Fast Forward

It was a real role reversal when Aaron first started talking to me about FWD:labs. To that point, our relationship had always been about the same: I bring him an insane and epic idea that can't possibly be accomplished, and then we sit and talk about it until we figure out how to do it. And then we do it. But now here is Aaron bringing the insane and epic idea to the table.

Our mission is basic, but far from easy. We need to bring a community of the most talented, vibrant, and passionate creatives to FWD:labs.

The idea behind the FWD:labs collective is simple. We want to offer the very best filmmakers and designers a simple interface to collaborate and create by providing a showcase of their works, a sounding board for their ideas, and a pool of resources from which to draw upon to turn their fantasies into a reality.

And we don't just want an online community, we want it to come offline as well. We plan to have a series of social events that will provide an opportunity for our community to meet face to face. Whether these events are in a coffee shop or bar, an art gallery or an burnt-out warehouse, we want to provide a unique environment for our community to network and brainstorm in a space that is filled with like-minds, creative co-conspirators, and most importantly, people that know how to have fun. Some of my best ideas have come out while I was three beers deep, listening to good music and laughing with fellow creatives.

But before we throw any killer, avant-garde, debaucherous parties, we need to establish a base community of FWD:labs users that understand and appreciate its vision. This is no egalitarian Facebook/Myspace where everyone is invited - we want the elite. We want the talented and vibrant creatives that are going to make our community an important community. Our online community will be filled with the cinema artists that will inspire us to greater heights.

We, those reading this, are the originals, the deepest base of FWD:labs. The future pioneers of something valuable. It is up to us to create this community. And it shouldn't be hard. We just need to invite our most promising friends and co-collaborators. The service will sell itself. We need to identify the types of people we want on board, and invite them. In early November we will all receive an e-mail from Aaron or I with the invite link to send to everyone we are interested in joining. Click the link, create the quick profile and creative portfolio and see the value of the service.

And to all the pioneers: At the first social, that first round of beer is on me…

It's only playing at four movie theaters right now, so you might need to take your bus, subway or bicycle a little further than usual. Leonardo DiCaprio's art-house film The 11th Hour, which premiered at the 2007 Cannes Film Festival in May, is causing quite the storm.

Passion-centric

On the back page of today's Los Angeles Times' Calendar section, staff writer Rose Apodaca focused on how the film's collective nature parallels the need for "a collective shift of individual determination to save the planet." As is often the case with passion-centric projects, many of the filmmakers donated their time: Jean-Pascal Beintus composed the music and Andrew Roland's camera crew shot the documentary for free. Leonardo DiCaprio, who co-wrote with directing sisters Nadia Conners and Leila Conners Petersen, was determined to get private financing in order to be sure to get his hands dirty on every subject:

"We wanted to let leaders on the forefront of these issues speak openly and freely, without having to defend something that's actually happening, something they've spent their lives' work studying."

DiCaprio, the Blood Diamond-starring, Prius-driving and Tree Media Group-partner, is no stranger to social relevance. See the cover story in Vanity Fair magazine to get up to speed on his actions.

Coverage

• The New York Times: "It may not change your life, but it may inspire you to recycle that old slogan-button your folks pinned on their dashikis back in the day: If you’re not part of the solution, you’re part of the problem."
• Variety: "11th Hour presents the viewer with reams of depressing data, loads of hand-wringing about the woeful state of humanity and, finally, some altogether fascinating ideas about how to go about solving the climate crisis."
• 81% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes' critic aggregate, as of 11am on August 18, 2007

Non-New Yorkers and Angelenos: the wider release is August 24, 2007.

Convergence

• DiCaprio's MySpace
• DiCaprio's personal site
• DiCaprio's "eco-site"
• Mobile phone content
• Official site from the distributor, Warner Bros. International
• Official call-to-action site (by Tree Media Group using the Drupal CMS)
• Theatrical trailer on YouTube ("the trailer alone has already scared the bejesus out of me … it's the kind of film you almost feel guilty about not watching," notes movie blog Cinematical)

Grassroots Reaction

• Even with echoes of An Inconvenient Truth — where the message is susceptible to fatigue from the globally-apathetic moviewatcher on a Superbad weekend — the repetition is part of the message. "This case needs to be stated again and again until humans are mobilized to action, for nothing else will be sufficient to ensure our collective survival." Environment-savvy entrepreneurial consultant Jonathan Cloud continues his thorough, informed and passionate analysis of the film and the problem at large.
• Promotional print from Obey Giant — street artist Shepard Fairey — who notes, "Skip the next Rob Sneider movie and to see the 11th Hour and you’ll be both avoiding pollution and educating yourself about it. If you won’t do it for yourself, do it for MY kid! Thanks." (Fans and critics responded, as it sold out quickly.)
• "The screensaver should be a t-shirt," notes the Ecorazzi blog's post by Michael d'Estries, co-founder and editor of "the latest in green gossip."

You'd rather watch ads than pay to download-to-own or rent a film or show. Google Video's marketplace for downloads met its demise, announced this last Friday, August 10th. Independent video producers can see this as a major trend for online video distribution.

The cost to watch

Google Video — originally a social video network that became a video search engine once it bought industry-leader YouTube — announced August 10 that it is discontinuing its DTO/DTR (download-to-own/rent) program.

DTO/DTR is becoming a big deal. Several other video networks like Veoh and Brightcove are still in the download business. As a content producer, you can choose if your audience can download or pay to download the ad-free content. Amazon.com's Unbox and Netflix also offer owned and rented content, respectively.

If you can, it's common to provide both: ad-laced to watch on demand, and ad-free to purchase. CBS, ABC, NBC and other major television networks, as well as some other social video networks like Videoegg, allow you to watch some content for free as long as you wait through interstitial ads. The "cost" of waiting is greatly preferred to purchasing. Several fellow filmmakers oft cite that "it's worth it." The networks also have pay-to-download deals with marketplaces like iTunes, which is not yet an option for independent producers.

The Los Angeles Times, which covered the story on August 10, interviewed director/DP Ben Rekhi (IMDb, Drops Entertainment) about his exclusive distribution deal via Google Video in July 2006. His award-winning feature film ended up with 80,000 viewers, but only 300 went on to purchase the $3.99 download. "It was an exciting opportunity and amazing experience to be a pioneer in the digital distribution realm," he said. "But with any new technology, there's going to be a few lambs that get slaughtered. We just happen to be that."

Limits to your purchase

Google Video's downloads use DRM (digital rights management), which in a variety of ways can limit the usage of the download for the consumer. In an e-mail sent out August 10, Google is refunding the amount spent by download-to-own customers or around $5 for download-to-rent customers. Their e-mail noted that "(a)fter August 15, 2007, you will no longer be able to view your purchased or rented videos." Even though you downloaded to "own," ownership is temporary and contingent on the distributor's leash.

One workaround may be to "rename the .gvi files to .avi and load them up in VLC media player (a free and open source media player). They’ll play fine in that player," notes Muhammad on the Techcrunch post.

Looking for a win/win

On the surface, the negative buzz compounds anti-DRM sentiments with the threatened trust that's forged whenever you purchase anything online. It can sound just like getting short-term notice that your iTunes Music Store downloads were going to no longer work, and weren't really yours despite your purchase. DRM technology is a win/lose for distributors and customers, respectively.

But was Google Video's distribution model working for you? Nope. Some online commentary, like Charbax on the NewTeeVee post, suggests Google probably has something better in the works, like adding download-to-own/rent to YouTube without DRM.

Food for thought

Would you download higher-res original content on YouTube for a couple bucks? Would people who tag your work as a "favorite" pony up the cash to keep it for good?