2009 in Review: September

Darn, back to 10 photos for September 2009's review. That's okay, a few of you have asked for more photos, so you are definitely accommodated in this entry. I bit off more than I could chew for September. Take a closer look.......

So, I know I have a month long gig in Dallas ahead of me, so we decide to renovate our home. Most of the renovations happen while I am out of town, but packing in this mess wasn't easy.

So while the renovations are driving everyone at home nuts, I spend my days on an outdoor entertainment stage with a JumboTron at the State Fair of Texas. Turns out to be the wettest fair they have ever had.

Before I left though, we had to shoot The Web Files episodes. In fact, we had to stockpile the episodes in order to get through 6 weeks due to my travel schedule. Here is the cast and crew of one of 2009's most anticipated web series, Compulsions. Episode: Compulsions.

Ah, Tim Street. We freaked people out when he took his glasses off for the interview. This episode remains one of the most informative for the web community that we have ever shot for The Web Files. If you missed the episode, check it out here: Tim Street.

I really enjoyed shooting this episode with Dirty Bomb Diaries in a utility closet at an emergency supply company. Seriously, have you ever shot an episode in a closet? Sandra did a great job with set dressing this one. Rumor has it that there is a Season 2 coming your way in 2010. Episode: Dirty Bomb Diaries.

Showbizzle creators, Charles and Lindsey Rosin. A father/daughter team in the web space, but I have to admit, I was a bit excited to hear the 90210 gossip from the Brenda years. Charles kindly answered my questions off-camera and he delivered with some juicy stories. Episode: Showbizzle.

Somewhere in between all of this madness of Dallas and The Web Files, I found time to fly to Atlanta and work with one of my regular corporate clients, LG Electronics, at the CEDIA convention.

Two NYU alums get into a room to discuss Web TV! Go Violets! Marc Ostrick of eGuiders and I had a good time reminiscing about the old days in the Village when NY was truly dirty and delicious. Episode: eGuiders.

Another one of the most anticipated shows of 2009, The Cabonauts. With a cast including Nichelle Nichols and Hayden Black, I must carryover my anticipation to 2010. Episode: The Cabonauts.

On the set with Asa Shumskas-Tait and Rick Castañeda for the show Coma, Period. We had a blast running through the halls on their little go-karts and a rematch is set for 2010. Episode: Coma,Period.
So, there you go, September in 10 photos. October will be filled with lots of rain, mud, and some more rain and a side of mud. See you tomorrow!

Behind the Scenes of Hurtling Through Space At An Alarming Rate

Okay, this is a really late behind the scenes look at Hurtling Through Space At An Alarming Rate, but it's here, it's finally here! I think I have been talking with Stephanie Thorpe and Mike Davies about doing an interview since I saw them on the red carpet for iTVFest in July. Well, here we are in the late fall and we finally got it done, but there was one tricky part to the interview: Mike Davies was in Canada. Duh-Duh!

Well, thank goodness we have Sandra's creative brain to help with all of the logistics to make it seem like Mike himself was hurtling through space. We shot all of the questions for Mike first, then sent the questions to him via email, and he shot the video on his end to answer all of the questions. Sandra also came up with the genius idea of a crowded space highway with a nice little shout out to other web series we have featured like The Crew, The Cabonauts, Safety Geeks:SVI, and Space Hospital. A big thanks to all of the creators for contributing their footage to the show. Since HTSAAAR was shot in Canada, we obviously did not have access to their set, so Sandra's living room doubled as the apartment floating out in the universe. Now, none of this would be possible without the incredible efforts of Gordon Lee who created all of the VFX for us. The truly amazing part of it all is that he turned it all around for us in little over a week. So, Gordon, thank you, this episode would not have been possible without you.

As for Taryn O'Neill, Stuart Paap, and Stephanie Thorpe, it was great to finally sit down with them and get behind the scenes on their show and their collaboration. I love that they have their own little Canadian posse working together on creating stories for the web. Taryn has found her niche here with a huge slate of web series this year....After Judgment, The Crew, Compulsions, and of course, HTSAAAR. Stephanie showed up in one of my favorite shirts from Bebe. How do I know it is from Bebe? I own the same shirt. In fact, you can see it in my host reelon the QVC clip. So, naturally, I am going to like anyone with the same fashion sense. Finally, I was familiar with Stuart's work on Live from the Future because he interviewed a friend of mine, Zen Gray, about her participation in the Bravo TV show, Workout. It truly was fun to have three web celebs all joining us on The Web Files. Wait a minute, I mean four.....you have to count Mike's cameo too! Come back to LA soon, Mike. I hope you find your way home with all of that space traffic. In the words of Mike Davies, it was "DEE-lightful" to have you"awesomness" on our show. Be sure to check out their show on Babelgum, a site that is starting to become a heavy hitter in the Web TV industry.

As always, a big thank you to e.l.f. Cosmetics for helping with each episode and my favorite wardrobe gal, Roni B. (I cannot stop wearing this shirt!)

If you missed this episode, watch it here:

Behind the Scenes of The Cabonauts

This had to be the hottest day in LA in September and of course, we shot in the Valley. I thought I was being clever when I dressed in my Cabonauts-like sweater for the shoot, but I was regretting the sweater choice the second I walked on set. Remember, no AC on set, so we were all rather cozy and warm. It is one of the few times we have had to stop shooting for sweat breaks. It was that hot.

Despite the heat, nothing was going to damper my excitement for this shoot. I was lucky enough to watch the pilot in its entirety before the interview. I wish I could tell you all about it, but Hayden would squish me like a grape. I can tell you that it is colorful, absurd, fantastic, funny, and everything you would expect from a sci-fi musical comedy romp.

To me, the best part is that it is the 80's all over again. The Solid Gold dancers and spandex are back and you will enjoy every moment of it. Even after interviewing Hayden, I am still amazed that he had never written a musical before. It is no small feat and Hayden seamlessly moves from the musical elements to the story throughout the pilot. Hayden is also surrounded by a talented cast including Monica Young, Norm Thoeming, and Nichelle Nichols, who has some pretty impressive moves.
The other element to this story is the cab which is all created by green screen. We were fortunate enough to shoot in the cab for the interview. You can see the basic structure of the cab which includes the walkie, gear shift, and a steering wheel. Everything else is created in post from the doors, walls, and ceiling of the cab. Pretty incredible, right? I was so excited to see the final version because there was a whole world around us created after we shot the show.
I know there is a lot of buzz around this show and Hayden's fans are eager to see the first show. Trust me, your patience will be rewarded. The response has been huge to The Web Files interview, so I hope this gave you a little taste of what is to come. In fact, the interview gives you a taste of The Cabonauts with highlights from the dancers, Nichelle, the colors, the music, and all of the hilarious cab shenanigans.

Finally, I always love the absurd and I found it at the studio that day:
I guess the former owner was one of the few Republicans in liberal LA County back in the 1960's. He was so closeted, he put the bumper sticker on the wall, not on his car.

If you missed The Cabonauts interview, check it out below: The Cabonauts.

The Web Files in the News: October

There has been some fantastic news in the web series world and we are so excited by the leaps and bounds content producers are making in the industry. It thrills me when I hear that shows we have interviewed are gaining the recognition they deserve. So, we are happy to throw our continued support to:

1. The cast and creators of The Crew for not only launching Season 2 yesterday, but for securing an exclusive deal with Babelgum.. I truly appreciate this cast and the show's creator, Brett Register, because they were one of our first interviews when we were launching The Web Files. Be sure to check out our interview with them and our behind the scenes look: Interview and Behind the Scenes.

2. More good news abounds with the cast of Oz Girl. Nick Carlton just inked a distribution deal with Virgin's V Australia as a part of their on-demand in-flight entertainment for Oz Girl. Nick also launched his own digital media/entertainment studio in Melbourne called
Carlton Digital. This 19-year-old truly is a forced to be reckoned with. You can find our Web Files interview here and the behind the scenes of the shoot here. Many thanks to Marc Hustvedt at Tubefilter for linking to our interview in his feature piece on Nick's breaking news:
Tubefilter.

3. One of my favorite people, Mathieas McNaughton, continues to be one of our greatest champions. He featured our episode with the amazing Tim Street on his blog:
LG15 Today.

4. Finally, a new friend to The Web Files is Larry Kless who kindly picked our Tim Street interview as his "Web Video Pick of the Week". I think Tim's interview has resonated with many web series producers and new media creators, so I am thrilled that this episode of The Web Files is gaining attention. Thanks, Larry. Check out the article here: Kless Blog.

Thank you for all of your support. We will continue to bring you the latest in-depth interviews with established and up-and-coming talent in the web series world. Get ready for Wednesday, we have Hayden Black with his upcoming series, The Cabonauts!

Our supporters!

Just a quick update while I catch up on the season premiere of Grey's Anatomy and wonder who will be in or out on Project Runway. (By the way, do you not love Models of the Runway this season? Genius idea, Lifetime, genius!) All I have to say is, "Go, Christopher Straub"! He was a colleague of mine when I worked as a network host for ShopNBC. Oh, you didn't know I was a home shopping host in my former life, did you? :)

I cannot thank Mathieas McNaughton enough. His unparalleled support of The Web Files is beyond appreciated. His comments on the episodes make me laugh--whether it is a couch that is too small or his appreciation for my hat obsession. (By the way, Mathieas, I have another hat coming for you in our Cabonauts episode.) So, to support him and his daily features on the web series community, bookmark his blog: LG15 Today

Also, I wish there was a way to show my appreciation for Blip.tv. They consistently support our show and you can often find the latest episode of The Web Files on their home page as a part of their "Featured Episodes". Tom Reynolds was an early cheerleader for The Web Files and the exposure we have gained on their site is immeasurable. So, take the time to visit our friends over at Blip.tv and stop by The Web Files while you are at it: The Web Files.

It's Your Turn!

We just finished a huge round of interviews for The Web Files and I am really excited to share those episodes with you from Dirty Bomb Diaries to Showbizzle to Tim Street to Compulsions to The Cabonauts. There will be a lot of exciting news in the coming months, so keep checking back to hear the latest.

Our next round of interviews begins in mid-October and I decided to open the floor to you, the viewer. Who would you like to see on The Web Files in the coming months? Remember, we are open to anything to do with new media: web celebs, podcasts, web series, vloggers, animated web series, TV festivals, red carpet events, launch parties, etc. The only rule right now is that it has to be Southern California based. Featuring East Coast shows is on our list of things to do, but for now, please keep it on the Left Coast. So, comment below and tell us who needs to be the next featured guest on The Web Files.

**UPDATED** Due to the overwhelming response, we are going to do a "Viewers Choice" episode of The Web Files. So, keep the comments coming. We want to know which show you want to learn more about!

Thanks for watching!

PS If you haven't seen our show yet, you can find The Web Files here: Blip.tv

The Web Files: Psychic Bunny

Phew! Quick turnaround on this episode. We usually have more episodes banked, so I often have to think really hard about all of the details of what went on behind the scenes. Not here though! It was only a week ago that we sat with the creators of Coma, Period, Rick Castañeda and Asa Shumskas-Tait. It was one of the hottest days in LA since the city was recovering from a weekend of fires in the San Gabriel Valley. The tough thing about any set is not being able to run the air conditioner, add the high temperatures, and you have an on set oven. So, temperature aside, I was really curious to find out about a web series that had tremendous buzz beginning back in April 2009 thanks to Tubefilter.
What's behind the door at Psychic Bunny? A lot of creativity. The four founders of Psychic Bunny met at USC and they do it all from start to finish, pre to post-production. Recently launched within the production company is their creative content banner, Lead Balloon. Lead Balloon is also the division that launched the web series, Coma, Period, and after looking at their production board, there is a lot more to come. You can actually catch a glimpse of that board in the interview. We didn't zoom in on in too closely....lots of secrets up there. Sssshhhhhh.......

I think the one thing that stands out in my mind with this episode is how methodical they were in creating this series. From the inception of the idea to the execution of the series to the distribution deal, Rick and Asa really made careful and smart decisions. Even when creating that stark, white background look for the series, they researched other shows that had done something similar. They knew what worked and they what didn't work. They knew they wanted to shoot it on green screen and create the stark, white look versus shooting on a white background which created more of a glowing background. I really enjoyed hearing how they went through this process because it is a call to web content creators to plan with the same detail that you would with a film or TV series. Web series may be a more affordable format, but it requires the same attention to production values. This won't be the last time I mention attention to detail. The quality of writing a web series comes up in my interview with Hayden Black/The Cabonauts and he also has some strong (and helpful) opinions on this topic.

Finally, those little go-karts (I have no idea what they are really called) are a blast! They are used in Coma, Period, but I was thrilled I was able to race Rick down the hallway despite my poor wardrobe choice. A dress and a go-kart are not the best idea. He did let me win, but if I had worn something more appropriate, I would have won anyway. Ha! I think that is a challenge for a rematch, I like the competitive spirit.

So keep your eye on Psychic Bunny, we will be hearing more from this talented group in the future....web series, movies, and more! Check out Coma, Period here: Strike.tv

PS Thank you to Rick for having a Tilde on his last name. It gave me a new computer skill, I know how to work the Tilde on a Mac now!

Check out the Psychic Bunny episode here: Coma, Period.