Create And Market Your Web Series

The truth is, there are hundreds of web series, but few hit the marks required to get them noticed.  Planning a web series is not just coming with an idea that you think no one else has done before and borrowing your friend's DSLR.

Who should attend?

With the doors to TV commissions closing to the majority of independents (how many shows of any genre have you seen on TV recently that hasn't been made by a production company owned by one of the major TV companies like Fremantle, All3Media, Shine or Endemol), film & television writers, producers, directors and actors like yourself are turning to the web to create their own work.

But so many independents by their nature try to make web series of their own backs without getting advice.  The result?  A series of videos online with a handful of views. Part of this day deals with finding an audience and making sure that doesn't happen for you.

This day-long class will show you how to hone your idea and plan your web series BEFORE you actually write and produce it.

Although the course will focus on scripted web series, we will give an overview of the different types of web series that are being made, from vlogging to sketch comedy to continuous narrative and episodic dramas.

• researching your audience and targeting your niche;
• why its important to come up with something uniquely made for the web.  Your web series should not be your failed TV pilot or rejected feature script;
• examine why its important to set yourself a goal with your web series, what do you really want to achieve?

Like any film production, web series productions need to be financed and planned.  However by its nature your series' story structure will be different to that of a feature film or a primetime TV series.

• story structure for scripted drama and episode length
• budgeting and why for your first series you need to keep it low
• setting realistic and optimistic goals for yourself and your series
• distribution of your series and potential revenue. What are the various platforms, channels and networks and why YouTube is not necessarily the be all and end all for web series
•  looking at the various financing models: self funding, crowdfunding, branding, sponsorship, product placement

What happens after you have made your series? How do you get anyone not related to you to watch it?  If you add your episodes in a Facebook status can it go viral?

• getting reviewed by review sites
• screening at web festivals. Just like film festivals specialist web festivals are out there.
• winning awards: the do's and don'ts
• attending conventions and other places to find your audience in real life
• discover your community spirit within the web series world
• what money can buy you in your marketing budget
• social media planning, after all your web series is part of the Social TV revolution

Elisar Cabrera
Elisar has over 20 years in the film and television industry. He has produced three feature length films; directed television entertainment; was instrumental in bringing back British wrestling to British TV screens; has experience in home video distribution and international sales of feature films and TV dramas.  He has watched 100s of web series as a reviewer for Those Video Guys the web series review show, and in 2013 released 3some, a scripted drama series about 30-somethings living in London which won the Indie Series Awards for Best Writing and Best Lead Actor in 2014.

Elisar also has taught feature film marketing and selling at Raindance, London Film Festival and National Film and TV School courses. He heads Raindance's new festival showcase for web series, Raindance Web Fest.