I think centralized high-cost productions have become too saturated. Social media seems to be doing a good job at creating and filling niches that take less labor to create and are more engaging. The feedback loop is more like days instead of years.
What is true is that the attention economy is a generalization of the phenomenon see in fast fashion. Development cycles need to get shorter so people can consume more. I think there’s a real niche to be had for a social-media-like platform that allows mid-tier productions to gain widespread appeal. Classic movie companies can’t shit out thousands of months-long projects because people would hold them directly accountable for all the failures. But YouTube is much less likely to be held accountable for one of the partnered creators being shitty. The blame is distributed by the expectations of the format. Obviously, the market for the days-long feedback loop is highly competitive between these handful of social media giants. And the market for the years-long feedback loop is highly saturated by the big American movie studios. But the months-long feedback loop is still something that you have to put a lot of effort into curating your feed for and opting into it.
On YouTube, the activities and formats that were able to be done by small teams on that tight schedule were honed over years. That tends to pump out 10-20 minute videos daily. You see a similar thing with nightly shows having giant staffs to make a cable-safe live broadcast every night. They get about an hour a night. I’d imagine you could hold people’s attention for about 40 minutes a night with a medium sized writing/editing staff and have success. But that path to learn through failure on that front is one no one wants to take. Cable isn’t going to green light shit if you can’t get past their gatekeepers. And establishing a team of that size and trying to get them to compete for attention with the people who are shitting out bright flashy ten minute YouTube videos every day is hard. Even people who post high-effort content once a day on TikTok don’t necessarily have a huge advantage over an individual person who’s just walking around talking to their phone.
For real. It’s such an unsustainable level of consumption and high level of waste. Polyester could be a great material to manufacture textiles with if we actually used those products for decades at a time. That’s very possible with clothes, especially because the material’s pretty resilient. But instead the secondhand market is absolutely flooded with clothes to the point where only 20% of what’s donated to thrift stores is ever sold and most shelters actively refuse clothes outside of winter jackets and unused socks. The rag houses are overflowing and what they can’t sell to vintage pickers or make into industrial rags gets thrown in a landfill. And yet people are still buying more clothes per person every year.
I get so mad at people who think degrowth is inherently a neoliberal project. Like, really? Yeah, the hollowing out of society performed by neoliberalism means that even the imperial core could use some growth in the healthcare industry. But clothing? That shit could shrink exponentially and none of us are gonna go without. It’s absolute capitalist brain to think otherwise.
Unfortunately, high-plastic fibers are often the ones that last a long time. Or maybe that’s fortunate if you enjoy wearing your clothes until they’re falling off your body, which I do. Cotton, meanwhile can start to degrade through regular use in just a couple years. But it’s really common with modern designs to see high-plastic stretch fibers woven into the fabric, which also degrades really quickly. So it’s kinda the worst of both worlds.
I’ve been shopping on eBay, just going to Buy It Now and sorting low to high. Shit’s pretty cheap, it’s not contributing to fast fashion, and it’s more accessible for me than thrifting because I’m big in several senses of the word. And a lot of 70’s and 80’s polyester is still in great condition and just sitting in people’s closets.
I think there’s a real niche to be had for a social-media-like platform that allows mid-tier productions to gain widespread appeal.
What do "mid-tier productions" look like? A regular show with all the trimmings, just shot with no-name cast and an phone?
Classic movie companies can’t shit out thousands of months-long projects because people would hold them directly accountable for all the failures.
I think studios wouldn't be held accountable for failures more than they are now - aren't profit and engagement the feedback they're after? I think it's just expensive af.
I think you're right about the expectations of the format. I'm not bothered by a youtube video that is a patent waste of time, but I'm genuinely upset by wasting twenty minutes trying to get into a crap film.
Imo, a mid-tier production is higher production quality and length than you'd expect to be reasonable on a platform like YouTube. Not budgeted like or necessarily as high end as prestige tv, but still full length regular productions. YouTube premium originals were sort of like this, and there have been some platforms that have distributed a handful of shows in this way, like seeso or vrv, but mostly their original content was just throwing pasta at the wall to see what sticks.
If a platform came along that hosted a number of lower budget but higher production quality series which were actually good, that would be pretty neat imo.
A lot of Western animation is targeting this sort of budget and distribution channel, a good example being Vivziepop distributing Helluva Boss via YouTube, and the various Cartoon Hangover series. There seems to be some trade back and forth between streaming services and these midrange productions, with creators and series flipping back and forth based on whether or not they can get a service to pay for a series or whether they need to crowdfund it.
What do “mid-tier productions” look like? A regular show with all the trimmings, just shot with no-name cast and an phone?
In seriousness, technological advances can't be ignored. I carry around a compact camera that doubles as a 4K video camera that can basically see in the dark in my daily-carry bag, and it cost less than a month's rent. A few of those, some Zoom sound recorders, and Kdenlive makes for a really inexpensive yet capable setup for indie movie type projects.
I think centralized high-cost productions have become too saturated. Social media seems to be doing a good job at creating and filling niches that take less labor to create and are more engaging. The feedback loop is more like days instead of years.
What is true is that the attention economy is a generalization of the phenomenon see in fast fashion. Development cycles need to get shorter so people can consume more. I think there’s a real niche to be had for a social-media-like platform that allows mid-tier productions to gain widespread appeal. Classic movie companies can’t shit out thousands of months-long projects because people would hold them directly accountable for all the failures. But YouTube is much less likely to be held accountable for one of the partnered creators being shitty. The blame is distributed by the expectations of the format. Obviously, the market for the days-long feedback loop is highly competitive between these handful of social media giants. And the market for the years-long feedback loop is highly saturated by the big American movie studios. But the months-long feedback loop is still something that you have to put a lot of effort into curating your feed for and opting into it.
On YouTube, the activities and formats that were able to be done by small teams on that tight schedule were honed over years. That tends to pump out 10-20 minute videos daily. You see a similar thing with nightly shows having giant staffs to make a cable-safe live broadcast every night. They get about an hour a night. I’d imagine you could hold people’s attention for about 40 minutes a night with a medium sized writing/editing staff and have success. But that path to learn through failure on that front is one no one wants to take. Cable isn’t going to green light shit if you can’t get past their gatekeepers. And establishing a team of that size and trying to get them to compete for attention with the people who are shitting out bright flashy ten minute YouTube videos every day is hard. Even people who post high-effort content once a day on TikTok don’t necessarily have a huge advantage over an individual person who’s just walking around talking to their phone.
deleted by creator
For real. It’s such an unsustainable level of consumption and high level of waste. Polyester could be a great material to manufacture textiles with if we actually used those products for decades at a time. That’s very possible with clothes, especially because the material’s pretty resilient. But instead the secondhand market is absolutely flooded with clothes to the point where only 20% of what’s donated to thrift stores is ever sold and most shelters actively refuse clothes outside of winter jackets and unused socks. The rag houses are overflowing and what they can’t sell to vintage pickers or make into industrial rags gets thrown in a landfill. And yet people are still buying more clothes per person every year.
I get so mad at people who think degrowth is inherently a neoliberal project. Like, really? Yeah, the hollowing out of society performed by neoliberalism means that even the imperial core could use some growth in the healthcare industry. But clothing? That shit could shrink exponentially and none of us are gonna go without. It’s absolute capitalist brain to think otherwise.
deleted by creator
Unfortunately, high-plastic fibers are often the ones that last a long time. Or maybe that’s fortunate if you enjoy wearing your clothes until they’re falling off your body, which I do. Cotton, meanwhile can start to degrade through regular use in just a couple years. But it’s really common with modern designs to see high-plastic stretch fibers woven into the fabric, which also degrades really quickly. So it’s kinda the worst of both worlds.
I’ve been shopping on eBay, just going to Buy It Now and sorting low to high. Shit’s pretty cheap, it’s not contributing to fast fashion, and it’s more accessible for me than thrifting because I’m big in several senses of the word. And a lot of 70’s and 80’s polyester is still in great condition and just sitting in people’s closets.
deleted by creator
What do "mid-tier productions" look like? A regular show with all the trimmings, just shot with no-name cast and an phone?
I think studios wouldn't be held accountable for failures more than they are now - aren't profit and engagement the feedback they're after? I think it's just expensive af.
I think you're right about the expectations of the format. I'm not bothered by a youtube video that is a patent waste of time, but I'm genuinely upset by wasting twenty minutes trying to get into a crap film.
Imo, a mid-tier production is higher production quality and length than you'd expect to be reasonable on a platform like YouTube. Not budgeted like or necessarily as high end as prestige tv, but still full length regular productions. YouTube premium originals were sort of like this, and there have been some platforms that have distributed a handful of shows in this way, like seeso or vrv, but mostly their original content was just throwing pasta at the wall to see what sticks.
If a platform came along that hosted a number of lower budget but higher production quality series which were actually good, that would be pretty neat imo.
I have never heard of any of these, thanks!
A lot of Western animation is targeting this sort of budget and distribution channel, a good example being Vivziepop distributing Helluva Boss via YouTube, and the various Cartoon Hangover series. There seems to be some trade back and forth between streaming services and these midrange productions, with creators and series flipping back and forth based on whether or not they can get a service to pay for a series or whether they need to crowdfund it.
In seriousness, technological advances can't be ignored. I carry around a compact camera that doubles as a 4K video camera that can basically see in the dark in my daily-carry bag, and it cost less than a month's rent. A few of those, some Zoom sound recorders, and Kdenlive makes for a really inexpensive yet capable setup for indie movie type projects.
Oh I don't doubt the viability. I'm genuinely curious what changeling means by "mid-tier".