The 2nd Annual Streamy Awards: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly... and the Winners

By now, most of the Internet has in some way heard about, watched, commented on, or experienced the 2010 Streamy Awards first hand, which for many, failed to meet the expectations set by last year's awards show. I was excited to be a guest and attend the event in person, and actually ended up with a front row seat to what's been called, "the train wreck awards" or as Kevin Pollack called "the best rehearsal award show". The reactions have been vocal and varied, with several themes have emerged regarding the #streamyfail memes. People have been forgiving of the technical problems with the video playback, stalls and miscues, but less forgiving for the audio problems in the venue and on the live web cast and some outrage at the tone of show that came off as sophomoric,  tasteless and self deprecating humor. I know the organizers meant well and worked hard to make the Streamy Awards a success, but the overall execution of the show, which for many went from bad to ugly, set it on a collision course with the devoted web television community who want to be taken seriously.

Other blogs have said it better already, and have generated a lot of great and thoughtful discussion, like Jenni Powell's Post-Show Community Feedback and Discussion on Tubefilter News and Liz Shannon Miller’s The Streamy Awards: A Producer’s Apology And Its Three Fails at NewTeeVee which Tubefilter CEO Brady Brim-Deforest apologized for the technical difficulties and how the show "suffered from a lack of cohesiveness". Check out these insightful posts from David Samuels, CEO of KoldCastTV , iJustine, Barrett Garese, Jace Hall, Jim Louderback and Miles Beckett who all shared their candid thoughts. Look for more reactions and also statements from Tubefilter and the International Academy of Web Television in the coming days.

I'll also be posting some videos that I shot at the event.

Now onto the good, here's the Fine Brothers video, HOW TO get Nominated for A Streamy Award,  that was cut short during the live show due to technical difficulties, and the list of winners who are all talented and top-notched web television creators. Congratulations to all the winners and nominees!



2010 Streamy Award Winners

Overall Series

Best Comedy Web Series
Between Two Ferns with Zach Galifianakis

Best Drama Web Series
The Bannen Way

Best Hosted Web Series
Diggnation

Best Reality or Documentary Web Series
The Secret Life of Scientists

Best News or Politics Web Series
Auto-Tune the News

Best Foreign Web Series
OzGirl

Best New Web Series
Odd Jobs

Best Companion Web Series
The Office: Subtle Sexuality

Best Animated Web Series
How It Should Have Ended

Best Branded Entertainment Web Series
Back on Topps (Topps, Dick’s Sporting Goods)`

Best Experimental Web Series
Auto-Tune the News

Audience Choice Award for Best Web Series
Agents of Cracked

Directing

Best Directing for a Comedy Web Series
The Guild
(Sean Becker)

Best Directing for a Drama Web Series
The Bannen Way
(Jesse Warren)

Writing

Best Writing for a Comedy Web Series
Wainy Days
(David Wain)

Best Writing for a Drama Web Series
Compulsions
(Bernie Su)

Performance

Best Male Actor in a Comedy Web Series
Zach Galifianakis — (Between Two Ferns with Zach Galifianakis)

Best Female Actor in a Comedy Web Series
Felicia Day — (The Guild)

Best Male Actor in a Drama Web Series
Mark Gantt — (The Bannen Way)

Best Female Actor in a Drama Web Series
Rachael Hip-Flores — (Anyone But Me)

Best Ensemble Cast in a Web Series
Easy to Assemble
(Illeana Douglas, Justine Bateman, Eric Lange, Michael Irpino, Cheri Oteri, Daryl Sabara, Michael Panes, Rob Mailhouse, Sean Durrie, Tom Arnold, Ed Begley Jr., Tim Meadows, Ricki Lake, Greg Proops, Kevin Pollak)

Best Guest Star in a Web Series
“Weird Al” Yankovic — (Know Your Meme)

Best Web Series Host
Zadi Diaz — (Epic Fu)

Best Vlogger
Shane Dawson — (ShaneDawsonTV)

Craft Awards

Best Editing in a Web Series
The Bannen Way (Zack Arnold)

Best Cinematography in a Web Series
Riese (Christopher Charles Kempinski)

Best Art Direction in a Web Series
Green Porno (Rick Gilbert)

Best Sound Design in a Web Series
Fear Clinic (Kunal Rajan)

Best Visual Effects in a Web Series

Fear Clinic (Jason Bergman, Nicholas Onstad, Bethany Onstad, Jason Knetge, Erik Porn, Ikuo Saito, David Dang)

Best Animation in a Web Series
theGoob (Magnus Jansson)

Best Original Music in a Web Series
Auto-Tune the News (Evan Gregory, Andrew Gregory, Michael Gregory, Sarah Gregory)

Best Live Production in a Web Series
Kevin Pollak’s Chat Show

Best Interactive Experience in a Web Series
Valemont

Best Product Integration in a Web Series
Easy to Assemble (IKEA)

Best Mobile Experience in a Web Series
Valemont

I'm Going to the Streamy Awards!

I'm going to the 2010 Streamy Awards! Thanks to my friends at Popscreen, I'm extremely excited to announce that I'll be attending the 2nd Annual Streamy Awards at the Orpheum Theatre in Los Angeles on Sunday, April 11 starting at 5:30pm PT. Presented by the International Academy of Web Television and co-hosted by Tubefilter and NewTeeVee, The Streamy Awards is the first awards program of its kind to recognize outstanding achievement in global web television arts and sciences for broadband distribution across 35 creative categories, from acting and directing, to editing and special effects. Now in its second year, the annual ceremony, and its live online broadcast, is at the focal point of the digital entertainment revolution and brings together top talent, decision-makers and influencers shaping the online entertainment industry.

Streamy Awards excitement kicks off this week in LA with 2010 Web TV Week, a full week of web television and digital entertainment related events from April 5 to 11, in celebration of the 2010 Streamy Awards. See Marc Hustvedt's post, Web TV Week Kicks Off in LA: Babelgum, blip.tv, HRTS, Streamys!, for more information. The Streamys Craft Awards ceremony will be held on Wednesday, April 7th at the Barnsdall Gallery Theatre in Hollywood and will recognize that many editors, cinematographers, art directors, producers, and other artistic and technical teams behind the Streamy Awards nominees.

The Streamy Awards live Red Carpet Pre-Show starts next Sunday, April 11 at 4 p PT, broadcast online exclusively on Ustream.tv and streamys.org. The live online broadcast of the Streamy Awards Ceremony, hosted by rising actor comedian Paul Scheer, begins at 5:30 pm PT exclusively on streamys.org.

Over 175 shows and individuals were nominated in thirty-five award categories which includes The 12 new categories. According to Marc Hustvedt, Tubefilter News Editor and Streamy Awards Executive Producer, Academy voters had their hands full this year in pairing down the submission of some 2,000 web shows from over 100 different countries. Last year’s inaugural Streamy Awards received over 100,000 unique public submissions from over 89 countries, hundreds of thousands of votes for 10 Audience Choice Award Finalists, and a groundswell of support from both the traditional and new media communities. See Marc's post on Tubefilter News for a summary of this years nominees. Many web creators have produced Streamys Attack Ads to promote their series and grab the attention of web television fans. Laurie Percival collected a handful of them here.

Voting has already begun for the 2010 Streamy Awards Audience Choice Award for “Best Web Television Series” and were announced on March 22nd in a special video presentation featuring comedian and actor Nick Thune, who also stars in the Web series Nick’s Big Show on MTV Network’s Atom.com. You can vote every day for your favorite Streamys  Audience Choice Award Finalists. Head to vote.streamys.org to support your favorite show.



Audience Choice Awards Finalists
The Streamy Awards Audience Choice Finalists for Best Web Television Series are:

• Agents of Cracked
• Anyone But Me
• Dorm Life: Semester 2
• Elevator
• Noob
• Star-ving
• The Guild
• The Legend of Neil
• The Totally Rad Show
• The Young Turks

Keep up to date on all the Streamy Awards News by following @streamyawards on Twitter and become a fan at www.facebook.com/streamys. I look forward to seeing my web TV friends and meeting many of the creators and stars of my favorite web series.

See you the Streamys!

And the Nominees Are... The 2nd Annual Streamy Awards Nominees Announced Today

The 2nd annual Streamy Awards, celebrating the best in web television from 2009, announced their official nominees this morning in a live webcast via Ustream. Now in its second year, the Streamy Awards includes a total of 35 categories of web series honoring overall series, directing, writing, acting and craft awards. 12 new Streamy Awards categories reflecting technology advancements and creative innovations embraced by the web television community this past year have been added to the 2010 program – including awards for Live Production, Foreign Series, Vlogging, Interactive Experience, Branded Entertainment, and Mobile Experience. The nominees were selected by the Academy of Web Television (IAWTV), a member-run non-profit organization comprised of leaders and stakeholders within the growing web television industry, and the official presenting body behind the Streamy Awards.

According to Marc Hustvedt, Tubefilter News Editor and Streamy Awards Executive Producer, Academy voters had their hands full this year in pairing down the submission of some 2,000 web shows from over 100 different countries. Last year’s inaugural Streamy Awards received over 100,000 unique public submissions from over 89 countries, hundreds of thousands of votes for 10 Audience Choice Award Finalists, and a groundswell of support from both the traditional and new media communities. See Marc's post on Tubefilter News for a summary of this years nominees.



While many of the nominees were predictable based on both the star power and popularity, with returning nominees like The Guild and Legend of Neil, I was glad to see that two of my favorite web series, Safety Geeks: SVI and The Web.Files each made it into a category. Liz Shannon Miller noted that this years nominees included celebrities, underdogs and our very own Avatar in the form of The Bannen Way from the Sony Pictures' web television network Crackle. She pointed out the dilemma that The Streamy Awards will probably always have:

"to find the right balance between celebrating homegrown heroes, helping lesser-known talent get new recognition, and honoring the Hollywood influx that has increased the medium’s profile. But that very dilemma is itself a larger metaphor for the current state of this industry. The intrusion of old media into new media is an issue we all go back and forth on, I think."

The live Awards Ceremony will be live broadcast online on Sunday, April 11, 2010 at 7:30 PM at www.streamys.org. The newly formed 90-member International Academy of Web Television completed the first round of selections of nominees in 24 categories. The video in this post is a replay of today's announcement with Shira Lazar and Jim Festante who announced 10 of the 35 categories of official nominees for the 2nd Annual Streamy Awards, that included:

• Best Comedy Web Series
• Best Drama Web Series
• Best Hosted Web Series
• Best News or Documentary Web Series
• Best Companion Web Series
• Best Male Actor in a Drama Web Series
• Best Female Actor in a Drama Web Series
• Best Male Actor in a Comedy Web Series
• Best Female Actor in a Comedy Web Series
• Best Guest Star in a Web Series

Click here for the full list of Streamy Award nominees

Congratulations to all the nominees!

About The Streamy Awards
Presented by the International Academy of Web Television, the Streamy Awards recognize excellence in global web television programming for broadband distribution across 35 creative categories, from acting and directing, to editing and special effects. Members of the International Academy of Web Television review shows submitted through a free, public submissions process and vote on the final nominees and winners for each category. The Audience Choice Award for Best Web Television Series is selected by members of the public. Winners of the 2nd Annual Streamy Awards will be announced on April 11, 2010 at the Streamy Awards Ceremony in Los Angeles, CA. Founded in 2009, the Streamy Awards are co-hosted by a consortium of new media companies including Tubefilter Inc.(www.tubefilterinc.com) and NewTeeVee (www.newteevee.com). For more information, visit www.streamys.org, follow @streamyawards on Twitter and become a Fan at www.facebook.com/streamys.

The Return of EPIC FU!! Pioneering Web Show Relaunches on January 21st

After many long months of hiatus, award winning internet culture web show EPIC FU, produced by creative team Zadi Diaz and Steve Woolf, returns to the web on January 21st. In a celebration at the Tubefilter Hollywood Web TV Meetup in Los Angeles sponsored by HP and Intel, the sixth season of the "premiere web show about emerging culture" will be screened and a discussion with Steve and Zadi will follow. The event will be streamed live on Stickam at 7:30 PM PST.

EPIC FU premiered on June 1, 2006 with Zadi Diaz as the host as a weekly show focused on emerging art, music, technology and internet culture. Described as a "hyperfast-paced pop culture newscast" by Wired, the show will relaunch into a new format with two shows a week focused on music and film, and a new blog network featuring daily fresh content.

I recently spoke with Zadi at Streaming Media West, and she shared some advise for web producers trying to break into the business. Zadi said it's important to connect with your audience, and EPIC FU is a pioneering example of how to build a global community around your web show. Zadi also spoke with Peter Cervieri for a Streaming Media West 2009 Red Carpet Interview, about the evolution of her show and the growing pains felt by the web television industry. EPIC FU has won two Webby Awards and a Streamy Award, and remains independently owned and produced by Zadi Diaz and Steve Woolf.

Where Has EPIC FU Been?

On the EPIC FU blog Steve explained the where and why,

"The shortest explanation is really the least sexy: we needed to do other things to make money. We made some television commercials, we worked with PBS, we made a new 6-episode show for Next New Networks, and did a couple dozen other production and consulting gigs.

Throughout that entire time we were always planning the next iteration of Epic Fu in our minds. One of the things that we feel makes us different from other shows is that we are not afraid to change the show in response to the way the Internet changes. People interact with show like Epic Fu in a different way now than they did a year ago, and two years ago, and we need to change in accordance."

Since EPIC FU went on hiatus in the spring of 2009, many have both hoped and speculated that the revered web show would return. Now, for the many fans and supporters of the show, come January 21, the wait will be over.

Congratulations Zadi and Steve!


About the creators of EPIC FU (Bios courtesy of Tubefilter)

Zadi Diaz is a Webby and Streamy Award winning new media producer, digital filmmaker, and host of EPIC FU. She began her online career as a videoblogger and media activist, creating short-form personal documentaries and video mashups that garnered the attention of the New York Times, CBS Evening News, MTV, The Assoicated Press and other national publications. She is a Film Independent Project:Involve Fellow, a member of the International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences, the International Academy of Web Television, as well as a member of the Transatlantic Network 2020, an international initiative founded by the British Council to help bridge cultures.

Steve Woolf has been working in online media for over a decade as writer, producer, and technologist. As a two-time Webby Award winner and four-time nominee for EPIC FU, Steve co-created, writes, directs, and produces the pioneering show about web culture that has become one of the most well-known shows on the Internet. He was also honored with a Streamy Award and two nominations in 2009. Steve is an inaugural member of the International Academy of Web Television, a member of the Open Entertainment Alliance, and sits on the PBS Engage Advisory

Follow Zadi Diaz (Zadi) on Twitter
Follow Steve Woolf (stevewoolf) on Twitter
Follow EPIC FU (epicfu) on Twitter

Subscribe to EPIC FU

Updated 1/14/10: Added quote from Steve Woolf

2010 Streamy Awards Voting Deadline Draws Near, Public Submissions Close January, 15th (UPDATE - Deadline Extended to January 18th)

The second annual Streamy Awards season is in full gear and kicked off last month with the launch of new Streamys.org website, never-before-seen footage from the 2009 event and the call for entries for the 2010 awards. Now with only days left for the Streamy Awards Submission deadline you still have time to vote for your favorite web series. Votes can be cast until this Friday, January 15 using the Public Submissions Form. Content creators and individuals directly associated with online episodic programs have until Friday, January 22 to submit via the Certified Submissions Form.

UPDATE 1/16/10: The deadline for Public Submissions has just been extended to 11:59PM PST on Monday, January 18. Certified Submissions will still close after 11:59PM PST on Friday, January 22, 2010.

Last year’s Streamy Awards received over 100,000 unique public submissions from over 89 countries and hundreds of thousands of votes for 10 Audience Choice Award Finalists. Big winners were Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog and The Guild, and both Joss Whedon and Felicia Day, who provided heartfelt acceptance speeches that both inspired the audience and legitimized the art and craft of the independent web series producer.

Day called herself, "a square peg and I’ve been trying to fit into a round Hollywood hole for a very long time." She thanked all the Hollywood establishment for beating her down and forcing her to pick up a pen and write her own web series. Whedon referred to himself as “the establishment guy" noting that while the television industry is in a funky state, web television is on the rise and web series producers are the pioneers, "of what’s going to be not just the new media, but the media."

See more videos from the 1st Annual Streamy Awards here.

Nominees and winners will be honored at the second-annual awards program to be held on Sunday, April 11, 2010 in Los Angeles. Submissions will be accepted via the Streamys web site at www.streamys.org beginning today through January 22, 2010. This year's Streamy Awards features 12 new categories.

"to include different types of online series, recognize more talent and technical areas of excellence, and highlight viewer experiences unique to the medium."

The new categories include awards for Live Production, Foreign Series, Vlogging, Interactive Experience, Branded Entertainment, and Mobile Experience. After the close of public voting and content creator submissions, nominees across the 36 categories will be honored by the International Academy of Web Television (IAWTV), a member-run non-profit organization comprised of leaders and stakeholders within the growing web television industry, and the official presenting body behind the Streamy Awards. The Streamy Awards are co-hosted by Tubefilter and NewTeeVee.

With the growth of the independent producer community and new channels of distribution in the last few years, the groundbreaking success of the 1st Annual Streamy Awards shined a light on the community of web television innovators in this emerging entertainment art form. Web television is finally recognized as a legitimate entertainment platform.

"The 2010 Streamys is about advancing open entertainment and its benefits to both consumers and creators by showcasing the staggering creative expression online. Our goal is to propel the new entertainment ecosystem by empowering a growing group of creators while helping everyone else find content that they love."

Follow The Streamy Awards (streamyawards) on Twitter
Become a fan of the Streamy Awards page here: http://www.facebook.com/streamys

Tubefilter Acquires Tilzy.TV, Combines Top Web TV News and Promotion Sites

Mergers and acquisitions continue to heat up in the online video market and consolidation in the space is not just happening to video technology companies. In a strategic move that merges two hot web TV news and promotion properties, LA-based web television company Tubefilter, Inc. has acquired New York-based web televsion news and media company Tilzy.TV, LLC, according to paidContent who broke the story last night. Respected leaders in web television news industry, both companies have been leading authorities in covering episodic web television and web series and passionate advocates of the space.

Tubefilter and Tilzy have each spent considerable time and energy over the past few years working to grow the audience of web television through industry events like first annual the Streamy Awards, which they co-produced with NewTeeVee, Tubefilter's Hollywood Web Television events and Tilzy’s annual Onfronts, which matches online entertainment executives with the press and major advertisers and the creation of the International Academy of Web Television.

Tilzy was founded by Jamison Tilsner and Joshua Cohen in early 2007 and have both reported on the growth and guided the web video scene. In a joint statement on Tilzy.TV, Jamison and Joshua said:

"Though our form has changed over time, our goals today are much the same as when we launched. The industry and artistry that we've watched develop look much as Josh and I anticipated when we began our conversations about the medium in 2006. Though it has taken longer than we ever expected, the efforts of those devoted to online video have brought upon a seismic shift that benefits both creators and consumers. We're proud to have grown up with this community. The combination of Tilzy.TV and Tubefilter — under the Tubefilter brand — will allow the five founders to best serve the community of creators devoted to the advancement of open entertainment. "

Founders of both companies will be taking on new roles with official corporate titles.

(Left to Right) Brady Brim-DeForest, Marc Hustvedt, Jamison Tilsner, Josh Cohen and Drew Baldwin (Photo by Wm. Marc Salsberry)

• Tubefilter co-founder Drew Baldwin will serve as Senior Vice President, Product
• Tubefilter co-founder, Brady Brim-DeForest, has been named CEO of Tubefilter, Inc.
• Joshua Cohen is the new Chief Information Officer,
• Tubefilter co-founder Marc Hustvedt will serve as Senior Vice President and Editor-in-Chief of Tubefilter News
• Jamison Tilsner is the new Chief Operating Officer

Now as one company, things just got interesting, as Marc Hustvedt said:

"Going forward, Tubefilter is now a bi-coastal media company, with offices in Los Angeles and New York. This allows us to expand our operations and with that our News coverage, adding a strong crop of writers with solid backgrounds in web entertainment. And in terms of events, the Web TV Meetups will now be signature events on both coasts, bringing together online creative communities for some quality face time."

Congratulations to Brady, Drew, Marc, Jamison and Josh! Thanks for your tireless efforts in growing the audience of web television and building out the online entertainment ecosystem!

About Tubefilter, Inc.

Tubefilter is the definitive source for industry news, program reviews, events and online entertainment market intelligence services for the Web Television industry. Properties include Tubefilter News, the leading authority for Web television industry and Web series news; Onfronts, the annual upfronts for professional Web TV creators and advertisers; and business services, including entertainment industry market intelligence. The company is a pioneer in the digital content ecosystem and co-founded the annual Streamy Awards, which honors excellence in web television programming. Tubefilter is headquartered in Los Angeles and has offices in New York.

Email: info@tubefilter.tv

Follow Tubefilter on Twitter

See Marc Hustvedt next month at Streaming Media West moderate, Web Television Comes of Age, on Tuesday, November 17, 2009.

Tubefilter also kicked off Web Television Week Fall, a full week of web television and digital entertainment related events from October 19-23, 2009 in Los Angeles.

Related:

• Tubefilter Acquires Tilzy.tv; Shuffles Execs To Scale Out | paidContent
  Good News | Tilzy.TV
• Tubefilter Acquires Tilzy.TV
• With Tilzy.TV Acquisition, This Just Got Interesting
• Digital Entertainment Media Company Tubefilter, Inc. to Acquire Top Web TV Entertainment Business, Tilzy.TV | Business Wire

The Streamy Awards: Web Television Comes of Age

History was made Saturday night with the first annual Streamy Awards show held at the Wadsworth Theatre in Los Angeles. A sold-out crowd of over 1300 guests gathered for the gala event to honor the best web series and talent from 2008.

The big winners of the night were Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog and The Guild and both Joss Whedon and Felicia Day provided moving acceptance speeches that inspired the audience and legitimized the art and craft of the independent web series producer.

Day called herself, "a square peg and I’ve been trying to fit into a round Hollywood hole for a very long time" and thanked all the Hollywood establishment for beating her down and forcing her to pick up a pen and write her own web series. Whedon referred to himself as “the establishment guy" noting that while the television industry is in a funky state, web television is on the rise and web series producers are the pioneers "of what’s going to be not just the new media, but the media."

Tubefilter's Marc Hustvedt noted that,"For the thousands of people who tuned in to the live stream of the show, they may not have realized they were a part of history, watching the first ever professionally produced awards show live streamed to the internet. Viewers from all over the world watched, without any distribution restrictions, and shared the play-by-play with constant flow of tweets and updates."

Original episodic web television has grown up in a short time and is now recognized as a respected and legitimate art form. The Streamy Awards has set a new precedent and Jamison Tilsner said it best in post today that the Streamy Award winners celebrated the arrival of open entertainment, "The list of artists below represents the unique, outstanding, commercially viable entertainment industry that’s thriving on a totally open medium with limitless possibilities. The Streamy Awards Ceremony highlighted the new power dynamic in the entertainment industry within which creators, studios, agents, guilds and advertisers have begun to operate."

Congratulations to all the award winners, nominees, the organizers Tubefilter, Tilzy.tv, NewTeeVee and all the sponsors!

Here's the official list compliments of Tubefilter News:

The Official Winners of the 1st Annual Streamy Awards - March 28, 2009

Overall Series Best Comedy Web Series The Guild Best Dramatic Web Series Battlestar Galactica: The Face of the Enemy Best Hosted Web Series EPIC FU Best Reality or Documentary Web Series The Shatner Project Best News or Politics Web Series Alive in Baghdad Audience Choice Award for Best Web Series Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog Directing Best Directing for a Comedy Web Series Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog (Joss Whedon) Best Directing for a Dramatic Web Series Pink (Blake Calhoun) Writing Best Writing for a Comedy Web Series Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog (Maurissa Tancharoen, Jed Whedon, Joss Whedon, Zack Whedon Best Writing for a Dramatic Web Series Battlestar Galactica: The Face of the Enemy (Jane Espenson, Seamus Kevin Fahey, Ronald D. Moore)

Acting Best Male Actor in a Comedy Web Series Neil Patrick Harris — (Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog) Best Female Actor in a Comedy Web Series Felicia Day — (The Guild) Best Male Actor in a Dramatic Web Series Alessandro Juliani — (Battlestar Galactica: The Face of the Enemy) Best Female Actor in a Dramatic Web Series Rosario Dawson — (Gemini Division) Best Ensemble Cast in a Web Series The Guild Best Guest Star in a Web Series Paul Rudd — (Wainy Days) Best Web Series Host Alex Albrecht — (Project Lore) Craft Awards Best Editing (*) Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog— (Lisa Lassek) Best Cinematography (*) Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog — (Ryan Green) Best Art Direction (*) Tiki Bar TV — (Kim Bailey) Best Visual Effects (*) Backyard FX — (Erik Beck) Best Animation in a Web Series The Meth Minute 39 — (Dan Meth) Best Original Music (*) Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog — (Jed Whedon) Best Ad Integration in a Web Series Back on Topps — (Skype) Best Artistic Concept in a Web Series (*) You Suck at Photoshop * indicates awards presented at the Craft Awards reception on March 26, 2009.

Back stage coverage of 1st Annual Streamy Awards | 12seconds.tv (beta):

streamyawards on 12seconds.tv

Photo credits:
Felicia Day by TheBuiBrothers.com
Neil Patrick Harris by WireImage.com

Stay tuned for more StreamyAwards coverage in the coming days.

Obama Girl Says There's Still Time to Vote for The Streamys Audience Choice Awards

There's still a few days left to vote for the Audience Choice award at the first-annual The Streamy Awards. Obama Girl recorded this special public service announcement urging you to support web television and vote now. You can vote once a day until Saturday when the winner is announced at the awards ceremony that evening in Los Angeles.

Obama Girl Has a Message For You!
by BarelyPolitical

Here's a few related posts from Tilzy.tv and Tubefilter:

• What are The Streamys and The International Academy of Web Television? | Tilzy.TV - Jamison Tilsner addresses all conversation from the web television community and controversy regarding the The Streamy Awards Category Finalists.
• Streamy Awards Cap Off Weeklong Celebration of Web Television Industry - Drew Baldwin highlights the web television related events in and around LA this week big week to help raise awareness of this rapidly growing entertainment space.

Streamy Awards Official Nominees Are Announced

The 1st annual Streamy Awards, honoring the best in web television from 2008, has announced their official nominees. The live Awards Ceremony will be live broadcast online on March 28, 2009 at 7:30 PM at www.streamys.org. The newly formed 90-member International Academy of Web Television completed the first round of selections of nominees in 24 categories. Competing for awards in Overall Series, Directing, Writing, Acting, Craft Awards include actresses Lisa Kudrow, Felicia Day, Rosario Dawson, Jessica Rose, Eva Longoria Parker. Also notable are Joss Whedon’s hit web series Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog which scored nine nominations and Felicia Day’s gamer hit The Guild which scored eleven nominations. Among the list for "Best Web Series Host" are Xeni Jardin of Boing Boing TV, Kevin Rose of Diggnation, Zadi Diaz of EPIC FU, Alex Albrecht of Project Lore and Gary Vaynerchuck of Wine Library TV.

Jamison Tilsner of Tilzy.tv says, "Over 100,000 public submissions were received. Ten of the submitted series will go head-to-head starting next week to compete for the coveted Audience Choice Award. We’ve been honored to watch this medium develop and are truly proud of the outstanding shows nominated for Streamy Awards. They showcase the quality of production across the rapidly growing industry."

View the complete list of nominees here.

Marc Hustvedt of Tubefilter noted, "The gentle revolution that began as a trickle has becoming a roaring stream. Suddenly there’s a whole new playing field, one that puts big studio series competing against small indie productions for the scarcest of all resources in entertainment: the public’s attention."

The Streamy Awards are operated by Tubefilter, Inc. and TilzyTV Inc. in partnership with the International Academy of Web Television, and co-hosted by NewTeeVee, Tilzy.TV and Tubefilter.

Related:

• The Streamy Awards
• Streamy Awards: Official Nominees Announced!
• The Streamy Awards Official Nominees! | Tilzy.TV
• Streamy Awards - Official Nominees - Tubefilter News

The International Academy of Web Television Announces Inaugural Membership

This past week on March 4, 2009, The International Academy of Web Television™, a new independent organization founded to promote and recognize excellence in original episodic Web television programming, announced its inaugural membership. Influential digital entertainment leaders were invited to join the Academy by a founding consortium of new media companies, Tubefilter, Tilzy.TV, and NewTeeVee. The Academy members represent a wide crosssection of the Web television community and have achieved notable success in their respective fields. They include a who's who in online video comprising of actors, agents, composers, content developers, directors, journalists, producers, technology innovators and writers, who actively participate in and support the Web television and digital entertainment industries.

Members of the International Academy of Web Television will vote to select nominees and winners of the annual Streamy Awards™, which will be presented for the first time on Saturday, March 28, 2009 at the Writers Guild of America Theater in Beverly Hills at the 1st Annual Streamy Awards Ceremony & Gala. The nominations will be announced the second week of March.

Jamison Tilsner of Tilzy.tv says, "This is also just the beginning. The IAWTV is envisioned as a member-run organization charged with serving the interests of the internet entertainment community, and we’ll be actively soliciting feedback about the proper organization and governance of this body. Ultimately, we see this organization providing significant value beyond simply selecting Streamy Awards winners, but the form it ultimately takes will be part of a wide-ranging discussion in which you will hopefully be a part."

Inaugural Members:

• Alex Albrecht, Creator and Host, Team Awesome and Project Lore, Host, Diggnation
• Chris Albrecht, Co-Editor, NewTeeVee
• Todd Amorde, National Director of Organizing, Screen Actors Guild
• Drew Baldwin, Co-Founder, Tubefilter
• Yuri Baranovsky, Creator and Producer, Break A Leg
• Ryan Barlow, Director, Distribution & Marketing, The Tornante Company
• Rob Barnett, CEO, MyDamnChannel
• Andrew Baron, Creator, Rocketboom
• Justine Bateman, Partner, FM78.tv
• Erik Beck, Creator, Host, Producer, Indy Mogul
• Sean Becker, Producer and Director, Awkward Pictures, Comedy Gumbo
• Miles Beckett, CEO, EQAL, lonelygirl15, LG15: The Resistance, KateModern, Harper’s Globe
• Max Benator, Head of Digital Media, RDF USA
• Payman Benz, Writer and Director, Awkward Pictures, Comedy Gumbo
• Damon Berger, Director of Branded Entertainment, Moderati
• Hayden Black, CEO, Evil Global Corporation, Abigail’s Teen Diary, Goodnight Burbank
• Brady Brim-DeForest, Co-Founder, Tubefilter
• Bill Cammack, Freelance Video Editor and New Media Consultant
• Ned Canty, Festival Director, New York Television Festival
• Aimee Carlson, Creative Director, US, Dailymotion
• Joshua Cohen, Co-Founder, Tilzy.TV
• Felicia Day, Creator, The Guild; Actor Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog, Legend of Neil
• Mark Day, Comedy Manager, YouTube
• Zadi Diaz, Co-Founder, Smashface Productions, Epic Fu
• Matt Enlow, Content Strategist, Strike.TV
• Kim Evey, Owner, Gorgeous Tiny Productions; The Guild, Gorgeous Tiny Chicken Machine Show
• Mary Feuer, Series Creator, With the Angels
• Elisabeth Flack, New Media Representative, Writers Guild of America, West
• Nick Fortunato, VP, Programming and Production, HEAVY.com
• Brent Friedman, Co-Founder, Electric Farm Entertainment; Afterworld, Gemini Division
• Liz Gannes, Founder and Co-Editor, NewTeeVee
• Barrett Garese, Founding Agent, Online Department, United Talent Agency
• Steve Garfield, Producer, SteveGarfield.com
• Justin Gayner, Co-Founder, ChannelFlip Media
• Greg Goodfried, President, COO, EQAL, lonelygirl15, LG15: The Resistance, KateModern, Harper’s Globe
• Kathleen Grace, Director and Producer, Dinosaur Diorama Productions, The Burg, The All-For-Nots
• Virginia Heffernan, TV Critic, The New York Times
• Mike Hudack, CEO, blip.tv
• Brian Seth Hurst, Second Vice Chair, Academy of Television Arts & Sciences, National Board, Producer’s Guild of America
• Marc Hustvedt, Co-Founder, Tubefilter
• Justin Johnson, Creative Services Lead, Next New Networks
• Dina Kaplan, Co-Founder, blip.tv
• Geoff Katz, Governor, Interactive Media Peer Group, Academy of Television Arts & Sciences
• Joshua Kinberg, Director, Online Video Product Management, PBS
• Matthew Kirsch, Creator, Duder
• Paul Kontonis, CEO, For Your Imagination
• Bob Kushell, Creator and Executive Producer, Anytime with Bob Kushell
• Jim Louderback, CEO, Revision3
• Jeff Macpherson, Creator, Tiki Bar TV
• Tyler Malin, Partner, Madon Malin, P.C.; Secret Fun Time
• Brandon Martinez, New Media Agent, Abrams Artists Agency
• Matt Mazzeo, Agent, CAA
• Chris McCaleb, Co-Founder, Big Fantastic, Director, Sorority Forever, Foreign Body, Cockpit, Sam Has 7 Friends, Foreign Body
• Alec McNayr, Executive Producer, Space Shank Media, Flipper Nation
• Tom Merritt, Executive Editor, CBS Interactive
• Liz Shannon Miller, Reviews Editor, NewTeeVee
• Eric Mortensen, Director of Content Development, blip.tv
• Kent Nichols, Co-Creator, Ask A Ninja
• Sandeep Parikh, CEO, Effinfunny.com, The Legend of Neil, The Guild
• Chris Pfaff, New Media Council, Producers Guild of America, East
• Brent Poer, General Manager, TheWB.com
• Adam Quirk, Producer, Wreck & Salvage
• Sam Reich, President of Original Content, CollegeHumor.com
• Scott Roesch, VP & GM, Atom.com / Comedy Central
• Jessica Rose, Actress, lonelygirl15, Hooking Up, Sorority Forever, Casanovas
• George Ruiz, Head of New Media, International Creative Management
• Douglas Sarine, Writer, Beatbox Giant Productions, Ask A Ninja
• David Sarno, Internet Columnist, The Los Angeles Times
• Tim Shey, Co-Founder, Next New Networks
• Irina Slutsky, Co-Founder, Geek Entertainment Television
• Jay Smooth, Creator, Ill Doctrine
• Taryn Southern, Writer and Producer, Private High Musical; Actor, Sorority Forever
• Tim Street, CEO, APE Digital, French Maid TV
• Sarah Szalavitz, Founder and CEO, 7 Robot, ZapRoot
• Jamison Tilsner, Founder, Tilzy.TV
• Woody Tondorf, Producer, Runaway Box, HBO Lab
• Gary Vaynerchuk, Host and Founder, Wine Library TV
• Andrew Wallenstein, The Hollywood Reporter
• Michael Wayne, Co-Founder & CEO, DECA
• Brent Weinstein, CEO, 60Frames Entertainment
• Daisy Whitney, Reporter, TV Week and New Media Minute
• Thom Woodley, Partner, Dinosaur Diorama, The Burg, The All-For-Nots
• Steve Woolf, Co-founder, Smashface Productions, Epic Fu
• Jonathan Zalben, Composer, House Poor

To stay in the loop, make sure to follow them on Twitter, and join their Facebook Group.

Tubefilter News Issues A Call To Action, "Web Series Creators: It’s Time To Step It Up"

Marc Hustvedt has thrown down the gauntlet challenging web series creators to step up and be leaders of their creative visions. 2009 is going to be a break out year for web series and creators need to get serious and step it up. The audience is out there he says in his article, Web Series Creators: It's Time To Step It Up - Tubefilter News, and you have to go out and find them. Mingle online and offline, find that niche or better yet, get off your butts and do something to engage your audience.

Hustvedt says, "Having an actual personal connection with your audience means you have to be the one that responds to comments, emails, tweets, phone calls. You are the only one who owns your brand and you are the only one who can make real connections with it. This isn’t an easy idea to fully embrace. We are ingrained with the arcane and stupid idea that we just need to be discovered or seen by the right people and our careers will suddenly be awakened. Get that load of crap out of your heads right now."

He pointed out that The Guild and Gorgeous Tiny Chicken Machine Show creators spend countless hours connecting with fans who become their ambassadors and not a distant fan sitting in a dark movie theater or a passive couch potato. Gary Vee also talks about why it's important to be authentic and engage in the community and this is a great example of why. There's been an explosion of web series like Joss Whedon's game changing series Dr. Horrible which is and probably the most successful web series to date.

"Web series are Startups" Hustvedt says, "Creators are entrepreneurs and need to think that way. Seriously, ditch the old Hollywood mindset right now. Stop waiting for someone to pick you, find you, groom you or pitch you. You have everything you need right now to grow your audience. So get off your asses."

These are bold words and a downright call to action for online video creators. The next Joss Whedon or Felicia Day is out there waiting to break out, Hustvedt says, and web series producers need to be renegades and fight like hell everyday and night to grow your audience. As the viewing trends shift online so does the online advertising dollars which may head into the billions this year. There are a lot of opportunities out there and web series creators like Michael Buckley are even quitting their day jobs to make six figures as YouTube partners.

Read the full Tubefilter News article here and join the revolution.

Announcing The 1st Annual Streamy Awards

Online video really came of age in 2008 with independent producers, digital media studios and major Hollywood types all embracing the web as a new creative medium for entertainment. So in the spirit of celebrating this thriving online community, leading web video publications, Tubefilter, NewTeeVee and Tilzy.TV, will co-host the 1st Annual Streamy Awards to recognize best web series entertainment.

Here's the official press release:

Announcing The 1st Annual Streamy Awards to Recognize and Honor Outstanding Achievement in Web Television: Nominations Open Today
New York, NY / Los Angeles, CA (December 19, 2008) — The Streamy Awards™, co-hosted by a consortium of leading new media companies—NewTeeVee, Tilzy.TV and Tubefilter—is the first awards program of its kind to recognize outstanding achievement in shows produced originally for broadband distribution.

"Web television shows are entertaining millions of viewers every day—and in ways that traditional mediums never have. It's time to honor the shows and the creative talent behind them," said Brady Brim-DeForest, Co-Founder of Tubefilter.

2008 was a monumental year for online entertainment. Major production studios, independent new media producers, and a swath of talent ranging from Hollywood celebrities to overnight internet sensations contributed to the development of a distinctive and vibrant new medium.

"Digital media has had a truly transformative impact on storytelling and the entertainment industry," said Jamison Tilsner, Founder of Tilzy.TV. "These awards give us an opportunity to properly acknowledge the innovation around us."

The Streamy Awards is overseen by a panel of industry experts, members of the newly formed International Academy of Web Television (IAWTV), who will honor the greatest achievements of the last year in twenty-five categories. While the Academy will have the privilege of selecting finalists and winners from the public nominations in each category, the Audience Choice Award will go to the show that receives the greatest number of public votes.

"These awards have the potential to be the most prestigious in the online video world," said Liz Shannon Miller of NewTeeVee.

The timeline for nomination submissions, selection and announcement is as follows:

• December 19, 2008: Nominations open
• January 23, 2009: Nominations close
• February 15, 2009: Audience Choice Finalists Announced
• March 9, 2009: Nominees Announced
• March 28, 2009: The Streamy Awards Ceremony in Los Angeles, CA

Winners will be announced at the Streamy Awards Ceremony in Los Angeles, California on
March 28, 2009. Any original web series of at least three installments released in 2008 can be nominated and will qualify for consideration. Fans are involved at every step of the nomination
process, and the most nominated show in each category will be automatically selected as
one of up to five finalists. Public nominations are currently open at: www.Streamys.org

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
For information contact:
press@streamys.org

About The Co-Hosts:
Launched in 2006, NewTeeVee and NewTeeVee Station offer must-read coverage of the online video business for anyone—from producers to vloggers to video-watching college kids—who wants to have their finger on the pulse of new media culture. (www.newteevee.com)

Tilzy.TV is a guide to web shows and online video, comprehensively examining the content side of the rapidly developing internet entertainment industry. With a critical eye, Tilzy.TV provides regular reviews of original episodic programming created for the web plus news and developments in the growing new media landscape. Tilzy.TV was founded in April 2007 and is based in New York, NY. (www.tilzy.tv)

Tubefilter is The Web Television Company™. A leading authority in the web television
space, Tubefilter News exhaustively covers the industry, the creators, and the stars of this fast-paced, emerging entertainment market. Tubefilter provides a variety of products and services, including the Web TV Schedule and the Tubefilter Screening Room™, aimed at growing both the medium of and audience for web television. Based in Los Angeles, CA, the company was founded in 2008. (www.tubefilter.tv)

Award Categories

Overall: Best Dramatic Web Series Best Comedy Web Series Best Hosted Web Series Best News/Politics Web Series Best Reality Web Series Audience Choice Award Directing: Best Directing for a Comedy Series Best Directing for a Dramatic Series Writing: Best Writing for a Comedy Series Best Writing for a Dramatic Series Acting: Best Male Actor In a Comedy Series Best Female Actor In a Comedy Series Best Male Actor In a Dramatic Series Best Female Actor In a Dramatic Series Best Ensemble Cast Best Guest Star In a Web Series

Hosting: Best Web Series Host Technical Awards: Best Cinematography Best Editing Best Art Direction Best Visual Effects Best Animation Best Original Music Special Awards: Pioneer Award (honoring significant achievements web TV) Best Ad Integration in a Web Series Best Artistic Concept in a Web Series

Press Contacts:
Marc Hustvedt
Co-Founder, Tubefilter
marc@tubefilter.tv
(323) 363-8555

Jamison Tilsner
Founder, Tilzy.TV
jamison@tilzy.tv
(310) 601-0839

Related:

• Announcing The Streamy Awards! - Tubefilter News
• Tilzy.TV » Blog Archive » Introducing The Streamy Awards!
• Announcing the Streamy Awards! « NewTeeVee