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Tuesday, June 2, 2009

LIVE BLOG: LG15: The Show Is Yours Season 2 - Do you have a question for Eqal?

We now have a much better idea of how "The Show Is Yours" works. Do you have any questions or suggestion for Eqal, Inc. regarding how LG15: The Show Is Yours Season 2 will work, or should work? Leave a comment below!

37 comments:

  1. I have a question. Is Bree really dead?

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  2. A couple of suggestions not only for EQAL but something to be brought up by potential applicant and especially the eventual winner.

    First, make sure that website is fully functional BEFORE the show starts. This includes the various graphics, links to the different section, etc.

    Second, make sure there is someone at EQAL whom you can reach anytime you need to and that gives information quickly.

    Third, either have someone at EQAL or on your 'staff' be responsible for communicating delays and problems with the audience. It is much easier to put out a fire before it starts then after it is a blazing inferno.

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  3. Will there be any money involved?

    *runs*

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  4. One key question that producers should consider is how their show will be marketed and how will Eqal, Inc. participate in that process.

    This includes how the youtube channel will be promoted and whether or not there will be an embed/promotion/exposure on any of the other Eqal youtube channels.

    What is Eqal bringing to the table and how can it work with the producer to get media exposure/promotion for their show?

    If the producer is going to be "on their own" they should clearly understand that up front before they enter the contest. If not they should understand how they will work with Eqal to promote and market their show.

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  5. What weighs more, wet cement or dry cement?

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  6. Will any equipment be provided or donated, or will there be a 2,500 award given to the winner to use as they please, I would use it to buy better cameras and editting software.

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  7. Also can past winners of TSIY re enter aka The Last, I hope not, others should have a chance at it. Also will the contest be closed off to past employees and actors of eqal?

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  8. Eqal, Inc. has stated previously that because of California law they are not able to promise money as part of a prize. As we saw last time that does not mean they will not provide any, but it does make it unlikely that they will give a direct answer to that particular question in order to comply with California law. It would however be nice if we could find a mechanism to be a little more up front about all this stuff for all involved.

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  9. If you go into this under the assumption that you will get any money, then you are doomed to repeat the mistakes of others.

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  10. Well the last time the winners were given $2,500.

    We cannot say for sure whether that will happen again and it seems unlikely given the current structure of TSIY-2 that Eqal will confirm that it will happen again. Perhaps that arrangement is wrong but thats where we stand now.

    It is up to producers to get accurate answers out of Eqal before the contest begins so that there are no misunderstandings. On the other hand Eqal is not likely to come out directly and say they are willing to violate California law.

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  11. (Although, ironically, by giving out the money secretly, they STILL violated California law, but what can you do?)

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  12. Will there be any integration of the EQAL created characters? Calling something canon is pretty hollow if some kind of crossover doesn't happen with it.

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  13. It would be interesting to have a list of any former cast members/characters who would be interested or willing to participate in TSIY-2 at some level. That might create a more open playing field for all the producers and help stimulate creative ideas on how to include them.

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  14. As for the California law, anon, is it a violation to give a gift after the competition is over, provided it was not promised as a prize in the actual contest? Since you appear to have some information on that perhaps you would like to share it with the rest of us. Or, is Eqal just using a loophole in the actual law?

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  15. I don't ever remember reading anywhere that Eqal was providing the $2,500 as a "gift". The way I saw it phrased was that is was being provided to help cover production costs. That sounds like payment to me, in which case, The Last and Eqal should have filled out some kind of paperwork with the U.S. Government because that essentially makes The Last employees of Eqal. Who knows what kind of paperwork should have also come out of the fact that The Last crew are not U.S. citizens.

    Essentially what Eqal did was outsource work to a foreign country and are trying to get away with it on a technicality that is flimsy at best.

    If you want to see the way interactive content SHOULD be done LEGALLY, look into Take180.com. All contestants are required to fill out standard W9s before they can receives prizes. This protects both Take180 as a company and the participants.

    Entrants to TSIY:2 should take this all into consideration before entering.

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  16. lol that last anonymous sounded really intellectual, lol you have to be gade:)

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  17. Guys, really, the truth is, EQAL didn't want to pay taxes and shiz on all that prize money, cause it basically amounts to a big headache that they aren't willing to go through for a series they've already left behind.

    LG15 is done. The massive amount of new EQAL productions and complete lack of updates concerning anything even remotely LG15-related should be evidence enough.

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  18. But Lonefox, Gade would never send an anonymous post. He has much bigger balls than I do. :) I'm just a concerned citizen that doesn't want to see anyone taken advantage of, including themselves, which is why I choose to stay anonymous.

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  19. If EQAL even remotely cared about LG15, they'd AT LEAST fix up the website to make it as spiffy as Harper's or Get Cookin. Honestly, I'm a little sick of LG15.com after seeing how nice EQAL's newer websites are >.>

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  20. First of all, imagine the lg15 universe without a TSIY2. It would vanish into complete obscurity. What every perspective entrant should realize is that EQAL needs TSIY2 much more than the entrants will get out of doing it. Until there is a balance there, it's not going to work. Any quality filmmakers know this and will stay away. So my question is, what is EQAL going to do to sweeten the pot? Because the luster of being canon has worn off long ago.

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  21. "Whatever happened to that girl, Cassie?"

    "Isn't everything lovely?"

    "Can I have $5 and the password to the lonelygirl15 YouTube account?"

    "How many licks does it take to get to the center of a Tootsie Roll Tootsie Pop?"

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  22. (When) Will the Resistance return?

    (When) Will N1ckola be subtitled?

    (When) Will the website get upgraded?

    Also, what is the time contraint for entry, and how long will the series be? (i.e. will it take place in August-September or when?)

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  23. Okay, my question is, Why should I submit a series to Equl? Why should I confine myself to someone else's standards and pour sweat and time into something that will ultimately belong to them anyway?
    Web series producers aren't in this for the money, obvioulsy.
    So, what is the point? Why would I bother to submit anything to Equl?

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  24. Oops...EQAL...I knew there was a vowel missing, I just picked the wrong one...

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  25. Most beginning filmmakers and producers are not in this for money or any materialistic thing, like me for example, the only reason I would enter would be to get my name out there and help get established in the industry, if this contest does anything it will get my work out there and show people what I am capable of. Most(and notice I said most) of the people entering this contest are not entering expecting to get a huge compensation, it's doing what they love to do and getting noticed, viewership, and their first step in the door with working with a well known web company in the industry. If that isn't good enough for an "Amature" filmmaker then I strongly suggest not entering this contest and not going into the industry.

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  26. Mitch--those are the right reasons but does this contest deliver those payoffs? Judging by this first attempt I'd say no.

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  27. If TSIY-2 is just going to be some association with the name Eqal and that is all the producer expects then that is their choice. However many of us are here because of the community around the show and that to a degree requires that the show have an audience.

    Eqal is in a position to at least try and help market and promote the show but for the last few months their focus has been almost totally on Harper's Globe as we have all seen quite vividly. That is probably a business decision on their part and that is their choice. However, realistically for this to work effectively in terms of building and maintaining a community Eqal needs to make a serious committment to supporting TSIY-2 fully in terms of promotion etc, etc.

    Alternatively, the producer of the show needs to have some highly creative marketing ideas for drawing an audience to their show. Build it and they sill come simply does not work any more. If TSIY-2 is not a success it affect us all and it affects our community so hopefully any producer will take this responsibility seriously and view TSIY-2 as much more than just a line on their resume.

    Having a solid marketing plan developed in conjunction with Eqal should be a key consideration in the next generation of TSIY.

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  28. Getting your name out there and getting established in the industry is a byproduct of a good series, with good marketing and plenty of patience.
    I would suggest NOT creating a series for the sake of fame and fortune. Create for the sake of creating. Otherwise, you're most likely in for some serious disappointment.
    To enter this contest, while it may be fun for some, can stifle creativity because plot and outline has to fit into an already established universe. A dying one at that.
    I just feel that if you're gonna do a web series, just do a web series. You don't need EQAL or LG15 for that. There just doesn't seem like enough compensation for the headache working for EQAL will undoubtedly cause.

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  29. Yep. And Mitch, you should realize...if you wanna get your 'name out there' to the 'industry' realize that #1 the 'industry' doesn't give two shits about online video...but if you mean 'industry' like OTHER producers of web shows, then realize #2 that NONE of them take lonelygirl, or EQAL for that matter, seriously.

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  30. There are many ways that Eqal could structure TSIY to work better for the community. Until they take community involvement seriously the potential will always be limited.

    Certainly there are many good arguments for doing an independent show where you have total control and Eqal by their actions seems to take the attitude that TSIY will sink or swim based solely on the ingenuity of the series creator without support from Eqal. I guess they feel that they were able to do it with lonelygirl15, so everyone else should be able to do the same.

    What they appear to fail to grasp is that the World has change and that should be all to clear to them based on their own failure to effectively market Harpers Globe. Perhaps now they will be more sympathetic to other producers in the community who have long struggled to get their own shows off the ground.

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  31. Given that I spent most of June 2nd without a working monitor, I assure you I was not the anonymous.
    I do share the anonymous' sentiment, though, that, if you enter this competition expecting to receive $2,500+, you will be repeating the mistakes of others.
    In addition, quite frankly, I, as a viewer, would be very suspicious of someone entering this particular competition with expectations of money.
    We have seen in the past run that you are not going to get anything from the Creators. Look at what The Last got - a horribly executed, butchered, non-functional site-design on a broken system. No advertisement. No support. No nothing. Hell, the Cs couldn't even be arsed to fix a single fucking hyperlink in the entirety of The Last's run. Probability has it that The Last don't have direct access to the LG15 YouTube account either, so they can't even control the release schedule of their video.

    Expect nothing.
    Do this out of love and for fun, or you will be setting yourself up for great disappointment.
    ----------------------------------
    In addition, I would like to point out to any Creators reading along that this will be your last chance to establish your site.
    Don't interpret this as a threat - just open your eyes. Everybody in the community sees that that the broken piece of shit hasn't been improved since before the Resistance started, and people have come to realize that they don't have to take it. The commenters have already put up their own social network to connect, there are enough actually working forums in the community to hang out at, and I believe certain scripts flying around demonstrate visibly just what an unfinished mess your site is.

    Point being: The longer you force the community to adapt to the situation, the less relevant your site will be, and the harder it will be to lure it back from wherever it migrates to - after all, if other sites work fine for us, what reason do we have to return to lg15.com?
    I guarantee you - if you force the community to live with this barely functional joke of a site for another 5 months, no one will be left afterwards.
    Not because we'll leave the community or stop watching. But simply because those of us smart enough to work around your apathy will see to it that the community gets what it deserves.

    We don't need your site. All videos are on YouTube. There are social networks and forums all over the place, and we can link it all up and connect elsewhere.
    If you want us to stay at lg15.com, get your ass up, and finally invest the time and work necessary to deliver the promises of greatness you have made again and again and again.

    And if you think I'm being overbearing...check the membership of Meepers United vs. the active comment board users.
    And then realize one thing: Your site is dead apart from the comment boards.

    Nobody uses the forums, because they're still, ten months after the fact, nothing but a text field and a submit button.
    Nobody uses the "social networking" aspects, because, well, there aren't too many. You don't even have private messaging.
    Nobody uses the oh-so-great "own show" or "fanfic" capabilities, because, well, there aren't any. Being able to import videos from YouTube into some backwards corner of a random profile hidden on the site is nothing special.

    The only thing left active on your site are the comment boards. The comment boarders have already started migrating elsewhere.
    This is your last chance.
    If you don't realize that, if you deny that, you have already lost.

    Show that you care, show that you're there, or your site will be deserted and irrelevant by the end of TSIY2.

    And no - promises won't cut it this time.



    (Sorry for the giant semi-off-topicness, but I do believe the question of how their content will be presented is of concern to contestants as well.)

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  32. Will there still be a five-minute submission limit? Or can we stretch that?

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  33. I just want to know when the real lg15 story will continue.

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  34. On Twitter from agoodfried:

    @lg15today @ggoodfried @mbeckett Thank you for the response! We'll take all of these comments into consideration as we plan Season 2 TSIY.

    http://twitter.com/agoodfried/status/2077588312

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  35. how about EQAL just skips tsiy, call up the Misfits crew, pay them right, and have a kickass show??

    i dont know, i'm just thinking aloud here

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  36. I'm in agreement w/ the last annon comment about the misfits... but thats just me talking and I haven't been here long enough to even have a voice in this discussion!

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