I realize I'm years behind the curve here, but I've been doing some research into web-based drama/comedy series and recently discovered Chad Vader: Day Shift Manager. Most web series I've watched I really don't get. As in, I don't understand why they were considered appropriate for the internets since they just seem like conventional longer form drama/comedy done on the cheap and then sliced up into 5-10 minutes chunks (with hopes of getting noticed and receiving a deal to make as a conventional broadcast TV series I'm guessing? But if that's their ultimate goal, then what does that say about the web being the future?) I know The Guild has been held up as a success story, but take Acting School Academy or the adventure series Riese for example...they're decent though with kinda stretched out storylines yet good production values, but to what end? Why weren't they produced first as a conventional TV series pilot or low budget feature film? Who paid for them? Were they sponsored, and if so how come I'm not seeing the advertising prominently displayed with some of them? In this 'free' format, how are they making back their costs?
Seriously, don't get me started on the "how do we monetize?" question (the same unanswered question I've been hearing for ten years while also hearing TV is dead and new media is the future!). One article I read about how to create a successful web-based TV series actually had the quote: "We are not defining "successful" with "turning a profit."
But Chad Vader I got. Premise self explanatory. Episodes short and self-contained. Production values or lack thereof irrelevant. Therefore relatively inexpensive. The kids dig it which = lots of return traffic and DVD sales. It's fun. Friday fun!
Because it makes me smile.
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