Weekly Wrap-Up

Oh, what a week it has been!  I'm sitting here in my sweats with my wet hair up in a bun after a big hike with my puppy.  I've been all over the city this week and I'm ready for the weekend to begin.  Here's how it all went down:


Monday-Thursday:
ITVFest:  I spent the week attending the seminars, parties, and panels at the Independent Television Festival this week. I will have a final wrap-up over the next few days, but you can see some of the highlights and the gala here and here.  Congratulations to all of the winners and participants!

Hanging with Bernie Su of Compulsions and Ariel Lazarus of The Crew.

Me and Bobby Salomon, winner of Best Director for his pilot, 15 Minutes.

Nicole Pacent of Anyone But Me, Brian Rodda, and me hanging after a screening.


Photos 1, 2:  Courtesy of Bernie Su.
Photo 3: Courtesy of Brenda White


Wednesday:
The Web Files:  The Web Files was back with a new episode this week featuring the uber-talented Al Thompson.  He will be popping up again with a new series at the NY Television Festival, so be sure to keep your eye on him:



MoreWireLess:  I think there are three more in the series of MoreWireLess sponsored by Broadcom.  This week, it is all about the dongle.  I had no idea what a dongle was until I shot this episode (And look at that hilarious screen capture.  I look drunk!)



Prop 8:  It is no secret where I stand on this issue.  It was a simple one to me:  human rights.  For those that oppose same-sex marriage, I still believe in your rights to raise your family with your beliefs and to
attend the church that shares your same beliefs.  Even if we don't agree on this issue, remember the United States is built upon protecting your fundamental rights. It will be a long fight from both sides, but here is a quote from the presiding Judge Vaughn Walker on the case:  "Moral disapproval, without any other asserted state interest, has never been a rational basis for legislation."  Amen.

Photo by Adam Bouska for the NOH8 Campaign.


Friday:  My amazing friend, Kristoffer Kelly, has taken it upon himself to start a Facebook campaign called:  "Kristyn Burtt will take Mary Hart's spot on ET".  Yes, Mary Hart is leaving Entertainment Tonight after 30 years and I am flattered anyone thinks I could even remotely fill her shoes.   So, here's the link if you want to join the campaign: Facebook.  Heck, even though it is a long shot at best, maybe I will get the opportunity to show them the sizzle reel to my show, The Web Files.  


Now through August 19th:  Don't forget to enter my fun giveaway--City Slips for the gal on the go!


Have a great weekend, everyone!

Weekend Web Watch: Streamys Edition

Here we are again with another Weekend Web Watch, Streamys Edition and we have a little over a week to go until the big event and about 5 days until the Craft Awards.  I decided to go way back into the archives to Episode 2 of The Web Files with the cast of The Crew.  Some of my favorite people star in this Babelgum web series and I have mentioned over and over how grateful I am to Brett Register because he said "yes" to an interview way before The Web Files even existed.  It was also Blip.tv's support of The Crew that got The Web Files featured on the home page of Blip.  A truly fortuitous partnership that we have treasured ever since. For those following the Craig Frank episodes, this was his first appearance ever on The Web Files.  Little did we know, there were many, many more appearances in his future.

                                  
So, take a look at one of our earliest episodes which we shot at the Hollywood Wax Museum and be sure to visit our behind the scenes on the making of this episode.  Congratulations to Streamy Nominees  Jeff Bell, Zack Finfrock, and Brett Register for The Crew for Best Visual Effects in a Web Series. Good luck on Wednesday!

Episode: The Crew
Blog:  Behind the Scenes

Behind the Scenes of A Good Knight's Quest

Not sure what is going on here! Me and the boys of A Good Knight's Quest....Craig Frank, Brett Register, and Charlie Bodin.

What a fun KNIGHT this was! Oh, I am punny today. Seriously, the red carpet was a blast and I enjoyed hearing about everyone's geeky hobbies. One thing I found interesting was that many of the women mentioned their computers and their use of the internet as geeky. I actually find that quite normal.....or maybe I am a huge geek and I am just in denial. The end of the episode features a terrific montage put together by Sandra and Perry Payne highlighting Brady Brim-DeForest's fencing skills (I was impaled), Michael Tohl's nunchucks, and the engineering brain power of Ariel Lazarus. Needless to say, I learned a lot about my fellow web series peers that night.

It was also a fun night because the Streamy nominations had been announced earlier in the day. Many of the nominees were in attendance, so it was nice to personally congratulate everyone. There was an electricity in the air, so I know that is going to be carried over to the 2nd Annual Streamy Awards on April 11th and also the Craft Awards on April 7th.

Me, Shira Lazar, and The Web Files makeup artist, Melissa Anchondo.........

Now, if you watched this episode, you know we renamed it The Craig Frank Show. Craig and Brett Register are turning out to be quite the prolific web series producers, actors, and creators. Craig has made an appearance in at least three Web Files episodes, so he may just take over the show by the end of 2010. It is exciting to see what Brett and Craig are up to as they have become quite the comedy team whether it is The Crew, Craig and the Werewolf, or A Good Knight's Quest. Their series, this time around, came as a result of a win at The Escapist's 2009 Film Festival which helped fund the 24 episodes of the series. So you can see while they are creating web series at an impressive rate, they are also taking advantage of the tools out there to take them to the next level.

Me, Paula Rhodes, Angie Cole, Cathy Baron, and Jessica Rose...........

While many of you know Craig and Brett, don't forget about the 5'2" and Under Club! These ladies are "small, but mighty" and they are forces to be reckoned with. Mark my words, you will be hearing more from Producer/Actress Paula Rhodes, Cathy Baron, and Angie Cole (She arrived late, so we missed her on the red carpet. We'll get her next time.) I was lucky enough to join them for a photo on the red carpet. I miss the cutoff by an inch, so I made Jessica Rose balance out the tiny ones. It's rare that I ever feel tall, so I appreciate the petite ladies for making me look long-legged that night.

Finally, the talented Cathy Baron allowed me to borrow some of her creations from her jewelry line, CB Designs. I wore a couple of amazing rings and a bracelet designed with a Steampunk inspiration. Here's a great clip from the red carpet featuring some of Cathy's designs. Go visit her site, you are going to love it....and tell her KB sent you!

If you haven't seen our A Good Knight's Quest episode, what are you waiting for? Head on over to check it out: A Good Knight's Quest.

Photos 1, 2, and 4 courtesy of Mark Burmeister.

2009 in Review: July

July arrives and The Web Files officially launches! We had a premiere party, I took off for vacation, and we continued to shoot more episodes all geared for the web space......and I cheated on this entry. I had to do 8 photos to accommodate all of the events surrounding The Web Files:

Kicking off the month with my annual 4th of July trip to the lake. I'm here with my puppy posing for a patriotic photo:

The first official image for The Web Files is launched with our press release and a trailer.

Our most controversial, but one of our most popular episodes with Demi Delia of Mommy XXX. This episode continues to have steady views even 5 months later. Episode: Mommy XXX

The queen of the web space, Felicia Day of The Guild. I guess I didn't need to introduce her, right? She's there with her producer, Kim Evey, on the red carpet of iTVFest. A coming out party for Web TV on the festival circuit. Episode: iTVFest.

One of the most hilarious episodes we have ever shot was with Gary Valentine of Dusty Peacock. We stuck him on a scooter and away we went. He was a great sport and a really nice guy. We are here with one of our makeup artists, Marybeth Bagonghasa. Episode: Dusty Peacock.

We've launched! So it's time to party! A fun night with Ariel Lazarus of The Crew, Stephen Leonard of My Life Plus Animals, and fellow host, Lindsay Caldwell.

In between all of this, I hosted a couple of events for Women's Health Magazine's "Are You Game?" in Chicago and NYC. I took a few minutes off to jump and flip......

Yes, it's Dave and Tom of Safety Geeks: SVI. We had a fun day on set working with the green screen. Check out their episode here: Safety Geeks:SVI
Phew! That's July. I am hoping to stick to the rules and do it in 5 photos or less the rest of the year. Fingers crossed.

2009 in Review: June

Okay, we are officially at the halfway point and this is where my year started charging full speed ahead and it doesn't slow down until we hit the Christmas holidays.

Hanging at E3 with the 2010 Toyota Prius and The Sims 3:

This still remains one of my favorite locations from The Web Files, The Hollywood Wax Museum. I adore the cast from The Crew and I am so happy for their success. Check out our episode with them here: The Crew

Covering the Whatever Works premiere at the Pacific Design Center for Focus Hollywood. I interviewed some fantastic actors at this premiere, Ed Begley, Jr, Patricia Clarkson, Larry David, Evan Rachel Wood, Peter Fonda, and John Lithgow. See the footage here:
Whatever Works Premiere

My coverage for this panel will stand out in my mind forever. I attended Dance Camera West's Choreography Media Honors Panel to cover the events for Dance Channel TV. One of the dancers, Chuck Klapow, was currently rehearsing the "This Is It" tour with Michael Jackson. Read the article: Choreography Panel. Sadly, we all know the outcome.

On set with The Web Files for Episode 4 featuring Space Hospital. They are currently airing Season 2, so be sure to check them out. This is also the first shoot we came across our current makeup artist, Melissa Anchondo. A fortuitous day! Here's episode 4: Space Hospital.
Things only get busier as the second half of the year brings a lot of growth to The Web Files. Remember, we didn't even launch until July 8th! Come back for more tomorrow.

2009 in Review: May

May was another month I had to whittle down the photos because my month was jam-packed, but this time my work was based in LA. It was nice not to have to travel for once which is a rarity in my world.

I started working for a media outlet, Focus Hollywood, doing red carpet interviews. Unfortunately, the outlet was a victim of this lousy economy, but my interviews are still up. And yes, I am still looking for a media outlet for 2010. I miss doing my regular gigs. This event was A Time for Heroes at Universal Studios' Backlot.

One of my standing jobs with LawInfo. I have worked with these amazing people since 2008 and it is always a pleasure to head to San Diego to work with them. Notice my footwear....

The episode that started it all for The Web Files with Tay Zonday. We filmed at one of my favorite cupcake places in LA called Big Sugar. If you haven't seen Episode 1 in awhile, check it out here .

I am sure I was the envy of every guy out there when I covered the MAXIM Hot 100 party. It was one of the most challenging red carpets I have ever covered because it was filled with reality "stars" and C-listers. Oh, the gossip from this night! If you want to know the less than glamorous part of the red carpet, I will happily give you the scoop in exchange for a Coffee Bean tea latte.

The super fun GeekOut event with my EP, Sandra Payne. This was the event where we met Tay Zonday and the cast from The Crew where they agreed to be interviewed. Thank goodness our enthusiasm didn't scare them too much.
Come back tomorrow where June brings MJ coverage, more red carpet, and a day at the wax museum.

Behind the Scenes of This Week in YouTube

This was one of the most difficult episodes to schedule. If it wasn't my schedule crimping the shoot day, it was Shira Lazar's nutty schedule. It was hard to figure out when the two of us would be in town at the same time to shoot. It went from an August to a September to an October shoot. The calendar gods finally aligned and we hit the Mahalo Studios in Santa Monica on October 22nd.....the same day that I left for a job in Miami. (I told you it was tough to schedule.) Actually, my work life looks tame compared to the woman with a million jobs, Shira Lazar. She is one of the hardest working, savviest, and nicest hosts in the industry. Shira and I have crossed paths a few times, but we had never officially been introduced. Everyone kept tell me how fun and kind she is. You know what? They were right.

Now, I cannot forget about Lon Harris. I met Lon at the GeekOut event in May of 2009. That event certainly brought a lot of interviews for The Web Files. We met Tay Zonday, who was our first guest EVER on the show along with Brett Register of The Crew, which became our 2nd episode. So, one event netted three interviews along the way, guess it speaks volumes for power of networking. I find Lon to be sweet and funny all at once. He is the veteran host of This Week in YouTube and it is his steady presence and writing talent that helps drive the viewership of the show.

We were able to check out a taping of an episode which happened to be their first shoot using an TelePrompter. As any host knows, this is always a welcome sight since it takes half of the time to shoot versus memorization. They banged out the script and then sat down with us for an interview. You can definitely see why the show works as Shira and Lon have an easy natural chemistry off screen which carries over on screen. Lon also gave away some strong trade secrets on how to get hits on the saturated YouTube site. He is a master at drawing them in, so make sure to watch the interview!

Off-screen, Shira was really excited that we had brought our makeup artist, Melissa Anchondo to set with us that day since Mahalo does not use an artist for TWIYT. If you like Shira's hair and makeup in the episode, tell Melissa, it is all of her artistry. Also, Mahalo has a chef on the premise. How cool is that? I find that to be a very Google-like office perk.

Finally, I love my dress from Roni B. worn in this episode. Roni even let me borrow the shoes since I didn't have a pair to match. Thanks, Roni! Makeup provided by e.l.f. Don't forget to check out the episode below! Thanks for watching.....

Notice anyone hanging out in the background of this photo? The best set dog ever....Indiana!

Weekend Web Watch Exclusive: Fashions at the Compulsions Premiere

Every premiere, red carpet, and launch party in LA has a look and a style to it and this party was no different. The theme of the night? Dark, black, a hint of color here and there, hot shoes, and a fedora or two. Come join me as we take a look at the fashions of the night in The Web Files Weekend Web Watch Exclusive:

Producer Robert Grand offered up some great advice to young filmmakers at the Compulsions premiere.

I told you he was tall! (Andrew Clemons)

Yep, we match! (Janna Bossier)

The Fedora Mafia in the house! Aaron Kaiser and Bernie Su.

The prolific web series actress, Taryn O'Neill, of After Judgment, HTSAAAR, The Crew, and Compulsions. Did I miss anything?

Craig Frank is on The Web Files.....a LOT!

As promised, our exclusive video of the fashions of the night!

If you missed our full Compulsions coverage, you can find it all here: Compulsions Premiere.

For the shout outs to Bernie on his big night, go here: Congratulations, Bernie!

Our original interview with Bernie Su and Producer, Michael Tohl: The Web Files, Episode 16.

And the best birthday present of all! (Thanks, Sandy and Perry!): KB's Birthday!

That's a wrap on Compulsions coverage. I hope you had as much fun as we did! Up later this week, a look at This Week in YouTube with Shira Lazar and Lon Harris.

Behind the Scenes of Hurtling Through Space At An Alarming Rate

Okay, this is a really late behind the scenes look at Hurtling Through Space At An Alarming Rate, but it's here, it's finally here! I think I have been talking with Stephanie Thorpe and Mike Davies about doing an interview since I saw them on the red carpet for iTVFest in July. Well, here we are in the late fall and we finally got it done, but there was one tricky part to the interview: Mike Davies was in Canada. Duh-Duh!

Well, thank goodness we have Sandra's creative brain to help with all of the logistics to make it seem like Mike himself was hurtling through space. We shot all of the questions for Mike first, then sent the questions to him via email, and he shot the video on his end to answer all of the questions. Sandra also came up with the genius idea of a crowded space highway with a nice little shout out to other web series we have featured like The Crew, The Cabonauts, Safety Geeks:SVI, and Space Hospital. A big thanks to all of the creators for contributing their footage to the show. Since HTSAAAR was shot in Canada, we obviously did not have access to their set, so Sandra's living room doubled as the apartment floating out in the universe. Now, none of this would be possible without the incredible efforts of Gordon Lee who created all of the VFX for us. The truly amazing part of it all is that he turned it all around for us in little over a week. So, Gordon, thank you, this episode would not have been possible without you.

As for Taryn O'Neill, Stuart Paap, and Stephanie Thorpe, it was great to finally sit down with them and get behind the scenes on their show and their collaboration. I love that they have their own little Canadian posse working together on creating stories for the web. Taryn has found her niche here with a huge slate of web series this year....After Judgment, The Crew, Compulsions, and of course, HTSAAAR. Stephanie showed up in one of my favorite shirts from Bebe. How do I know it is from Bebe? I own the same shirt. In fact, you can see it in my host reelon the QVC clip. So, naturally, I am going to like anyone with the same fashion sense. Finally, I was familiar with Stuart's work on Live from the Future because he interviewed a friend of mine, Zen Gray, about her participation in the Bravo TV show, Workout. It truly was fun to have three web celebs all joining us on The Web Files. Wait a minute, I mean four.....you have to count Mike's cameo too! Come back to LA soon, Mike. I hope you find your way home with all of that space traffic. In the words of Mike Davies, it was "DEE-lightful" to have you"awesomness" on our show. Be sure to check out their show on Babelgum, a site that is starting to become a heavy hitter in the Web TV industry.

As always, a big thank you to e.l.f. Cosmetics for helping with each episode and my favorite wardrobe gal, Roni B. (I cannot stop wearing this shirt!)

If you missed this episode, watch it here:

The Web Files in the News: October

There has been some fantastic news in the web series world and we are so excited by the leaps and bounds content producers are making in the industry. It thrills me when I hear that shows we have interviewed are gaining the recognition they deserve. So, we are happy to throw our continued support to:

1. The cast and creators of The Crew for not only launching Season 2 yesterday, but for securing an exclusive deal with Babelgum.. I truly appreciate this cast and the show's creator, Brett Register, because they were one of our first interviews when we were launching The Web Files. Be sure to check out our interview with them and our behind the scenes look: Interview and Behind the Scenes.

2. More good news abounds with the cast of Oz Girl. Nick Carlton just inked a distribution deal with Virgin's V Australia as a part of their on-demand in-flight entertainment for Oz Girl. Nick also launched his own digital media/entertainment studio in Melbourne called
Carlton Digital. This 19-year-old truly is a forced to be reckoned with. You can find our Web Files interview here and the behind the scenes of the shoot here. Many thanks to Marc Hustvedt at Tubefilter for linking to our interview in his feature piece on Nick's breaking news:
Tubefilter.

3. One of my favorite people, Mathieas McNaughton, continues to be one of our greatest champions. He featured our episode with the amazing Tim Street on his blog:
LG15 Today.

4. Finally, a new friend to The Web Files is Larry Kless who kindly picked our Tim Street interview as his "Web Video Pick of the Week". I think Tim's interview has resonated with many web series producers and new media creators, so I am thrilled that this episode of The Web Files is gaining attention. Thanks, Larry. Check out the article here: Kless Blog.

Thank you for all of your support. We will continue to bring you the latest in-depth interviews with established and up-and-coming talent in the web series world. Get ready for Wednesday, we have Hayden Black with his upcoming series, The Cabonauts!

The Web Files: Episode 2

Hey Everyone,

Episode 2 is launched with the cast from The Crew, one of my favorite web series. If you haven't seen this show, be sure to check it out on KoldcastTV here: The Crew. I first met series creator, Brett Register, at GeekOut '09. I think I grabbed him by the shirt and told him he had to do my new show, The Web Files. I appreciate Brett taking a leap of faith in doing our show sight unseen. We were new, we hadn't launched, but he said "yes" and he kindly invited most of the cast to join us. So, I owe Brett a big "thank you" and a promise that I will be watching Season 2.

For the show, my Executive Producer, Purse Dog TV, and I were looking for a fun location to shoot and boy, we hit one out of the park. The Hollywood Wax Museum kindly donated the space right next to their Star Wars prequel wax figurines. If you haven't visited the wax museum before, be sure to stop on by the next time you are in the area. It is a true Hollywood classic.

We had a lot of challenges with sound because the museum was open to the public and we had the dreaded air conditioning vent blowing throughout the interview. The staff at the museum was awesome though as they directed traffic so the tourists could see Arnold in wax as the Terminator and we could get the scoop on Season 1 of The Crew. My favorite part of the interview is Ariel Lazarus describing how she is positioned at her green screen desk and how she is lit for each scene. Her character, Andrea Lee, is one to watch out for in the engine room!

Next episode is Safety Geeks: SVI starring Tom Konkle and Dave Beeler in their pre-Comic Con appearance. I look forward to hearing your feedback and comments, what series do you want The Web Files to cover?

Reporting Live from Los Angeles,

kb

PS A huge thanks to Marybeth Bagonghasa for the incredible hair and makeup. What would I do without you? To Perry Payne, who has worked tirelessly without complaint the last 4 weeks...thank you! And to my super cute bf, thanks for your help on this episode.

The Web Files: The Crew Edition

Hey Everyone!

Thanks for joining me for another edition of Red Carpet Closet. I am in the middle of shooting my pilot for the new web show, The Web Files. While the show isn't on the red carpet, it is sure important to have the right wardrobe. This week, I was interviewing the young and talented cast of one of my favorite web series, The Crew. Our location was at the Hollywood Wax Museum, so I knew the outfit had to be fun and comfortable. So, where did I go to get my outfit? Why, none other than Marshall's. Yes, I said, Marshall's. They are genius for brand names are ridiculously affordable prices, especially in this economy.

So, I set off to get a pair of white capris that I could wear over and over again. I found a comfy pair with a brand called Khakis for $14.99. They have cargo pockets along the side with an eyelet detail on the pocket flap and drawstring bottoms that hit just below the knee. My shoes were an easy sell....how about a pair of distressed gold kitten heels from Chinese Laundry for $10 on clearance. Uh, okay, SOLD! Now for the top. Since I knew I needed color, I looked for green or purple since I knew they were two colors that look good on me and I hadn't worn a lot of that color lately. Bingo! A green Max Studio top with a rosette detail at the neckline for $19.99. As for my green/yellow/white flower necklace, if you are in Hawaii, go here: ABC Stores They have affordable costume jewelry that has that island flair. So my outfit cost less than $50 for a TV shoot. Who says wardrobe has to be expensive?

The interview was fun and I really hope everyone watches the show. You can watch it online here: www.TheCrew.tv It's "The Office" on a space ship. You can't really go wrong with that. The cast of Brett Register, Ariel Lazarus, Craig Frank, Phillip Bache, and Amy Kline were total sports when we told them we were shooting at the Hollywood Wax Museum by the Star Wars prequel figures. And if you are in Hollywood, stop by the wax museum and tell them I sent you. The owners and staff (especially Derek) accommodated us every step of the way.

I will be back tomorrow to give you the lowdown on the premiere of Woody Allen's "Whatever Works".

Reporting Live from Los Angeles,

kb

PS The Web Files is coming soon. Keep updated on the launch date here: The Web Files!