Artists on OTV - Cycle 1 (2015-16)
By
Chelsea Peterson-Salahuddin
Department of Communication Studies, Northwestern University
This is an analysis of artists’ experiences working with OTV to develop and distribute their shows during the platform's first release cycle from 2015 to 2016.
The analysis is based on 10 interviews, with 12 artists, recounting different parts of the development and distribution process. Themes were derived using thematic qualitative content analysis (Braun and Clark, 2006). Responses and thoughts were categorized based on parts of production, however, as salient themes arose throughout the interviews these were also incorporated into the overall analysis.
Pitching and Introduction to OTV
Overall, the artists who released their shows during cycle one had a positive experience pitching and developing their shows with OTV. While some respondents approached Aymar or met with him about an idea for a story they would like to develop, others were approached by Aymar about developing a series or idea. Many artists noted feeling comfortable working with Aymar and OTV throughout the pitching process. For example one artist said in their interview “We knew you already so it felt very safe sharing our ideas with you…and I think because we already knew you and felt comfortable with you, it felt very natural to share our passion with the project with you and our dreams for it.” as illustrated by their statement, comfort working with OTV for many artists seemed to stem, in part, from a familiarity with Aymar and a pre-existing sense of trust with Aymar as the head of OTV. For some artists, this comfort also seemed to extend to OTV as an entity as well. One creator noted that their vision for their show aligned well with the mission of OTV, making the pitching and development process comfortable and a good fit for them. Similarly, in talking about the process of working with OTV to develop a docu-series, one artist said that they “felt that process was affirming in the sense that it was about what was the best option for me and Open TV.” Both of these experiences highlight the harmony that many artists felt between the vision for their work and OTV as an entity, helping to make the process of pitching and development a positive one.
Other artists also noted that they found encouragement and support from developing their show with OTV. In their exit interview, one artist behind a video art piece said that in the beginning Aymar “encouraged me to finish writing the script, to think about potential release dates, how we could go into getting more funding, different ways to go about doing that, whether it was physical fundraisers or Indiegogo, like we did.” In a similar vein, one creator of a short film also noted that they appreciated having the support from the OTV team in developing their project. In their interview, they said “I had not had the experience with working with a full team before. I think it was like me putting all the pieces together. I never had the opportunity to have someone else that was working on the behind the scenes things and making sure that we have things. That was really helpful you know just like taking the stress off of trying to do ten different things in the process of creating the thing.” Both of these quotes highlight the ways in which OTV provided their artists with a support system and network, be it emotional or material, that aided them in the process of developing their work.
Funding and Economic Support
Part of what seemed to make the process of working with OTV to develop their projects great for many of the artists interviewed, was the financial support provided by OTV. Many of the artists felt that having some funding provided by OTV going into the production process alleviate some of the stress that usually comes with developing a series. One artist recounted that the financial support made a big difference in their production process, saying it “like changed everything. Having significantly larger amount of money going in. Also just like dealing with insurance. It honestly felt like we stepped our game up and I don’t think that would have happened without you guys.” Similarly, an artist noted that financial support from OTV was one of the key drivers in helping them to complete the work, stating “I think in the whole process Open TV was most beneficial in providing me with the platform and finances to make a project that I could have produced on my own, possible, but would have never been able to produce with the same confidence because I had the financial support.” Both of these statements highlight the ways in which funding from OTV made a significant difference for many of these artists. Though they may have been able to make these projects without funding from OTV, the funding helped them elevated the level of production and have confidence around their ability to fully finance their projects, in a way that they may not have had otherwise. Thus, the funding support came across in these interviews as integral to these artists ultimate, successful completion of their work and a key advantage that working with OTV provided. One noted how funding from OTV also allowed them to bypass the tension artists often feel between making their work available to the public and needing to monetize in order to recoup financial losses. In their interview they stated: “We knew we wanted to go with Open TV but it helped us to not have to worry about trying to monetize in any way. It was really valuable to us to put it out in the world on Open TV for free. If we had been in the hole and not gotten that funding from Open TV, we might have talked about it a little bit more. “Should we try to monetize it and then go on Open TV?” or something like that. So we didn’t have to have that conversation.” In this way, the financial support provided by OTV alleviated the pressure they may have felt to put their work behind a paywall, limiting public access to their project. Thus, in providing financial support OTV also helps the artists on their platform the ability to give people access to their work in a way they may otherwise have not been able to, and gain access to a larger audience.
Looking to clarify how funding is allocated going forward, one artist suggested that it may be helpful to put some clear guidelines in place, prioritizing funding for more senior artists. In their interview they stated “Maybe like securing funding would be great if there’s like more funding for shows that have proven themselves that can get a following….but I think that’s just part of the game and if we’re funded by grants, which kind of sucks.” Her comment again underscores how important yet precarious it is for these artists to secure funding, and the importance of putting a clear funding structure in place. Given the importance of funding to these artists, developing a further sense of security around it seems paramount as OTV continues to develop.
Production Process and Post-Production
Experience with production and post-production, as well as the level of OTV involvement in production, seemed to vary across all of the series released in cycle one. For many of the projects, OTV seemed to have a very hands-off role in production process, though was there for support when needed. As a featured artist in one series noted, the experience of working with OTV in production was “really unobtrusive,” and they went on to say “it felt really supportive...Being very attentive, you know being supportive. When we were doing interviews or you were documenting workshops, it just felt very supportive.” Similar sentiments were also expressed by other artists, noting the feelings of hands-off support OTV provided.
Many of the mis-steps artists noted during the production process often had to do with dynamics within their own team, a lack of prior knowledge of production, and less to do with OTV. For instance, many artists noted that they wished they had known more about the amount of time and all the logistics that go into planning a shoot before they embarked on their projects. In talking about their experience in having shoots that went longer than expected or got delayed due to weather one artist noted that problems often arose from their own lack of experience. In their interview they said, “I think that was just like not knowing how long it would actually take to set up these things, break them down and transition into the next thing.” Similarly, one producer noted how looking back, they were unaware of all the things they could have done to make production go smoother, stating: “If I could do it over again, planning process, we would have gotten a lot more details ironed out…because we didn’t realize exactly how many decisions we could have made prior that would have really helped, like during the actual shooting.” Thus, some of the artists lack of prior experience with film production led to problems during the production process.
However, it was also suggested that in these moments artist could rely on OTV for insight and feedback. In their interview one creator said, “we had never done anything like this before and so there were so many things about the traditional filming and release, and post-production process that we weren’t quite familiar with, and I think you guys were really important tools to help us figure out event spaces, the Step n’ Repeat, you know. How to go about putting all of those things together in a really cohesive package that also fit well with our overall vision.” This statement highlights the understanding that OTV could be used to help fill in some of these gaps in knowledge for artists, as they figure out the production process. Another artist also noted that they appreciated OTV’s feedback on cuts during post-production. In this way, OTV’s guidance and feedback was seen as a helpful, and in some instances, essential tool in educating artists during the production and post-production process.
Speaking to this, two artists talked about the importance of OTV’s role as a mentor to the artists on its platform and stressed the continuation or amplification of this going forward. One noted that being able to sit down with Aymar to think out, and develop their vision and idea for their project was immensely helpful. Further, the other said that one thing they would focus on going forward was mentorship with artists because “having the vision, having the voice, writing it out, having the characters but pairing that with people that are actually, who know a little bit of the filmmaking world without them like taking away from that voice will really make Open TV sail… the talent is there, but do we have the means to actually execute in a way that the things come out on time.” Thus, by focusing on opportunities to mentor new and emerging artists going forward, OTV will be able to help train and cultivate raw talent in a way that benefits both the artists and the platform.
Exhibition
Several of the artists noted how they appreciated the live exhibition aspect of working with OTV. The experience of exhibiting their work live cam across as extremely meaningful and emotional for many of the artists in their interviews. One artist said they were “so touched that so many Open TV creators and collaborators showed up.”
Other artists noted that the live experience of the screening was made especially excited by the fact that the screenings made space for their communities in ways they had not previously experienced. For instance, one said: “I feel like we constantly have to curate our spaces. And so many times I’m like the only woman, the only woman of color, in aspace full of white people and so it was nice to see the audience of [my show] be exactly like kinda of what I wanted it to be. Like this nice mix of queer people and people of color and women and white people as well.” Their comment points to the fact that diversity within the larger film industry and community is limited, often isolating minorities in these spaces. However the diversity of the attendees at the OTV screening to them signalled a way to make space for diverse artists and audiences in this industry in a way that is rarely seen. Similarly, in talking about their screening, another noted that it was “probably one of the best pieces of the experience, just being able to work within the premiere, a women made gallery that I really admired for a long time as a young artist and being able to not have to worry about those details because there was someone else helping to put that together.” Like the other artist, they also note the importance of being able to screen their work in a women owned-space, with other women in a larger field where this is often not possible. In addition, their comment also points to how having OTV host their screening took pressure off of them to exhibit their work; a point that many other artists highlighted in their interviews as well.
Offline and Online Reception
Reception seemed to differ between in-person and online responses to the shows. Several artists noted that while they received a lot of positive feedback on their work in person, their reception from online audience seemed to be a slow and steady climb. Talking about their show, one said “My impression is that it’s definitely not viral. It definitely hasn’t gone viral, but there is an audience that is consuming it. Like the people that watch, they immediately, they quote stuff from the series, they share it on Twitter. So that’s been really cool.” While their show has an online audience, it was not overwhelming or “viral.” A video artist also said they felt that online reception to their project was similar, stating “it was really sparse and not super concentrated. I feel like having released videos online, mostly through facebook, I would get most of my responses from comments, but the videos themselves didn’t get many comments....and then in person I had some people close to me say that they did get a chance to watch it and they thought that it was really cool... So I feel like for me, the project seems to have more of a space, the more time passes, I'm getting more reactions.” While this comment, like the other, points to the difference between online and offline reception, it also points to the ways in which creating content in a digital culture allows for steady growth overtime. Having the ability to post and repost and their content across multiple social media pages and platforms allowed them work to slowly reach across several online networks, and travel within a digital culture, constantly exposing it to new audiences. In this way, while reception and engagement with the content has a sense of immediacy, digital exhibition allows for the content to have a longer reach overtime. One artist also alluded to this, saying “that’s one of the exciting things about having a digital content platform. Yes, there is the release but you really can re-release it anew forever.” Further, talking about their pilot, another artist said “I’m so happy that it’s available. Like, you know? And on something that’s not just like, my personal website, or on YouTube, but on a place that’s like, curated and a part of a bigger community,” highlighting the importance of OTV’s digital platform as creating a sense of online community.
Reception, as it relates to OTV as a platform, also seemed to follow a similar trend. While artists noted how close friends and family often asked about OTV, online audiences rarely mentioned or asked about the platform. For instance, one said “It’s more in my friends circle people are asking ‘what is Open TV?’ ...and then like our kind of Twitter fans, which are a lot of people who have followed us [for years], they never say anything about Open TV. They don’t seem to care or notice.” Echoing this, another said people that were all closely, we know, involved with the project, they have a great understanding of Open TV’s role. But like, the broader audience did not...there’s so many production houses that get, you know, mentioned and talked about and networks, and you don’t really think about it. All you think about is like, you know, these blockbuster moments. Or you know, a lot of people, unless they’re trained to pay attention to those things don’t. Because they just kind of see them and you know, people’s attention spans are very short.” In expounding upon this difference between online and offline reactions to OTV, one artist highlighted how generally for audiences, networks and distributors often get forgotten about compared to the movies of content they release. In this way, across their work, artists reveal how OTV plays more of a behind the scenes role for their larger audiences online, who seem mainly focused on the content as opposed to the platform.
Career and Personal Development
While not the case for all artists, a few mentioned how the development of their series with OTV had a significant or meaningful impact on their larger career trajectories or goals. Two artists noted how their project with OTV gave them experience and confidence to pursue new opportunities in television directing and acting, respectively. However, other artists simply noted that their work with OTV, while not career shifting or altering, provided them with more material to add to their portfolio and opened up new opportunities through further exposure.
Looking Forward: Suggestions for Future
Looking forward to future cycles, while most artists did not say there was much they would change about OTV, there were a few salient suggestions that came out of the interviews. To begin, almost every artist noted they would have appreciated more marketing and social media support from the OTV team. One noted, “in the release process we could have spent more time thinking about how we wanted to engage particular audiences. Media, we wanted to look in. Or even like, I didn’t understand clearly that Open TV wouldn’t be doing that. So then I would have figured out ways to engage folks on my end, which I did, but I didn’t have the same networking that you guys as at platform as an artistic collective have.” Similarly, many other artists expressed that they tried to do their own marketing and PR online, but thought it would have been beneficial to tap into the OTV network to help expand their reach. Further, doing marketing outreach by themselves did not allow these artists the same infrastructure and support that they received from OTV pre-release. Even one more experienced artist noted that despite their past experience doing their own press outreach, having more support from OTV in that effort would be extremely helpful. In their interview, they stated “it certainly we could always use more help in those spaces. I can get certain emails, but I don’t have access to all the emails. For sure it’s a dream that we would work with you or with anyone who was like here’s a list of 100 press people that we can email directly and we already have a relationship with these ones. I think, especially for creators who come in with no contacts, to be able to say we have these 20 people who are regularly interested in what we are doing and so we can reach out to them.” They highlighted the potential importance of accessing the OTV network and infrastructural support in marketing their show to audiences and the media.
Some artists also noted how in the future, OTV can use the persistence of online, digital content, to re-market and re-release content post-release: “I do think at least one thing I’ve noticed is that the Open TV social media kind of drops off when there’s not anything new going on. So that might be something that we would recommend.” Like several artists, there was a sense that even after shows were released, there were more opportunities for OTV to promote the content online and on social media. For instance, one producer noted that more post-release promotion of their show could have helped it reach a wider audience. Building off of this idea in the conversation, the lead creator from that project suggested that OTV could experiment with taking the series down and doing re-releases to help bring in new audiences and promote exclusivity around the shows to increase future views.
Some artists also noted the fact that they were still unclear on what OTV was as an entity and the boundaries of their relationship with OTV. For instance, one producer said they were unclear at points what role OTV served throughout the production process, and the terms of their relationship with OTV as artists and producers. Speaking to this in their interview they said, “I wasn’t always exactly clear on what our relationship was supposed to be with you. Like, what you were there to help with, versus maybe not. And I think something [our] team could’ve done better with was delegating responsibilities or asking for more help. I’m not saying any one side was wrong there, but maybe a little clearer on what the relationship is between Open TV.” Thus, while in some sense they see this lack of clarity as a sign that there could have been better communication between OTV and their team, their comment points to how in the future it would be helpful to define the terms of OTV’s relationship with artists upfront to avoid confusion later on. Outside of their own relationship with OTV, other artists noted being unclear on what OTV is on its own, outside of the content it provides. “I feel like Open TV changes often depending on what programming is currently being shown. Or like being pushed with the name attached and I don’t know what Open TV is without those programming. So I’m really interested in what could be, in how that could either grow or clarify or not. It depends on what you alls goals are with that. But I definitely know that with also other web based networks that it’s so important for people to be able to associate a major show or something else with the brand if that’s something you want to go for.” Thus, while the overall goal or brand of OTV feels unclear, they still see the value in artists attaching themselves to a brand or a cohesive idea in some way.
Working with OTV
All of the artists expressed positive sentiments, looking back on their experience working with OTV. Speaking generally of their experience of working with OTV, one said “we love what you’re doing and I think the model, I know you’re not getting the reach you want at this point, but I think it’s only a matter of time. I love the local aspect of it. I love the fact that there’s events, we don’t go to all of them,but we can go to those.” Similarly, another artist expressed an overall satisfaction working with OTV, noting how they “found you guys [OTV] to be really inclusive and supportive. And you guys [OTV] were really great listeners to what our needs were. And I never felt, at any moment, that the ball is being dropped ,which is always really comforting experience to have when you’re working with somebody.” Both of these statements highlight a generally positive feeling and sentiment expressed across the Cycle one artists’ interviews reflecting on their experience releasing with OTV. Other artists also expressed that they were impressed by the levels of professionalism, branding, and growth that OTV had been able to achieve.
Many other artists also expressed their own alignment with OTV’s goals and vision, and noted how this added positively to their overall experience working with OTV. For instance, one creator said “what you guys are doing really well is being the only space that I know of that’s local that highlight marginalized artists by giving them a platform to share their world and share their point of view. I can’t think of another one like that.I think you guys are really unique in that way. It just makes me happy that you guys are here.” Other artists expressed similar sentiments, noting OTV’s mission to uplift intersectional artists and webseries was a key motivator in their decision to work with and overall experience being on the platform. In speaking to this idea, one producer said “to speak to Open TV’s overall mission to like, really shine a spotlight on queer and people of color, and queer people of color specifically, it was such a relief to work with you and Eli becauseyou know, we’d just have to struggle with our director of photography to put it point blank who is white, actual male, right? So like, there’s just sort of a–I felt like the fusion of all of us working together was affected by identity and it was really nice to have that and like our collaborators. You know? Like, an understanding of where we’re all coming from.” This statement, in essence, is exemplary of why OTV’s mission was seemingly so integral to the artists experience working with OTV. As a web series platform that pays particular attention to intersectionality, OTV deconstruct many of the white, heteropatriarchal power structures many of these artists have previously faced working in the film and television industry. Thus, to work within a system where there is an ideological and cultural understanding around the importance of uplifting marginalized voices allows for these artists to create their work in a space that is free of the conflict and oppression they are used to facing in the larger industry.
Stemming from this, some artists also noted how because of OTV’s mission, working with OTV felt like being integrated into a larger, supportive community. In their interview, a participating artist noted “The communities here. The creative LGBTQ communities, the Salonathons, and Chances Dances, and Links Hall so among those networks, I feel like it really did boost awareness, brand awareness if you will. But again that reach.” Thus, by creating a sense of community around the communities it means to uplift, OTV allowed their artists to be a part of and reach their communities in Chicago through their work.