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‘Porntourage’ is Exactly What it Sounds LikeYesterday

One bit of humor the makers of Porntourage and I can agree upon is that Ted Levine stuffing his junk between his legs in Silence of the Lambs is the funniest thing ever.

On all other matters of comedy, there will be no such agreement. A Levine reference is dropped in not one but two episodes of this short-lived web series. I mention this because A) who doesn’t love Goodbye Horses or Ted Levine and B) the series is short on jokes.

This question must now be asked: can you REALLY parody a parody?

The premise of Porntourage needs no explanation, just read the title, but Entourage was hardly meant to be taken literally. It’s Hollywood wish fulfillment cranked up to a douche factor of eleven. It’s already a caricature.

Okay, that end is taken care of. How about the porn end? Whatever. Porn is great, yes, but it’s always an e

Thumbnails are No Longer Designed for BreastsYesterday

Before he left The Hollywood Reporter for the greener pastures of Thrillist, Steve Bryant wrote a list of online video lessons learned. In said list is one of my favorite quotes about the medium: “Boobs evolved for thumbnails.”

No content producer or new media studio has cracked the code for internet success and strategies on how to make “Teh Best Webshow Evar!!!1!!” are in a perpetual state of flux (Where should you release your episodes? On what type of schedule? How long should they be? Does it have to be interactive? How interactive? Etc? Etc.).

But underneath all the trials and errors lies that tried and true TNA method of garnering an audience. Entire YouTube careers have been based on cleavage (see Athene Wins and Hot for Words) and it’s a well known phenomenon that in a regular old web series, the episodes with the most (or disproportionate) view counts are going to be the ones where the thumbnail is the most lascivious.

But that was the old YouTube. Now, there’s a new YouTube with quality standards that penalize the use of profanity and sexually suggestive material. A Youtube for all of us.

A post on YouTube’s blog outlines the new initiatives it will take to “make the collective YouTube experience even better” (for advertisers, not necessarily users).

• Stricter standard for mature content - While videos featuring pornographic images or sex acts are always removed from the site when they’re flagged, we’re tightening the standard for what is considered “sexually suggestive.” Videos with sexually suggestive (but not prohibited) content will be age-restricted, which means they’ll be available only to viewers who are 18 or older.

• Demotion of sexually suggestive content and profanity - Videos that are considered sexually suggestive, or that contain profanity, will be algorithmically demoted on our ‘Most Viewed,’ ‘Top Favorited,’ and other browse pages. The classification of these types of videos is based on a number of factors, including video content and descriptions. In testing, we’ve found that out of the thousands of videos on these pages, only several each day are automatically demoted for being too graphic or explicit. However, those videos are often the ones which end up being repeatedly flagged by the community as being inappropriate.

• Improved thumbnails - To make sure your thumbnail represents your video, your choices will now be selected algorithmically. You’ll still have three thumbnails to choose from, but they will no longer be auto-generated from the 25/50/75 points in the video index.

• More accurate video information - Our Community Guidelines have always prohibited folks from attempting to game view counts by entering misleading information in video descriptions, tags, titles, and other metadata. We remain serious about enforcing these rules. Remember, violations of these guidelines could result in removal of your video and repeated violations will lead to termination of your account.

As expected, this caused an outrage in the YouTube community, especially amongst its Producers with a history of gaming views.

Some made legitimate arguments that they need control of their thumbnails in order to properly brand their content. That’s a good point. Users who choose their thumbnail images not by cupsize but by relevance to their videos might become innocent victims within this new system. That sucks, but breasts shouldn’t be people’s biggest concern.

Discover a Unique Brand of NYC Loserdom with ‘Mimi and Flo’Yesterday

Mimi and Flo, the two quirky twenty-somethings at the center of surprisingly addictive web series The Mimi and Flo Show, are the bizarre answer to the millions of Carrie Bradshaw wannabes out there who believe that all it takes to succeed in Manhattan is a healthy sex life, designer heels, and cringe inducing puns.

You see, Mimi and Flo are Midwesterners (Mimi is from a dairy farm in rural Wisconsin and Flo is from the Chicagoland area… Go Bears!) trying to make it in NYC. And they’re losers. Big losers.

But the genius thing about Mimi (Hannah Bos) and Flo (Frances Chewning) is that they are completely unique in their brand of loser-dom. So, while other girls about town may be conquering New York in conventional fashion, Mimi and Flo are starting new oven mitt fashion crazes, sharing an inflatable mattress, testing the limits of elevator flatulence, or whatever you want them to do.

Mimi and Flo is modeled after the old-fashioned “choose your own adventure” stories, so that at the end of each 5-ish-minute long segment the viewer may choose one of two distinct paths. Some options, though, never lead to Mimi and Flo becoming Mary and Rhoda-like BFFs, and instead leave you wholly unsatisfied (kinda like when you escape the zombies, but only temporarily).

If, like me, you want the show to continue for as long as possible then you can check out their slightly aggravating, but pretty website’s episode guide that shows the episode progression in a clear and easy to read format. This way you can watch Mimi and Flo try to find a career path (fashion designers or actresses?), date the ridiculously hunky neighbor (call him or don’t call him?), and do some other, stranger things, like discover a human skull in their sink (call the police or don’t call the police?).

While these scenarios are generally funny enough in themselves, what make the best segments pop are the details, mostly provided by Mimi, who is more child than woman (i.e. when her date tells her that he teaches preschool she giddily responds, “ I loved preschool!”)

A standout video shows Mimi giving Flo a tour of her “apartment,” which is really her cousin’s kitchen. She explains, with complete child-like sincerity that the refrigerator is where she keeps her makeup and that the sink comes equipped with hot and cold water and that you can mix them!

Mimi’s wide-eyed delivery keeps the comedy lively, odd, and, ultimately, very funny. Flo’s comedy gold mostly comes from her ancient pager that she refuses to trade in for a cell phone (why did people every have those, again?).

The chemistry (evocative of that of other unique twenty-something ladies) between the two, however, is what gives the series surprising heart beneath all the wackiness, grounding it in a completely unexpected way. The sincerity of their bond makes you want to continue watching their unfortunate lives.

iTunes Best of 2008 Doesn’t Match YouTube NumbersYesterday

The good people at Apple’s iTunes have released their annual top-seller and best of lists for 2008. Ask a Ninja topped out the Video Podcast list on the “Classics” side, while 60Frames‘ Who What Wear came in close to #1 for the Video Newcomers in 2008 category.

Unlike last year’s YouTube list of most memorable videos, whose honorees were chosen via a mysterious “formula” that took into consideration “view counts, most shared, most discussed, top rated, and general popularity,” Apple doesn’t let you know how these programs made it on the lists.

There’s now way to tell if the series had high download numbers or whether they were simply the editors’ favorites.

I’m guessing the selection process took into account both numbers

‘Nirvana The Band The Show’ Goes to ElevenDecember 2

I’m astounded by the number of guys and girls making videos about trying to get famous. When I started watching Nirvana the Band the Show I thought, “Here’s another pair of these dudes giving fame a go.”

The series that premiered in mid-Decmember 2007 is quite reminiscent of Clark and Michael, but instead of Hollywood neophytes trying to make a sitcom, it’s a mockumentary about a couple of odd Toronto guys trying to make it as a band (which they naively name “Nirvana the Band”), who make all the wrong moves.

The first episode takes place entirely in Matt (Matt Johnson) and Jay’s (Jay McCarrol) apartment as they develop their act (which seems more like a vaudeville performance than a grunge rocker set, and, in fact, the only nod to the real Nirvana comes when Smells Like Teen Spirit plays while the credits roll) and try to get booked at a local club called Rivioli’s.