Tag Archives: creators

Skyrim Homage: One Voice. One Violin. Epic Video.

Yes, Virginia. You can still go viral… if you have an original idea and push production to a new level. It also helps to pay tribute to a popular video game.

Here’s a video homage to Skyrim Elder Scrolls (a video game), an epic video that’s been seen more than a million times in the past few days. It features 120 tracks of Peter Hollens‘ voice and Lindsey Stirling‘s violin. The musicians are also the video’s actors, and the video was shot in Provo, Utah late last month. As one YouTube commenter states, “why is this not the most watched video of all time?

The duo began tracking the song in early March, and it helped that Hollens is friends with Larry Kenton, the original arranger for the video game’s score.

“Over beer and some sushi we discussed Skyrim, and I asked if he thought it would be a good idea to cover it,” said Hollens. “Then I talked to Lindsey Stirling about doing it together; she is not just insanely talented but incredibly nice.”

Stirling’s friend, Devin Graham, shot the video using the new Canon EOS 5D Mark III camera, with a 18-35mm and the Glidecam 2000 pr thingy.  The video was edited in Final Cut Pro by Lindsey, and the special effects were done by Warialasky.

Stirling’s participation, said Hollen, surprised him. “It blew me away cause she’s the BIG wig, and that never happens on youtube…  She saw a video I did with another YouTuber, and wanted to work together. This when she had 300,000 subs and I had only about 15,000. That’s RARE nowadays.” Hollen’s subscription count has practically doubled in the past week, a direct result of the Skyrim video catching fire. It helps that Hollens has some other popular videos including this Katy Perry Fireworks cover.

Hollens told me he read my book too, so I’d like to take credit for the entire thing… seriously, though, see links below to learn more.

online video marketing youtube

Download the song off itunes http://bit.ly/SkyrimTheme
…or at this link http://bitly.com/SkyrimDownload

Peter Hollen’s channel
http://www.youtube.com/user/peterhollens

Devin Graham cinematography:
http://www.youtube.com/user/devinsupertramp
Warialiasky on special effects work.
http://www.youtube.com/user/Warialasky
This was their own arrangement of the main theme from Skyrim Elder Scrolls which was composed by Jeremy Soule.
Arr. Tom Anderson – http://www.random-notes.com
Edit: Ben Lieberman – http://audiogenix.net/
Mix: Bill Hare – http://www.dyz.com

Peter and Lindsey on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/peterhollensmusic
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Lindsey-Stirling/132255980139931

YouTube Offers Advances for Scheduled Content

Content creators and currators are getting six and seven figure “advances” from Google/YouTube, reports the Wall Street Journal. YouTube allegedly is planning to schedule content starting in 2012, and topics range from fashion to sports (I’m guessing travel, cooking and “how-to” are among them).

Let’s look at how this works, and then what it means to independent creators that are not being bombarded with YouTube/Google checks.

Here’s how it would work: Howcast, a creator of instructional-videos, would collect a series around, say, planning the perfect vacation. The company gets a big ass check (advance), and nothing else until the ad revenue (from ads adjacent to the content) surpasses that big-ass advance. Then, like traditional YouTube Partners, the ad revenue is split almost 50/50 between YouTube/Google and Howcast. Howcast, which traditionally pays creators a “flat” fee (a couple hundred per episode) makes the difference. Not too shabby.

The WSJ reports that dozen “channels” are in the works, and that YouTube has requested some content for the channels within the next 60 days for a 2012 launch.

This marks a significant shift in YouTube’s evolution. YouTube, which has taken great care to call itself a “platform,” is now playing the role of a network by funding content and “slotting” it for scheduled and premium visibility.

What does this mean to independent creators?

  • Mostly it’s a shift away from independent creators, which is consistant with the past year or so.
  • However if it brings more mainstream viewers (and presumably frequent and predictable viewers), it’s another way to get your related videos seen (in “watch” pages).
  • A better approach would be to package your independent creation in the format being popularized. Even if Google/YouTube doesn’t track you down with a few hundred thousand, you’ll be ready to be dropped into this scheduled series when the bar drops.
YouTube Dials Down Spontaneity, Raises Volume of Scheduling

Creative & Sponsor Trump Peanut Butter & Chocolate

I love it when a certain artist, video creator, or web series finds THE sponsor. Not a sponsor, but the ideal one. The kind of sponsor that you’d think would be stalking the entertainer, but sadly probably doesn’t know they exist. There are matches made in heaven: iJustine or Happyslip and Mac, Rhett & Link and any CPG brand, MysteryGuitarMan and a cool electronic device, SxePhil and Tequila, LisaNova and Stayfrees, ShayCarl and Twinkies.

To my surprise, while catching up with Revision3’s FilmRiot via TiVo, I heard Ryan Connolly (host) announce B&H as a sponsor. Yes it’s peanut butter meets chocolate, and I can’t imagine how they scored it. I don’t think of B&H as the type of marketing organization that would be so savvy.

Anyone serious about video, audio, production or schweet home entertainment is probably well aware of B&H. I think I’m an affiliate, and I think I’ve made nothing. But what the store lacks in marketing acumen it makes up for in an insane inventory of well price stuff, informed people, and excellent prices. That said, it’s easy to forget about them and go to what’s “top of mind” (like Amazon or BestBuy). The store is 50% of heaven for me, but missing the pools of white chocolate, dancing midgets and a few other things I’d like not to mention.

Electronic deals and discounts from Revision3 FilmRiot
FilmRiot, a quirky, informative, well cut show... now sponsored by B&H, which is to video creators what virgins are to terrorists. Only we video creators actually get the equipment, and the terrorists just get the promise of virgins but burned weiners instead.

I always thought Netflix was getting the deal of its life with FilmRiot. I wonder if Netflix dropped, which would be enough to make me drop- maybe Louderback will spill the beans if I get him drunk enough. BTW Louderback (because I think you actually do read this blog) I just received a friggin’ awesome ethernet-via-electrical socket device on his reco and it rawks my previously stalled webTV rig). Next time I open my Roku I’m going to switch from Netflix to Revision3 shows just to pout. [5/12/2010 7:45 am Louderback says Netflix didn’t drop it’s rotating].

Anyway I think there’s an even better FilmRiot ROI for B&H — which wastes not a penny on promoting the show. It’s better than paid search, because it’s reaching the exact people who will/do buy there. Paid search churns money on people that will shop on B&H but buy locally. Yet B&H is unlikely see the direct benefit, just like Netflix will never know that I returned as a customer mostly because of FilmRiot and I’m its friggin’ dream customer (never quite watching/ordering enough movies to cost them much, but always paying my bill).

Check out Film Riot’s Technical Deal Recommendations and find out some killer electronics you can buy me for my birthday, which just arrived 3 minutes ago. Hey- I’m spending my birthday with TiVo and a laptop, and a wife and family asleep. Stupid nap today. What could I do? I had a pain procedure. I was sleepy.

Hard Being on “Gay Leprechaun” Video

It’s hard being in a gay leprechaun video. Oh- not that hard. The “difficult” hard. Not the seedy part: shooting your part in a SanFran hotel room with filmmaker and actor Greg Benson (Mediocrefilms). Sure it felt like we were shooting a porn, but again- that wasn’t the hard part.

Here’s what’s hard. NOT meeting Matt Sloan and watching him shoot his part. Greg was on the phone with Matt to discuss various lines and shots, but I had no communication with him. Presumably he was reading up on stem cell research in Madison or Wisconsin or a similar state. And I’m a big Sloan fan — from his standup comedy (stewardess: that guy’s not going to use our first-class bathroom is he?) to his better known work as creator and voice of Chad Vader (see series here).

It’s friggin’ hard to co-star in “Gay Leprechaun” (the new “Retarded Policeman”) with a funny bastard like Sloan, especially he’s your BFF and doesn’t know it. You see, Sloan and I developed a parasocial relationship when I watched Sloan’s “Tomato mouth video.” He doesn’t know me, and perhaps has never seen me in a video until this one. But we’re virtual BFFs, damnit.

I wonder if I’ll ever get to squeeze him in person while he’s singing Cher.

Coolest Interview JibJab Creators Have Ever Done

jibjab logo“People like to look at themselves,” JibJab co-creator Gregg Spiridellis told fans last night to explain the appeal of JibJab Sendables — one of just a few cash-makers for the company that spawned several of the most viral video animations ever. Gregg and his brother Evan said it the live show with fans was the “coolest interview” they’ve done (see 10-minute clip below).

Alan Lastufka, know on YouTube as fallofautumndistro, invited the NJ natives to interact with JibJab Junkies via live video on Blog.tv. (a website helping some YouTube Cewebrities connect with fans and earn some additional cash through ads).

The Spiridellis brothers talked from the heart — not the marketing script — and dropped words like “nipple” and “banana hammock” as if we’re with them in their Freshman dorm. If you’ve ever marvelled at the JibJab cartoon musical satires, then you may find this unscripted format intriguing. The fourth wall is gone, and the brothers relax with the lack of lights, big cameras and nervous action from journalists, producers and production assistants.

On a continuum between meeting someone live and watching them on a late-night TV interview, the Blog.tv experience was an experience far closer to the former. The duo took random questions in a relaxed, bemused style unlike an edited TV package or even live television. We watch the awkward pauses between their sound bites, how they transition between each other, and the way they handle quirky questions with improvisational wit.

There’s a moment where they chuckle about their paultry earnings, and we get a peak into a playtful motive of their collaborations. And the event punctuates with them walking off camera and out the room, but not before inviting their “marketing guy” to speak to the audience (he doesn’t, but in fairness he does look like he’s younger than my Charlie).

The Spiridellis are now my second favorite brother duo. Above the Cohen brothers, but second, of course, to Nalts and his brother Chris [who I love even when I don’t return his calls… and from whom I stole the college nickname “Nalts”].

Gregg and Evan’s live appearance makes it hard to hide the fact that they are far more interested in the fun and humor of their satire than in capitalizing on it. They seem to work like crazy and love it, and you may not watch another JibJab without thinking back to this fascinating peak at the Spiridellis. While there are moments that drag and a few gratuitous plugs for JibJab, we experience insights into the spirit lurking behind the whimsical JibJab moments.

Do I sound like a fan gone rabid? Yeah, I am.