Before it decides which television projects to bring to series, Amazon Studios usually organizes its pilots in competitive seasons, during which viewers can decide which shows they enjoy the most. With its latest pickup, however, Amazon is skipping the public pilot presentation altogether. Variety has reported Amazon’s decision to greenlight Trial, a courtroom drama that will star Billy Bob Thornton and William Hurt.

In Trial, Thorton will star as a disgraced attorney who must argue against his former colleague (Hurt) in a wrongful death case. Olivia Thirlby (Juno, Dredd) will appear as a young, prodigious lawyer. David E. Kelley, known for his work on legal dramas like The Practice, Boston Legal, and Ally McBeal, is the series’ creator.

As with other recent series presented by Amazon, Trial is the sort of show that could make some noise come awards season. Both Hurt and Thornton have received nominations at the Academy Award and the Emmys; Thronton’s Emmy nomination came just last year, for his role in Fargo.

Variety has characterized Trial as the first program to receive a direct-to-series order from Amazon Studios. The series’ release date has not yet been announced.

Filed under: Amazon Studios, Articles, Featured, News by Sam Gutelle
No Comments »

FameBit is growing yet again. The digital marketplace, which connects brands like L’Oreal and Marvel to YouTube stars of all subscriber counts to create branded videos, has just reached the milestone of over 15,000 creators and 650 million collective subscribers.

FameBit reached that 650-million-subscriber mark by doubling their subscriber base over the past five months. That growth comes from onboarding new creators and also the company expanding its digital reach across a variety of social platforms, including  YouTube, Vine, Instagram, and Snapchat.  The marketplace expects to have access to over one billion subscribers by the end of 2015.

“Since our launch, the mission for FameBit has been to be the easiest place for brands to reach YouTubers of all sizes who have tight-knit and engaged audiences but may not otherwise have the means to find and work with brands,” said Agnes Kozera, Co-Founder & COO of FameBit, in a release. “Our growth is a true testament to how successfully we have been able to solve this problem for both brands and creators and we are very excited for what’s coming in the future.”

FameBit’s growth is further cemented by two recent developments. First, the YouTube marketing platform purchased video marketing agency Refame in May 2015, which allowed FameBit to offer its clients access to creators on short-form digital platforms like Vine and Instagram. Additionally, FameBit also broke into the original content realm with its first series FilterFreeTV, hosted by five YouTube stars who talk about any topic they feel like, taboo or not. The company also reports it has helped facilitate the creation of almost 20,000 branded videos to date.

Filed under: Articles, FameBit, News by Bree Brouwer
No Comments »

The FailArmy network includes a popular YouTube channel and a derivative TV series. Now, the compendium of fails, bloopers, and other user-generated viral videos has its own mobile app, too. It has teamed up with Victorious to launch a “mobile community” on both iOS and Android.

The new app features a number of exclusive features that appeal to the most hardcore FailArmy superfans. Most significantly, the app will be the home of a weekly live stream featuring the hosts of the channel’s Top Fails Breakdown web series. Other sections of the app will provide access to FailArmy’s videos, allow users to interact with their fellow fans, launch contests built around FailArmy swag, and give viewers tools to edit, remix, and meme-ify viral videos.

The FailArmy app is part of a big push Victorious has made since its launch four months ago. The app builder has specifically targeted the YouTube community as its bread and butter, and it has extended its services to several of the video site’s networks. Besides FailArmy (which is owned by Jukin Media), Victorious’ other partners include Frederator and AwesomenessTV.

“Giving the fans a measure of influence over what they see is extremely important to us,” said Josh Kreitzman, VP of Programming and Publishing at Jukin Media, in a press release. “Victorious has built an incredible platform that will give the fans a louder voice and provide an outlet for their humor and creativity.”

For fans who want more FailArmy beyond the channel’s new app, two of its employees also took to Reddit for an AMA. Among other responses, the FailArmy team revealed some of their favorite fails. I gotta say, I don’t hate their choices.

Filed under: Articles, Channels, Featured, News, Victorious by Sam Gutelle
1 Comment »

Buzzr’s game show content is not just on YouTube. During the week of September 7, 2015, the digital television network will air several failed game show pilots for a programming block dubbed “Lost & Found.”

Owned by FremantleMedia North America, the Buzzr brand was originally launched as a YouTube channel in 2014, produced through Fremantle’s Tiny Riot! digital studios. That channel released online versions of classic game shows like Family Feud, Celebrity Name Game, and Password. Popular YouTube stars, like Steve Zaragoza and Elliott Morgan (who just launched a new show with SourceFed) served as hosts for various iterations of Buzzr’s owned game shows.

Fremantle then launched the Buzzr TV digital multicast TV network in June 2015 (and it currently serves 23 or so U.S. television markets). For this network’s “Lost & Found” programming, Buzzr will show pilots from game show formats which never made it past the first episode, such as the charades-like Body Talk and the puzzle games On a Roll, TKO, and Star Words. Buzzr will also air the hour-long 1992 version of Family Feud and the pilots of successful game shows like Match Game and Let’s Make a Deal, before wrapping up the entire programming block with the network’s favorite episodes on September 12.

“We’re continuously collaborating to find new ways to curate our enormous library of game show content,” said Buzzr’s Executive Vice President and General Manager Ron Garfield to Variety. “There are countless shows that we personally know and love, and many that our viewers request. It was exciting digging into the vaults like archaeologists, discovering what some of these shows looked like at the very beginning. We’re eager to share these with our fans.”

You can visit Buzzr’s official website to view the network’s complete schedule and find the failed game show pilots on a channel near you.

Filed under: Articles, Channels, News by Bree Brouwer
No Comments »

Netflix will soon boast a new title starring two of YouTube’s biggest celebrities. The streaming video-on-demand service has picked up exclusive streaming rights to Smosh: The Movie, which will be available to Netflix subscribers starting September 22, 2015.

Smosh, the YouTube duo which consists of Ian Hecox and Anthony Padilla, launched their first feature film on July 24 alongside VidCon. Produced by AwesomenessTV and Defy Media, Smosh: The Movie follows Hecox and Padilla as they get sucked into a “YouTube portal” and meet various YouTube stars, all in an attempt to delete an embarrassing video which could destroy Padilla’s chance at love with an old crush.

Smosh: The Movie went on sale for $9.99 on the iTunes Store and Vimeo on Demand. The flick quickly climbed the ranks of the iTunes movie charts, landing the #1 comedy spot and placing #2 in the movies category overall. Walmart then started selling Smosh: The Movie DVDs, with a sticker oddly placed directly over Padilla’s face. This instigated the #AnthonyFaceGate trend on Twitter, which spawned a mini-meme within the ardent Smosh community.

This isn’t the first instance of Netflix picking up a feature film starring digital celebrities. Previously, the streaming video service hosted Camp Takota, starring Grace Helbig, Hannah Hart, and Mamrie Hart. Netflix also streamed AwesomenessTV’s Expelled, starring Cameron Dallas.

Smosh currently boasts over 25 million subscribers across two official YouTube channels, plus another 6.3 million on their gaming channel alone.

Filed under: Articles, Netflix, News, Smosh by Bree Brouwer
No Comments »

A web series that has been in Maker Studios’ developmental pipeline for more than a year has finally arrived. Ithamar Has Nothing To Say, a comedy executive produced by Key & Peele duo Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele, is now available on the Maker.TV platform.

Ithamar Has Nothing To Say is based off the wordless comedy act of its star, Ithamar Enriquez. In the six-part series, Ithamar comes to the United States and interacts with the locals. The result is a slapstick offering that is somewhere between a Mr. Bean episode and a satire of American culture.

As with other series distributed by Maker Studios, Ithamar Has Nothing To Say features many guest appearances from the network’s creative partners. YouTube stars who show up in the first episode include Kassem G and EpicLloyd. Key and Peele are in there too, as a pair of talent agents who evaluate Ithamar’s act.

We first heard about Ithamar Has Nothing To Say way back in May 2014, when Maker Studios teased it during a presentation at the Digital Content Newfronts. It comes from the company’s original programming wing, which could shift its priorities in the near future. Erin McPherson, Maker’s former Chief Content Officer, just left the company, and Maker “does not have any immediate plans to replace her role.”

In the time since the series was first teased, Key and Peele have gone from digital media hotshots to outgoing sketch comedy stars. Will their post-Comedy Central plans include more digital series like this one? That would certainly be a welcome result.

Filed under: Articles, Featured, Key and Peele, Maker Studios, News by Sam Gutelle
No Comments »

Tubefilter and Big Frame helped to kick off VidCon 2015 back in late July by hosting their Fifth Annual Pre-Party event at K1 Speed in Anaheim, CA, a go-cart arena just a quick pitstop away from the Anaheim Convention Center.

With food trucks outside and a gaming pavilion provided by Google Play stationed above the track, attendees gathered around the raceway, where go-karts roared by and guests were given the opportunity to quench their need for speed.

This year’s racing was provided an extra incentive from GarageMonkey and an opportunity for the burgeoning YouTube multi-channel network to showcase itself to the greater online video community. The self-proclaimed “forward-leaning media company” for “the world’s auto, motorcycle, and racing audience, as well as the brand that fuel their passions” hosted the event’s first ever “Grand Prix,” offering a GoPro camera and Xbox One Wireless Controller as top prizes to the racer(s) who most proved their metal on track.

With burgeoning YouTube personality Tinsel Townsend (channeling Hanna Barbera’s diva of driving, Penelope Pitstop) serving as the Grand Prix’s official Flag Girl, attendees registered in droves to attempt to claim the honor of being the event’s most fast and furious party guest.

With much to do and see, it is little wonder that the party’s population continued to surge as the evening progressed. With a slew of notable digital creators in the crowd—including Catrific, Glozell, Damon and Jo, Haunted Sunshine Girl, and many more—the annual event once again proved to be a “must stop” location leading into VidCon.

Here’s a recap of the action, courtesy of Garage Monkey. 

Filed under: Articles, Comedy, Uncategorized, YouTube by Michael Varrati
No Comments »

YouTube beauty star Carli Bybel is extending her personal brand to a new line of cosmetic products. She has teamed up with BH Cosmetics to present the Carli Bybel 14 Color Eyeshadow & Highlighter Palette, a custom palette created by Bybel.

Bybel is one of the Internet’s premier beauty gurus. Her makeup videos and vlogs have attracted more than three million subscribers on YouTube and more than two million followers on Instagram. In many of her videos, she uses BH Cosmetics products. She employs one of the brand’s palettes, for example, in a recent tutorial:

“BH Cosmetics is one of the first brands I used when I started freelancing seven years ago,” said Bybel in a press release. “They have high-quality products for a price anyone can afford, which is why I’m so excited to launch my signature palette with them!”

Bybel is one of five YouTube beauty stars who has teamed up with BH Cosmetics. The brand’s other YouTube partners include ItsJudyTime, ThatsHeart, MakeupbyMandy24, and Missy Lynn. Bybel’s palette will be available beginning in September.

Filed under: Articles, Channels, Featured, News by Sam Gutelle
No Comments »

Maker Studios executive talent roster just lost two big names. The YouTube multi-channel network’s Chief Content Officer Erin McPherson and Senior Vice President of Marketing Jeremy Welt have officially left the company.

McPherson worked at Maker for over two years, before the MCN’s acquisition by Disney in March 2014. Previously, she served as VP and head of video at Yahoo, where she was responsible for launching the brand’s new digital studio department (and contributing to a stellar NewFront presentation). As for Welt, the marketing executive was originally with Maker from 2011 to 2012 before moving to Sean Combs’ Revolt TV. Welt returned to the MCN in 2013.

“We generally do not discuss personnel matters. However, Erin McPherson is no longer with Maker Studios per mutual agreement with the company,” the MCN said in a statement, as reported by Variety. “Maker does not have any immediate plans to replace her role.”

Maker declined to comment on Welt’s departure from the network. According to The VideoInk, sources familiar with the matter said Executive Vice Presidents Bonnie Pan and Gabriel Lewis will take on McPherson’s previous duties as acting co-heads of programming. The same sources also claim Maker’s Vice President of Marketing Glenn Frese will temporarily assume Welt’s workload.

This is not the first executive-level shakeup Maker has gone through since its inception. Back in May 2013, Maker’s then-CEO Danny Zappin stepped down from his role at the network and proceeded to file a lawsuit against several executives for breach of contract. Over a year later in August 2014, two of Maker’s original founders and brother-sister duo Lisa and Ben Donovan also left the MCN.

And this may not be the last executive-level shakeup Maker will go through in the near future. Disney’s final payout for its acquisition of Maker Studios is expected to be made by the end of 2015. After those checks come in, other top-level Maker Studios personnel may start exploring other options.

Filed under: Articles, Maker Studios, News by Bree Brouwer
No Comments »

Earlier in August, Hillary Clinton’s official Twitter account did something that caught our eye. The presidential frontrunner (or, more likely, one of her social media interns) decided to follow YouTube star Tyler Oakley. This seemingly minor move could end up being utterly meaningless; on the other hand, it could be a hint about the Clinton campaign’s forthcoming social media strategy.

thx for the follow @HillaryClinton <3

— Tyler Oakley (@tyleroakley) August 7, 2015

For many politicians, a Twitter follow is indicative of nothing. President Barack Obama, for example, follows more than 641,000 people on his official account. Clinton, however, has been much stingier with the size of her Twitter network. She only follows 126 people, most of whom are her campaign staffers. Oakley is one of only a handful of celebrities among that 126; others include singer Katy Perry and actress Chloe Grace Moretz.

Therefore, I’m inclined to believe that the Twitter connection between the former First Lady and the YouTube vlogger is significant. Oakley, after all, has already established himself as a potent ally for the Obama administration. He was one of the YouTube stars who came to the White House to discuss the President’s digital strategy, and he also collaborated with First Lady Michelle Obama in one of his videos. Clinton could be planning her own partnerships with YouTube stars as a way of reaching younger voters. If you still aren’t convinced, consider that Oakley’s video with Michelle Obama concerned higher education, which Clinton has made a key part of her platform.

Once again, I want to stress that the Clinton Twitter’s decision to follow of Oakley could mean absolutely nothing. Perhaps the intern who runs the account is just a big fan. But a partnership between Clinton and Oakley makes a lot of sense. It would help appeal to young voters and would fit into Clinton’s youthful social media presence (she has already set up a Snapchat account and put Jeb Bush on blast.) We’ll keep an eye on Clinton and Oakley’s respective YouTube channels to see if anything develops.

Filed under: Articles, Featured, News, Tyler Oakley by Sam Gutelle
No Comments »

Pew Research Center has uncovered some new stats sure to interest social media gurus. The research firm released its “Mobile Messaging and Social Media” report on August 19, 2015, which found 72% of adult internet users are on Facebook as compared to only 23% on Twitter.

For the report, Pew surveyed about 1,600 internet users over the age of 18 from March to April 2015. In addition to finding that 72% of these users are on Facebook and 23% are on Twitter, Pew’s report also showed how more online adults are using Instagram, Pinterest, and LinkedIn, even over Twitter. About 31% of Pew’s respondents said they use Pinterest, 28% claim to be on Instagram, and 25% of online adults are on LinkedIn.

Facebook is also the social media platform to boast the most engagement. Pew’s report found 70% of all surveyed online adults on Facebook log in to the site at least once a day, with 43% logging in several times a day and another 21% checking in at least once a week. By contrast, only 38% of Twitter users said they checked that platform once a day; 21% of Twitter users visit the social site at least once per week.

Pew’s report also covered online adults’ interactions with mobile messaging apps and forum-based sites like Reddit. About 29% of adult internet users and 36% of smartphone owners use messaging apps like WhatsApp or iMessage, while 14% of online adults and 17% of mobile phone users use apps which delete messages after a short amount of time (like Snapchat). Additionally, Pew found 15% of online adults say they visit online forums, with users on these sites skewing young (23% of the surveyed forum users are 18- to 29-year-olds).

You can read more of Pew’s “Mobile Messaging and Social Media” report on the firm’s website.

Filed under: Articles, Facebook, Industry, News, Twitter by Bree Brouwer
No Comments »

Note to Walmart stockers: Be mindful when placing your store’s stickers on DVDs. If you’re not careful, you may incite a Twitter hashtag. That’s what happened when a misplaced sticker blocking the head of Smosh star Anthony Padilla caused fans of the popular YouTube duo to launch a social media trend.

First, the necessary context: Smosh, which consists of Padilla and Ian Hecox, recently made the jump from YouTube to the big screen thanks to the release of Smosh: The Movie on July 24th. About a month later, on August 18th, the DVD version of Smosh: The Movie arrived at Walmart. Shortly thereafter, a Smosh fan encountered the DVD in the wild, and “flipped out a little” when she noticed a large Walmart sticker pasted on top of Padilla’s head.

@SmoshIan @smoshanthony I might of flipped out a little pic.twitter.com/oAX0lBAgHb

— sarah !!#Laurenandco (@superwho0lock) August 18, 2015

Padilla himself soon noticed the initial tweet, and thus #AnthonyFaceGate was born. The relevant Twitter hashtag accumulated more than 2,000 tweets in two days, and it inspired Smosh fans to create photoshopped pictures and fanart drawings in which Padilla’s head is replaced by the Walmart sticker.

@smoshanthony @smosh My art so looks even better: D #AnthonyFaceGate pic.twitter.com/CIa3FxaQlp

— ⓀМэтти’TYSⓈ (@Our_callboy) August 19, 2015

@smoshanthony If you look close, they put the sticker in hidden places all over the movie 😳 pic.twitter.com/HNkPKEXmZy

— VAUGHN 😀 (@IdiotNews4U) August 18, 2015

Walmart’s decision to give Padilla the Mike Wazowski treatment was probably an honest mistake, but the story of #AnthonyFaceGate shows that, when popular YouTube stars are involved, any mildly amusing phenomenon can lead to a social media blitz. Of course, if the DVD version of Smosh: The Movie is selling anywhere near as well as the video on-demand versions of the film, I don’t think Walmart is too upset about Smosh fans making jokes at its expense.

Filed under: Articles, Featured, News, Smosh by Sam Gutelle
No Comments »