Filmmaker Lance Weiler is the special guest on this first video podcast at UC101. Weiler talks about the unique ways he has experimented with extending the storyworld of his feature films out to other media platforms and artforms, and he shares his insights into the innovative digital distribution techniques he has been spearheading for years. To jump to particular topics, here is a short guide:

03:02 The Last Broadcast
14:32 Head Trauma
44:14 From Here to Awesome
54:53 Workbook Project
59:01 Random Future

Here is part of his bio from his personal site:

His first feature, The Last Broadcast, is currently distributed in over 20 countries. It has the honor of being the first all digital release of a motion picture to theaters nationwide and has enjoyed runs on HBO and IFC. To date, The Last Broadcast, a self-distributed effort, has grossed over 4 million dollars worldwide. [...] Lance’s newest feature, Head Trauma, had its world premiere at the LA Film Festival in 2006. This past fall Head Trauma had a 17 city DIY digital theatrical run before hitting stores and retail outlets nationwide on DVD. Recently, Lance has created a new Head Trauma event called a cinema ARG (alternate realty game) that allows audience members to experience a new form of storytelling. The cinematic ARG is a mashup of movies, music, theatrics and gaming. [...] Lance is also the founder of the Workbook Project a ’social open source’ project for filmmakers. The Workbook Project’s goal is to help filmmakers understand the changing landscape of funding, production, promotion, and distribution in a digital age. Lance also sits on the board of the IFP a national filmmaker organization and is the co-founder of From Here to Awesome a discovery and distribution fest that puts filmmakers directly in touch with global audiences.

And here are links to sites we refer to:

• Lance Weiler’’s personal site: www.lanceweiler.com
• Stefan Avalos’’s personal website: www.stefanavalos.com
• The Last Broadcast – current site & original site;
• Fictional website for the show within the film The Last Broadcast: Fact or Fiction;
• Jim McBride’’s David Holzman’’s Diary
• Orson Welles’’s F for Fake
• Head Trauma movie site: www.headtraumamovie.com
• Full case study of Head Trauma, the Cinema ARG & the ARG Hope is Missing: casestudy.workbookproject.com
• Head Trauma alternate soundtrack: Cursed: parkthevan.com/cursed
• William Castle
• Head Trauma ”Hope is Missing” ARG main website: www.hopeismissing.blogspot.com
• Head Trauma ”Hope is Missing” case study
• “Medium clusters” wasn”t introduced by Gene Youngblood but by Roy Grundmann in his essay ‘Masters of Ceremony: Media Demonstration as Performance in Three Instances of Expanded Cinema’, The Velvet Light Trap no. 54 (Fall 2004), pp.48-64
• Melvin Van Peebles
• Russ Meyer
• Todd Wagner
• ”From Here to Awesome” Discovery & Distribution Festival: www.fromheretoawesome.com
• Arin Crumley: www.arincrumley.com
• Four Eyed Monsters: www.foureyedmonsters.com
• We Are The Strange: www.wearethestrange.com
• Radiohead’’s InRainbows: www.inrainbows.com
• Workbook Project: www.workbookproject.com
• That’’s My Mouse: thatsmymouse.com

Enjoy!

…want more? Listen to my first interview with cross-media creator Evan Jones.

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