web Files, and Lucas Plouviez, our Camera Op for The Bannen Way episode. Without all of their hard work, we wouldn't have a show! So, thank you for your continued dedication to The Web Files.

Finally, the dress and belt. It is another fantastic find from Roni B. Roni is magic when it comes to styling wardrobe for a shoot, so be sure to tell her I sent you. Makeup was courtesy of e.l.f. Cosmetics and my awesome earrings in this episode were a Christmas gift from our makeup artist, Melissa Anchondo. You need to watch the episode to see them close up.

So, watch the episode right here! See what the buzz, controversy, and excitement is all about.

We WON!

Well, look at that! What a great way to start off 2010, with an unexpected win for The Web Files for "Best Web Original Non-Fiction Show" as a part of Clicker's Best of 2009. The competition was incredible with shows like A Comicbook Orange, Hungry Nation (who I am dying to interview), and New Media Minute. It's hard to imagine that we started this show only 6 months ago because we have been so welcomed into the web space. We appreciate your votes, views, and all of the support. Thank you!

We look forward to bringing you more in 2010. We kicked off the year with Dorm Life, Hulu's #1 most watched web series and next week brings The Bannen Way, the most anticipated show of the last year on Crackle.com. Please keep that feedback coming, we want to bring you the shows you want to hear more about.

Finally, a shout out to our fellow web winners in other categories: Compulsions, Casual Mafia, The Legend of Neil, and Live from the Future with Stuart Paap! Congratulations on your win, guys!

Articles about the win:

Clicker
NewTeeVee

The Web Files Update

As anyone working in arts or entertainment, you plug away at your work and you hope people respond. Well, today we received a response we were not expecting, NewTeeVee's Reviews Editor, Liz Shannon Miller, reviewed The Web Files. I am thrilled that she took the time to watch multiple episodes and I think she gave us some really constructive feedback. It gives me some great ideas on what we have to work on in the future. For instance, Liz pointed out that we did not find out how MERRIme.com obtained their name actors like Tom Arnold and Tony Hale. In fact, we did ask the question, but it ended up on the cutting room floor. Tom Arnold is an old friend of Kaily Smith's family, David Weidoff and Kaily went to USC with Ryan Eggold, and many of David's castmates from ABC Family's Roommates were recruited for the web series. So, Liz makes a great point in some things we might want to focus on. Thank you, Liz. Read her article: NewTeeVee.

For our Weekend Web Watch, I am always looking back to episodes and pulling them back up for viewing because The Web Files episode may coincide with a web series' event. (e.g. Last week's Weekend Web Watch with Movies You May Have Missed and their Podcast Award nomination.) Well, this week, I am dusting off Crackle.com's Mommy XXX with Demi Delia, because this episode is a continual powerhouse for us. I realize her former adult star status draws a certain amount of attention, but her fans are loyal. They watch the episode, they comment on the show, and they come to this blog to read more about the behind the scenes scoop more than any other show we have featured. We are all looking for that fan enthusiasm in our web series, films, television shows, and music that we create. How do you create a loyal audience? Well, maybe we could all learn something from Demi Delia and how she maintains a fan base that will follow her beyond her adult industry career. View the episode: