Netflix releases viewership data for the first time

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Jason Hellerman reports on No Film School that Netflix Releases All Its Streaming Data for the First Time Ever.

He points out that this is a huge story because the “notoriously secretive Netflix has published all its streaming numbers for the public to see” for the first time.

Netflix will publish the What We Watched: A Netflix Engagement Report twice a year.

The report has four columns:

  1. Title, both original and licensed
  2. Whether the title was available globally
  3. The premiere date for any Netflix TV series or film
  4. Hours viewed

Some takeaways:

  • This six month timeframe aggregates 100 billion hours viewed.
  • Over 60% of the titles appeared on Netflix’s weekly Top 10 lists.
  • 30% of all viewing was for non-English content, mainly Korean and Spanish.

Here’s the Netflix media release.

Here’s their six-month 18,000+ row spreadsheet.

My take: the industry has always wanted more transparency from Netflix and I don’t think it’s a coincidence that this report comes on the heels on the writer and actor strikes. I would love to see someone take this information and cross-reference it with genres, formats and actors. Will other streamers follow with their data?

Now and Then: how the short doc started with audio interviews

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Rosie Hilder writes on Creative Bloq all about How Oliver Murray made the 12-minute Now and Then, Last Beatles Song documentary.

Oliver Murray says,

“First of all, the most important thing for me was that it felt fresh and contemporary, so we started out by recording new audio interviews with the surviving members of the band, Sean Ono Lennon and Peter Jackson. It was important to record only audio because that’s my favourite way of getting intimate and conversational interview content.”

He adds,

“I took these interviews into the edit and made a kind of podcast cut of the story, which became our foundation for the timeline…. Interviews are always a big part of my process, and are where I start because more often than not the answers that you get to questions lead you somewhere you didn’t expect and change the course of the project, so I like to do those early. It’s always useful to start with audio because it’s also the most malleable and it’s possible to go back for pick up interviews. Archive footage or access (with a camera) to the people you’re talking to actually doing what they’re talking about is much harder to acquire.”

Rosie asks him, “What is your favourite part of the finished film?”

Oliver replies: The emotional climax of the film is definitely the moment where we get to hear John’s isolated vocal for the first time. It’s quite an emotional moment to hear him emerge from that scratchy demo.

My take: this confirms that sound is more important than picture, to me. I think it would have been nice to have the dates displayed on each film clip used because there are a lot, and they bounce around in time, from now and then.

Kodak releases ‘new’ Super 8 camera — the price will surprise you!

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Brian Hallett writing on ProVideo Coalition, was one of the first to report on The Brand New KODAK Super 8mm Film Camera.

Yes, this camera films on those boxy Super 8 cartridges, but it does so much more:

  • It has a 4″ LCD viewfinder with aspect ratio overlays, interactive menus and camera settings.
  • It has an extended gate, now 13.5:9 full frame (versus the traditional 4:3 or 12:9 aspect ratio) that will make cropping down to 16:9 a breeze.
  • It comes equipped with a detachable wide-angle 6 mm 1:1.2 C-mount lens but you can screw on any C-mount lens.
  • It records sound with an on-board sound recorder and via 3.5 mm input to an integrated SD card reader.
  • It runs crystal sync at 24 and 25 fps, plus over and under cranks at 18 and 36 fps.
  • It has a distinctive top handle and a pistol grip.

Here’s the full datasheet. And here’s their sizzle reel:

Curiously, Kodak first announced this camera in January 2016 at CES for “between $400 and $750.”

Funny, both the released camera and the prototype look an awful lot like the Logmar Humboldt S8.

Logmar’s next Super 8 camera, the Chatham S8, had a superior Latham loop mechanism that resulted in rock-steady registration, never seen before on Super 8. Check out this sample that actually looks like 16 mm footage:

Logmar’s latest C-mount Super 8 camera is the Gentoo GS8 that “uses standard Kodak 50 ft cartridges in combination with a re-usable spacer providing true pin registration.”

Oh, and by the way, the MSRP of Kodak’s “new” Super 8 camera is only $5,495 USD. That does include one cartridge of Super 8 film. No word on if that includes processing though.

My take: [shakes head] Kodak, Kodak, Kodak. You’re just trying to get this project off your books, right?

Finally, new plots unlocked for Hallmark movies!

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Ryan Morrison of Tom’s Guide, reveals I asked ChatGPT to create a Hallmark Christmas movie — and it went better than expected.

He begins:

“Part of my job is testing AI products to find out how well they work, what they can be used for and just how good they are at different tasks. So, inspired by my mom’s favorite genre of movie I decided to ask ChatGPT to write a Christmas story in the style of Hallmark.”

His ChatGPT 4 prompt? “Can you help me come up with the plot for a Hallmark-style Christmas movie?”

The resulting basic plot? “In ‘Christmas Carousel’, a New York architect discovers love and the value of tradition when she teams up with a local carousel restorer to save a cherished holiday attraction in a small town.”

There’s a more detailed plot, characters and even dialogue.

The AI even suggests filming in Cold Spring, New York State.

Oops! There is a real 2020 Hallmark movie called “A Christmas Carousel” with this plot: “When Lila is hired by the Royal Family of Ancadia to repair a carousel, she must work with the Prince to complete it by Christmas.”

My take: even though it appears ChatGPT 4 came extremely close to ripping off the title of an existing Hallmark movie, I like its plot better than the real one. Go figure.

YouTube’s Dream Track and Music AI Tools

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Sarah Fielding of Engadget reports that YouTube’s first AI-generated music tools can clone artist voices and turn hums into melodies.

The YouTube technology is called Dream Track for Shorts.

The mock-up asks you for a text prompt and then writes lyrics, music and has a voice-cloned artist sing:

YouTube is also testing Music AI Tools:

This is all possible due to Google DeepMind’s Lyria, their most advanced AI music generation model to date.

Cleo Abram also explains the real issue with AI music: When do artists get paid?

My take: AI is just a tool — I use it occasionally and will be exploring it more in 2024. What we as a society really need to figure out is what everyone’s going to do, and how they’ll get (not earn) enough money to live, when AI and Robotics make paid work redundant.

Filmed on iPhone

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Apple‘s October 30, 2023 Event closed with this end credit: “This event was shot on iPhone and edited on Mac.”

That would be filmed using the iPhone 15 Pro Max with the free Blackmagic Camera App and Apple Log. Plus edited in Premier Pro and then graded and finalized in Davinci Resolve.

michael tobin adds further insight and commentary:

My take: Of course, now Apple has to film everything they do like this!

 

Technology saves “last Beatles song”

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The Beatles have just released their last single, Now and Then.

It appears as a free VEVO music video as well as these for-purchase products: various versions of vinyl and cassette.

“Now and Then” was a demo John Lennon recorded in The Dakota in the late 1970’s. The main reason it’s The Beatles’ last single is because until now it was too hard to separate John’s vocals from the piano notes. Technology to the rescue:

Want to know more? Check out this Parlogram documentary.

My take: I like this video most when it starts incorporating images from “Then” with footage from “Now” viz. 1:47, 1:55, etc. I would have liked to have seen much more of this technique used. This is truly the visualization of Now and Then — show us more!

Unfortunately, I’m not overly enamoured with the song itself; I find it middling and melancholic. I also don’t like:

  • The graphics and the cover image — boring!
  • The first few shots of the video are over-sharpened and plop us in the “uncanny valley” — not a good start.
  • The lip sync is poor — if you’re going to use AI, why not go all the way and use AI to reshape the mouths for perfect sync?
  • I think they missed a great opportunity to have Paul and Ringo sing verses in their own voices. Again, why not go all in and use AI to voice clone George and have him sing a verse too?

As to “last singles” — I think they should give this treatment the last song the Beatles actually recorded together: The End. Although, after 60 years, perhaps it’s just time to move on.

Telefilm releases annual report for 2022-23

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Telefilm Canada has release two annual reports: Full Screen 2022-2023 Annual Report and PROGRAM RESULTS FROM SELF-IDENTIFICATION DATA COLLECTION Fiscal 2022-2023 – First Edition.

Some highlights:

“We guide filmmakers every step of the way: from training and mentoring at the beginning of their journey, to supporting them in development and production, from helping them promote their projects to partners and digital platforms, to supporting them in theatrical and festival releases.”

  • The foreign production and production services sector accounts for approximately 57% of the total volume of screen-based content produced in Canada.
  • Canadian films’ share of screen time in movie theatres: 4.7%.
  • Telefilm administered a total of $158.7 million.
  • Quebec received 47% of total funding.
  • Ontario received 32% of total funding.

From the 2022-2023 self-identification data report:

  • “Telefilm granted 24% ($20 million) of total funding to projects in which one of the key creative positions was held by a person with a disability.”
  • “For producers with disabilities, the representation is at a quarter (25%) in the Talent to Watch Program.”

My take: there’s lots to celebrate in these reports. I just wish we could see more Canadian films on cinema screens in Canada.

Concept to Pitch

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Jason Hellerman shares on No Film School: 6 Essential Ways to Prep Your TV Pitch for Studio Execs.

He starts by pointing out: “Every TV show that’s on the air was an idea in someone’s head at one point. and then, it was a pitch that they delivered.”

His suggestions, in a nutshell?

  1. Have a clear vision.
  2. Write a compelling logline.
  3. Write a synopsis.
  4. Develop memorable characters.
  5. Practice your pitch.
  6. Incorporate feedback.

He closes with:

“By focusing on comprehensive coverage, crafting a compelling logline and synopsis, developing memorable characters, creating a strong visual presentation, and utilizing feedback for improvement, you can create a pitch that stands out from the competition and captures the attention of network executives.”

My take: This is great advice, and well worth the read!

Victoria’s connection to Letterboxd

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On September 29, 2023, co-founder Matthew Buchanan of Letterboxd announced, “we have accepted an offer for Tiny to acquire a 60 percent stake in Letterboxd, securing the platform’s future as an independently run company and part of the Tiny stable.”

Matthew elaborates:

“Something else that began around this time, courtesy of Tumblr’s flourishing design community, was my friendship with Andrew Wilkinson and his brother Will, both involved with MetaLab. There was no-one paying attention to the design scene at that time who wasn’t aware of their digital agency in Victoria and the quality of work it was delivering. We first met in person at XOXO in Portland, then kept in touch, as we both continued to build: us with our studio and Letterboxd, and Andrew with MetaLab and then Tiny, which acquires and supports great, creative businesses.”

The Hollywood Reporter reports the deal at $30,000,000 USD.

My take: fascinating! I can’t help but think the world is smaller than I once thought.