Striking Writers as Web Video Entrepreneurs

The LA Times has a story today about striking movie and TV writers talking to investors about creating new Internet ventures that would bypass studios and connect directly with consumers.

Joseph Menn writes:

Already this year, a handful of sites have received venture [capital] backing, including FunnyorDie.com, co-founded by comedic actor Will Ferrell, and MyDamnChannel.com, launched by former MTV executive Rob Barnett.

MyDamnChannel pays for the production of original content by a handful of artists and splits ad revenue with them.

I think some of these ventures will work. The odds improve if:

1. The strike drags on, and pulls in directors and actors next year
2. These sites can get other established stars involved, a la Will Ferrell
3. The sites can create a new generation of Web celebs (like the Ninja or, god help us, Lonelygirl15)
4. Good quality writing and a strong creative team can produce either a string of break-out, one-off viral hits (like "The Landlord") or a series of videos that people watch over time (like "Red vs. Blue" or "Homestar Runner's" Strongbad e-mail series)
5. They've got their own in-house ad sales/sponsorship/product placement people.

Despite all that, I'm not sure how these mini-content studios will prove to be great short-term investments for venture capitalists. These feel to me like businesses that'll take a while to build.

Thursday links: FunnyOrDie in the NY Times ... Jobs, Gates & Lucas ... Hollingshead Day is June 6th

- Today's NY Times has a lengthy piece about the creation of FunnyOrDie.com. The site's big hit, "The Landlord," starring Will Ferrell, took less than an hour to shoot, cost almost nothing, and has been seen about 30 million times.

My questions: how long will Ferrell and site co-creator Adam McKay stay motivated, given that they're working for equity and not pay... and how eager will other vid-comics be to contribute, given that the site doesn't share revenues yet?

- Here's all the video you could want from yesterday's on-stage encounter between Steve Jobs and Bill Gates at the 'D' conference in Carlsbad, CA. George Lucas was also on the agenda.

- Finally, next Wednesday (June 6th) is Hollingshead Day: the 74th anniversary of the opening of the first drive-in movie theater. (The first one was in New Jersey, opened by Richard Holingshead.) So visit one near you.

Two blog posts worth a look

- Kara Swisher of the Wall Street Journal on whether Hollywood gets the Net, and will be able to produce hits in the new medium:

...there is little on YouTube and many other sites on the Web now that could ever gross what the next “Harry Potter” movie will, but what is there definitely costs a lot less, is improving in quality quickly and will eventually (remember, these are the first innings) yield just the kind of hit that Hollywood loves. I am betting that hit will not be from Hollywood.

Many of the earliest Net hits ("This Land," "Evolution of Dance") haven't been from Hollywood. But look what happens when a big Hollywood star like Will Ferrell makes a video and puts it on the Net. Instantly, a skillion views. Don't count Hollywood (or rather, don't count Hollywood creatives) out.

- Om Malik on "Why Hollywood Suddenly Loves Tech." As DVD sales stall, Hollywood is looking to digital downloads as a savior, Om theorizes.

Partially true, but they still are trying to stick with DVD pricing... and make any company that wants to distribute their content make all sorts of revenue guarantees about how many downloads they're gonna sell.