Category: Web Series

Epic Fantasy Web Series Launches Kickstarter Campaign

“The Rangers,” a new fantasy web series from the award-winning producers of “The Rise of the Fellowship” and one of the major creative forces behind the award-winning documentary “Darkon,” launches a Kickstarter campaign on March 8. They’re calling all fantasy fans to join their team of successful filmmakers, creative minds and talented craftsmen and actors to make this quality, fan-supported fantasy entertainment possible. The campaign rewards are enviable; the resulting series will be epic.

The series will follow an elite band of borderland protectors known as Rangers and their efforts to save their kingdom Olaran—and their entire world—from its greatest challenge. Even while they fight a mythic evil, they must overcome their own personal demons. Can the Rangers save their world without losing themselves?

“We’re developing a fantasy world of broad scope and depth that will be an immersive fan experience,” says Ron Newcomb, project creator and executive producer. “We’ve put together an incredible, successful team to bring fans the best fantasy content possible.”

Ranger Creed

We are the watchers in the woods,
The protectors of the realm.
We are the heralds of warning,

The beacon lighters of hope,
Violence prowls the land,
And hard men must meet it.

We are the judges…
We are the executioners…
Never will we fail,
Never will we give in.
The first to stand,
And if need be, the first to die.

We are the guardians.
We are the iron hand of the King.
The Body that fights,
The Mind that guards,
The Soul that endures.

We are the Rangers.
“The Rangers” team asks fantasy fans to:

  • Check out the campaign and learn more about the series at www.therangersfilm.com
  • Make a donation to put their name in the series and earn rewards
  • Encourage others to donate
  • Spread the word about the series to friends, bloggers, forums and social media influencers
  • Follow them on Twitter  (#TheRangersFilm) and Facebook

 

If the creators surpass their goal, they’re even considered making “The Rangers” into a feature-length film.  “We want fantasy fans to join their blades with ours and become part of this adventure,” Newcomb adds.

Behind the Scenes With Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City

The first behind the scenes look at the production of the new fan made web series “Resident Evil: Welcome To Raccoon City” by Like A Boss TV.

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Twitter @likeabosstv #eviliscoming

Resident Evil: Welcome to Racoon City

The official trailer for the new fan-made web series dropping February 28th, 2013. Experience the horror again as you did when “Resident Evil” first launched for the original Playstation platform! Live action and full of zombie carnage! Watch as three different story lines unfold before you! Better yet…you get to choose who to follow! Iconic characters Chris Redfield, Jill Valentine, and Leon S. Kennedy fight to withstand the evil operations being conducted by Umbrella! Evil is coming!

Facebook Like A Boss TV

YouTube Like A Boss TV Now

Twitter @likeabosstv #eviliscoming

 

Retrofit Films Hires Ryan Copple as VP of Digital Development

Halo and Riese Webseries producer appointed by Retrofit to lead original content team.

Retrofit Films, an award-winning digital production company, announces that Ryan Copple has joined the executive management team as VP of Digital Development. Copple brings to the company an expertise in digital series development, strategy and production with partnerships at BBC Worldwide, Syfy, E One, Muse Entertainment and Content Media, among others.

“Ryan’s breadth of experience in interactive content development and monetization launches Retrofit Films into our next stage of growth,” says Retrofit’s co-founder Chris Hanada. “We’re very excited to expand our own stories by building on our experience creating digital, cross platform, branded entertainment for existing franchises with the studios and networks.”

Ryan’s background includes co-creating and executive-producing the critically acclaimed sci-fi webseries “Riese: Kingdom Falling” whose rights were picked up and licensed worldwide by the Syfy Network’s digital arm before the project crossed media boundaries with a spin-off iPhone game and prequel novel published by Simon & Schuster.

Most recently Ryan completed co-producing Microsoft’s highly-anticipated webseries “Halo 4: Forward Unto Dawn” for Machinima before relocating from Vancouver to Los Angeles. “Innovative content coupled with equally innovative strategy is the future of traditional and new media companies,” say Copple. “A company with Retrofit’s pedigree is primed to bridge the gap between traditional and new media, and I’m thrilled to be a part of that evolution.”

“Ryan is here to really light the fire under our own intellectual properties,” says Retrofit co-founder Tanner Kling. “We’ve produced two original series in the past year, but bringing him into the fold signals a full-throttle dive into our development slate of original projects and our company’s continuing emphasis on creating strong strategic partnerships in the digital landscape.”

 

About Retrofit Films
Retrofit Films is an award-winning digital production company founded in 2004 by Chris Hanada and Tanner Kling. The company has a history of producing multi-platform stories and experiences for global brands, television networks and Hollywood studios with franchises such as FRINGE, HOUSE MD, HEROES, and THE VAMPIRE DIARIES.

For more information, please visit us at http://www.retrofitfilms.com

The Guild: Five Years and Counting

From WatchTheGuild:

 

Five years ago today – on July 27, 2007 – the very first episode of The Guild was uploaded to YouTube.  It’s hard to believe how far the show has come, and as always, on behalf of the show we want to thank the fans for the incredible support which has made the show the success it is today.  Today the show is widely available on many platforms for free (YouTube, Xbox, MSN/Bing, Hulu, Blip, Zune) and for purchase/with subscription (Netflix, iTunes, Amazon DVD or VOD).

All next week we’ll be celebrating the past five years – and looking ahead to more with the recently announced sixth season, which will come to Geek and Sundry (subscribe now) this fall .  Connect with us via social media as we have some some cool stuff planned including giveaways (LOOT!).  Check out the post on Geek and Sundry for details on the giveaways, which start at 1pm today!

Here’s THE GUILD’S Twitter, Facebook, Google+, and Tumblr, and here’s GEEK AND SUNDRY’S Twitter, Facebook, Google+, and Tumblr.  And please join us for more discussion on Geek and Sundry’s new discussion forums.

We asked the producers and cast to give us their thoughts on those early episodes, and the growth of the show over the last five years.

What do you remember about the first episode?

FELICIA DAY: I remember emailing 12 hours a day to blogs I read about gaming and geek stuff, introducing myself as an “actress from Buffy” and please spread word about my show.  Most of them ignored me, but a few picked it up. Some of the first fans we had were Veronica Belmont and Alice Taylor withWonderland blog. Without their spreading word of the show we wouldn’t have gotten nearly as much traction as fast with the online community.   But I remember refreshing the video and seeing people actually comment about our work, and realizing that THAT was what I wanted to do with me life, make things for people to react to immediately.  It was a whole new life when we uploaded that episode.

VINCENT CASO: When that first episode went up, I didn’t think a whole lot of it. I mean, it was cool, and a lot of fun to see myself in this production, but who had any idea it would turn into this?

AMY OKUDA: The Guild was my first acting job, and my first day of shooting was me and the webcam so I was talking and acting to a blank computer screen and I remember thinking, “wow this is a lot harder and less fun than I thought” but the day we all shot together for the first time at Cheesybeards changed everything for me. It was the “aahhh, this is what acting is, it IS fun” moment for me.

ROBIN THORSEN:  I have to be honest and say that when I auditioned for The Guild, I really had never heard of World of Warcraft…during my audition I actually said something like “AKFing,” like it was a real word instead of A-F-K-ing.  I remember  Felicia said  after I finished, “That was good!  Let’s try it again and it’s A-F-King” I was like oooooooh! Now, I think that after five seasons I have become a little more seasoned with all the game lingo.

 

There’s lots more where that came from so go check out The Guild’s website to read the rest of the interview and check out some great photos.

Mister French Taste Episode 1 – The Job Interview

Finding the appropriate person to teach the rich and spoiled Leon Wong manners and proper social behavior is not as easy as it seems. Have a peek at some of the colorful competition that Mr. French beat out for the lucrative job!

Mister French Taste is an etiquette coach who is faced with the challenge of a lifetime: transforming the unruly Leon, the only son of a conservative Hong Kong family and a constant source of scandals and shame into a perfectly groomed gentleman while at the same time, trying to steal the heart of Lily, the beautiful young heiress to a Hong Kong fashion empire, educated and smart, and fluent in the art of shopping. Watch Hong Kong and France collide in this hilarious comedy of manners!

I See Honk Kong, I See France, I See Lily’s Underpants! Irreverent New Comedy “Mister French Taste” to Premiere on KoldCast TV

From Mister French Taste:

What do you get when you cross bad table manners, chicken feet, and a liberal dose of “ooh-la-la”? An innovative, cross-cultural comedy series from Jennifer Thym, the award-winning director of “LUMINA” and “Bloodtraffick”, set to debut on Monday, April 30, 2012, on KoldCast TV, the leading international discovery network for original TV series. Set in Hong Kong, “Mister French Taste” follows the antics of an uppity French etiquette coach Mr. French (Olivier Malet) who is hired to wrangle a gentleman out of the naive and unruly Leon Wong (Osric Chau), while both compete for the attentions of the sexy shopaholic Lily Lee (Sarah Lian).

“Mister French” is the brainchild of lead actor Olivier Malet and producer Veronique Girma. “I had seen so many comedies about Americans (eyeroll) and even worse… Englishmen… (shudders) and I thought, why not do a show about a Frenchman? Why not do a show about me?” muses Malet. When asked about his uncanny resemblance to a certain infamous English actor, Malet simply flutters his eyelashes and asks, “Mr. Who? Oh wait, perhaps you speak of the esteemed Mr. Craig. I adore James Bond movies, in fact I live every day like it’s my last. Or did you mean the Englishman with the unfortunate digestive issues – what was his name… Mr. Bean…o?” The pair signed Thym, who brought on writer Arne Venema, and “Mister French” was well on its way.

The show stars hot, young actor Osric Chau as Mr. French’s incorrigible protégé Leon Wong and FHM’s Most Wanted Woman in Malaysia Sarah Lian as the fashion-fixated Lily Lee. “I wanted actors who were fresh and enthusiastic,” says Thym. “Osric is one of the greatest talents in our generation – a truly gifted natural actor. When I saw him in the Roland Emmerich movie ’2012?, the way he could be both innocent and alluring struck a deep chord with me. Although he had predominantly worked on action films up to that point, I felt that he was the right choice to play opposite Olivier in a comedy.” And comedy roles seem to suit him as Chau’s next film is the Halloween high school comedy “Fun Size” starring Nickelodeon’s Victoria Justice and directed by the creator of “The O.C.”, Josh Schwartz.

Thym says that the key to putting together “Mister French Taste” was finding the right balance between slapstick and tongue-in-cheek. “Olivier has a great sense of comic timing and we wanted gifted actors who would be able to improv with him on camera. Everyone knows that Sarah is beautiful, her fans all over Asia agree with that, but what people may not know is that she is smart and has a wonderful sense of humor, and can play it straight to Olivier’s outlandishness.” Lian’s experience with “Mister French Taste” led her to being cast in the upcoming Canadian web show “Millions.”

The first 10-episode season of the series features a disgusting food showdown, an orgasmic French brand experience, and a gorgeous girl-packed one-shot wonder. “Episode 8, which is just a single two-and-a-half minute shot, was so much fun to film. We did about 20 takes to nail it, with our gallant Osric scooping up and getting knocked down by Jane Wong over and over and over. That’s when all his martial arts experience kicked in!” Thym says with a laugh.

“The series has been a dream to bring to life. We feel that the time is ripe for a show that teaches about etiquette in a classy and humorous way,” adds Girma. “Our unique approach to etiquette education is what attracted our brand sponsors, including Shanghai Tang and Tara Moor. And having celebrities appear on the show, like the amazing martial arts star Celina Jade, was a real treat.” Jade, who just wrapped shooting on a kung fu short with two-time Formula 1 World Champion Sebastian Vettel, guest stars as cheeky college whiz kid Angie Clarke in Episode 1.

Catch the premiere of “Mister French Taste” on KoldCast TV on Monday, April 30, 2012. New episodes premiere every Monday at 1 AM, PST.

‘Battlestar Galactica: Blood & Chrome’ Not Moving Forward As TV Series On Syfy, May Become Digital Series

from Deadline:

It’s a case of bad news/good news forBattlestar Galactica fans who have been flocking to the Web to watch an unauthorized trailer for the long-in-the-works offshoot Battlestar Galactica: Blood & Chrome over the past 36 hours. After lengthy deliberations, Syfy has decided not to go forward with the project, about the young years of William Adama, as a regular TV series. Blood & Chrome, initially envisioned as a Web series, was greenlighted as a two-hour TV pilot in October 2010. Because of intensive post-production, including special effects, the pilot was not delivered to Syfy until last November. As of January, Syfy president original programming Mark Stern was quoted as saying that he the network brass were “trying to figure out the economics right now” and that he hoped those would be figured out. Now, the network has passed on the project as a regular series but is looking to do it as a digital one, while airing the already produced pilot on the network as a movie. “Though the vision for “Battlestar Galactica: Blood & Chrome” has evolved over the course of the past year, our enthusiasm for this ambitious project has not waned,” Stern said in a statement today. “We are actively pursuing it as was originally intended: a groundbreaking digital series that will launch to audiences beyond the scope of a television screen. The 90-minute pilot movie will air on Syfy in its entirety at a future date.”

Despite the lengthy production and decision-making, the buzz about Blood & Chrome never died among Battlestar fans. It went into overdrive over the past couple of days following a WonderCom panel over the weekend with Kevin Grazier, the scientific adviser for Syfy’s Battlestar Galactica series, where he screened what was described as a trailer for Blood & Chrome. That trailer, to Trent Reznor and Karen O’s cover of “Immigrant Song” for The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, found its way to the Web on Monday night and has gone viral — garnering some 100,000 views in 24 hours. The problem was that this was not an official trailer but a demo reel not intended for public consumption and thus not put through the process of clearing music and other rights. It is still unclear how the video made its way to WonderCon, but NBCUniversal today moved swiftly to take down the multiple copies that had popped up on YouTube. Universal Cable Prods, which produces Blood & Chrome, may still shop the project to other networks. Michael Taylor wrote the teleplay from a story byBattlestar Galactica executive producer David Eick, Taylor and Bradley Thompson & David Weddle.