About crises of meaning for young creatives
Abroad Young creatives in crisis now have a TV series and a social network. We're talking about "Quarterlife".
Abroad
Young creatives in crisis now have a TV series and a social network. We're talking about "Quarterlife".
The life of a young creative is not easy. The track record is still short and working with the industry's old hands is often associated with frustration. This can sometimes plunge young free spirits into a crisis of meaning. In the USA, the series "Quarterlife" has been dealing with the worries and fears of young creatives since November. The series tells the life stories of six creative people in their mid-20s. The story begins with Dylan (Bitsie Tulloch), who blurts out her friends' most private secrets in her overly honest video blog. Incidentally, they are sounding out their future as filmmakers, actors, journalists or photographers. As you might expect, not everyone is enthusiastic about the blog. A total of 36 episodes, each eight minutes long, were produced. With "Quarterlife", the film business presents us with a premiere. For the first time in film history, a series is moving from the online world to the TV screen. Three months ago, the project was launched on the Internet portal Myspace.com. Following its success on the web, it will be broadcast on NBC's US network in the spring. The television company acquired the rights from the well-known screenwriters Marshall Herskovitz and Edward Zwick. As soon as all episodes have been shown on the network, NBC will begin broadcasting.
According to NBC, the eight-minute episodes will be packed into a TV-compliant 60-minute format, which the makers don't mind. Quarterlife" was originally intended for television. Three years ago, Marshall Herskovitz and Edward Zwick peddled their series concept to ABC - but were rejected by the Disney channel. The authors claim that, apart from the name of the series, everything was completely rewritten and tailored to the Internet. However, critics openly question this. The pointed remark: with the best will in the world, no interactive elements or other Internet-specific narrative forms can be found. Rather, "Quarterlife" is an attempt to bring an idea that failed at the first attempt to television.
Space for self-expressionAlthough there is no "Internet-specific narrative form" to be found, the project nevertheless sets a milestone in the film business and on the Internet. Parallel to the series, the makers of "Quarterlife" have set up a so-called social network in the style of Myspace. Young creatives, whether aspiring ADs or copywriters, can create profiles on the platform and network with each other. The website also allows young creatives to publish their work in the form of MP3s, videos and photos. In their blogs, young artists ponder copyright issues on the Internet or discuss scripts uploaded by others. In addition to blogs and forums, Quarterlife.com is also an information platform with editorial articles on training opportunities and helpful link lists.
For the creators of the series, building a community of artists has another purpose than offering the young people a platform for self-expression. The concept allegedly envisages that the users will later have a say in the further course of the series. This protects the project from the scriptwriters' strike in two ways. Firstly, because "Quarterlife" is an internet project and the production company is not a member of the currently striking producers' association AMPTP, and secondly because the community is actively involved in writing the story. It remains to be seen whether "Quarterlife" will lead to a rethink in the TV business.
Christian Lüscher
Young creatives in crisis now have a TV series and a social network. We're talking about "Quarterlife".
The life of a young creative is not easy. The track record is still short and working with the industry's old hands is often associated with frustration. This can sometimes plunge young free spirits into a crisis of meaning. In the USA, the series "Quarterlife" has been dealing with the worries and fears of young creatives since November. The series tells the life stories of six creative people in their mid-20s. The story begins with Dylan (Bitsie Tulloch), who blurts out her friends' most private secrets in her overly honest video blog. Incidentally, they are sounding out their future as filmmakers, actors, journalists or photographers. As you might expect, not everyone is enthusiastic about the blog. A total of 36 episodes, each eight minutes long, were produced. With "Quarterlife", the film business presents us with a premiere. For the first time in film history, a series is moving from the online world to the TV screen. Three months ago, the project was launched on the Internet portal Myspace.com. Following its success on the web, it will be broadcast on NBC's US network in the spring. The television company acquired the rights from the well-known screenwriters Marshall Herskovitz and Edward Zwick. As soon as all episodes have been shown on the network, NBC will begin broadcasting.
According to NBC, the eight-minute episodes will be packed into a TV-compliant 60-minute format, which the makers don't mind. Quarterlife" was originally intended for television. Three years ago, Marshall Herskovitz and Edward Zwick peddled their series concept to ABC - but were rejected by the Disney channel. The authors claim that, apart from the name of the series, everything was completely rewritten and tailored to the Internet. However, critics openly question this. The pointed remark: with the best will in the world, no interactive elements or other Internet-specific narrative forms can be found. Rather, "Quarterlife" is an attempt to bring an idea that failed at the first attempt to television.
Space for self-expressionAlthough there is no "Internet-specific narrative form" to be found, the project nevertheless sets a milestone in the film business and on the Internet. Parallel to the series, the makers of "Quarterlife" have set up a so-called social network in the style of Myspace. Young creatives, whether aspiring ADs or copywriters, can create profiles on the platform and network with each other. The website also allows young creatives to publish their work in the form of MP3s, videos and photos. In their blogs, young artists ponder copyright issues on the Internet or discuss scripts uploaded by others. In addition to blogs and forums, Quarterlife.com is also an information platform with editorial articles on training opportunities and helpful link lists.
For the creators of the series, building a community of artists has another purpose than offering the young people a platform for self-expression. The concept allegedly envisages that the users will later have a say in the further course of the series. This protects the project from the scriptwriters' strike in two ways. Firstly, because "Quarterlife" is an internet project and the production company is not a member of the currently striking producers' association AMPTP, and secondly because the community is actively involved in writing the story. It remains to be seen whether "Quarterlife" will lead to a rethink in the TV business.
Christian Lüscher
