Red Carpet Interviews...Some DOs and DON'Ts

Okay, Streamys time is upon us and the spotlight is on web series, actors, and all of the talented people behind the scenes.  It is an exciting time and I know that getting publicity for your show is an integral part of finding new viewers or connecting with your current fans.  So, I hope all of you who wake up to a Streamy nomination get ready for a thrilling time in your career, but prepare yourself for the round of media that is to follow.  Do yourself and your show a favor, mentally prepare for the red carpet. Here are a couple of things I have noticed recently on the red carpet, a few bad habits, and some things to point out.  At The Web Files, we want to showcase you and your show in the best light possible:

1.  Talk to the reporter.  Don't talk into the camera.  It is a conversation between two people.  Trust that the cameraman is focusing in on you and he will get the shot.  If you look directly into the camera while being interviewed, it makes you look a bit crazy because you are ignoring the person asking you the questions. (Now, you can casually glance at the camera to include the audience, but don't get stuck in that lens.)

2.  Don't EVER, EVER, EVER, hijack someone else's interview.  I had this happen on Monday night at a web series premiere and it made the actor look like a big, old jackass. I was interviewing the creator of the show....it's his big night, his big moment, and his chance to shine.  The actor comes stumbling into the shot, puts his arm around the creator, and expects me to start interviewing him.  Sorry, nope, no way.  The creator hired YOU, he wrote a part for YOU, he directed YOU.  Without him, you wouldn't be on this red carpet.  Show respect.  Let everyone have their moment in the spotlight.  Trust me, you will have your turn, but if you jump into my shot....forget about it.

3.  Finally, sound bites.  During a sit down interview with The Web Files, I want more in depth answers.  On the red carpet, I want sound bites.  A reporter from any show, whether it is a marquee entertainment show like ET, Access Hollywood, or E!, or a little one like The Web Files, is looking for the funny, off the cuff, short quips.  If I asked you to tell me about your show, do it in less than 20 words.  A 2 minute explanation usually makes your clip unusable because red carpet footage is edited in a faster paced rhythm.  If you want to watch successful interviews in 30 seconds or less, take a look at the clips from the Whatever Works premiere from June 2009 for Focus Hollywood:  See Larry David, Peter Fonda, Evan Rachel Wood, Patricia Clarkson, and John Lithgow all giving great little moments in an extremely short period of time.  They are true masters at dealing with red carpet reporters when we only were allowed to ask them one question each that night.

I hope that some of these tips are useful to you and your cast.  I am happy to offer up a few more helpful hints as we get closer to April 11th, 2010, so feel free to fire away with questions or suggestions on this topic in the section below (Anonymous posts are okay).  I can address them in another post soon.   See you at the Streamys red carpet!

PS  All of the photos posted are examples of GOOD red carpet interviews, so don't start any gossip that I think you stink on the red carpet.  xo kb

Behind the Scenes of The Web Files Buzz, Episode 1

Yes, we brought you something different this week, the inaugural episode of The Web Files Buzz. Sandra and I have been toying with this idea for awhile, but it took some time to figure out how we wanted to execute the episode. I have received a lot of questions about this format: Is this the new format of the show? Is the old format gone? The answer is "sometimes" and "no". We will do a Buzz show every few weeks to mix it up in between our longer, more formal interviews. As the web space grows, we have to grow. Viewers want us to get in depth with their favorite shows, but we do not want to forget those shows that are up and coming. So, I think the new format serves an important purpose. We had a lot of fun shooting these shorter segments and I think delivered an action packed episode.

We kicked it off with the IAWTV "For Your Consideration" Screening of The Fall of Kaden and Blue Movies, both Koldcast TV web series. I did an in depth piece on the evening which can be read here: Fall of Kaden/Blue Movies. I haven't seen the Koldcast footage yet, but hopefully, it will be released soon. The Koldcast shoot talked more about the fantastic idea to hold a IAWTV screening and it is a format now being wisely copied by others before the Streamy ballots are due. I think it will also give web series creators, Adam Leiphart and Matt Double (Fall of Kaden) and Scott Brown (Blue Movies) even more deserved face time with the IAWTV voters.

Our second segment featured one of my favorite web series stars, Brittney Powell, of Safety Geeks: SVI. We caught her in between an appearance at the Xena convention on a Saturday afternoon. If you didn't know, Brittney has quite an impressive resumé as she played Brunnhilda on the series amongst other high profile roles. Xena has a strong female following, so while we didn't shoot inside the convention, there were a lot of women running around the lobby of the LAX Marriott trying to get a glimpse of Brittney. Popular girl! Anyway, I wanted to discuss the Safety Geeks: SVI calendar since it's a great way to think outside of the box in terms of marketing their web series. The cheeky pin-up girl theme also brings Tom Konkle and Dave Beeler along for the fun. Check out the cast's calendar at Amazon: Safety Geeks Calendar.

Finally, we rounded out the episode with a visit to Jonathan Nail on the set of his upcoming show, SOLO the Series. The set was built inside his garage and we had a chance to climb inside to take a closer look. Jonathan's show has created a lot of buzz over Twitter and I am glad we were able to see what those 140 characters were all about. He also showed me the pilot after the shoot, so get ready for a comedic, sci-fi ride sometime in 2010.

It was a day for cupcake shirts and many of you asked where you could purchase my shirt after I posted the photo on Twitter. Well, it was purchased at the Union Square Christmas fair in NY by a friend of mine. She tried to track down the designer, but we were not able to find her. However, you can find similar cupcake shirts online, just google "Make cupcakes, not war". I also took a close-up photo of my crew badge. Jonathan made me an honorary crew member of Team SOLO. Let's just hope I don't get stuck in space like he did.

Be sure to check out our first episode of The Web Files Buzz here: Episode 1. It is our fastest rising show to date, so we appreciate your views and feedback. On Wednesday, we go back to our usual format with an interview with Epic Fu creators and the 2009 Streamys winners for Best Hosted Web Series, Zadi Diaz and Steve Woolf.

Red carpet photos courtesy of Bernie Su of Compulsions.