The Algorithms Are Our Enemy
Sceptical that algorithms are the enemy? Just consider that if you’re reading this, odds are it’s only because at least one algorithm has let you.
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Netflix
Some Thoughts on RWBY
Much like Avatar: The Last Airbender, RWBY is an animated series that was staring me in the face for so very long before I actually sat down and watched it. Here are a few thoughts on the show.
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Is The Nickelodeon OTT Service Bad for Animation?
Nickelodeon is launching an OTT service. Yes, basically it’s like Netflix, but just for Nickelodeon shows. That should be an awesome announcement, right? Well, in theory, yes, it should. However the reality is different. Nickelodeon is a major producer of animation in the US, and by launching an OTT service, it endangers the future of the artform.
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Is The Nickelodeon OTT Service Bad for Animation? Read More »
Animation for Adults has Become Staler than Week-old Bread
Bojack Horesman is Netflix’s attempt to break into the lucrative world of animation that caters to that holy grail known as the male, 18-35 demographic. The innovation of course, is that this is from Netflix, the pretender to the HBO crown of critically acclaimed programming. For all the success of House of Cards and Orange is the New Black, Bojack fails to hit the same mark and provides the latest scrap of evidence that making animation for anyone older than 16 is a conundrum the continues to bedevil anyone willing to take a crack at it. Why is that the case though?
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Animation for Adults has Become Staler than Week-old Bread Read More »
The Unusual Release Schedule for Sailor Moon Crystal Will Set a Precedent
This week sees the highly anticipated Sailor Moon Crystal series begin broadcast. Besides being an entirely new version of the original manga (and not a remake of the original anime), it’s also notable for eschewing traditional licensing-based release models, but interestingly, is not embracing the ‘all you can eat’ type that has defined web-based media. Why might that actually be a good thing, and could it be a model for others to follow?
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The Unusual Release Schedule for Sailor Moon Crystal Will Set a Precedent Read More »
Using The Croods to Explore Necessary Changes In Key Art
Marketing and promotional art is a key piece of the entertainment puzzle and has been a feature of the promotion business since long before film. Film posters are an art in and of themselves, but as Bill Cunningham points out in a guest post over at Truly Free Film, they haven’t kept up with the times.
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Using The Croods to Explore Necessary Changes In Key Art Read More »
Disney, Nick, Netflix, No?
This is an interesting story, an analyst called Todd Juenger has come out with a report about children’s programming, and one of the key points he makes, is that both Disney and Viacom (owner of Nickelodeon) should limit the amount of programming they give to Netflix. The problem as he sees it is that Netlfix, which is sans ads and allows users to cherry pick what they watch. is a threat to both companies’ existing business models:
His advice for entertainment companies is to be cautious about how much kids programming they make available to the online video streaming provider and in which windows. “We remain firm in our belief Viacom and Walt Disney should limit their content availability on Netflix,” Juenger wrote.
As big a no-brainer as it is, it’s still amazing to see this kind of recommendation being made. Yes, it is a threat to the existing business model, but it also represents opportunities for new revenue streams, or even attracting new audiences to existing properties. I can tell you right now that if Avatar: The Last Airbender wasn’t on Netflix, there is only a slim chance that I would have even tried to watch it. Now that I have, I plan on buying all the DVDs. Yay new revenue for Viacom!
Instead we get a recommendation to partition content into individual companies’ services, not unlike Disney’s Keychest. Hardly a practical solution. I’m old enough to know that the internet didn’t really start firing on all cylinders until people discovered a world outside the walled garden that was AOL. Online viewing should not be going in the opposite direction.
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The 6 Most Obscure Animation on Netflix
Netflix has been a boon for fans of obscure content ever since they launched. But now, with instant streaming, what are the more obscure pieces of animation that you can watch. Here’s a list of six of them.
Via: IMDB
Labarynth of Darkness: Jiri Barta
Via: The Classic Nickelodeon Blog
Via: Wikipedia
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Evan At A Crossroads, DreamWorks Continues to Innovate
Over the last few moths, I’ve come to develop quite a bit of respect for DreamWorks. I mean, OK, their films aren’t always the best, but they are the largest independent animation studio in Hollywood and that’s something you have to respect on some level.
As I discussed a while ago, DreamWorks has started to innovate as they prepare for the possible end of their distribution deal with Paramount. Besides the deal with Netflix, they announced last week that they will also distribute exclusive content to the Nintendo 3DS games console.
That’s a bit intriguing isn’t it? Why would a studio choose to distribute on a games console?
Well, if that’s where your audience is, it makes sense to cater to their needs. DW certainly has been upping the ante as of late, signing deals with hotels and fast food companies in addition to launching TV shows of the their films. All of this translates into driving more demand for their properties and hence bringing them more money as a result.
All of this was combined quite nicely in a column by Marc Graser et al in Variety today as they break down DreamWork’s current position and the many potential options it has as the company faces a less than certain future.
One thing is clear though, DreamWorks has survived a lot longer than many other animation outfits, so it’s safe to say that
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J. Katzenburg Places A Smart Bet on Netflix
The latter half of 2011 hasn’t exactly been very kind to either DreamWorks or Netflix. The former saw it’s stock slide after poorer than expected first quarter results and the latter has been taking a hammering from just about everyone after they raised prices and then announced that they were splitting their streaming and DVD services across two separate companies.
Despite these setbacks, things keep moving along which leads us to yesterday’s announcement that DreamWorks has agreed to make it’s entire catalogue available on Netflix starting in 2013.
While there’s not much to say about the deal itself (you can read the entire press release or Variety’s take on it for the details), the very fact that it was made is significant for the simple reason that DreamWorks is the first major studio to sign directly with Netflix.
Until now, that major studios have treated Netflix almost like an annoyance that keeps reminding them that the media landscape is changing beyond their control. Collectively, they’ve tried to keep as much of their content off of Netflix as possible. Heck, they’ve even tried to keep DVDs off the service by instituting the pointless 28 day delay for new releases.
DreamWorks is the first to realise that they can stand to benefit from simply having their content available for people to see. New releases from Disney will likely disappear from Netflix as the Starz deal expires in Marc, and if that’s still the status quo come 2013, DW will be in a market where it’s main competitor is not.
This is the kind of innovation DreamWorks needs to invest in if it is to continue to exist as an independent company, indeed, I called for it just a few months ago when Paramount broke off talks to continue their distribution deal.
The proliferation of Netflix on mobile and TV platforms also ensures that DW’s content is everywhere they are and reaches the largest audience possible. It doesn’t matter if the quality is not top-notch, the convenience factor of being instantly available will override that in a heartbeat.
A lot of industry folks will be watching these developments very closely because if it turns out to be mutually beneficial to both companies, you can expect a lot of similar deals to follow.
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The Fleischer Superman Shorts, Now Available on Netflix
Via: the Superman Wiki
The other day, while browsing the “Recently Added” section of Netflix, I was pleasantly (although not entirely) surprised to see that the entire series of Superman cartoons by the Fleischer Brothers had been added and were available to instant streaming.
Suffice to say they were added to the instant queue immediately.
Via: Classic Film Freak
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