I was wondering what writers think about the lonelygirl15 saga. Have you seen it? Did it interest you? Did you keep watching? What do you think about the whole method of storytelling?
Lonelygirl15: Are you Watching?
- Thread starter Celia Cyanide
- Start date
- Status
I watched a couple of the things. It was interesting in a way but the angst of young people isn't really my thing these days. I thought it was cleverly done, except maybe for the pretense in the way they first started it.
Yes. I guess it garnered some attention . . . but still, for me it would be a turn-off. Kind of like J.T. Leroy. Just a little too clever.Celia Cyanide said:
- Joined
- Apr 26, 2005
- Messages
- 23,708
- Reaction score
- 10,657
- Location
- In a world of my own making
- Website
- shadowferret.wordpress.com
- Joined
- Jul 3, 2006
- Messages
- 2,809
- Reaction score
- 899
- Location
- Sunny SoCal
- Website
- www.katethornton.net
I guess life is too short for me to watch everything - if I have a choice between lonelygirl15 and something else, I guess I'm gonna have to go with something else. But the concept is an interesting phenomenon and I am interested in it from that perspective. I wonder what will surface next...
I KNEW SHE WASN'T ONLY 15!!!
As far my writerly opinion, I think it goes to prove that sometimes less is more. I like to write simple, easy-to-follow plots and focus on characters. I would much rather have somebody praise the complexities and depth of my MC than the numerous plot twists in a work of mine.
lonelygirl15 doesn't just demonstrate how the Net can be used as a medium much like TV, but also how a simple, uncomplicated, even overdone concept (a teenage girl dishing about her angst) given a new twist (she dishes about her angst in real-time to the entire world) can catch on like wildfire.
And as to the epiphany that it was all an act...I call that The Blair Witch Project's influence on modern media still alive and kicking.
As far my writerly opinion, I think it goes to prove that sometimes less is more. I like to write simple, easy-to-follow plots and focus on characters. I would much rather have somebody praise the complexities and depth of my MC than the numerous plot twists in a work of mine.
lonelygirl15 doesn't just demonstrate how the Net can be used as a medium much like TV, but also how a simple, uncomplicated, even overdone concept (a teenage girl dishing about her angst) given a new twist (she dishes about her angst in real-time to the entire world) can catch on like wildfire.
And as to the epiphany that it was all an act...I call that The Blair Witch Project's influence on modern media still alive and kicking.
You should check out Jonas, the newest addition to the Breeniverse! What a hottie!
For a quick rundown of lonelygirl15, here is her wikipedia page:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lonelygirl15
And the official site:
http://www.lonelygirl15.com
I don't watch TV, but I like Bree because her videos are short, and I don't have to wait an entire week to see another one.
For a quick rundown of lonelygirl15, here is her wikipedia page:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lonelygirl15
And the official site:
http://www.lonelygirl15.com
I don't watch TV, but I like Bree because her videos are short, and I don't have to wait an entire week to see another one.
engmajor2005 said:
I couldn't understand why people were so upset about it. The venom from Youtubers was unbelievable. I don't understand why you could be upset or offended because you thought this was a real teenager posting video blogs about inane crap, and then you found out it was a team of writers who were trying to tell a story and entertain you, those bastards!
I never saw one of the blogs until after I heard about it being made-up. I can understand people being unhappy about it though. Most people don't like being tricked. It's a little like a practical joke--if you in on the joke it's funny, if you the victim, it ain't so funny.Celia Cyanide said:
Celia Cyanide said:
"The venom from Youtubers was unbelievable"? Are we referring to the same thing? Have you read the Wired.com article via the link posted above? Quite a different perspective on this particular point.Admittedly, I am only going by the journalist's comments - perhaps it is more as you say 'venom' and 'outrage'. Yet, the contrast is revealing.
ATP said:
Yes, I read that article, and I've also read the comments and seen the blogs on youtube. They really softened things up in that article. It wasn't really necessary to talk about the backlash, because the article was about the show itself. It's really a pain to look for her videos on youtube, but there were a lot of angry, negative comments out there for a while. People made angry video blogs about it, and made other videos ridiculing Jessica Rose, the actress playing Bree. Then there were more comments saying, "you shouldn't hate her, you should hate the creaters. She's just an actress." At one point, I saw a few threads on the lonelygirl15 forums asking, "Why are youtubers so pissed off?"
- Joined
- Jun 3, 2005
- Messages
- 1,749
- Reaction score
- 196
- Location
- Jacksonville, Florida
- Website
- www.lloydwrites.com
The anger over the revelation didn't make sense. Go check out any of her videos--the comments are filled with hate.
A while ago, I got very upset over the 911 dispatcher who made fun of the caller while a family member died, thinking the call was a hoax. That's a reason for outrage.
Some random girl on the Internet being an actor isn't a reason to get angry. If I had been watching events unfold (I had randomly seen one video on the YouTube top 100 list, or something), I'd have thought something like "Hey, good one. You got me."
A while ago, I got very upset over the 911 dispatcher who made fun of the caller while a family member died, thinking the call was a hoax. That's a reason for outrage.
Some random girl on the Internet being an actor isn't a reason to get angry. If I had been watching events unfold (I had randomly seen one video on the YouTube top 100 list, or something), I'd have thought something like "Hey, good one. You got me."
LloydBrown said:
I agree. When people thought Bree was real, they were watching her blogs to be entertained. Now it has been revealed her videos are fictional, and the works of writers. But their purpose is still to entertain.
This situation is interesting for a number of reasons. At the level of the show per se, the audience reaction suggests expectations that had not been met ie. the desire for authenticity when this had been met with 'manufactured authenticity'.
In any case, it does show the creeping of the 'big media attitude' toward creation of material for YouTube. This in itself is worrying for a medium that was meant to be 'democratic' , 'open' and 'anti-mainstream'.
When you take into account that Google has purchased YouTube, along with the interest displayed by 'big media' for the next big artist/director/singer/group, the original idea of YouTube has been lost, and is well on the way toward becoming mainstream. If it isn't already.
Remember, the original governing principle of the creators of the Internet was the same as that for the YouTube community. Now, the Internet is increasingly governed by the 'user pays' principle, and behind the scenes, battles between governments and industry for its control and regulation.
In any case, it does show the creeping of the 'big media attitude' toward creation of material for YouTube. This in itself is worrying for a medium that was meant to be 'democratic' , 'open' and 'anti-mainstream'.
When you take into account that Google has purchased YouTube, along with the interest displayed by 'big media' for the next big artist/director/singer/group, the original idea of YouTube has been lost, and is well on the way toward becoming mainstream. If it isn't already.
Remember, the original governing principle of the creators of the Internet was the same as that for the YouTube community. Now, the Internet is increasingly governed by the 'user pays' principle, and behind the scenes, battles between governments and industry for its control and regulation.
I find it interesting because if it weren't fake, I wouldn't be watching. The reason I like youtube is because people without much money can write and produce their own short films and find an audience. There is not much of a market for short films. I wish they would show them before feature films at the cinema, but instead, we get commercials.
I'm not at all interested in seeing people turn on their webcams and talk about their day, or their reaction to another video. Lonelygirl15 has a story to follow, and an interesting one.
It's also fascinating to see other video blogs pop up. When Bree first decided to go through the mysterious "ceremony," a user named OpAphid posted a video in response called, "You made the right choice, Bree!" The creators had nothing to do with it, but now, they are incorporating OpAphid into the storyline as an anagram for something that has not yet been revealed. There has been mention of a girl named "cassie" in the lonelygirl15 vids. It is not known if there was ever any intention of having Cassie play a part in the story, but 2 different youtube users have popped up who claim to be Cassie. One is unofficial, but the creators have said that they appreciate the participation. The other is up in the air. Recently, a few new video blogs have surfaced and turned out to be part of the story. But it's fun, because we never knew what is part of the story, and what is just a fan video.
I'm not at all interested in seeing people turn on their webcams and talk about their day, or their reaction to another video. Lonelygirl15 has a story to follow, and an interesting one.
It's also fascinating to see other video blogs pop up. When Bree first decided to go through the mysterious "ceremony," a user named OpAphid posted a video in response called, "You made the right choice, Bree!" The creators had nothing to do with it, but now, they are incorporating OpAphid into the storyline as an anagram for something that has not yet been revealed. There has been mention of a girl named "cassie" in the lonelygirl15 vids. It is not known if there was ever any intention of having Cassie play a part in the story, but 2 different youtube users have popped up who claim to be Cassie. One is unofficial, but the creators have said that they appreciate the participation. The other is up in the air. Recently, a few new video blogs have surfaced and turned out to be part of the story. But it's fun, because we never knew what is part of the story, and what is just a fan video.
I can't believe people were fooled very long. I could have bought that the first one I saw was real, but then one of the next ones I saw had a score and parts were fast-forwarded (Bree was looking for something).
Unfortunately, you know what's next . . . television reality shows with video blogs. America's Funniest Video Blogs and Blog Bloopers and So You Think You Can Blog?
Unfortunately, you know what's next . . . television reality shows with video blogs. America's Funniest Video Blogs and Blog Bloopers and So You Think You Can Blog?
alleycat said:
Nor can I. People suspected it was fake, and said so very early on. The creators never addressed this. Bree responded to people's comments, but she never responded to the ones suggesting she was fictional. If she were real, wouldn't she do that? For that reason, I can't really believe that angry youtubers are actually hurt. I think they just want something to b*tch about.
What a very interesting article. I'd seen YouTube clips from "lonelygirl15" but thought nothing of them, and certainly didn't watch them. Generally, I don't watch idiot kids doing their newfangled "vlogging." I use YouTube for strange and interesting clips, and get on with it.
That is fascinating, though. I'd love to see what you could do with YouTube in a sci-fi/fantasy setting. My brain is running now.
That is fascinating, though. I'd love to see what you could do with YouTube in a sci-fi/fantasy setting. My brain is running now.
PeeDee said:
Nor do I, and that's what has made this so fascinating to me. I would never watch something like that if it were real. But when you see the video, and you're watching Bree babble on about her stuffed animals, you think it's nothing important. Until you see the guy in the background Bree doesn't notice is there.
Celia Cyanide said:
Actually, because of the way the medium works (or rather, WORKED before this news story kind of burst the innocent bubble) you could have made a really astonishingly horrifying YouTube production that would have scared the pee out of me.
- Joined
- Oct 23, 2006
- Messages
- 7,676
- Reaction score
- 5,784
- Location
- A Little South of Sanity
- Website
- www.ginikoch.com
I wonder if these folks will also be shocked to discover that professional wrestling is choreographed and scripted, and that most "amatuer" porn videos are anything but.
The willing gullibilty of the average human never ceases to amaze me.
The willing gullibilty of the average human never ceases to amaze me.
JeanneTGC said:
Wha......wh......what? What are you saying? What are you....
I.....
My god.....
Hulk Hogan is real, okay!? OKAY!?
And Tiffany does it because she loves her boyfriend! OKAY!?
*cries softly to sleep*
- Status