Back with New Ways of Storytelling

Old Stories New Telling...

Up until a year ago, I was mostly interested in web series, particularly in YouTube series. I was working for Copa 90, one of the most successful British YouTube channels:

I was convinced online video was the future. I still think it is the future. I hardly ever watch traditional TV, I binge watch on Netflix. However, I'm not that excited about online video anymore. Therefore, I was planning on closing this blog. But instead I have decided I will start writing about all the really exciting new ways of storytelling that are out there, including apps, games, graphic novels etc. 

About a month ago, I attended the Bavarian Transmedia Day and one of the hot topics were wearable technology, such as Google Glass. Storytellers all over the world are currently trying to figure out how technology can enhance a narrative.

An interesting project I recently came across is 'Loading Human', a virtual reality adventure game. Players take the role of a man's disembodied consciousness as he relives his memories, in order to store them in a new robot body before dementia erases them forever. The game will use the Oculus Rift headset and motion tracking devices to give the player bodily awareness inside the game. Have a look:

Italian actor and filmmaker Flavio Parenti who recently starred in Woody Allen's 'To Rome with Love' has teamed up with development studio Untold Games for 'Loading Human'. The game will be released for Windows and Mac OS later this year. 

The Vines of Sauvignon Blanc - a Vine series

Facebook has confirmed that around 5 million videos were uploaded to Instagram's new video-clip feature within 24 hours of launch. Have you tried Instavideo yet? Or do you prefer Twitter's Vine?

The Twitter-owned video app has been chosen as the medium in which logo will air a soap opera called,  "The Vines of Sauvignon Blanc". Within 22 episodes, the series tells “the heart-wrenching tale of a wealthy vineyard owner who is told he only has two minutes and six seconds to live as his family plots for power and prestige, all while being incredibly pressed for time.”

Here is Episode 1: 

The series even has an impressive cast, including Sue Galloway (“30 Rock”); Stephen Guarino (“Happy Endings,” “Big Gay Sketch Show”); Jamie Lee (“Girl Code”); Leslie Meisel (Second City, Upright Citizen’s Brigade); Reichen Lemkuhl (“Amazing Race,” “The A-List: New York”): Michael Hartney (Upright Citizen’s Brigade) and Jarvis Derrell (#SheHasHadIt).

Will there be an Instavideo Telenovela next?

Brothers With No Game - a Hit UK web series

Back in April, UK web series Brothers With No Game won a record six awards at the LA Web Festival. The comedy drama took home awards for producing, directing and editing, while the talented cast, comprised of David Avery, Isaac Sosanya, Zephryn Taitte, Jay Marsh, won 'Ensemble Cast'.

#BrothersWithNoGame follows the social and romantic lives of four friends: Theo, Dorian, Junior and Marcus. Facing a 'quarter-life crisis', the 20-somethings come to terms with the responsibilities and dilemmas that revolve around work, family, friendships and most notably, women. Their distinctive personalities and ever-changing love lives are paralleled with a strong friendship and one evident, common, trait...they have no game....

Check out the 1st episode where Theo discovers what it means to play the #HeskeyRole after a night out with Nicole: 

The first episode, launched last year and received over 10,000 views within five days. Their YouTube channel https://www.youtube.com/user/BrothersWithNoGame has almost 400,000 video views to date.

The web series is the creation of Justin Credible (JC), Maverick, Don Kwelu and The Yak and is produced by Socialize Media: http://www.socializemedia.co.uk
Earlier this year, the creators launched a fundraising drive to help finance the second season. They raised over £3,000 and will start filming soon.

If you want more information, please visit: http://www.brotherswithnogame.com

Kam Kardashian - a satirical web series

A lot of my friends actually enjoy watching "Keeping up with the Kardashians". I bet, though, none of them has ever heard of Kam Kardashian. Have you?
Kam is the long-lost lesbian Kardashian sister with the world on her shoulders and a cocktail in her hand.

Kam Kardashian is a satirical web series by Fawzia Mirza (who also stars) and Ryan Logan that follows Kameron, the fictional Kardashian sister who was cut off, kicked out, and left to fend for herself.
This Kardashian sprout loves whiskey and women, and most of all: yearns to re-insert herself into the Kardashian krown by any means possible. Check out Episode 1:

If you want to keep up with the other Kardashian sister, go to: http://kamkardashian.com/
According to Ryan Logan, the first season was made with no budget at all. They raised $5,000 on Kickstarter for the second season which was shot in February.

The Office - a farewell web series

All good things must come to an end...and for The Office it's gonna be on May 16th.
After nine highly entertaining seasons we have to say goodbye to our favourite characters. But in order to help sending the series off in style, NBC launched a farewell web series.

In the first episode, Will Ferrell fondly remembers his multi-episode appearance as Deangelo Vickers, while enjoying his lunch. Have a look: 

There will be all in all ten webisodes, with the final one hitting NBC.com before next month’s finale.
Who would you like to see bidding farewell and reminiscing about the good old times at the office?

Mission Housemen - a German Web Series about Men

If you speak German, then YouTube is not the only platform for you to watch original content. My Video (http://www.myvideo.de/) is following the example and focuses now more on professionally produced content rather than user generated content as well.

Mission Housemen is their first in-house produced web-sitcom. It's about four guys who couldn't be any more different, but have one thing in common: they are the heros of the emancipation, they are housemen.
John Friedmann (Erkan und Stefan), Roman Roth (GZSZ) and the Internetstars Alberto and Simon Desue star in this funny sitcom which will premiere on 6th of May. Every Monday a new episode of the in total 18 episodes will follow and in order to never miss one, subscribe to them.   

If you are curious, watch the trailer here and don't forget to check out the first episode in May!

Flat 3 - A Kiwi Web Series

Flat 3 is a comedy about three Chinese Kiwi flatmates. The girls had never made a web series before, but were inspired after watching others. So, let's have a closer look.

Flat3 follows Lee, Jessica and Perlina as they try to figure out who they are, what they’re doing in this life,

and whose turn it is to buy toilet paper.
The series is co-written and directed by Roseanne Liang, director of "My Wedding and Other Secrets", and features new Go Girl JJ Fong.

Here is Episode 1: 

To watch all episodes and get more information on Flat 3, check out their website: http://www.flat3webseries.com/

On their website you will also find some testimonials from their most loyal fans, such as:
"I don't know what you girls are doing." - Perlina's grandma​
​"What is a webseries?" - Roseanne's mum​​
Sweet! 

Happy Birthday VHS!

Aww, do you remember the times when we recorded our favourite TV shows on these huge, black cassettes called VHS? In 2000, they were replaced by DVDs and nowadays there is the cloud and online streaming. But in order to celebrate 40 years since the first functional prototype VHS player was created, YouTube has introduced the “tape mode” to give modern online videos that typical scratchy VHS look.
On selected videos, you can find a VHS button in the bottom right of the player. So just click on it to turn back the clock and enjoy the static and blurred motion of the VHS era:

True Facts - The Reinvented Nature Show

I know I have always been saying that the genres that work the best online are comedy, thriller and sci-fi. But YouTube comedian Ze Frank teaches me better now. He reinvented the nature and wild life genre and makes it entertaining to watch informative stuff about animals. Brilliant!

The episodes of True Facts feature animals such as the star-nosed mole, the dung beetle, and the leaf katydid. Nearly 10 million people have watched a nature video about the hideous angler fish.
The videos are informative, but first and foremost very funny. Have a look: 

He even teamed up with BBC Worldwide to launch two of his recent clips.
If you wanna watch more True Facts, check out Ze Frank's website: http://ashow.zefrank.com/  or subscribe to his YouTube channel: http://www.youtube.com/user/zefrank1

Made in Berlin - Behind the Scenes web series

It's Berlinale time!
Berlin hosts film professionals from all over the world at the moment. Therefore, I decided to present a German web series today which is set in the German capital.

It's called Made in Berlin and is about five creative people with different backgrounds, from different cultures, who come together in Berlin in order to produce a theater play.
Have you ever wondered what it takes to bring a play alive on stage? Look no further, but check out episode 1 of this behind the scenes web series:

 

For everybody who is currently freezing in Berlin, be reminded how beautiful Berlin is in the summer and watch all episodes here: https://www.youtube.com/user/MadeInBerlin2012

House of Cards - Netflix's first original series

Netflix's first original series started this month. Beau Willimon, who also wrote The Ides of March, has developed House of Cards specifically for the American streaming network Netflix.

The political drama series which is directed by David Fincher, is about ruthless and cunning, Congressman Francis Underwood (Kevin Spacey) and his wife Claire (Robin Wright) who stop at nothing to conquer everything. It penetrates the shadowy world of greed, sex, and corruption in modern D.C.

Here is the trailer: 

You can watch all 13 episodes now on http://nflx.it/HouseofCards
Netflix CEO Reed Hastings said in an interview that they released all episodes of its first season on the same day, because they have learnt from their data that their viewers prefer to watch the whole season within 24 hours. No commercials, no waiting. Enjoy the future of TV drama series!

Video Game High School - second season web series

I read an article the other day about how 2013 is becoming the year of the web series second season. It's true there aren't too many web series out there that make it past a first series. But it's only end of January and a couple of successful web shows have already been renewed.

One of them is Jerry Seinfeld's Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee. Have you watched an episode of the first season? I thought it was hilarious, so no wonder it got renewed.
Another one that will continue is Burning Love, produced by Paramount and Ben Stiller’s Red Hour Digital for Yahoo. It stars Hollywood actors including Kristin Bell, Rob Marino, and Malin Ackerman. So no surprise here either.

I'm also not too surprised about Video Game High School returning, because they racked up 31.5 million views in its first month online, but nontheless I'm very pleased about it. The video game comedy series is set in the near future where video gaming elevates its best players to stardom by its position as the world's most popular competitive sport. Have a look at the trailer: 

For the second season, they have turned once again to Kickstarter, using their first season campaign as a model and asking for $636,010, which was the exact cost of the first season. The second season format, according to Kickstarter, will be six “TV-length” episodes, though, with a total runtime of 160-180 minutes.

Coming back to the statement that 2013 is the year of the second season, it might also be a sign that web series become not only more and more popular and but also more and more profitable. Happy 2013!

Galaman - a Hong Kong web series

大家好 (Da Jia Hao)! 

Galaman is a very interesting Chinese series I would like to introduce to you. It is a mix of superhero and game-style comic animations with a number of episodes online (available with English subtitles).
What's particularly interesting about this web series, is that every episode holds underlying social and political criticism towards the Hong Kong society and sometimes reacts to recent trends as well.

Here is an episode to get an idea of the look and feel of this animated series:

It's produced by a young start-up called Minimind Studios which are part of the HK Design Centre incubation programme. You can primarily find Galaman on YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/user/minimindstudio?feature=watch
But Minimind Studio managed to also find syndication effects with Yahoo Hong King and they offer a whole catalogue of merchandising articles for all its characters.

Episodes are released only every 2-3 months, but you can become a fan on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/galamanhk and stay updated by visiting their website: http://minimindstudio.com/galaman/

Niña Repelente - a Spanish animated web series

Happy New Year!

I hope you all had wonderful holidays with your family and friends and maybe had some time to watch some web series. I certainly did and since I was on holiday in Spain, I thought let's start the new year with a Spanish web series.

Niña Repelente is a web series from Andalucia, en el Sur de España.
The “Niña Repelente” (obnoxious girl) who is actually called Margarita (meaning “daisy” in Spanish), is the stereotypical bratty girl. While her trademark obnoxiousness is universally understood, her language and the situations she encounters are very much rooted in the popular culture of working-class Sevilla. This cartoon series is at heart a work of poignant realism. 
Have a look:

If you wanna watch all episodes and find out more about the obnoxious girl, please check: http://www.niñarepelente.com/
And when you visit their blog; http://frikibot.com/blog/ you'll get the Niña Repelente Christmas Special episode as a treat. Que lo pases bien!

Boys and Girls - a health care web series

Unhealthy lifestyles are widespread amongst teenagers. When I was a teenager, I was smoking and eating a lot of junk food. But as most teenagers I was rebellious and responded negatively to well intentioned advice by my parents, teachers, medical professionals, or from government campaigns.
Furthermore, teenagers are very difficult to reach through traditional communications means. Communication through the internet is probably the most effective way to reach teenagers nowadays and more and more teenagers are now watching web series instead of TV series.

That's why a group of experts, a production team, communication specialists and teenagers from eight European countries gathered in 201 to animate a “content workshop” and carry out a brainstorming on messages and formats of the web series. They decided to cover the topics Alcohol, Drugs, Sexual Behaviour, and Nutrition in their web series called Boys and Girls and targeted teenagers between 15 and 18 years old.

Here is the result:

The project involves international experts, teenagers and supporting organisations such as the Dutch Institute for Health Care Improvement, Danish Centre for Sexual Health Promotion, and Poznan University of Medical Sciences and EU Commissioner Dalli mentioned the project "Boys and Girls" as the example of campaign aimed at encouraging healthy diet and physical activity among European young people.
For more information on this project and to watch more episodes, please visit: www.boysandgirlslabs.eu/

Tube Tube - a tube web series

Do you remember how being on the tube during the Olympics was a completely different experience? Strangers were talking to each other, helping each other, even laughing with each other.
By now, it's back to normal. Londoners concentrate on their free newspapers or gaze into space.
Sometimes you can overhear some awkward conversations, though:

Tube Tube is a continuing series of short films set on London's Underground. Within this series you can listen in on the lives of Londoners as they journey through the city. The episodes are all shot with a single camera. Furthermore, they are single take scenes, no edits and shot in public.

Tube Tube was created by Ben A Williams and is produced by Omar Kenawi. Episodes are directed by Ben A Williams or Omar Kenawi. For more awkward tube moments, please go to:
http://www.youtube.com/user/TubeTubeLondon?feature=watch

Vlogmas - a Christmas Vlog

One of the best things about Christmas time is the Advent Calender. I got a really nice one with delicious chocolate from Germany. On YouTube you can also find a lot of Advent Calenders. Here is one by Fleur de Force who is a very active British Vlogger.

Fleur runs a YouTube beauty channel: http://www.youtube.com/user/FleurDeVlog and a blog called FleurDeForce: http://fleurdeforce.blogspot.co.uk/ where you can read/ watch Fleur's daily adventures and get some beauty tips. The videos range from 'how to' hair and make-up tutorials, to product reviews and fashion and style videos.

Until Christmas Fleur is vlogging every day and yesterday was all about secret Christmas shopping and date night with Mike. Have a look: 

How to be Dead - a Comedy about Life and Death

The last installment of the Twilight saga was just released. If you can't get enough of vampires, check out "How to be Dead". This new web comedy is about life, death and everything in between.

According to "How to be Dead", the undead are administrative errors. It’s up to Death and his office staff to protect humanity by fighting ghosts, zombies, vampires and medium-sized apocalypses. After a nice cup of tea.

In the Pilot Episode, Dave has a Near Death Experience and Death has a Near Dave Experience. Have a look: 

 

If you wanna find out more about this web show, please visit: http://howtobedead.com

Le Visiteur du Futur - the #1 French web series

Parlez-vous français? Si oui, c'est pour vous.
Le Visiteur du Futur is a cross-media series that combines comedy and science fiction. Since its launch in April 2009, it was viewed about 10 million times on the French web and also aired on the TV channel Nolife (http://www.nolife-tv.com/). According to French video-sharing website Dailymotion (http://www.dailymotion.com/gb), it's the #1 web series in France.

Le Visiteur du Futur is created by François Descraques and it is about a time traveller from the future who keeps warning an ordinary guy called Raph about the doom his actions will bring to humankind.
Have a look at Episode 1 of Season 1:

 

So far two seasons have been completed and a third is being shot. The first and second seasons have been subtitled into English, so it's not a problem if you don't speak French. Please visit their website to watch more episodes and get more information about this très bien web series: http://www.levisiteurdufutur.com/

Impact Stories - Finnish entrepreneurs web series

The third season of Young Apprentice has recently started in the UK and I'm very fascinated by these 16- and 17-year-old aspiring businessmen and businesswomen. Especially in our current economic situation it is important to support bright, young entrepreneurs and to share their ideas.

Hub Helsinki and Kinetic Pixel have produced a series of web videos highlighting small Finnish businesses and their young entrepreneurs, because small start-up businesses and their creative founders are at the forefront of Finnish business. Hub Helsinki is a co-working space for entrepreneurs and social innovators based in Helsinki and episodes of "Impact Stories" feature Hub members and their stories as entrepreneurs.

The first episode is about Tommaso De Benetti, Content Strategist at Writing Bold. Tommaso is a young enthusiast of technology, content creation, social media and games. He believes that you can't do a good job if you are not in love with what you are doing. Have a look:

If you are interested in watching more videos about young Finnish entrepreneurs, please visit: http://vimeo.com/album/1955004

Get inspired!