“What Makes the Web Viable?” is one of those questions only college sophomores and media conference moderators can dare to ask and further dare to answer.
Many – maybe all – filmmakers and other creators attending last week’s Digital Hollywood in Los Angeles unconsciously go to the Web first for distribution of their independent content and programming. But how does the Web really perform? Are there specific marketing techniques with proven track records of success? How should you balance online “exposure” and the profit motive? Does the online medium shape content in unwelcome or unexpected ways? What kind of deals should you avoid?
At Digital Hollywood, in Los Angeles, CCC’s Chris Kenneally (rear) interviewed (from left) Michael Grover, Kim Williams and Rob Aft on making the Web viable for art and commerce for Web series producers.
Replying to those ambitious queries posed by CCC’s Chris Kenneally were panelists who covered the issues from the perspectives of creators, distributors, lawyers and financial players.
Rob H. Aft is President of Compliance Consulting LLC, a Los Angeles based media finance and distribution consultancy currently serving a variety of clients including banks, law firms, producers, distributors, directors and talent guilds in the U.S., Europe, Asia, Latin America and Africa. Mr. Aft served seven terms as a member of the Board of Directors of the Independent Film and TV Alliance (IFTA). Mr. Aft’s interactions with filmmakers and industry professionals at World Intellectual Property Organization Workshops on Copyright for Film Professionals in Nigeria, Nepal, Tanzania, Thailand, Indonesia, Jamaica and Mexico were the inspiration for his most recent book, From Script to Screen: The Importance of Copyright in the Distribution of Films published by WIPO.
Michael Grover is the founder of SiteRoll, which helps independent Web series creators and filmmakers by generating a privately-branded site to package shows for Web and mobile distribution. Previously, he was Vice President, Digital Products, for the Channel Company.
Writer and producer Kim Williams has worked 18 years in the television and film industry in Post Production and TV Development. In 2012, she formed inkSpot Entertainment and create the popular Web series, The Unwritten Rules, based on her first novel, 40 Hours and an Unwritten Rule. In 2014, she released her second series, everything I did wrong in my 20s.