Disqus - Latest Comments for Steve Woolf

Re: Micah Lee Photo Shoot

Steve Woolf — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 14:31:29 -0000

Love, love, love the one on the stairs. I mean, they are all good, but the one on the stairs is really fantastic.

Re: Confession

Steve Woolf — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 21:02:42 -0000

I love this. Awesome video.

Re: The Winnies

Steve Woolf — Wed, 05 Dec 2007 08:03:01 -0000

You guys should be proud of what you pulled off. Great party, great event, great people. A big success. :)

Re: White Castle Sucks

Steve Woolf — Thu, 25 Oct 2007 03:19:22 -0000

I am not into burger paste, therefore I am not into White Castle.

How anyone can like the burgers there is beyond me.

I don't know anyone who doesn't have a White Castle vomiting, diarrhea, or other grossout story.

Re: You Missed Noodle Scar

Steve Woolf — Sun, 14 Oct 2007 21:45:25 -0000

can we have an mp3 of this song??

Re: Gray Hair

Steve Woolf — Tue, 09 Oct 2007 06:48:48 -0000

Heh. As someone with a lot of experience with gray hair, I can tell you that contrary to popular belief, hair goes gray from the tip to the root.

So yup, that one follicle is fading out. Just outta gas. Happens to the best of us.

Re: MDFsmash

Steve Woolf — Wed, 06 Feb 2008 17:31:04 -0000

cool, thx! tee-hee ;)

Re: Steal this Webshow

Steve Woolf — Fri, 07 Mar 2008 03:41:26 -0000

the site looks great, the video quality is awesome. bravo for launching with all the right tools in place. looking forward to seeing more!

Re: OMGRICK

Steve Woolf — Sun, 30 Mar 2008 15:54:38 -0000

LOL. here's to simpler times. :)

Re: Go get JETSET

Steve Woolf — Wed, 26 Sep 2007 08:14:08 -0000

Thanks very much for the shoutout, David! Muchly appreciated!

Re: Favorite Interview Ever Posted! EpicFu!

Steve Woolf — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 03:42:51 -0000

You so kick ass. Shows of the quality of The Guild help take this whole online video thing to the next level. Great interview, and a great person!

Re: Pixelodeon in LA this weekend

Steve Woolf — Thu, 07 Jun 2007 16:23:52 -0000

Your session is off the heezy!!! Can't wait to see everyone!!!

Re: A Day at Oil Beach

Steve Woolf — Mon, 12 Nov 2007 01:54:13 -0000

ugh, how disgusting and sad and enraging. thank you for taking this video and putting it up so we can all get a firsthand account of what's going on with even the most lightly affected beaches in the bay area.

Re: Gray Hair

Steve Woolf — Tue, 09 Oct 2007 06:48:48 -0000

Re: You Missed Noodle Scar

Steve Woolf — Sun, 14 Oct 2007 21:45:25 -0000

can we have an mp3 of this song??

Re: WHITE CASTLE SUCKS

Steve Woolf — Thu, 25 Oct 2007 03:19:22 -0000

Re: THE WINNIES

Steve Woolf — Wed, 05 Dec 2007 08:03:01 -0000

You guys should be proud of what you pulled off. Great party, great event, great people. A big success. :)

Re: epic fu is win

Steve Woolf — Fri, 04 Jan 2008 03:13:59 -0000

thanks, man!

Re: Feeding the Beast

Steve Woolf — Mon, 16 Jul 2007 14:37:48 -0000

Wow, what a comprehensive post! Thanks for the shout out, btw! Good choice making sure not to miss Sprinkles, although the lines there are sometimes 30-45 minutes long...

Re: The Shape of My Game

Steve Woolf — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 04:50:23 -0000

You're a machine. Been that way as long as I've known ya, which has been a while now that I think about it. And still one of the nicest guys I know. Well played, sir.

Re: 2007/05/02/prom-queen-2/

Steve Woolf — Thu, 03 May 2007 02:26:29 -0000

Also, big congrats to Big Fantastic, the awesome production company behind Prom Queen (and Sam Has 7 Friends)!

Just want to make sure the content creators get their due! :)

Re: 2008/08/17/new-media-expo/

Steve Woolf — Mon, 18 Aug 2008 01:41:23 -0000

I often wonder whether many of the video shows out there even need video. In my view, many successful shows are really just audio podcasts that happen to have a camera rolling. This is not unlike the way some traditional radio programs roll a camera and broadcast on TV (e.g. Mike and Mike on ESPN).

I think we'll see online video go to the next level when more shows demonstrate a real understanding of the visual medium.

Re: Gary Vaynerchuk - I suck!

Steve Woolf — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 13:48:08 -0000

you suck at sucking.

;)

Re: Gary Vaynerchuk - Better than Zero Way too many people worry about...

Steve Woolf — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 20:25:30 -0000

Great advice. Patience is second only to talent. Everything else can be acquired.

Re: Almost Back

Steve Woolf — Mon, 02 Oct 2006 01:04:35 -0000

Chris - it was great to finally meet you and hang out this weekend. I'm looking forward to Podcamp West and VON. Just let us know what we can do to help.

Re: Andrew Responds

Steve Woolf — Wed, 25 Oct 2006 01:08:19 -0000

I was pretty disappointed with Ze's RB commentary for exactly the reasons you've been putting forth, Chris. Even though Ze was already popular and well-regarded before he started his show, and even though his show would have been a success anyway, he was propelled to another level when RB highlighted what he was doing those many months ago.

Ze doesn't owe anyone anything, of course. And he's certainly contributed a great deal to videoblogging whether he intended to directly grow the community or not. I, for one, look to him as a leader by example.

That said, it's all the more disappointing to see infighting at this moment, especially when Andrew can conjure a convincing argument for his own stats. I should say that even though we work with Andrew, I have never seen RB's stats and have no insider knowledge of this argument from one position or another.

But it seemed like a cheap shot.

So, your post was asking us all to look in the mirror and figure out how we can grow this thing together. It seems more and more like Zadi's and my contribution can be toward building that bridge between new media and old ("dirty") media. We want to introduce as many people as we can from each side so that new ideas can get out there and breathe some oxygen.

We want to start doing regular screenings to create the kinds of venues that independent filmmakers enjoyed at Sundance or the NY Film Festival. There's no replacement for personal introductions and face time. This weekend's party in L.A. will hopefully be the first step toward creating that.

Re: One Month Later

Steve Woolf — Fri, 03 Nov 2006 03:19:33 -0000

Sounds like you've found your place in the world. :) Glad I got to be one of those people you met in your journeys.

Re: David Kowarsky Surrenders Focus

Steve Woolf — Fri, 03 Nov 2006 03:30:54 -0000

Hey, that was terrific!

Re: Small Boxes- Teaser 2

Steve Woolf — Thu, 16 Nov 2006 17:28:28 -0000

Sucks that we couldn't make the event last night. But it sounds like it was incredible -- 200 people, wow.

Re: Small Boxes - Teaser 4

Steve Woolf — Mon, 20 Nov 2006 18:50:18 -0000

I don't know, Chris. I think this constituted a "show" and not a "promo." Entirely too much content to call it a promo, imho.

I'm looking forward to seeing more of you walking around talking to your Macbook. :)

Re: Small Boxes 01 - Home and Away

Steve Woolf — Tue, 21 Nov 2006 19:49:38 -0000

Adorable! And the kids are cute, too. ;)

Re: New Colonies

Steve Woolf — Wed, 29 Nov 2006 03:53:53 -0000

I agree about this being a great conversation to have at this point. To further what Zadi said about JETSET, a few months ago we took a hard look at what we were doing in terms of audience involvement. At that point we had a relatively successful show, but we knew that we were not taking full advantage of this medium.

So we made a conscious choice to turn the show on its ear. In the space of 6 shows since changing our format, our audience size has quadrupled and the interaction we have built with the young adults watching the show constantly amazes me.

Now every decision we make about JETSET hinges on one thought: can I see this anyplace else other than the Internet? If the answer is yes, we throw it away and find something else to do.

Along the way we got teens involved in 3 projects that have really been a lesson for us in building community. Brandon's Pitch Project on our Wiki has been an incredible thing to watch. We have teens making favicons for the JETSET site and posting them to the wiki, and we have started a dialogue to find out if the teens who watch our show are hopeful and optimistic for their future. Wiki, wiki, wiki...

We feel like what we're doing now with JETSET is really keying in on that audience, and that is something we were searching for throughout the first months of the show. Rather than just entertaining, we wanted to engage, to converse.

As Zadi said, when we sit down with mainstream media decision-makers now, we point to JETSET as an example of being unafraid to take a risk. Here was a show that had an audience, was generally well-received, and we make a conscious decision to push things as far as we could. We encourage them and everyone else doing it to do the same. It's a mantra practically.

We're banging rocks together right now, as far as I'm concerned. As the tools and the methods of distribution mature and evolve, so should the shows. They should be a living entity.

Re: Radio-Like Show Tonight

Steve Woolf — Fri, 08 Dec 2006 02:48:32 -0000

I'm listening now. Interesting discussion (thanks to the guests).

Re: Small Boxes 04 - The Blues

Steve Woolf — Sun, 10 Dec 2006 18:00:12 -0000

Chris, for what it's worth, you make outstanding videos when you're feeling blue. This really felt like an authentic glimpse inside the Brogan machinery.

I used to become a grumpy bastard when it got cold in New York. That lifted completely moving to California -- my winter dread is gone.

With regards to 2006 in the online video world, it's been a ramp-up year for a lot of us, I think. The hype is building, and I think 2007 will see money flow into this world and by the end of '07 we'll see a shake-out of shows and creators who can't hang in there long enough to find a way to make it work. Many of these creators will have very legitimate reasons for giving up or shifting focus, I should add. Not a lack of fortitude or anything.

But of course along with the inevitable shake-out, we will probably see an even greater influx of new shows, as well.

Re: New York Adventure

Steve Woolf — Sat, 16 Dec 2006 15:22:38 -0000

Chris, stop by the JETSET digs anytime you wish. Standing invite.

Re: Small Boxes 07 - Happy Birthday Kat

Steve Woolf — Tue, 19 Dec 2006 05:21:15 -0000

Happy birthday to your wife!

Re: Go Listen to New Mediacracy

Steve Woolf — Thu, 28 Dec 2006 23:15:00 -0000

Thanks for the shout. We've been playing with TalkShoe and posted a test today with Steve Garfield as a third host. We'll start setting up a regular schedule, have guests, and have people be able to call in, etc. It should be fun!

Re: Different Maps and Guides

Steve Woolf — Tue, 02 Jan 2007 16:34:12 -0000

Here's one I've lived the past 2 years by. It's done well for us:

"Do what you've always done and you'll get what you've always gotten."

I believe the quote is Anais Nin.

I love it because it works for good and for bad. I repeat it to myself on days like today as I juggle 2 jobs simultaneously...

Re: Happy Birthday Zadi

Steve Woolf — Wed, 03 Jan 2007 19:41:08 -0000

Yay!

Re: Happy Birthday Harold

Steve Woolf — Mon, 22 Jan 2007 17:41:46 -0000

what will the world look like when Harold is a man? i'm an optimist, and I think it will be amazing. Happy b-day little man!

Re: Superhero- Bre Pettis

Steve Woolf — Tue, 30 Jan 2007 19:34:08 -0000

Bre is the quintissential videoblogger, in my opinion. The stuff he does is consistently so damn good and so damn inventive. He really doesn't get enough credit for the stuff he does. Glad to see you call him out, Chris. I'm going to start a series on my blog of shows that we should all be watching. Just did one on Josh Shipp from heyjosh.tv. Bre is well-known in the videoblogging community, of course, but this is a guy who *needs* a wider audience because the stuff is just so damn good.

Re: Social Matters

Steve Woolf — Wed, 07 Feb 2007 18:42:36 -0000

No matter how connected we all feel through video and online media experience, there is still no substitute for face time. I would urge anyone looking to create media projects online to be sure not to ignore that dimension of their lives.

Re: More on Friendsourcing

Steve Woolf — Mon, 12 Feb 2007 20:50:38 -0000

You're hitting on something big here, Chris. The idea of an expansive yet personal network is something that things like RSS brings to us, as well as things like Twitter and Flickr. That sense that you're up to date with people is really important for that comfort factor with their recommendations. It's kind of the fabric tying all these tools together, imo.

Re: Violette and I Watch Bre Pettis

Steve Woolf — Sat, 17 Feb 2007 15:23:59 -0000

And we return to the essence of videoblogging -- communication. LOVE it.

Re: Kat Does Puppets

Steve Woolf — Tue, 06 Mar 2007 00:52:30 -0000

Hells yeah! Perhaps Ernesto has a video in him after all...

Re: Jon Glassett Opens a Time Capsule

Steve Woolf — Fri, 13 Apr 2007 16:36:57 -0000

top picture: sexy. middle picture: focused. bottom picture: distracted by mullet.

Re: Wake Up

Steve Woolf — Mon, 23 Apr 2007 07:43:01 -0000

This blog post is resonating like church bells over this way, Chris...

Re: Jetset Community Site Launches

Steve Woolf — Sat, 12 May 2007 06:21:12 -0000

Chris, what can we say? Wow. We're just glad we've been able to get to know such interesting, passionate people like yourself and so many others through this medium. As high as our ambitions are with JETSET, it's the community that keeps us going. We want to see how far we can push things. When tools like Ning come along, they sometimes make things sizzle. :)

Thank you, thank you, thank you!

Re: The Conversation New Media Should Be Having

Steve Woolf — Sun, 17 Jun 2007 00:11:08 -0000

Funny, I was going to make a blog post of my own about this kind of thing soon.

One responsibility that none of us can afford to ignore is paying attention to new distribution models and formats. Things move so quickly that there's a real danger to being static and entrenched in a couple of formats. Seems like every time I turn around there's a new way to reach people.

Part of being smart about your show is knowing which of these to pay attention to. I ascribe to the Apple model, to some extent. Rather than rushing to be first always, I like to watch where people gravitate and then react to that quickly, and hopefully with a better execution.

Re: 100 Comments- Mojo for Video

Steve Woolf — Sat, 23 Jun 2007 14:32:26 -0000

Always always always always leave them wanting more.

Re: 100 Comments- Mojo for Video

Steve Woolf — Sat, 23 Jun 2007 14:34:01 -0000

Follow-up to my own comment above -- we do this by keeping our work short and to the point, and always having some kind of call to action integrated into the video.

Re: Media Makers Next Steps

Steve Woolf — Wed, 01 Aug 2007 23:28:20 -0000

Thanks for the kind words -- we're definitely watching what the big players do, and we've also spent some time researching the emergence of cable television in the 80's to look for similar patterns and opportunities. History tends to repeat...

Great blog post, as always...

Re: Moving On

Steve Woolf — Mon, 12 Nov 2007 01:38:28 -0000

Change is always good. Like everything you do, I'm sure you took as much out of your experience with Pulver Media as anyone could. I'm sure Jeff will have a hard time filling your role.

I look forward to your energy and drive informing me of all new ideas and trends wherever you might dock your ship next.

Re: The New Gig

Steve Woolf — Fri, 16 Nov 2007 20:58:57 -0000

Belated congrats, Chris! Sounds like a good setup for you. One thing I know you'll bring is breaking that bubble that seems to surround us in the online media world. I really like how you always find ways to introduce me to new people and new ideas through your blog, because the echo chamber has become deafening lately. I expect that you will be able to bring all of this to CrossTechMedia, lucky for them!

Re: Succeeding in Independent Online Media

Steve Woolf — Thu, 07 Feb 2008 15:49:50 -0000

The more we spend time in this whole sphere, and the more we interact with the people who have the money, the more it's clear that no one has a clear path to making money (and I mean money on the scale of millions of dollars) unless you team up with entrenched media. And even then, good luck trying to convince them of the value of truly interactive media. They are mostly looking for things that look like TV, and then if you have that, they want to own everything

The smart new media companies and VC's are not going to dole out millions to just anything anymore. Everyone is tightening their belts.

I think it goes back to the core concepts of creating any small business. Identify your audience; create reliable, quality content; be active in business social circles (conferences, etc); repeat as necessary.

And don't be afraid to change what you're doing. EPIC-FU was JETSET for over a year. We changed the name and the branding approach, and our views more than doubled since then.

The people we know who approach this stuff with calculated fearlessness (sounds weird, I know), are the ones making it happen. The people who hesitate for even just a moment seem to stagnate forever.

And btw, thanks for including us on your list, Chris! We pretty much hold our breath day to day looking for the best opportunities to grow our show and our tiny little production company. But the opportunities are definitely out there!

Re: Best Social Media Advice From This Site

Steve Woolf — Mon, 12 May 2008 15:23:51 -0000

Pretty remarkable that you've been able to amass that much relevant, smart information in this blog in the past 12-24 months. I think we're all lucky to have a guy like you in this community.

Re: The Fu Covers Twitter

Steve Woolf — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 13:15:52 -0000

Thanks for the love, Chris! Btw, I'm trying out Tweetdeck based on your newsletter email this morning. ;) I love the group feature.

Re: Old boys club is for losers, Anil writes

Steve Woolf — Sat, 24 Feb 2007 16:10:13 -0000

Color me biased, but it seems like Zadi Diaz is seriously flying under the radar. A female videoblogger with true tech cred, a hit show (that is also now profitable, btw), signed with UTA, and now working on bridging online and mainstream media woth some of the largest entertainment companies in the world -- ? And a Latina, as well.

Disclaimer: Zadi is my wife and business partner. :)

Re: Old boys club is for losers, Anil writes

Steve Woolf — Sat, 24 Feb 2007 16:13:01 -0000

Follow-up: and Zadi was also a part of the group that discussed social media with NPR a few days ago in Washington, D.C., and she is moderating a panel at SXSW about Production Companies 2.0. Ok, I'm done campaigning now. :)

Re: “What’s your audience size?” is wrong question

Steve Woolf — Sun, 30 Dec 2007 14:06:01 -0000

Zadi and I always looked at our show as a combination of passion and definition. The passion was creating something fun and interesting to us. The definition implied identifying an audience that was underserved. In our opinion, 16-24's are underserved online by all the pranks, accidents, and clips from television shows out there. These people are intelligent, philosophical, and insightful. All you have to do to realize that is see the kinds of discussions they start on our community site at MIX.

So for example you approached the Scoble Show by saying that I'm going to document and interview all the players who are defining the Web 2.0 business movement, however that period of time may one day wind up being historically defined. Seemed like a lot of people were interested in that. :)

There are so many talented people who are working very hard, but still need to figure out what their show is really about. That's what this past year has been for us with EPIC-FU -- figuring out a way to talk about the show, and figuring out how each piece of content we cover advances us further toward that definition.

Once you have that going, you have to be ready to sustain it for a long enough time to let people find out about it. Around March of 2007 we were getting about 200,000 plays each month. Now we're in the millions, so figuring out that focus and identifying the best places to find the right audience were everything for us.

We are now in our 18th month of the show's existence, by the way. So it took a long time to get to this point. Now we have to work to sustain the audience, keep the show fresh, and really break through to that next level. It's all a grand experiment.

Re: “What’s your audience size?” is wrong question

Steve Woolf — Sun, 30 Dec 2007 15:05:26 -0000

Robert: thanks, we really appreciate the support and encouragement. People in their 30's to well into their 50's watch and post comments on our shows, which tells us we're making content that's intelligent enough for a broad audience. Our reinvention was the result of having the luxury of being able to make mistakes. That's what's missing from the traditional model these days, imo.

We'll be looking forward to seeing what you announce in a couple of weeks.

Re: 2.6.08 - celtic blues with ken belcher.

Steve Woolf — Fri, 08 Feb 2008 19:59:16 -0000

site is looking good, music is sounding great! all is right with the world...

:)

all the hard work will pay off, I have no doubts.

Re: 3.18.08. - a week in new york city.

Steve Woolf — Tue, 18 Mar 2008 19:27:45 -0000

thanks for taking us on your journey. beautiful video, great music, you really set a mood. awesome.

Re: 4.12.08. we all belong.

Steve Woolf — Sat, 12 Apr 2008 16:00:50 -0000

I agree with Lan. You are making a difference with this video, and you make a difference every time you make music and remember where you came from. I'm so sorry for the way you lost your friends. It is unfair.

Re: Lazzzor Cut Laptop Stand

Steve Woolf — Sat, 11 Oct 2008 01:45:39 -0000

This is soooooo awesome. I'm probably going to pick one up to replace my old plastic iCurve.

Re: epic fu is win

Steve Woolf — Fri, 04 Jan 2008 03:13:59 -0000

thanks, man!

Re: 25 The Clip Show - The Return

Steve Woolf — Tue, 16 Jan 2007 04:09:24 -0000

First, the site and the show are really looking great. Second, thanks for the shout in the 9. Looking forward to seeing what you guys have up your sleeves in '07...

Re: 28 The Clip Show - 7 Friends

Steve Woolf — Thu, 08 Feb 2007 21:20:54 -0000

These new eps are fun times. Love the Save Ferris shirt. I want one.

Re: 30 The Clip Show - Interview with a Clip Show

Steve Woolf — Tue, 20 Feb 2007 16:24:41 -0000

Wow, some aggressive comments elicited by the Clip Show.

Re: 50 The Clip Show - Fifty!

Steve Woolf — Sun, 24 Jun 2007 21:47:41 -0000

Congrats on 50 episodes, gentlemen. Always classy, consistent, and professional quality stuff. Boo-ya to you both. Sorry about Josh's arm...

Re: 56 The Clip Show - Clip Fight

Steve Woolf — Tue, 25 Sep 2007 19:10:19 -0000

heh - i loves me a good jim kirks rant. and who couldn't love the last bit. the dynamic is fascinating. clearly you two were meant for each other.

Re: 58 The Clip Show - PNME 2007

Steve Woolf — Tue, 09 Oct 2007 17:00:47 -0000

Jim Kirks also told me he would make me a star. And funny enough, as soon as this video was posted, I got a call from an executive at Warner Bros. offering me a 3 picture deal! Go Clip Show!

Re: Social Media Rock Stars and the Emergence of the “Micro Media Mogul”

Steve Woolf — Fri, 06 Apr 2007 20:36:24 -0000

Wow, thanks so much for the awesome writeup. :) I'd be pretty happy if Zadi made me her Twitter friend, too. :)

Re: Amanda Congon, Katie Couric and The Diminishing Value of Celebrity in Media

Steve Woolf — Wed, 26 Sep 2007 17:52:14 -0000

I agree that individual stars will be less important as we move forward. One only has to look at the longer trend of film to television to cable to web to see the vast array of choices at hand. Imagine the days when Tony Orlando's show got canceled with a 30 share. These days nothing even sniffs a 30 on TV.

From my perspective I think brands will still be very important and the idea of a brand is slowly replacing individual celebrity. A brand can be a person, too. So the new celebrity is as much about star power as it is about their brand -- what do they bring to the table that we identify them for?