So this morning I logged onto my youtube account... and saw 1,000,961.
wow.
To think that over ONE MILLION people have watched my short films. ONE MILLION!!!
That's more than twice the size of Des Moines, Iowa. Bigger than Austin, TX proper.
ONE MILLION!!!
I try to imagine that many folks over the last 3 years (and most of that in the last 1) tuning in to watch all the Trespassing On The Lot movies. The Schism 9/11 video. And even a few for The goofy ass junior high movies. It's pretty neat, to imagine people in places as far flung as Argentina, Russia, Bangaladesh, and even Saudi Arabia, people have tuned in to watch these little movies I made with friends here in LA. It's really cool.
I've had hundreds of comments over the last few years, ranging from praise and hopes to see more of "Family Ties" or "Lonely_Saturday_31", to the longest running debate about whether or not MAC's do get viruses. (It's a parody of a commercial guys. It's supposed to be funny, not a serious statement of the value of computers. :). To a very serious discussion about what 9/11 means to different people.
It's been fun, and enlightening. People have shared their videos with me, and I've seen some really creative stuff because of it.
And I've learned some things about online video I'd like to share for better or worse:
1. You can make short films that tell a story and people will find them and watch.
2. You don't have to have random babies falling, people getting kicked in the nuts, or two girls and a cup of... well, you know.
3. It doesn't hurt to have some sort of sex appeal. Looking at what key words people search for, I realize that the magic phrase of "woman tied up" is just the beginning. And I stumbled on that one by accident. I guess if it leads them to my movies I'm okay that they might have been looking for a different kind of video when they arrive here.
4. Given the comments on "Family Ties" about people thinking it's a real video about a guy who kidnaps his wife, I would say that a lot of people watching videos on youtube are drunk, high or confused. (Again, the fact they're watching is cool, in whatever state they might be in).
5. Make shit. It's best to make shit. Lots of shit. The more things you make, the more things people will see. For the most part I feel like the better films I've made tend to get the most views. There are some exceptions to that, "Deadline" for instance. But mostly it seems true... mostly.
1,000,000.
I'm proud of the number. I'd put the NIN song on here to pump up this entry, but it doesn't seem I can add music. It's a goal that I've watched go from something that was totally impossible, to something attainable, to something achieved. Not that the purpose of making the movies was to get to a million views. The purpose, for me, of making the movies was to make the movies. To have the experience. To be creative. To work with friends who are also creative. To tell stories. To live.
And we did that.
And thanks to people all around the world, and the power of the internet, we were able to share that with others.
Posts
