Dustin McLean is the second best thing to happen to music videos since the pop up. The award-winning animator and musician (who currently brings Josh Fraure-Brac‘s scathing pop culture commentary to life on Current’s Super News) recently said “how it would be funny if the lyrics of a song just sang what was literally happening in the music video.” He was right.
With a voice that captures all of Morten Harket‘s highs and lows, McLean remixes a-Ha’s Take on Me with lyrics befitting the action:
Given the video’s popularity, expect more to come soon.
But, what’s the best thing to happen to music videos since the pop up? Buffalax.
It was either fourth or fifth grade when I was first exposed to StickDeath.com, which at the time contained simple GIF animations of stick figures getting brutally maimed, disfigured and murdered. It was basically the coolest thing ever on the Internet (but I can’t recommend the site now, as it’s upgraded to fancy Flash animations, and the creator’s more racist and xenophobic leanings are shining through).
A decade or so later, extremely violent stick figure shorts are still making waves on the web. There are even scores of Flash video games based on stick figure gore on UGOPlayer.com and NewGrounds.com. The Atom.com series, Stickman Exodus brings a classical perspective to age-old stick figure figure violence.
Can you call documentaries that focus on awkward social interactions and power dynamics of schoolchildren a fad? You know, the films that look at kids against the backdrop of a hallmark, acne-inducing occasion. Maybe they’re a sub-genre? Anyways, they’re popular.
The geniuses behind Spellbound figured out that audiences positively react when you point the camera at America’s youth during a dramatic event (especially an event that’s irrelevant in the big picture, but seems like it could be a life-changing experience for those involved).
Produced by Bombo Sports & Entertianment (creators of Red Sox Nation’s favorite flick, Still We Believe) in association with Warner’s Studio 2.0, High Drama follows the students at Cape Cod’s Barnstable High School (pronounced “BaWnstable” if you’re a local) on an 81-day trip along a windy emotional road that leads to a glamorous stage production of The Wizard of Oz.
Film and music video director Roman Coppola and advertising agency WhittmanHart Interactive have teamed up with Scion to produce Fist Of Oblivion, a new live action web series featuring Kung Fu-fighting puppets, slated to premiere on the automaker’s lifestyle site Scion Broadband (bB) later this fall.
Fist Of Oblivion tells the story of Ricky Brisco, an ex-cop and Kung-Fu master who’s on the hunt for his former friend and partner who framed him for murder and now leads the Red Dragons, the most powerful gang in the city. The series is a puppet-peppered homage to the classic Kung-Fu films of the ’70s–chock-full of fierce fighting, mysterious characters, unstoppable evil, sharp dialogue, exotic locations and of course, groovy music.
Tubefilter found a (possibly unauthorized) copy of the series’ trailer, which features the voice of Dana Snyder (Master Shake of Aqua Teen Hunger Force). The trailer goes into far greater detail than the teaser version that was sent to us: “After five years, and a whole lot of prison showers, he’s back on the streets, and with the help of some friends, he’ll try to clear his name, avenge his master, and unlock a secret so powerful, and so secretive, IT WILL BLOW YOUR BALLS OFF!”
Alex Sanger, General Manager of WhittmanHart’s LA office who worked with Scion to first create Scion Broadband, has been guiding the site’s transition from a licensed-content model to one featuring more original properties. “We began looking for defining original content for Scion Broadband, like what the Real World did for MTV and South Park did for Comedy Central,” Sanger told Tubefilter. In his search Sanger turned to Los Angeles-based commercial production company The Director’s Bureau–home of Roman Coppola Studio, to see if there were an opportunity to license existing creative content from their roster of writer-directors. “But as we were walking out the door,” Sanger tells us, “Roman pulled out these puppets. Roman always wanted to make a genre piece, like a ’70s hard boiled Kung-Fu series, but played by puppets.”
“I’ve wanted to produce a Kung-Fu action puppet show for some time,” said Coppola. “When Scion Broadband invited me to be involved with them, I thought it would be the perfect home for Fist of Oblivion.” Coppola had been developing the project but couldn’t find the right opportunity to realize it. The web provided the perfect medium for the project, which was too short for a series on TV. Sanger and Coppola brought Fist of Oblivion to Scion and pitched with just the puppets and a special effects shot of a Kung-Fu kick. Scion went for it, and now nine episodes are slated for release in early November.
“Scion thought the innovative content and style would be a good fit for Scion Broadband as it would really engage and entertain the bB audience,” said Allison Takahashi, Scion Public Relations.
“Scion Broadband is a laboratory of experimentation for our brand,” commented Scion Interactive Manager Adrian Si. “To keep it fresh, we look for innovative and edgy content like The Fist of Oblivion that will resonate with our audience and stay true to the culture of the brand.”
This is (Scion-parent company) Toyota’s first original web series project, if you don’t count the content selected for its new Lexus video portal L Studio. As for future projects, Takahashi told us, “if something comes up that would be a good fit for bB, Scion would definitely consider it.
The series is planned to release sometime in early November with with new episodes launching every Tuesday through the end of December. Until then, we’ll wait with baited breath to “experience the mojo in the dojo!”
The Mario Bros. appear in over a hundred games, and from what I count, no less than five television shows, but I think it’s safe to say that they have never appeared as they do in the wonderful world that is There Will Be Brawl. Ingeniously conceived as a dark noir tale about Luigi’s investigation into a series of grisly murders in the Mushroom Kingdom, there are some things that could use improvement but the sum total of its parts makes this first episode (Twilight Ruin) a harbinger of good things to come.
I’ll start off by saying I know very little about the Mushroom Kingdom. I’ve played a handful of Mario Bros. games in my life from Donkey Kong to Super Mario Kart and enjoyed every one of them. My reason for bringing this up is to say that though director Matthew Mercer and writer-producer Zach Grafton have infused the show with their deep knowledge of the Mario Bros. world and characters (much of which goes over my head) they have also created a show that stands on its own, even with the piddling references I have at my disposal. Bravo fellas. (Ed. Note: Yes, that’s a Lakitu Brothers reference in the newscast.)
As one would expect, what partly started out as a joke among friends became instead something layered with a bit of depth and thought as to ‘what would it be like if this were real,’ that is, in a noir sense. In a way though it makes sense that it would take on this depth considering Grafton’s original inspiration, as he says, “basically I just really wanted to tell a story in which Kirby was Hannibal Lecter.” That’s an auspicious beginning — humorous, yes, but interesting too, because they didn’t go for the one note joke, but rather decided to explore that concept in a way that is truly reminiscent of current serial killer noir. Read On…
The show has a little bit – excuse me – a lot of style and can be explained using a few Will Smith references. Take an absolutely clueless white guy à la Kevin James in Hitch, make him wear aMen in Black suit, put him in the movie Bad Boys, and add a street-talkin’ Caddy known as G.A.R.I. (Ghetto Artificial Replica Intelligence). If that’s not enough of a grab for you, check out this trailer:
Looks like a riot (and the gorgeous girls in bikinis known as the “D”ouble-“D”etailers sure don’t hurt either).
Last Thursday, October 2, Tubefilter presented at the Screen Actors Guild as a part of the New Media Panel for union talent excited about getting involved in web television. Over 200 participants packed the James Cagney Board room of SAG’s Hollywood branch to hear from a panel of industry professionals which included David Burns, producer of Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog, A.D. Miles, creator-star of Horrible People, Melissa Hunter and Jenn Crohn, producers and stars of Let’s Get Laid, and Hollywood Web Television Meetup co-organizer Tyler Malin, founder of Secret Fun Time. I was honored to be included among a group of such veterans of web TV.
The evening started with presentations from the web show creators with three very different path to success–Dr. Horrible took a “big budget” independent route that landed them with an iTunes contract and prompted plans for a DVD release, Horrible People made an up-front deal with My Damn Channel, and Let’s Get Laid went for a totally scrappy, passion-driven approach with no initial monetization strategy but with enough momentum to capitalize upon. All the creators shared the same passion, bravery, and perseverance crucial to creating a successful web series.
The panel then fielded questions from the audience about what makes a great web show, how to stand out in the crowd, and whether there is a way to make it rich. If any conclusion can be drawn from the evening’s panel, the world of web television is gaining more traction by the day, and the audience’s enthusiasm reflects the growing interest in this unique and exciting medium.
Created by the Kanpur-based development firm Hexolabs as a marketing device and demonstration in the effectiveness of branded, interactive storytelling, the series makes clever use of YouTube annotations. With an XKCD aesthetic and Dragon’s Lair-like gameplay, players must click on in-video pop-ups in order to navigate a car through 7 precarious situations so it can live to ride another day.
It’s not a substitute for MetaFilter’s Flash Friday fun, but it’s an interesting way content creators can use simple tools to create unique entertainment experiences specific to the web. Some filmmakers, like Madrid-based Victor Losa, have already caught on.
The attention-shy Julia Allison and her divas-in-crime, Meghan Asha and Mary Rambin (together the girls of NonSociety) premiered the above on their Next New Network last week. It’s called TMI Weekly.
The show lives up to our expectations in every way: innocuous girltalk delivered with contrived nonchalance by women you love, or love to hate, and that you already kinda-sorta know. Self-described as “The View” for the YouTube generation, TMI appeals to modern 20-and-30 something ladies, with sex, tech, and fashion. Seems like a formula for views.
High Drama: Against All Oz debuts today on TheWB.com, bringing the drama of high school theater in all its teenage glory. The latest original web series made for the new Warner Brothers’ online portal, Oz takes us on a behind-the-scenes look at a real high school production of “The Wizard of Oz,” straight from the drama club at Cape Cod’s Barnstable High School.
We’re taken on the journey from ‘pitchy’ auditions through the ups and downs of this enormous cast and crew getting to know each other and bring the age-old play to life. The auditions deliver the public voyeurism matched only by American Idol, matched by a season’s worth of bonding and angst that couldn’t be written. The realism of Oz‘s awkward teenage drama gives you the feeling you just might stick it out and see just how this scrappy group can pull off this massive musical production. As WB.com head Brent Poer tells us, ” “It’s American Teen meets the drama club.”
Producers chose Barnstable High School after a nationwide search, settling on the school known for mega-productions featuring hundreds of cast members, professional-grade effects and knockout sets. Seriously, there are over 300 cast members, or “over one-sixth of the students at BHS,” says Barnstable High School Drama Club adviser John Sullivan, “ and that doesn’t count all the costume makers, backstage crew and musicians!”
Since “The Wizard of Oz” is after all, a Warner Brothers property, the studio granted special permission to use the 1939 film screenplay as the script for the production, which is apparently different from the stage version most schools are using. The play will also include two original songs cut from the final movie version.
Produced by Madison Avenue-based Bombo Sports & Entertainment in association with Warner Brothers’ digital production venture Studio 2.0, the series will run for 13-weeks, with new episodes out every Monday through November 17th. (See our Web TV Schedule for more.)
Ever move into a new neighborhood? Ever worry about your neighbors and how they’ll be? Rejoice because you don’t live next to the Devil. This episodic Satanic comedy, 664: The Neighbor of the Beast, explores the suburbs and the Devil with the sort of casually observant comedy that would make Albert Brooks proud. If the Devil’s in the details, then the good people of Lazyhorde Productions have him down pat.
Packed into 20 episodes including both an Outtakes episode AND a Christmas episode, the first season of 664: The Neighbor of the Beast offers you as much Devil as you can handle. And that’s just Season 1.
Expect laughs from the repeated juxtaposition of normal suburban concerns butting up against the slavering legions of demon hordes from the house next door. Even the Devil himself is a pleasant Kevin James-ish sort of mensch- a guy more worried about his job, his house, etc. than he is about the evil temptation of mortals. He’s a normal guy stuck doing a bad job.
The Internet powers that be should immediately bundle this show together with others like it (God, Inc. – I’m looking at you) and create a sort of Mytho-Ecclesiastical The Office. I’m sure there’s a show about Purgatory somewhere, but stick with “664: The Neighbor of the Beast” for evil feel-good fun.
Before you ask, the answer is no: Man in the Box is not a web series celebrating ‘90s grunge pioneers Alice in Chains. (It would be cool if there was a show like that though.) Every office should have a guy like Greg Bizjack if it doesn’t already – mine doesn’t; someone who has absolutely no qualms about calling co-workers out on their BS or pointing out how completely unreasonable they are. For instance, telling the guy in the neighboring cubicle that unless he’s a pirate or a magician, his new earring looks ridiculous. You know the type with the earring; he’s probably staring at you intently as you read this. When he’s not mocking fellow employees, Greg finds time to stir up his own fun, whether it be bringing in his own Irish coffee blend for everyone to try, or stealing the new soft toilet paper from the office bathroom.
Man in a Box is a hilarious series from HBO Labs’ Runaway Box, created by Cleveland-based comedian Mike Polk, who also plays Greg. Besides two shorts, Polk has just a few other credits listed on his IMDB page. It’s a shame; someone should put this guy in a movie. While the show often feels like deleted scenes from Office Space or The Office, I know I could sure use some more of those in my life. Seeming to have no budget, Man in a Box still provides plenty of laughs. Poking fun at office staples (no pun intended…or is it???) like casual Fridays (above) and sexual harassment seminars. Recurring characters on the show include Sarah, Greg’s “love interest” and arch nemesis; Bill, the fat guy who still lives with his mother; and Terry, who likes Nickelback. If you’re bored at work, there are plenty of episodes available to watch now. New installments are released every Tuesday.
