Web TV Series

How to Make and Market Them

By Dan Williams

Oldcastle Books

Copyright © 2012 Daniel Williams
All rights reserved.
ISBN: 978-1-84243-785-8

Contents

Title Page,
Dedication,
Acknowledgements,
Preface,
1. INTRODUCTION TO WEB TV SERIES,
2. DEFINING SUCCESS,
3. DEVELOPING THE IDEA,
4. FINANCING THE PROJECT,
5. CREATING A MARKETING PLAN,
6. PRE-PRODUCTION,
7. PRODUCTION,
8. POST-PRODUCTION,
9. DISTRIBUTION,
10. SUSTAINABILITY,
11. TRADITIONAL MEDIA OPPORTUNITIES,
12. INDUSTRY INTERVIEWS,
13. RECOMMENDED WEB SERIES,
Appendix: Two Episodes of Asylum Script,
Endnotes,
Copyright,

CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION TO WEB TV SERIES

When I started this book, I wanted to write something that presented all the options, scenarios, and possible routes one could take while developing their own web series. Simply put: I wanted to create the kind of resource I wish I’d had before making my own show.

As internet connections become faster, it is only getting easier to stream videos online. The vast majority of internet users watch video content, and the average amount viewed continues to increase as well. Production costs, meanwhile, are decreasing as high-end cameras and editing software become more available to consumers. Websites like YouTube allow users from all over the world to upload and share their own creations.

You have surely noticed these trends yourself. Odds are that you have watched plenty of content – perhaps you have even posted a few videos of your own. What is important to note is that, out of this new web-based production and distribution model, a new medium of entertainment has emerged. Somewhere along the path of making original online videos, content creators began crafting serialised programmes.

These creators posted new content on a consistent basis and built an audience of regular viewers. Successful web videos no longer relied solely on a one-shot upload ‘going viral’ to become a hit. Whether they were flash cartoons like Homestar Runner, fictionalised blogs like lonelygirl15, machinima animation like Red vs Blue, or sketches like the YouTube duo Smosh – a new trend developed in online video. Creators promised new material on a specific schedule and focused on building a community of fans around their videos’ brand.

The only thing more contested than the exact genesis of the medium is its name. Early adopters tended toward web television. But what is ‘television’ if it is not being watched on a TV? These new online programmes are broken into episodes and feel relatively like abbreviated versions of traditional television shows. However, many of them feature subject matter, use production techniques, and are uniquely structured in ways that differ greatly from their TV equivalents. Watching ‘web television’ is a very different viewing experience than simply watching a TV show on your computer.

Many have now taken to calling these serialised online videos web TV series or simply web series. The medium is one that took off in a hurry and has begun to capture the public’s attention – as well as the attention of advertisers and studios. Web series have given voices to those left out of traditional entertainment and provided new opportunities for independent artists.

A CASE STUDY (WITH BACON)

Montreal natives Harley Morenstein and Sterling Toth started by recording something they loved to do: eating greasy food. In October 2010, the pair