Friday, November 25, 2016
Atlanta neighbors join forces to change the game for independent filmmakers
New Pittsburgh Courier: In August of 2015, Tris Sicignano; a New Orleans native, and Klarque Garrison were two Atlanta neighbors trying to figure things out. With years of experience in the entertainment industry the two teamed up to create a revolutionary new streaming network; Surge Television.
Tris, after beginning her career in television at the age of 16 working for the local PBS station in New Orleans and then taking a break from the industry in her mid twenties, yearned to return to the industry. That is when Tris teamed up with neighbor Klarque Garrison, who found success as an entrepreneur with his streaming radio network, Survival Radio Network (SRN). SRN boasts thirty-four radio programs and over a million listeners.
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5 comments:
This is super badass. Not just because it was born of two neighbors who happened to come together and align their goals, not just because it is content-creator owned, not just because it has produced nine original series - what is super badass about this is that it encourages collaboration between all those involved, no matter what content they came in with. I always wonder what would happen if major network television content creators worked together to influence each others' ideas and boost each others ingenuity - the fact that it's being done at this level with far less money and corporate backing makes me wonder how those with the money continue to ignore opportunities to strengthen each other through community. The sad thing is that they probably don't need it as much as those who are just starting out; the tighter the budget, the tougher the team. However, imagine how much farther they could take their ideas if they allowed designers or writers or producers from one show to work with those from another. And, if they were to do so successfully, imagine how much more funding ventures like Surge would see once corporate backers realized how collaboration could help them to grow.
This is such a great story about how two neighbors joined together to create dream business. I like how there is a focus on community after these people met in their local community. Creating a community where people can grow and create art is a great way to foster creativity. I wished the article had mentioned what nine TV shows Surge had created. I think it would be interesting to see what these people are doing. They seem to produce a wide arrange of material. The article also mentioned that Surge worked with creators in New York, LA and London; I’d also be interested to know which of Surge’s programs came from the different locations.Nevertheless, i think it’s a wonderful story and I can't get over how amazing that two neighbors were able to create a business together and begin to achieve a dream that both of them had. I hope that they have continued success in the future.
I agree with the 'badass' sentiment my beautiful and intelligent friend has brought forth, though for me it is not the first word that comes to mind. A word that jumps quicker to mind is 'efficient'. I think that it's great for content creators to take control of the production and marketing of said content, because a collaboration between management that also function as artists might be a much more conductive environment than an environment of strictly management and artists. We all hear the stories of our favorite shows 'selling out' to the network and compromising their artistic integrity for the sake of funding or ratings, and maybe in an environment such as Surge, this will happen less. If the management understands the process the creators go through to devise their content, they will be more willing to work with the creator in the process. This could potentially increase workplace efficiency, as both sides of the coin will feel as invested and important in the project as the other.
In my mind, the world of independent film can be accurately compared to a hockey fight. At first, you have two fairly simple groups, filmmakers and audiences, going at a delicate dance of marketing and consumption. An illegal body check (a leaked trailer, or something) here, a feint there (a hastily thrown-together GoFundMe), and the two parties are suddenly doing nasty battle, each somehow in a headlock, helmets flying willy nilly. To be clear- this is not to say that filmmakers do battle with their markets, or that consumers of film are out to throttle the art form from the necks of its creators. No, this metaphor is to illustrate the delicate line that indie content creators walk while attempting to market their products to fickle and vocal consumers, who seem all too ready to throw their pop-culture preferences to the wolves in internet forums if a beloved character dies offscreen.
To continue the metaphor, this hockey fight is all too typical. Like the recent Rangers-Flyers melee on Friday (go blueshirts), a fight between two players often spirals into a total brawl, with everybody and their uncle (read: larger content distributors, advertisers investors, and online hosting platforms) throwing down their sticks and slugging it out until pads begin to fly. Luckily for us, tthe game can begin again thanks to environments like Surge, which referee this dangerous dance by providing the players a space to talk it out, off the ice (so to speak).
TL:DR I really like hockey, sorry if that was hard to follow.
Wow, this is a really great idea. I particularly am drawn to the thought of being able to join a collaborative community with the knowledge that you will get paid for what you help create during your time with the company. There's a huge motivational factor in that, the same where there is motivation in working on commission. There is a sense of community here, though, that is really irreplaceable. I love the thought of friends coming together to create several television series and getting all of the benefits together. I don't see much that could go wrong in this scenario, besides perhaps difficulty collaborating with your friends and neighbors. I personally have hit a few roadblocks in my life when trying to work with friends in a creative capacity, since often times people don't want to hurt each other's feelings or be too commandeering.
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