A fact about YouTube: 10,512,000 hours of video have been uploaded in the last year. So what’s the future of online video you ask? Look no further than YouTube for the answer.
I was recently part of a panel discussing online video in all it’s forms: pre-roll, branded, UGC, rich media, spreadable (or viral)…the list goes on an on. One question that I’ve been pondering was the last of the evening at the DFWIMA event. What does the future of online video hold? It was tough to answer, mainly, because I think we’re already there. Wait, what?
Look no further than this guy, doing 32 songs in 8 minutes. A guy with a great little idea and LOTS of talent doing what he does best. Next thing you know, 4 million views and tons of imitators. Personally, I think his next video should up the ante; 64 songs in 4 minutes! But back to the future.
This kid and his guitar captivated myself and 3 other specialists in our respective media fields for 8 whole minutes! Then I passed it on and it became the backbone of this blog. How would a kid and his guitar ever made that happen in the time before YouTube? He wouldn’t.
Need more evidence the future is here? Well, that brings us back to Time Magazine’s list of YouTube’s top 50 videos of all time. You can see work both branded and unbranded that’s spread like wild fire amongst users that have viewed, shared, commented on, rated, blogged, tweeted and eventually actively participated with – which in some cases means imitation, others parody. But they all mean engagement.
Here are the top 10 things I noticed about the top 50 list:
1. Kittens still rule spreadable video
2. Second only to kittens are cute kids...especially when said kids are coming down from heavy sedation
3. Small animals that aren’t kittens still get big laughs, and views.
4. Laughter is the international language, most of these just make us laugh or smile – which undoubtedly makes us want to share.
5. Music is also the international language, (when not speaking laughter) – from the Rick Roll to Evolution of Dance to the Hey Jude Kid (which is a two ‘fer – cute kid and music) music is a common theme.
6. People love subtitles. It’s a simple way for the Average Joe, not video editor Joe, to get in on the fun, assuming he’s got a great idea like Literal Music Videos or the epically popular Hitler series (which if you haven’t seen is not what you think)…both are hilarious.
7. Babies. Man people love babies!
8. Classics stand the test of time. Why? Original ideas are timeless. Lazy Sunday – it put the SNL digital shorts on the map. Chocolate Rain, like a chocolate 20 car pile up – you just can’t overt your eyes, or something that just plain tugs the heartstrings like Randy Pausch. If you’ve never seen it, stop what your doing and grab some Kleenex.
9. From the department of redundancy department - let me say it again - great ideas are timeless. The stuff that people share is probably smart, funny or outrageous in someway, but most importantly elicits an emotional reaction. Whether narrative or not, it's short, to the point and not a huge investment of time for me to enjoy and then share.
10. Finally, who doesn't love these lists! Give me more! I hope some other outlets take the ball and run with it. I'd love to see what VICE (VBS.TV) or The World's Best Ever (theworldsbestever.com) rank the Top 50 You Tube Videos. What does the Mommy Blogger think for that matter - is she a kitten lady? Who knows....we'll have to wait and see. (I'm looking at you Mommy Blogger)
I was recently part of a panel discussing online video in all it’s forms: pre-roll, branded, UGC, rich media, spreadable (or viral)…the list goes on an on. One question that I’ve been pondering was the last of the evening at the DFWIMA event. What does the future of online video hold? It was tough to answer, mainly, because I think we’re already there. Wait, what?
Look no further than this guy, doing 32 songs in 8 minutes. A guy with a great little idea and LOTS of talent doing what he does best. Next thing you know, 4 million views and tons of imitators. Personally, I think his next video should up the ante; 64 songs in 4 minutes! But back to the future.
This kid and his guitar captivated myself and 3 other specialists in our respective media fields for 8 whole minutes! Then I passed it on and it became the backbone of this blog. How would a kid and his guitar ever made that happen in the time before YouTube? He wouldn’t.
Need more evidence the future is here? Well, that brings us back to Time Magazine’s list of YouTube’s top 50 videos of all time. You can see work both branded and unbranded that’s spread like wild fire amongst users that have viewed, shared, commented on, rated, blogged, tweeted and eventually actively participated with – which in some cases means imitation, others parody. But they all mean engagement.
Here are the top 10 things I noticed about the top 50 list:
1. Kittens still rule spreadable video
2. Second only to kittens are cute kids...especially when said kids are coming down from heavy sedation
3. Small animals that aren’t kittens still get big laughs, and views.
4. Laughter is the international language, most of these just make us laugh or smile – which undoubtedly makes us want to share.
5. Music is also the international language, (when not speaking laughter) – from the Rick Roll to Evolution of Dance to the Hey Jude Kid (which is a two ‘fer – cute kid and music) music is a common theme.
6. People love subtitles. It’s a simple way for the Average Joe, not video editor Joe, to get in on the fun, assuming he’s got a great idea like Literal Music Videos or the epically popular Hitler series (which if you haven’t seen is not what you think)…both are hilarious.
7. Babies. Man people love babies!
8. Classics stand the test of time. Why? Original ideas are timeless. Lazy Sunday – it put the SNL digital shorts on the map. Chocolate Rain, like a chocolate 20 car pile up – you just can’t overt your eyes, or something that just plain tugs the heartstrings like Randy Pausch. If you’ve never seen it, stop what your doing and grab some Kleenex.
9. From the department of redundancy department - let me say it again - great ideas are timeless. The stuff that people share is probably smart, funny or outrageous in someway, but most importantly elicits an emotional reaction. Whether narrative or not, it's short, to the point and not a huge investment of time for me to enjoy and then share.
10. Finally, who doesn't love these lists! Give me more! I hope some other outlets take the ball and run with it. I'd love to see what VICE (VBS.TV) or The World's Best Ever (theworldsbestever.com) rank the Top 50 You Tube Videos. What does the Mommy Blogger think for that matter - is she a kitten lady? Who knows....we'll have to wait and see. (I'm looking at you Mommy Blogger)
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