I follow the video production and online video news spaces very closely. It’s a personal passion of mine, it directly relates to Spidvid and UnleashVideo, and with the growth we’ve seen over the last few years it’s been extremely interesting to follow! Below are some of my favorite blogs, and podcast shows.

1. IndyMogul – Such an amazing show for filmmakers and video creators, filled full of DIY content, and entertaining too!

2. FilmRiot – see above!

3. Partners Project – Anything that show host Shira does I’m a fan of! In this show she interviews some of YouTube’s top partners to extract their knowledge and tips for video creators.

4. New Mediacracy – This is an audio only podcast where a gang of filmmakers get together, drink, and talk shop. Definately NSFW and informative!

5. NoFilmSchool – A blog about the filmmaking world, very interesting insights and resources shared here.

6. Raindance – This site offers training (I attended a weekend workshop of theirs last year in fact), and also has a very good blog too.

7. ReelSEO – I love this site for news, viral videos, and the weekly video production tips.

8. OnlineVideo.net – a good mix of coverage about online video, and tips for creating videos too.

9. Indie Intertube – The girls that run this site are incredible, and their podcast conversations are fun to listen to as well.

10. web series TODAY – This site features lots of amazing web series content to watch on a daily basis, and web series related news from across the web.

These are just a few of my top favorites, do you have any to add?

Jeremy Campbell Lists, News, Production Tool, resources blogs, Film Riot, film tips, filmmaking, Indie Intertube, Indy Mogul, media sites, new media, New Mediacracy, nofilmschool, online video, OnlineVideo.net, Partners Project, production tips, Raindance, ReelSEO, video production, video tips, web series today, websites

I love reading a book or two per month! This month I’m reading The Lean Startup by Eric Ries. The book’s core premise is that startups should build a minimal viable product (MVP), release it, get feedback, learn, iterate, and rapidly shape the product towards establishing a solid product-market fit.

How this methodology applies to video project development is that perhaps you shouldn’t create a long-form video, or develop a full web series until you know it will work and get traction. A minimal viable video (MVV) if you will. So maybe instead of writing a script for an 8 episode web series, you should write pilots for 4 potential shows, create those, see which one of them resonates best with viewers, and then develop that particular series fully. Pilots are a good way to learn about how your viewers would like to see the story develop (and if the story is strong enough to move forward in the first place), and which characters are liked and which ones aren’t.

This is something to think about, always try to do extraordinary things but minimize the risks associated with developing original content. Create something fast, release it, learn, and you should have a better idea of what can work longer term.

And of course by all means, if you’re passionate about a story and want to see it all the way through then go for it because nothing feels better than creating something you love. If a topic or subject makes you feel good inside, then go for it no matter what others may say to you.

Always be listening, always be learning, and stay foolish and hungry.

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Jeremy Campbell Production Tool, Rant, Visionary, community book, content, Eric Ries, Lean Startup, learning, methodology, minimal viable product, minimal viable video, MVP, MVV, new media, online video, project development, video development, video production, video projects

2011 was a year when online video took another big step forward. Just a couple years ago you couldn’t talk about online video without hearing the word “user generated content.” That term seems to be on the way out as more and more quality video entertainment is getting created for distribution.

Video production value is starting to matter more and more to viewers online, which bodes well for our collaborative video production community who create and produce “mid-tail” video entertainment.

Some videos are shot on a mobile phone, uploaded, and go on to find large audiences, but unless you have a talented cat or capture a remarkably random life moment then chances are your unedited videos won’t get many views. If a video creator and his or her team don’t spend a decent amount of time on their content it really shows through, and audiences don’t spend much time watching their content as a result.

It’s now 2012, a new year, and an opportunity for a fresh start to explore new and interesting video projects. I got an email from a video creator on January 1st stating that his new years resolution was to create videos that viewers love and are proud to share with their friends and family. This guy has a perfect mindset heading into 2012! Don’t waste your valuable time developing video projects that you aren’t proud of, and aren’t passionate about as you will create a video that even you don’t want to watch. Delete your worst project ideas and stories, and leave them behind in 2011 where they belong!

If you have a killer video or film project you want to launch then get a Spidvid profile and post your Spidvid project, or you can join teams who are collaborating on Spidvid projects by bidding on them. 2012 holds tons of potential for developing new and original video content as audiences are exploding and eager to consume it. If you need to build a team of partners and collaborators then keep our Spidvid platform and community in mind, and don’t be shy to tap into their super powers.

We wish you and your video projects a very prosperous 2012!

Jeremy Campbell Rant, community 2011, 2012, 2012 filmmaking, 2012 videomaking, collaboration, community, film, film production, film project, film team, happy new year, new media, new years resolution, online video, production community, team building, video, video production, video project, video team, web video

It’s always an incredible thing to be recognized for what you build and contribute to the world! We were recently notified that we were voted Best of 2011 by Daddy Van Productions. Daddy Van Productions produce amazing concert videos each year, and do many other video productions as well. These guys love what they do, respect other companies who contribute to the industry, and as such want to publicly recognize those contributions and efforts.

Spidvid was firmly on their list this year, and here’s what they had to say about us:

Spidvid.com is a necessary resource for filmmakers. Young filmmakers. Filmmakers that want to make it in the industry. Their online community and blog feature some of the better insights into how to build a career as a filmmaker. Video production is an industry that can take you a number of places: directing TV spots, acting, dramatic film, and even concert videos. Spidvid offers those producers who are just starting out an otherwise unattainable resource.

We are honored that Daddy Van Productions thought of us, and really love what they do in video production as well. They have collaborated with some of the world’s biggest bands including: Nine Inch Nails, Aerosmith, Maroon 5, Motley Crue, Rascal Flatts, Dave Matthews Band, and countless others, so it certainly is humbling that they gave us the big nod. Thanks guys, rock on!

Jeremy Campbell Mention, News Aerosmith, award, bands, best of 2011, concert production design, Daddy Van Production, Dave Matthews Band, groups, honored, Maroon 5, Motley Crue, new, Nine Inch Nails, online video, production resource, Rascal Flatts, spidvid, thanks, video production

We’ve been getting lots of positive and a couple negative pieces of feedback over the last couple months for collaborating with talent on Spidvid. For the most part video creators, filmmakers, actors, and other talent are having excellent experiences on our collaborative platform which is great to hear, but a couple of issues have come up including payment to talent who didn’t complete the work, and lack of communication and involvement.

Below are 3 tips to get the most out of talent on Spidvid

1. Talk to them – The most effective way to build solid relationships with users on our site is to speak to them directly. Whether that’s in person (which is ideal), over the phone, or on Skype, make sure that you establish verbal communication before any formal collaboration begins.

2. Outline objectives and goals – Before doing anything be sure that everyone on the team is on the same page. If an editor is to edit a video then the elements which need to be completed should be clearly laid out on the table up front. If the editor can’t do everything needed, then an alternative individual should be attracted. Establish milestones, which lead up to the end goal of getting the video or film completed and ready for distribution.

3. Be careful with financial compensation – If you intend on paying someone who you’ve connected with on Spidvid, first be sure that a firm deal is in place. We don’t yet have a payment solution in place inside of Spidvid, so if you are paying someone via PayPal or on another third party payment site, you may want to have signed papers in place to protect yourself. So when the work gets done, you pay. Or maybe you pay 50% up front, and the other 50% when it gets completed. We will eventually be accountable for financial transactions between our community members when our internal payment solution is implemented, but right now we can’t be as all deals are externally happening outside our site.

These are 3 simple things to keep in mind when collaborating on video projects via Spidvid, and elsewhere on the Internet for that matter. Understanding them will ensure a smoother Spidvid experience, and ultimately projects getting completed safer and more quickly.

Keep updated on tips for getting more out of Spidvid, have our posts delivered to your email inbox. And join the other 11,338 people by following us on Twitter, or like us on Facebook.

If you are interested in learning about project management, many universities offer a project management degree online for individuals with a busy schedule.

Jeremy Campbell Lists, Production Tool, Rant, community actors, film, film collaboration, film tips, filmmakers, filmmaking, new media, payment, payment platform, spidvid, team building tips, video, video collaboration, video creators, video production, video project, video project collaboration, video project management, video project tips, video tips