Some people get all hot and bothered when walking by windows full of Jimmy Choos or consumer electronics or dolls or those roast ducks in Chinatown. When I spy an all clad, copper core cooking set in a Williams-Sonoma storefront or see some Wagyu fillets in the local Whole Foods’ butcher’s display, I start salivating with want.

Now, thanks to the launch of video offerings by the higher end house wares retailer and higher end natural foods grocer, those visions of kitchenware and quality ingredients that cause gastronomique pangs of desire are only a few clicks away.

Of the two, Williams-Sonoma definitely wins out on the cool factor. Last week they began incorporating videos into their site to supplement their rather extensive recipe offerings. Produced by web video production and distribution company, TurnHere, they’re mostly your normal how-to cooking fare (from Classic Roast Chicken to Banana’s Foster), but what shines are the product featurettes.

Check out the video about Shun knives, aka the Hattori Hanzo swords of kitchen cutlery, aka my latest fetish:

Awesome production, but the video player needs work. It’s way too small, loads too slowly, and it doesn’t give me any download, sharing, or subscription options. On those fronts, Whole Foods does a much better job. Read On…

Filed under: Tilzy.TV by Joshua Cohen
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Preceding last season’s finale, the producers of teenybopper soap opera, Lonelygirl15 incorporated an ingenious bit of product placement into the show’s cast. Spencer Gilman, a character certified as a Neutrogena scientist, was deployed into the series’ alternate, occultish reality to subtly convey to viewers that Rapid Clear Daily Treatment Pads are awesome, and to help Daniel and Jonas rescue a kidnapped Bree.

As a rescuer, Spencer sucked (Bree died and it was kinda sad), but as an advertisement, he seems to have been enough of a success to carry-on the character-as-product-placement strategy.

Following a comparatively less emotional season two finale on Friday, the creative minds behind LG15 will write Jack – a troubled teen who discovers he has the ability to teleport and a shill for the upcoming Fox movie, Jumper – into the third season’s script.

###Silicon Alley reports that the storyline involving Jack with culminate on February 14, when Jumper hits theatres.

Although I find the repetitive, overly dramatic stylings of LG15 to be a bit much, I dig series that create their own realities. Combining two narratives that each live in their own alternate universe is a clever idea, and a much better advertising technique than bringing beauty products into the storyline.

Now, if they can mix some tertiary characters from movies like The Dark Knight into the plot, I might start watching LG15 regularly again.

Filed under: Tilzy.TV by Joshua Cohen
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Moblogic.tv, the new, soon-to-be released daily web series from the creators and former host of Wallstrip (Tilzy.TV Page), has attracted some international scrutiny.

Wallstrip continues to inform and entertain with its charming new host, Julie Alexandria, but  this political rebuke could destroy the fledgling show’s expectedly strong Moscow contingent. 

Developing…

Filed under: Tilzy.TV by Jamison Tilsner
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So we were just praising old and new media mogul, Michael Eisner and publisher, G.P. Putnam’s ingenuity after their announcement to produce a dramatic web series in promotion of a new book release. It is a novel idea, but they weren’t the only ones to think of it.

The pop fiction Celebutantes is hitting shelves in 10 days. The book’s MySpace page (yes, the book has a MySpage page, and yes, that should be revealing as to its target demo) oh-so-cutely describes the story as such:

“Lola Santisi is a 26 year-old member of Hollywood Royalty (Papa’s vying for Best Director Oscar #2 and Mom’s a fixture at The Ivy). Without a kingdom–or even a condo–to call her own, she suffers from twin afflictions: Actorholism (a fatal addiction to dating hunky actors) and CDD (Career Deficit Disorder, an epidemic among children of Hollywood Royalty)…”

It sounds like a young Sophia Coppola farce with an exaggerated Entourage and/or Californication aesthetic. But I won’t know for sure because I’m probably never going to turn a page (one critic describes its redeeming qualities as, “People magazine devotees should enjoy the fast pace, famous names, and designer everything”).

I will, however, be watching the four-part Celebutantes web series – created to drum up publicity and promotion for its hardcover counterpart – whose first episode launched today:

Click To Play

Pretty slick, eh? Here’s why. Read On…

Filed under: Tilzy.TV by Joshua Cohen
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Big Fantastic, the production company behind SamHas7Friends, Prom Queen and Cockpit, whom we interviewed here, is set to script 50 two-minute webisodes based on the upcoming Robin Cook book, “Foreign Body.” The production will be headed by Michael Eisner’s Vuguru and Big Fantastic will work in partnership with Cyber Group Animation.  Sounds like a winner.

The show is set to debut on May 27 and will air every Monday through Friday for 10 weeks, with the finale premiering on August 4. The book will hit stores the very next day.

It’s a pretty ingenious marketing tactic: sites like Vidlit and BookVideos have used shorts and author interviews as a promotional tool for books, but no one has experimented with dramatic  web series that actually extends the story.  It’s a strategy that both book publisher G.P. Putnam and Eisner believe will attract readers from untapped markets:

“This is a whole new way to get an audience that’s not reading as much as they did in the past to get to know the characters in a novel,” Eisner told the New York Post. “Hopefully they’ll get attached enough to go out and buy the book.” Read On…

Filed under: Tilzy.TV by Jamison Tilsner
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The original site design for the Revision3 internet television network felt like an unnavigable black sea of techdom that was intentionally trying to keep non-geeks at bay.

None of the 10+ series produced by the studio co-founded by Kevin Rose, Jay Adelson, and David Prager had their own, distinct, branded destinations. It was difficult to find the shows you were looking for. The video players were small, and downloading large video files was promoted over simplified streaming. It had a confusing business model, and anyone who stumbled across the site that was less than conversationally familiar with Digg didn’t have a clue that there was an abundance of video just a few clicks away.

Last week they launched a redesign. It’s slick, inviting and user-friendly. I will be watching a lot more Revision3 (well…not The Digg Reel, but Diggnation, Web Drifter, and the like ) and I’m guessing a lot of others will be, too.
###

Jamison recently wrote some tips for what makes a great internet viewing experience. The new Rev3 redesign follows most of them.

There are now individual branded sites for all the shows with prominently displayed direct links and embed codes. The video players themselves have been enlarged for easy viewing, and all the different download options you might want are available. Viewer interaction is encouraged through episode discussions and their cross-promoting shows throughout the network with the old, Amazon-tested “People who liked this also like:” technique.

It’s not perfect – there could be some video elements incorporated onto the network’s homepage (like Blip’s Jumbotron), and on the individual series’ homepages (like a ton of other video sites) – but it’s close. I’m guessing future page views will reflect that, assuming there aren’t any massive Digg revolts to turn Rev3’s core audience away.  

Filed under: Tilzy.TV by Joshua Cohen
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Cyberspace is home to some truly “out there” characters, and when these people make websites that attract thousands or even millions of visitors, you can bet funnyman Martin Sargent will be packing his bags.

The host of the Revision3 show, Web Drifter, Sargent travels around the country meeting the “genius kooks behind the Internet’s most intriguing and outlandish Websites.” You might recognize him as the slapstick host of the technology comedy podcast Infected or as the host of the late-night tech talk show Unscrewed. Think his comedic antics were off-the-wall there? You ain’t seen nothing yet.

What else? Sargent meets everyone from Randy Constan, the Florida man who regularly dresses like Peter Pan and features his fashion on a nearly 10-million-hit homepage, to Justin Kan, the founder of Justin.tv who broadcasts his life 24/7 on the Internet by strapping a camera to his head. Read On…

Filed under: Tilzy.TV by Pearl Chen
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The ultimate intersection of marked individualism, tawdry glitz, prideful expression, industry jockeying and – lest we forget – high-brow cinema rests somewhere between Park City, Salt Lake City, and Ogden, Utah.  Robert Redford’s Sundance Film Festival has become an institution of modern filmmaking because it’s brand has become synonymous with the distribution of independent film.

Over that past few years, we’ve watched the Sundance Film Festival’s web presence transform from a promotional publication to an expansive, interactive extension of the festival that – though a far cry from the madness in Utah – has, itself, become a celebration of speech and the spirit of creativity…and some of the glitz too. 

It’s a good website with a lot of cool content, but it does leave a lot to be desired.  The festival is an excellent avenue for independent filmmakers to showcase and distribute their work, just not digitally.

###The user experience is sub-par for a content and talent-rich website in 2008.  Videos can’t be embedded in blogs, and they don’t toggle to full screen.  Instead of creating a rich, contextual multi-media experience unique to the web, Sundance attempts to mimic the experience of old TV by sequestering much video content in a special vault of its own.  And, unfortunately, the website is no substitute for the festival itself. 

There’s a comprehensive list of full-length festival films, but none are actually featured on the website.  Not even trailers.  Even showcased short films, which in the past were available on-demand for several weeks before and after the event, have a small, 24-hour viewing window. 

Putting Sundance films online, after all, is not yet kosher.  Films are meant to be savored with an audience of uninterrupted concentration blanketed by intense connection and emotion.  They are not meant to be blithely consumed on silicon-studded screens marred with distraction.  At least that’s what the festival organizers seem to think.
 

What the website does do well is show videos about the films, the conversation surrounding the process of creating and sharing, which are highly engaging for any media-creator.  And for those who wish to endavour some semblance of the cinematic experience, Sundance has expertly incorporated various horizontal media-delivery platforms such as Netflix, XBox and iTunes to give consumers flexibility and choice…for a small fee.

I understand that Sundance wants to maintain control of its brand, but by holding onto all its content, it’s missing an opportunity to gain internet relevancy.  It doesn’t need to release much to the digital masses (and I’m guessing a problem with distribution rights would come into play).  Allowing viewers to embed and send around festival footage and conversations with the artists would be an easy way to create interest and gain exposure.  But maybe Sundance is snobby like David Lynch and only wants movies to be viewed in theaters.  If so, screw ’em.  There’s always From Here to Awesome.

For those who want a taste of the festival in all its nitty-gritty glory, live vicariously through Eric Beck and Justin Johnson of Indy Mogul who are capturing the events and meeting with some big name creative types. 

Filed under: Tilzy.TV by Jamison Tilsner
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If you’ve watched Roommates, you know that MySpace has learned the art of the obvious shill (girls in bikinis dancing around a new Ford Focus isn’t exactly discrete). The seemingly innocuous Artist on Artist
series is a more thickly veiled attempt at product promotion, but regardless of marketing, it’s pretty cool.

Artist on Artist is the home for a long time MySpace thread of “viral video interviews” in which unexpected entertainers interview each other in cozy circumstances in segments that feel more spontaneous than produced.

The site was launched in January, 2007, when MySpace went live with what it called “a new profile community.” Engineered by Josh Brooks, MySpace’s Vice President of Content and Programming, the Artist on Artist page became a central hub for interviews that had originally appeared across the site’s multiple video channels and other pages.

Brooks explained it all in a detailed press release, touting how the unique format of the exclusive interviews with pop culture icons creates a ‘fly on a wall’ experience for MySpace users.  I wouldn’t exactly call it ‘fly on the wall,’ but in each five or six minute interview you do get a chance to see artists on camera in a slightly different light.
The ultimate appeal of the interviews is the pairing of unlikely entertainers who turn out to be friends. We know, of course, that Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez are pals, because they make a show of it, as they do on the show to promote Grindhouse. But did you know that Weird Al Yankovic and Seth Green are buddies? According to their colloquy, they met at the Playboy Mansion and later collaborated on Green’s animated show Robot Chicken and other projects.

The subsidiary premise of the Artist on Artist interviews is to provide a decent facade to an obvious promotional pairing.  It’s no surprise that Jessica Alba and Dane Cook are now palsy, as we learn when they come to discuss Good Luck Chuck.  Robert Downey and Richard Linklater talk friendly shop (promoting A Scanner Darkly), as do The Rock and Steve Carell (who recently finished shooting Get Smart together).

The Al Gore and Mos Def interview, on the other hand, is just plain cool.  The esteem the two have for one another is something special to watch (though a crew member doesn’t seem to like Al: he refuses to shake the former VP’s hand in early footage of the video).

Some of these mutual interviews also manage to transcend the promotional apparatus and achieve real wit and insight. For example it’s amusing to watch rocker Patti Smith (looking like Joey Ramone as she gets older – or is it vice versa?) try to describe to fellow Jerseyian Michael Imperioli the content of the animated show Aqua Teen Hunger Force.

The funniest interview is the one between talk late night host Conan O’Brian and actor-comedian Jim Gaffigan, especially when they get on the topic of bacon and what O’Brien calls the marriage of “meat and candy.”

After watching, I can definitely deal with the shill, and wish that more artists would take some time to just talk shop on camera.  Getting them out of their natural elements creates an opportunity to provide fans with interesting perspectives.

Filed under: Tilzy.TV by Douglas Holm
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Jeff Pulver, founder of Vonage and VON, and social media and internet TV enthusiast and evangelist has a live show, PulverTV, on which he talks to to the movers and shakers of the media revolution.

The show airs live via BlogTV and is broadcast from Pulver’s studio in Long Island, New York.  Similar to the San-Francisco based GigaOm Show, though less-produced and seemingly more spontaneous, Pulver talks to some of the formidable figures behind new media projects.

Today at 2PM EST and available after on-demand, Pulver will talk to Jack Dorsey, founder of Twitter, an application that has changed the way information is shared and distributed.

In an earlier episode, Jeff also talks to Eric Rochow of RealWorldGreen.com

Filed under: Tilzy.TV by Jamison Tilsner
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On June 7, 2002, “brilliant computer science student,” Derek Francis Border disappeared on graduation day. On January 22, 2008, at 2:22PM, we begin to find out where he’s been.

Rather, we kinda begin to find out where he’s been.

Produced by X12 productions – a self-funded, LA-based “collective of artists and technologists, whose focus is to shape new forms of entertainment through native digital stories” – the premiere episode of Nowheremen serves a healthy dose of intrigue, but not much information. Our now bearded baccalaureate is interminably involved and wants out of some sort of post-911, badass secret service trainee program where he learns how to wreak potential havoc on civilian infrastructure in the US.

Or something like that. I’m not really sure, but that’s part of the point. At least for now.

Read On…

Filed under: Tilzy.TV by Joshua Cohen
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The Derek and Simon Show began life (as many current web shows have) as a rejected TV pilot The Pity Card, which eventually made the rounds as a short film at various film festivals, including Sundance 2006. Young Hollywood actors/sketch performers Derek Waters and Simon Helberg play themselves in  a thinly-veined approximation of their nightlife and ineptitude with women.

The episodes, which premiered on TBS’ Super Deluxe comedy site in May of 2007, are produced by  their company Type-O and directed by Bob Odenkirk of Mr. Show fame who, being a great fan of the duo, can be held largely responsible for cultivating the project.

Read On…

Filed under: Tilzy.TV by Greg Rock
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