My Thoughts On The Streamys

There will be a next year. Bad things happen all the time in public, not least of which was the 2010 Streamy Awards. We live in a community of broadcasters and while it may seem that EVERYBODY in THE WHOLE WORLD is against us, we are better than that, and not alone in the slightest. Like I said before, it was a snowball effect that was continued not by the producers or technical difficulties but by many of those who clearly didn’t give a shit.

What could be made different next year?

A presenter who doesn’t shit on the very notion of the awards in the opening monologue. This wasn’t cool. And I like Paul Scheer a lot. Sorry, man.

A straightly-played awards show. While the temptation to be edgy and viral plays a huge part in online content, this doesn’t translate well - it seems - with the industry folk who spend more money than you or I will see in a year on five to ten minutes of moviemaking that will be seen not on a multiplex screen but on a computer.

Whoever let Helen Keller be in control of the DVD player and projection screen.

In short, this medium is some peoples bread and butter, and I think most people in this town know that.

I am not faulting the comedians by and large but a GIGANTIC emphasis must be placed on the MULTIPLE people who shit on the show for being unheard of and the VAST amount of people that made it vulgar. Felicia Day looked like she was going to cry at one point. I can see why. It was sort of like throwing a party at your house and having people trash the place because the conversation wasn’t about them.

Someone towards the end of the night - I forget his name - gave a very good speech highlighting things said by the head of NBC during the advent of television. He was without a doubt a diamond in the rough - a presenter that took the awards seriously. I know I’ve made a few (too many!) jokes about Julia Allison giving up on my joke but really, she should’ve at least stuck it out as opposed to bailing halfway through. It’s indicative of the whole night: a whole bunch of egos trying to jump off a sinking ship that they themselves were helping sink with every word that came out of their mouth. Sorry, but it’s true.

Anyway, here’s my point.

Get people like the man that made that speech. Get people who love this medium as if it were their own child. People that live and breath this medium. People that eat web content or breakfast. People that take it seriously. By all means hire comedians: they are fucking hilarious. But don’t hire people that are going to make the Awards Show (capital A, capital S) look like shit.

It was an honor to work with the people I did, and I look forward to working with them again in the future. I’d love to do the Streamys again next year, and I hope that they’ll consider me.

Until then, have a beer or a joint and laugh it off. To quote Good Will Hunting, “It’s not your fault”, Streamys. Not at all.

With love and respect,

N

[Photo by Adam Sternberg via laist]