The Pittsburg crew of Something to be Desired has been pumping out season after season of its dramedy since 2003.

Written, directed, produced, and edited by the team at Kownacki Productions (a team which primarily consists of Justin Kownacki along with a few dozen actors and a handful of crew members), the fictional series has created buzz because of its originality and its impressive ability to stand the test of time, making over 60 full-length episodes. Its blog-friendly crew contributes to STBD’s Behind The Scenes blog while characters Leo, Caroline, and Jack each have their own respective (if infrequently updated) blogs.

Focusing on the lives of the youthful WANT FM crew, a fictional radio station based in Pittsburg, STBD showcases individuals who have all reached that stage in life where adulthood is not quite the satisfying good time that they had anticipated.

Working for little pay and dating with moderate success, the characters mix comedy and drama in their day-to-day lives caught on tape in quick, well-edited five minutes segments. Episode 13 of season 4, “If the Shoe Fits,” is the perfect example of the show’s blend of humor and character conflict.

The cast has multiplied over the years, but the core group of Jack, Dean, Leo, and Caroline has persevered. And while the episodes haven’t gotten any longer, all aspects of production have become more sophisticated. By the third season, the writing had reached a consistent level of competency with actual plot arcs and colloquial dialogue. It was also then that the cast settled into their roles and began to act with confidence and believability. This made the series much more fun than the first few episodes, when the show was still struggling to combine its crew’s talents into a cohesive product.

Just check out this episode from the first season, where the WANT FM crew has their annual office party, and this episode from season four, where everybody learns a little too much awkward information about everybody else.

The most noticeable shift is the fact that the stalwart characters have actually become good actors, but better editing allots for more episodic storytelling than the scattered themes of the first season. Where stilted dialogue was the norm, there are now writers and actors who are comfortable enough with their well-developed characters to make the show feel less like a vlog and more like a series. It’s an impressive shift.

Filed under: Tilzy.TV by Zach Jones
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When a teacher’s strike in Oaxaca, Mexico brought government occupation to the provincial capitol in 2006, the resulting protests resulted in paramilitary forces opening fire into a crowd that October. Three were killed: local activists Esteban Zurrita and Emilio Alonso Fabian, and Brad Will, an independent American journalist who was covering the protest. Will’s death brought increased international scrutiny to the area, but not nearly enough. Brian Conley’s Alive in Mexico continues the work of its respected predecessor Alive in Baghdad in giving microphones and video equipment to local citizens interested in telling their own story and the story of their homeland to an international media that has had little room for their voices. From covering Brad Will in Oaxaca to Zapatistas in Chiapas, Conley’s team of journalists, locals, and pro-bono crewmembers began to fill that void in November 2006 (one month after Will’s death) with an alternative media cinema verité approach that’s part stirring exposé and part unifying cultural education.

The five- to ten-minute installments are released usually one to three times each month – sometimes more, sometimes not at all. Each one features or dissects a specific event, cause, or cultural issue with a focus on empowerment. The variety of subject matter will blow you away. And so will the research that goes into each installment. A few past topics covered include murals of resistance, an overview of healthcare, analysis of urban culture, and protests, protests, protests. The time it takes for each episode to be made is evident in the polished but understated editing, translations, informative text slides, and sound mixing. Some feature interviews and voiceovers; some are silent testimonials where the video can speak for itself, but never do the interviewers or videographers intrude. The journalistic emphasis in Conley’s sites is always on subjects rather than journalists. (Unless Amy Goodman has something really enriching to add to the mix, you will never see her on film here. And it goes without saying that Katie Couric won’t be appearing in an episode—or Oaxaca, for that matter—anytime soon either.) It doesn’t matter whether you’re interested in learning about the issues of contemporary Mexico outside of presidential politics and NAFTA; it’s worth watching. Watch it.

I refuse to play favorites with this site. None are any less stimulating or worthwhile than the rest. That said, the episode on political murals discusses one of Mexico’s enduring artistic and revolutionary legacies whose contemporary descendants rarely get attention. The episode on the Oaxacan march for women’s rights covers a human rights violation almost never covered by even the alternative international press: the persecution of women by both men and police in Mexico that have resulted in widespread “disappearances.” The episode on indigenous healthcare in Chiapas is informative and well researched. You know what? You should just watch them all.

Filed under: Tilzy.TV by Zach Jones
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Help My Patients was one of the first ever entirely fiction-based video blogs. Produced by Noah Cooper and Dan Fichter of ReelBlogs, which has also created the popular vlog Bath Tub Yoga, the show get viewers involved by letting them diagnose four malcontent patients of the hapless and fictional Dr. Fletcher (played by Fichter), whose tagline is: “You say unethical, I say resourceful.” Launched in November 2005, the site’s mockery of contemporary psychological overanalyzation and overmedication ran until late February 2006.

The episodes, which all run under five minutes, are broken down by day, since each of the four patients gets overanalyzed in Dr. Fletcher’s office once a week. Mondays belong to Helen, a young girl whose biggest flaw is attributing everything to Freud. Tuesdays are Marty’s, a man mourning his seven-years-dead collie. Wednesdays bring us Howie, a Republican strategist, whose split personality is Nathan, a Democrat who seeks to disrupt his work. Fridays round out the week with Gary, an OCD patient who refuses medication. A new clip was aired each week and viewers were able to submit diagnoses and recommendations to the doctor. If you missed that the scenes are all meticulously scripted and that no doctor in his right mind would actually air real footage of patients, hopefully you’ll notice the acting credits page. Considering some of its sponsors were the American Red Cross, UNICEF, and Save the Children, it’s understandable that some people might think it’s a legitimate, psychotic psychiatrist’s website. That said, gullible viewers were more than encouraged to watch. Most of them found their hilariously serious responses posted on the site and some even had their medicinal recommendations suggested to the patient on-camera during the show’s run.

Part of the fun here is watching the doctor completely misinterpret his patients’ problems, which are pretty minor in scope. When Gary describes getting a lap dance from an ugly stripper and runs out of the club mid-dance, the doctor interprets this as a show of kindness resulting as a byproduct of his hastily diagnosed OCD. Or when Helen, who’s only problem is that she overanalyzes herself almost as much as her psychotherapist does, is told that her dreams mean that she is seriously mentally impaired and can only be helped through hospitalization.

Filed under: Tilzy.TV by Rebecca Halpin
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On November 28, 2005, Anthony Padilla and Ian Hecox – two 19-year-old college students from Carmichael, California – lip-synching their determined yet goofy version of the Pokemon theme became the creators one of the most watched videos on YouTube…ever (at least before it was taken down).

While that vid was busy racking up 24 million views, the two created more quirky sketches and music videos while maintaining their low-fi approach and effervescent brand of humor. The duo also has the esteemed honor of consistently being the most subscribed YouTube channel of all time, beating out top talent like Lonely Girl 15 (Tilzy.TV page), Happy Slip (Tilzy.TV page ), and Lisa Nova (Tilzy.TV page).

Smosh features the entirety of Padilla and Hecox’s comedy output, sketches from their YouTube channel, as well as a surprisingly active discussion forum and merchandise store.  The videos are broken into three sections: music, shorts and theme songs.

The music videos, from which one can also download the mp3 and song lyrics, are made with the aid of a cheesy synthesizer, funky drum tracks and usually rap or spoken verse.  In Boxman, a disfigured pedestrian is transformed into a depressed half-cardboard box creature that walks the streets, outcast. The Transformers Rap is a hip-hop ode to the classic robots-in-disguise with budget special effects that include Ian’s house exploding and yet more elaborate cardboard box costumes.

Smosh merchandise includes hooded sweatshirts and t-shirts with logos and sketch characters like Boxman and Evil Shredder. And for the most hardcore Smosh fans, there are behind the scenes, bloopers and commentary.

Anthony and Ian are at their best when possessed by an 80’s cartoon theme song and a desire to goof around. This is exemplified by the duo’s treatment of the Mortal Kombat Theme, which finds the two acting out martial arts in their bedroom with a webcam and the hearfelt mockery only true fans can muster.

Filed under: Tilzy.TV by Greg Rock
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Hawaii Surf Session report is attempting to be for Hawaiian surfers what Surfline is for surfers all over the world. After moving to Hawaii upon graduating from Ohio State with the specific goal to capture action sports on film, videographer and executive producer Tom E. “Stokes” Gaupp launched HSSR in August 2006. The site includes daily videos, photography collections, and newscasts, although the latter two are updated infrequently enough to be less than essential.

The videos, part of “the most original and best surf video podcast,” follow a steady pattern. Each day showcases different beaches around the state, highlighting the best breaks (with names like “Suicide”) for aspiring wave riders. Each ends with a “Wave of the Day,” which highlights a specific surfer. The videos look fairly professional, with the best clips of surfers doing what they do set to music from a revolving collection of local bands that fits the laid back, ocean-loving vibe of the site (those distinctly Hawaiian sounds are brought to you from otherwise inaccessible acts like Surfing Guitarist, Weldon Kekauoha, and Periwinkle Shag, a group that has been playing for years but has only been recorded for Surf Session). Occasionally, Gaupp includes relevant news and local competition coverage in the podcast, but it’s mostly just film of waves, boards, and words written in the sand.

Because most non-surfers can live vicariously through only so many videos of distant Hawaiian waves, other videos thankfully break the pattern. Life of the Surfboard Part 1 takes viewers along for the first few steps in the creation of the coveted foam boards, as they’re produced in the Oahu factory of Pacific Allied Products. A lot more goes into the production than any amateur onlooker would have realized.

Filed under: Tilzy.TV by Nicholas Mosquera
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Prior to Alive in Baghdad, Boston-based journalist and documentary filmmaker Brian Conley worked on traditional documentary films that dealt with issues of social consciousness, including Libertad y Justicia, para Todos: un centavo mas, Trading Freedom, and The Miami Model.

He began Alive in Baghdad in November 2005 with the goal of helping Americans understand that Iraqis are not as different from them as popular media coverage might lead them to believe. Conley’s first trip to Baghdad focused on creating videos that show the day-to-day world of Iraqis under occupation, but the subsequent trips resulted in the creation of an Iraqi team of videojournalists to create a broader national picture.

The motley Middle Eastern staff is comprised of everyone from Qasem Dulaimi, an ex-Iraqi Army soldier, to Isam Rasheed, a translator and video engineer trained in Scotland with the UK’s Channel 4.

On the American side, those helping the effort include primary editor Steve Wyshywaniuk and videographer and longtime collaborator Kevin Hart, all striving to make this online video alt-press as timely and well-produced as possible. (Vlogger king Michael Verdi of NODE101, FreeVlog, Have Money Will Vlog, and Vloggercon and Jay Dedman of Momentshowing and Videoblogging Group were also part of the original crew, but are now no longer involved in the project.)

This is true citizen journalism at its finest.  Granted, the videos are low budget and of minimal production quality, but you’re not going to find content this intriguing or revealing anywhere else. Each raw, minimally edited installment varies in length from 5 to 15 minutes, and is incredibly effective.

This is not a website about politics. It’s a moving portrayal of everyday people in harm’s way, showing the uncensored atrocities of war in full, plain view. Some videos talk about curfews, which curtail Baghdad denizens from enjoying their city at night, and some talk about children born poisoned by depleted uranium dust. All of Conley’s chosen topics are equally riveting, because no matter how everyday the subject matter may occasionally seem, he makes us realize that each individual act of oppression is a cultural atrocity, whether it results in death or a lower quality of life.

Some of the footage contains explicit and potentially upsetting content. For example, some may find video discussing depleted uranium birth defects at the Baghdad Hospital Children’s Ward rather disturbing.

Filed under: Tilzy.TV by Zach Jones
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“Schralp”, a combination of antiquated words like “shred” and “radical” used by German snowboarders and surfers, refers to the sound the boards make when they skim over snow or water. On October 13, 2005, founder Chrisian “Mee-Z” Miessner posted the first episode of Schralp!, a video newscast about snowboarding in German. Miessner had been at the height of Europe’s foray into new media in the ‘90s, working for Europe’s first internet service provider in 1995 and serving as production manager for Microsoft’s German portal in 1997. In January 2006, he teamed up with Blank Paper Studio to bring more sophisticated footage to Schralp!. The site had already boasted 20,000 visitors per episode when it was in German, but it became a legitimate phenomenon when the first full English-speaking episode aired the month after Blank Paper Studio signed on. In fact, it became so popular that Miessner began Schralp Surf! to similar acclaim in April 2006.

Episodes always last less than five minutes, containing segments like interviews, snowboarding filmmaking (like Lamaproductions), competition results, and montages of long runs, huge jumps, and painful falls. Everyone gets equal attention here, from big snowboarding names like Shaun White, to the international and the lesser known. And while most footage is set in European peaks, events like the U.S. Open and the Red Bull GAP Sessions get covered as well. During the winter, episodes are posted weekly, though they move to biweekly during summer, when the sport goes into off-season.  There are several signature clips within each episode, including the Tiptrick, in which a pro demonstrates a cool move, and the post-credits 2-second clip, which is often very funny. There are lots of technical terms used in the podcast, making it geared more toward enthusiasts than the average viewer. Another interesting touch is the reporting on equipment sellers like Goodstuff, which is similar to coverage of brands like Nike and Supreme in American sneaker culture. Those unfamiliar with German may want to start viewing at Episode 16, though the previous episodes are visually stunning. 

To someone who’s never snowboarded, three seconds of airtime doesn’t seem like much, but it’s quite a feat. There’s something ridiculously impressive about seeing these kids fly through the air while rotating over a thousand degrees and managing to land on their feet!

Filed under: Tilzy.TV by Rebecca Halpin
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You get a sense of the happy+middle sketch group’s humor when reading its website’s disgruntled, sarcastic slogans like “Happy is my middle name” and “Are you happy now?” Produced by Bigfoot Productions and a part of the Delta Park Project, the Portland-based group (Jason, Buffie, Ash, Anna, Christine, and Ted) collaborate to write, direct, and perform this short-form, social satire comedy show about contemporary culture and current events. 

The brief comedic episodes, which are one to five-minutes long, tend to be in response to world and entertainment events. Sparked by a video produced by Misdirected, which campaigns for a fake candidate named Maimunkie (pronounced “my monkey”), the group made two new videos, one supporting the candidate’s competition, Stan Fernandez, and an attack ad against Maimunkie. A response to the widely satirized Snakes on a Plane advertises the use of Samuelite Luggage as a way to combat the slithery miscreants. Videos can be found in the blog or searched by tags like Behind the Scenes, Promos, and a This is Funny category that covers everything else. What sets this group’s site apart is an attention to detail. The site boasts both scripts from posted episodes and filmed bios for each cast member. There’s also a semi-hidden video which satisfies the need for behind-the-scenes content. A click on the “Meet the Cast” thumbnail for Fluffy, a stuffed bunny, links to a longer video chronicling the cast’s experience making the bios. Although the jokes aren’t as sharp and the episodes aren’t as regular as other sketch comedy groups on the web, the show has promise and a smart, geeky sense of humor.

The three-part Maimunkie vs. Fernandez series mocking the tone of the 2006 Congressional Elections is pretty entertaining. Though predictable, the Stop Maimunkie! commercial with quotes from outraged citizens that play on the canidate’s name is worth a watch. 

Filed under: Tilzy.TV by Rebecca Halpin
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Drop in to shralp surf! to experience some radical wave action with the adrenaline junkies who ride the untamed seas. The video podcast show was created in April 2006 by Christian Miessner, following the overwhelming success of shralp!, another site, launched in October 2005, which caters to snowboarding enthusiasts.  Miessner, a German internet innovator was at the forefront of Europe’s integration to web based technology in the 1990s. He worked for Europe’s first internet service provider in 1995 and at Microsoft’s German portal in 1997. The term “schralp” is used by German snowboarders and surfers, as a meeting of the words “shred” and “radical,” and represents the sound that boards make when they skirt over snow or water.

The site is host to a bi-weekly, five to seven-minute surfing podcast show, which delivers the latest news about what’s making waves in the surfing world. The monster waves that are featured every week are truly awe-inspiring. Users have access to Dream Tour highlights, interviews with the world’s best surfers, DVD previews, professional advice, and more. Content spans beaches and surf communities around the globe – visit Anaheim, California for the 2007 Billabong XXL Global Big Wave Awards, the 2006 Rip Curl Pro Event at Bells Beach in Australia, the 2006 Monster Energy Pro in Oahu, Hawaii, or hang-out with cool professional surfer, Benjamin Sanchis, in Hossegor, France . And if you’re curious about which country is the new breeding ground for the world’s best surfers tune into the WetDreams DVD Teaser. Surfing footage in episodes is set to contemporary beats by up-and-coming bands and rap groups, like The Trip, The Sea of Cortez , The Butterfly Effect, which is yet another site bonus.

The January 7, 2007episode that airs footage from the 2006 Pipe Master’s in Oahu, Hawaii , considered the best in Pipe Masters history, is worth a watch – professionals surf perfect 10s atop behemoth waves that seem to touch the sky.

Filed under: Tilzy.TV by Anusha Alikhan
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Rick Cuéllar of El Mundo Entertainment ended a 12-year career with AT&T to attend film school in preparation for his newest endeavor, a cutting edge soap opera that would be aired only online. Six years later in November 2006, his vision became realized with the launch of Alamo Heights S.A., which is co-produced with zyntroPICS, Inc. The show is filmed in Houston, Texas and was originally designed to be released as sixty 7-minute webisodes, airing each weekday – with both English and Spanish versions – over a 12-week period and then available on-demand for six months.

The story, billed as a “Tex-Mex melodramedy cybernovela”, concerns the affluent Texas DeZavala family and the Monterrey-based Montes family, co-owners of a lingerie “empire” who put on fashion shows and sell their wares across the border. What sets this series apart from others – aside from the very high quality production value and the fact that the show is shot in HD – is that it is both filmed and produced in two languages – English and Spanish, and can be followed in either, thanks to a fully bilingual cast. But to be fair, the show works best in Spanish, where the melodrama can unfold in a more presentational manner. In addition to episodes, fans can enjoy a Flickr album with on-set photographs, keep up-to-date with the blog, profiles of the cast and crew, and links to the various advertising partners that keep the show running. There’s also a virtual casting call – actors and models can upload audition videos onto the Your Show page to submit themselves for casting – and a storefront for the fictitious lingerie store “hauT’amales”(with a tie-in to the real thing).

For some gratuitous model butt shots and a peak into the (booming?) Texas fashion industry, check out Episode 1a, which starts off with a high energy runway show featuring the bras and panties that make up the center of the family business. The drama continues to unfold in 1b, where we explore relationships, extra-marital affairs, and a shady business rendezvous. This very sexy show should be watched in chronological order to get the full effect. However, as with most soap operas, you can miss a couple days and still be able to catch up with the story line.

Filed under: Tilzy.TV by Rebecca Halpin
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Happy Tree Friends was created by animator pair Kenn Navarro and Rhode Montijo, who’s also working on a comic book, Pablo’s Inferno, and is the flagship series for Mondo Media, a production company known for its off-color animated series. The show debuted on the web in 2000, and has since grown into a mini-franchise, having been seen on MTV and G4 TV, while several collections are available on DVD. The show has developed quite a following, and with its merchandise arm and various other tie-ins, you’ve got what could be considered an evil Walt Disney company.           

There are many episodes of Happy Tree Friends available in the online archives, but they all have a few things in common. Featuring a cast of rotating and adorable furry characters, including a yellow rabbit named Cuddles, a pink skunk named Giggles, and a dopey blue moose named Lumpy, each episode begins with a “Cartoon Violence, Kids should not Watch disclaimer,” and then continues in the mundane way that violent animal cartoons so often do. They might be horsing around in a playground, baking a cake, or having a snowball fight, but inevitably something will go awry, and will result in the cute little characters being graphically sawed in half, being smashed into a tree, or having their eyes devoured by a flying kitchen blender. While the plot arc may be predictable, the “cartoon violence” is always entertainingly unpredictable. One just never knows how the little creatures will bite the dust. You can also check out the episode list for plot descriptions, screen shots, and information on which DVD to buy if you’re looking to see horrible bloody cartoon deaths on a bigger screen. 

One can’t really go wrong, as there is little difference between, say, watching the Friends go for a swim, or seeing them take up magic as a hobby. One knows that in the end, they’ll end up meeting a bloody, cartoon death. But if you really need some direction, Eye Candy is a fan favorite. Just be wary if ocular horrors make you squeamish. 

Filed under: Tilzy.TV by Nicholas Mosquera
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Chicago-based Jim Choma, otherwise known as “the_Walrus,” produces the factory of viral web content that is Zipperfish under the auspices of Walrus Productions. With blogs, animated series, video and audio content, models, and podcasts, those looking for some general depravity will never be left wanting. With their typically snarky, irreverent humor, Choma and those who maintain the site have made a living out of lampooning most aspects of pop culture. But, in December 2005, they decided to channel their obsession with celebrity news and gossip, which is mocked in Zipperfish’s audio podcasts, into a new medium. Dubbed “The first ever weekly animated news podcast!” Shobiz Newsy News dishes out all the dirt. 

Each episode, roughly four minutes long, is hosted by animated anchor Ty Paddington. He sits in a studio reminiscent of that used by Access Hollywood and Entertainment Tonight. As the episode progress, he introduces the biggest stories and pictures of the week, and mocks the subjects with merciless profanity laced sarcasm, the likes of which a viewer will never find on broadcast television or in the tabloids. For instance, he refers to the most recent American Idol winner, Taylor Hicks, as “having more ticks than a broken cuckoo clock” and suggests that Nicole Richie is slimming down for an upcoming movie role. Other frequent targets are, quite predictably, Paris Hilton and Britney Spears, among numerous others. If you subscribe to any online celebrity gossip rags, you’ll surely like the Shobiz Newsy News. 

The thing about a fake celebrity news show is that however witty or harsh the jokes, only the most recent episode is really worth watching. Everything else is old news. That is not to say that fans won’t enjoy seeing back episodes in the hopes that a loved (or despised) celebrity favorite might have gotten a healthy dose of the SNN treatment. With that being said, Ty’s interview with Britney might be worth checking out, whether or not you’re a fan. 

Filed under: Tilzy.TV by Nicholas Mosquera
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