News

BlackBoxTV has returned for a fifth series of horror and sci-fi shorts, and its first offering of the new season takes on a topic with which many YouTubers can sympathize. The episode, titled "How to quit YouTube", follows a down-on-his-luck vlogger whose life is dictated by his viewers. The episode is directed by BlackBoxTV founder Tony Valenzuela and stars Wilson Cleveland (the creator of web series like Leap Year and The Temp Life) as a YouTube vlogger who clings to a dream of stardom despite possessing only a few thousand subscribers. With such a small audience, Cleveland is beholden to the few fans he has, and he lets them dictate his life--even when it means a remote "Travel Tuesday" at Joshua Tree. The episode is particularly relevant given recent comments from YouTube personalities like Emily Graslie and Boogie2988 about the damaging effect of verbally abusive commenters. Both of those creators...

Leap Year is a branded entertainment web series with a sizable budget funded by Hiscox, a London Stock Exchange-listed insurance provider that specializes in niche areas of the insurance market (including art collections and kidnapping/ransoms) that last year extended its offerings to provide small business insurance to companies in the Us. The show was created and executive produced by Wilson Cleveland and Cjp Digital (the individual and company behind other online branded programs including The Temp LIfe, The Webventures of Justin and Alden, Suite 7, and Bestsellers) and written and directed by the Baranovsky brothers under the banner of Happy Little Guillotine Films (the digital production shop behind titles like 7-Eleven’s Road Trip Rally and Break a Leg). It's comprised of a cast that fans of Cjp Digital and Happy Little Guillotine productions will find very familiar (including Yuri Baranovsky, Alexis Boozer, Cleveland, Daniela Diiorio, Drew Lanning, Rachel Risen,...

Make no mistake my friends, 2011 will be remembered as the year sh*t got real in online video. This year the bastions of web video, no longer satisfied with "digital dollars," made some of their boldest grabs yet at television’s multi-billion dollar advertising business by emulating the look, feel and business of...television. Welcome to progress. Let's review: YouTube, the birthplace of the web series, the king-maker of online celebrity, the petrie dish of viral video, spent $100 million on re-positioning itself as the second coming of cable television with 100 new channels of advertiser-friendly, day-parted original programming. Netflix paid $100 million to exclusively distribute two seasons of the Kevin Spacey/David Fincher drama House of Cards; then dropped another tidy sum to revive and distribute new episodes of the Emmy-winning Fox comedy Arrested Development. Wanna bet Netflix leads a lobby with the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences to get streaming originals on the Emmy ballot?...

Announcing the August 2011 Tubefilter Hollywood Meetup! YouTube and its partner program have opened a clear path to online video monetization. And as we've learned from our panels this past year, building an audience on YouTube is crucial to a successful online video business. But is that all that it takes? Even for the top YouTubers—who pull in six figures in rev share—YouTube is just the tip of the iceberg. Successful video creators are using YouTube to engage and monetize audiences elsewhere—from other platforms, to apps, merch, licensing, and beyond. Entertainment management firm The Collective, whose digital clients like Fred, The Annoying Orange, and iJustine represent 200 million monthly views on YouTube, recently announced a distribution partnership with Blip.tv, which offers significantly higher CPMs to its partners. Cjp Digital Media's Wilson Cleveland has pioneered a business model that renders video rev share an afterthought. Join us as we...

Being a startup entrepreneur is hard. First, you have to find and execute a great idea (or at least an idea). And second, you have to take care of all the businessy things that come along with creating and operating a company. Things like taxes, payroll, health insurance, incorporation documents, small business insurance, and other important minutia and mandatory idiosyncrasies that make the government make sure it’s okay with whatever it is you’re doing. But where’s a startup entrepreneur supposed to learn about and acquire all these stamps, documents, and seals of approval? I have no idea! Well, except if you’re a professional services startup with 10 employees or less. Then I have some idea where you can get small business insurance. You can go to Hiscox. The London Stock Exchange-listed insurance provider that specializes in niche areas of the insurance market (including art collections and kidnapping...

For a while now I’ve been saying that the best web series think of themselves as startups, not just side projects. The hustle, the grind, the payoff—phases known all too well amongst the kindred souls of web video creators and entrepreneurs. Fitting then, that one new series would decide to turn the cameras on the latest crop of business ventures all trying to build something from nothing. When you think of it, startups already have everything that makes for a good story—drama, conflict, high stakes and passion. Trep Life premiered online this past week from Chicago-based creator Scotty Cadenhead, a 12-episode documentary series diving into a number of the city’s budding startups. First up is online restaurant delivery service GrubHub and its founders Matt Maloney and Mike Evans. This isn’t a marketing Epk, and despite any narrator or audible interview questions we’re given a...

Let’s face it, Sfn Group isn’t exactly a household name. But still some 160,000 people cash a paycheck every two weeks from the company—through its suite of professional services brands like Spherion, Technisource, Tatum, The Mergis Group and others—so it’s not exactly a stretch to consider the 60 year-old firm would turn up some creative ways of reaching its core market of working professionals. Five years ago, Sfn was arguably the first major brand to back a scripted episodic show made for the internet, with The Temp Life a farcical look at the horrors of off-brand temp agencies. Five seasons later, the series is still running with the Sfn’s Spherion Staffing apparently happy with its growing, and targeted, audience. (Season 5 of The Temp Life just passed 1 million view mark this past weekend.) Related News:Illeana Douglas Drops Into ‘The Temp Life’ ‘The Temp Life’ Returns, Stocked...

Ok, ok, settle down web video fans, “Quick Clicks” is back by popular demand. (Who knew, you fine readers actually prefer reading fewer words per story..) Ryan Higa, aka nigahiga, the number 1 most subscribed channel on YouTube officially cracked the 3 million subscriber mark, making his the first ever channel to do so. It comes just a year after taking over the top spot from longtime topper Fred. Could it be Higa’s starring role in WongFu’s YouTube 35-minute film Agents of Secret Stuff that put him over the edge? Naturally, he made a video to commemorate. [nigahiga on YouTube] The Guild: Season 4 hits Amazon and iTunes today just in time (we think) for the holidays. It might be too late for free shipping, but for true Guild fans this may be worth the extra loot since it won’t hit retail stores until February 22. Bonus features on the $10.99 DVD include the “Game On” Music Video,...

Do you wish you slept better? The Better Sleep Council can help. Since 1979, this non-profit, consumer education arm of the International Sleep Products Association (a non-profit supported by America's mattress industry) has devoted itself to educating the public about how to improve upon what everyone spends one third of their lives doing. The Bsc produces Better Sleep Guides and disseminates research linking sufficient sleep to improved physical performance, work productivity, and more, all in the pursuit of teaching you and me how to have pleasant dreams (and helping quality mattress makers sell their products). Do you wish you knew more about The Better Sleep Council? Suite 7 can help with that. The branded entertainment web series from Cjp Digital Media (the same marketing and production house that created The Temp Life and The Webventures of Justin and Alden and helped Easy to Assemble become one of the most-watched branded web shows ever) is an anthology,...

Shane Dawson shows he can dominate the interactive video game too with his Haunted House Party released over the weekend. Already the video has cracked 2.2 million views, with the whole 9-video “series” over 8 million views total. Directed by Totally Sketch and produced by powerhouse Black Box TV, there’s a number of YouTuber cameos we spotted: Tay Zonday, iJustine, Kristin Findley, Bree Essrig, Steve Greene, Brittani Louise Taylor, Richard Ryan and Jason Horton. [ShaneDawsonTV] Jessica Rose is the latest web star to join Spherion’s long-running branded web comedy The Temp Life. Rose nerds it up with pal Taryn Southern to play the sister of the scene-stealing temp Nancy Roeder. Some exclusive photos from set (below) show a nerdier side of the former lonelygirl15 star. The fifth season is currently shooting and slated for release December 6th on My Damn Channel. [TheTempLife.tv] Related News:Jessica Rose Joins ‘Poor Paul’ Cast Jessica Rose...

Last Friday at the New York Television Festival My Damn Channel Co-Founder and CEO Rob Barnett let the cat out of the bag: Streamy Award nominated comedy web series The Temp Life is coming to his network. The series, which takes a comedic look at the highs and lows of hourly workers, premieres its fifth season on December 6th. Related News:‘Temp Life’ To Return With Record-Breaking Fifth Season ‘The Temp Life’ Returns, Stocked Up on Web Series Stars Illeana Douglas Drops Into ‘The Temp Life’...

Rj Williams is on a mission to conquer Hollywood, one fun celebrity interview at a time. From face time with some of the biggest names in Hollywood to championing up and coming talent that will be the next big thing, the Young Hollywood team works around the clock. In order to create a celeb friendly environment—and actually get those celebs to show up—Young Hollywood has set up their studio in a suite at the Four Seasons Los Angeles in Beverly Hills. Williams is so dedicated to the success of Young Hollywood, he has moved into the hotel to keep his focus zeroed in on the day to day workload it takes to make the Young Hollywood world happen. He does takes a few breaks to head downstairs to modern Italian restaurant Culina. A man’s got to eat. Yesterday Tubefilter visited the Young Hollywood set, to see this...

The Web's best branded entertainment entertains -- even when the sell isn't subtle.

Easy to Assemble

Ikea recently ordered a third season of this breakout comedy series, starring Illeana Douglas as -- wait for it! -- an actress who works at Ikea Burbank. Even with the in-your-face product placement, Easy to Assemble is scoring with critics (it won a Streamy for best ensemble); celebs (cameos from Jane Lynch and Jeff Goldblum); and viewers (9 million -- plus streams since 2008). * http://mydamnchannel.com/EasytoAssemble

The Victory Project

Think The Biggest Loser without the maniacal trainers. This Kellogg's Special K series follows real women as they work with fitness, nutrition, and beauty coaches to overcome weight problems. * thevictoryproject.msn.com

The Temp Life

The show began as a "cost-effective" way to boost brand recognition, says Lisa McCarthy, a marketing exec at Spherion Staffing Services. But it is now a bona fide phenomenon: At...

Today Sfn Group, Inc. (the parent company to Spherion and other professional staffing organizations) announced it has renewed Streamy Award-nominated comedy web series The Temp Life for a fifth season, establishing it as the longest-running brand-sponsored original web series top date. Production will begin this September in New York and is scheduled to premiere sometime in November. The Legend of Neil’s Tony Janning will be joining returning series regulars Wilson Cleveland, Rachel Risen, Mark Jude, Chris Stetson,Thom Woodley, Sandeep Parikh and Taryn Southern along with other guest stars to be announced in coming weeks. Related News:‘The Temp Life’ Returns, Stocked Up on Web Series Stars Spherion-backed ‘Temp Life’ Re-Staffs For New Season Illeana Douglas Drops Into ‘The Temp Life’...

The Webventures of Justin & Alden might have one of the deepest casts of web series notables that we’ve seen to date. Fitting, since the new five-episode branded comedy web series from Cjp Digital Media and lead sponsor Trident Layers (disclosure: Trident is also a Streamy Awards sponsor) is all about two would-be internet-famos set to find web video glory by making “the greatest Web series Web show that’s ever been on the Web computer.” Justin Tyler and Alden Ford, both regulars at sketch comedy theater Ucb in New York, star as the hapless titular duo in this Bill and Ted’s-style (yes, there’s even some time travel) road trip. The destination of this road trip is the Streamy Awards in Los Angeles in hopes of finding the perfect web star. Guests of this year’s Streamys may have noticed these two crashing the red carpet and even...