In the four weeks that we’ve had so far of Good Form I’ve learnt a lot about web series as a filmmaking form. I had preconceived notions on what I believed it was, based on my own media consumption, which mostly focused on dramatic series that were just shorter in form than a television series (usually under 15 mins) but which always followed a narrative path. From discussion in class I learnt that was definitely not the case, with my peers pointing out many web series’ they watch that are merely comedic sketches without an ongoing storyline. The idea of nothing being defined, especially in length, connects to our Stayci Taylor reading which quotes “a revolution that has fed on itself…Maybe a show is two minutes and thirty-seven seconds long one time, maybe it runs six minutes and forty-one seconds the next. Each episode can be however long it deserves to be”. While I definitely have more of an understanding of the broadness of the web series format I still prefer when they possess storyline.

I was also a bit nervous about the idea of producing a comedy web series as most of the shows I watched weren’t overtly funny with Carmilla, the one that I chose to do for assessment task 2, being the only one that is even remotely humorous. Even then it isn’t necessarily funny, but that’s another thing I’ve been learning, everyone has different idea’s of what’s funny and what defines a comedy web series. Some of the series my peers showed me weren’t remotely funny to me as they were more slapstick and overt while I definitely prefer wittier humour, black comedy and satire than I do fart or poo jokes. But everyone’s different and that’s what has been extremely interesting for me to observe in class.

The same readings discusses how: “it’s a wild west out there” and how new media such as web series’ are changing the way scripts are developed and also how media is consumed and produced nowadays. That idea of it being a wild west really struck me when we discussed it in class, because it really is. Anyone can make it if what they produce is quality material, marketed in the right way. Not only does the wild west part of that statement connote the idea of America, but so does the prospect that anyone can succeed, something Americans often pride their country on.

Furthermore, this quote from the reading sums up how a web series can be successful: “‘do not develop an idea that you do not particularly care about just because you feel it might have marketing potential. If there is one thing internet users do well (and seem to take pleasure in), it is sniffing out phonies. The best thing to engage an audience is to speak to them as a peer about a common interest.” This idea of common interest/reliatability is exactly why my chosen web series for this task has over one million views, it’s catering towards young/new adult audiences, specifically the LGBT community, who have little representation on traditional media and whose population craves non-heterosexual/ cis-gendered role models/representation.

Conclusively, this quote from the reading really explains the creative freedom and lack of definition that I have learnt that the web series format possesses: “The glory of self-producing on the web is that you don’t have to answer to anyone but yourself and your collaborators…You have the freedom to stick to your pure, unadulterated vision of the project”. I believe that’s what is most compelling about the format and why most filmmakers are turning to it to get their start in the industry.

Taylor, Stayci. “It’s the Wild West out there”: Can web series destabilise traditional notions of script development? ASPERA Annual Conference 2015: “What’s This Space? Screen Practice, Audiences and Education for the Future Decade” 15-17 July 2015. http://aspera.org.au/wp-content/uploads/Taylor-2015_v2.pdf