Tubefilter News

In a constant effort to improve the accessibility of Streamy-nominated content to members of not only the voting body of the IAWTV but to the public at large, the International Academy of Web Televison hosted bi-coastal Streamy Awards finalist screenings on March 11th, 2010, with one occurring in New York and the other in Los Angeles (which was also streamed live via Stickam). Each screening included a viewing of finalist nominees of 11 of the overall Streamy Awards categories and a presentation of various New Media professionals and creators.

Held at NYU’s Cantor Film Center and supported by NYU Tisch School of The Arts, The Writers Guild of America East, The Producers Guild New Media Council, and The New York Television Festival, the New York screening included a discussion with MyDamnChannel Founder and CEO Rob Barnett. Barnett presented his experiences in successfully providing popular entertainment content to the web including Wainy Days, The Iceman Commeth, and distributing Easy to Assemble, just to name a few. He revealed that beyond picking out the content to be developed, he takes a very hands off approach to the actually creative process, instead choosing to let the creators of the shows do what they do best: create. The audience of the New York screening, which was open to the public, consisted of a wide range of enthusiastic content creators, IAWTV members, and NYU students.

The Los Angeles screening was presented as a part of the the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) LifeRaft Live Stream series, a professional development program that provides insight into the business of acting through seminars. Following the viewing panel discussion with nominated producers and creators, all of which were part of SAG signatory shows, was presented to an audience of IAWTV and SAG members. Moderated by Drew Baldwin, Co-Founder of Tubefilter, the panelists included Aaliyah Williams and Anastasia Ali (producers, Buppies), Ernest Vecchione (creator, Sex Ed), Sandeep Parikh, (creator /writer/director, The Legend of Neil), and Jonathan Stern (producer, Wainy Days). Panelists shared their insights across a wide array of experiences; from how funding and distribution effect production, to the importance of social media tools such as Twitter; and fielded questions from not only the audience in attendance but from the internet viewers, with the Stickam feed count exceeding 73,000 viewers, with a peak concurrent audience of 3,266 (per Stickam).

Riese has inked a deal with Fireworks, a division of ContentFilms, to distribute the steampunk-infused drama web series. Fireworks is the same firm that is distributing MTV New Media’s (and Electric Farm’s) Valemont as well as Endemol UK’s sci-fi series Kirill for international television. They also released much-awaited Chapter 2 online this week (above). New cast members in this season include Ryan Robbins (Sanctuary), Emilie Ullerup (Sanctuary), Alessandro Juliani (Battlestar Gallactica) and Allison Mack (Smallville). [Riese]

Ex-Conan O’Brien staff writer Aaron Bleyaert is in fact developing his own web show with fellow axed Tonight Show staffers, but it won’t be affiliated with Conan or his former show, despite what TMZ might say. [Screenology, BAM! BAM! BAM!]

Live video streaming site UStream scored $75 million in additional capital in their latest investment round by Softbank Corp, Japan’s third-largest mobile operator. The cash will be used to grow the service internationally in mobile-heavy countries like Japan, China, Korea and India. [Bloomberg]

The Indie Soap Awards honored some online dramas when winners were announced online last night. While we’re not sure what exactly constitutes a soap anymore, there were some impressive web originals who came out with honors. Anyone But Me took down 4 awards including best writing for Susan Miller and Tina Cesa Ward. Craig Frank and Taryn O’Neill scored best acting awards for Compulsions, which also netted a total of 4 awards. BET.com’s Buppies took two awards, and Diary of a Single Mom (below) won best indie soap. Also honored: Chick, Venice, Anacostia and Seeking Simone. [We Love Soaps]

The web series world so far has been relatively devoid of scandals. So when TMZ reported on a lawsuit surrounding former Fresh Price of Bel Air star (and R&B singer) Tatyana Ali’s upcoming web series Buppies, the story took a left turn. Now, after the lawsuit has been dropped in court and both sides are calling it a misunderstanding, the series is finally set for release after signing a deal with BET.com for a November 3 launch.

The series first popped up on our radar over a year ago when we talked to Ali and her sister Anastasia, who had just shot the project as the first original from their indie production co, HazraH Entertainment. The pair teamed up with writer-director Julian Breece, whom Tatyana had met while both were at Harvard, and crafted a series that feels like Sex and the City for a young black generation, as Breece puts it.

“We think it is something that can benefit the black narrative space,” said Breece who created the series. “On television, there’s nothing like this, and there hasn’t been since the 80’s with Frank’s Place.”

“We wanted to offer something sexy, hilarious and very heartfelt, making the uncensored web space perfect for a show like Buppies,” Ali told us in an earlier interview. “As an actor, Quinci Allen is the kind of dream role that doesn’t come around very often. She’s sexy, smart and very complicated.” Ali stars alongside a handful of rising actors—Ernest Waddell, Robin Thede, Preston Davis and Chante Frierson.

In a civil suit filed June 17 in Los Angeles Superior Court, Tatyana Ali (Fresh Prince of Bel Air) and her sister Anastasia are suing Julian Breece, the director of their web series Buppies over a reported $45,000 they invested in the series. The fraud claim states that Breece’s company, Game Theory Films, lost the money before ever producing more than a pilot for the series. Also, according to a report by TMZ, the sisters are seeking rights to the project which apparently they no longer own.

The series was announced back in October, in what was said to be a partnership between Breece and the Ali sisters’ HazraH Entertainment. Breece and Tatyana were college friends at Harvard and had working on putting together the project for several years.

Actress and R&B singer Tatyana Ali, widely recognized for her role as Ashley Banks on the popular ’90s sitcom The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, is producing and starring in a new online series Buppies, a Sex & The City for the young Black generation.