Category: Peer Production

Leesa Dean: Adventures of a Web Series Newbie

itisaliveChapter 38 – And…We’re Back!
by Leesa Dean

Hope everybody had a great Thanksgiving. I did! Both of my parents passed away a number of years ago and I don’t have any brothers/sisters so over the time, friends have become family. I normally cook and have a bunch of folks over for dinner or get invited someplace. This year, I spent it with one of my oldest friends at her parent’s house. Our folks were best friends with mine and growing up we always spent the holidays together, so it was a really warm and nice full circle kinda thing.

And right after, I threw myself back into work. Aside from writing/prepping Season Two of the Lele Show and the TOP SECRET project I’ve been working on, I have a few more scripts I’m nursing, including a movie, two tv specs and a new web series. And that’s just for next year. I have no idea when I’ll be done with them all, but it’s fun and I’m having a good time ideating. One thing that’s been really inspiring: The official selections at this year’s Sundance Film Fest. Included is Dear White People by Justin Simiem which looks dope!, plus a film by the wildly prolific Joe Swanberg starring one of my favorite writer/directors, Lena Dunham. Also this year, Low Down which is a bio pic about bebop pianist Joe Albany told from the perspective of his daughter AJ (she actually wrote a pretty juicy/interesting/heartbreaking memoir about growing up with him.) Can’t wait to check all of them out when they’re released.

It’s gonna be interesting when I launch Season Two of the Lele Show. I’ll still be working on all the other projects and it takes SO MUCH work to promote a web series, I really don’t know how I’ll be able to juggle it all. read article

Time Now for a, erm, Spunky Christmas Song

2 cool kids from the LET'S GET SPUNKY pilot episode
2 cool kids from the LET’S GET SPUNKY pilot episode

“Let’s Get Spunky!” is a demented spoof of all things classic television. It takes the nuclear family genre of the late 50’s/early 60’s and turns over its apple cart to play both with absurdity (Monty Python takes over Mayberry) as well as context, the way in which the golden age is portrayed versus how it actually was behind the wholesome image.

One way to describe it is to say that animated shows like “The Simpsons” took the nuclear family comedy forward and freed it to the absurd through animation, allowing the content to flourish without the boundaries of single camera sets and real actors. “Spunky” attempts to take it back again into the period context and use that as its reference to expound upon the absurd.

Robert Glenn Plotnick, SPUNKY’S creator, has decided to go all Christmas on our butts this year, resulting in one of the wildest NSFW Christmas song parodies we’ve seen in a long time. And, fortunately for all of us, also one of the best. Here’s what RGP has to say about his latest brainchild: read article

Peer Production: BUFF DOG

citlalli

Now here’s a workout video we can get down with:

read article

Everybody’s Making Their Own Videos, Even the LAPD

This shot really grabbed your attention, right? Right? Um....
This shot really grabbed your attention, right? Right? Um….

Yeppers, boys and girls, the Los Angeles Police Department has joined the march into peer production, making its own 7+ minute video about how to keep stuff from being stolen from your car. And to make sure you watch it – zombies.

That’s right. This is a zombie movie, for reals. Well, before it deteriorates into the usual talking head PD PR dood giving us, you know, good advice.

TVWriter™ applauds the idea, but the execution leaves a little to be desired. Which is weird when you think about it, considering all the talent (including us!) that’s just hanging around in L.A. read article

Peer Production: TALES OF REBELLIOUS STONE

Tales of Rebellous Stone Capture

The real beauty of peer production, AKA doing it all yourself, is that you have no excuse for not being bold. Not that KC.5 would ever need an excuse cuz this baby is BOLD BOLD BOLD!!!

Oh, and reverent. Reverent as all hell: