Update: How are our creators doing?
It’s the second half of the year and… we’re still here, in the midst of the pandemic. I last wrote about content creation in a time of a pandemic and I thought I’d make an update to see how things are now almost 4 months in. How are our favourite creators doing? What’s new now? What’s going to stay after the pandemic?
4 months ago, we’ve just implemented a circuit breaker which meant most on-site productions had to come to a halt. Thankfully things have gotten somewhat under control here and now that we’ve moved on to phase 2, productions can continue a̶s̶ ̶p̶e̶r̶ ̶n̶o̶r̶m̶a̶l̶ with social distancing measures in place
But for some parts of the world, it’s still the status quo with content made from homes and collaborations done virtually. It’s pretty cool how some global collaborations can still take place:
Blackpink performed the very first stage of their latest comeback (Their MV saw 82 million views in 24 hours — setting a new YouTube record!) on The Tonight Show starring Jimmy Fallon, without being there. It's definitely not the most ideal with the lack of interaction between Jimmy and the guests so it doesn’t feel like they were actually on the show. Moreover, other than their outfits, their stage resembled most of their other stages in Korea so it's not as distinguishable as it would’ve been (re: BTS‘s performance at the Grand Central Terminal) but hey — at least it's exclusive.
A member of Blackpink, Lisa, also had a virtual stage collaboration with a Chinese girl group elimination reality show. She dances with the contestants on stage via a screen in the background with matching costumes and set. Honestly, I could see artist collaborations, especially those that are physically hard to make happen, take place in such a manner in the future — be it in live shows or even concerts!
Actors on Actors: A usually rather polished set but now fully done via video call. The series sees actors having an intimate, genuine one-on-one conversation so albeit the big difference in look, I think the video-call element still works well for them and adds to the “raw-ness” of their conversation. The only downfall is, its difficult to hear the softer person sometimes when two people speak at the same time because of audio quality or other technical limitations, so what they say goes unheard. Check out 37:24 of the clip above, a great joke missed!
I also brought up creators in my previous article such as B̶o̶n̶ ̶A̶p̶p̶é̶t̶i̶t̶ The Try Guys, and I’d say they’ve managed to regain their footing after being stumped for a short while when they first moved their production to their homes. They’re still able to produce their regular content of trying things, taking on challenges and even producing their hit series Baking Without a Recipe from their homes (vs. the vlogs they were pushing out at the start of the quarantine)
Few months on, I’d say creators and broadcasters have really adjusted well to the situation. Even though the new look and format took some time for viewers to get used to, for the most part, I’m still getting the regular content I’m expecting and love. So kudos to them! It’s definitely not easy *cries in Thursday Bloomr videos*
I’d like to also bring up something I never would’ve experienced if it wasn’t for this pandemic — a paid virtual concert. Yes, we’ve seen major global charity concerts happen, but how about paying to watch a live concert online? I was pretty opposed to the idea initially as many artists have been putting their concerts online for free, but it sounded plausible that such a thing could be a mainstay in the future so I thought I’d see it for myself. I attended K-pop boy group Super Junior’s “Beyond the Super Show” concert. It was essentially their regular world tour concert broadcasted online and they even managed to attain a viewership of 123,000 viewers!
Definitely a unique experience. I paid $40, which included a ticket and access to a VOD when it’s ready, meaning you could rewatch the concert (!!) You’re also given the option to buy a merchandise bundle and have it delivered to your doorstep— Yes, no crazy queues and out-of-stock merchandise. For context, a ticket to a regular K-pop concert would cost you at least $200, unless you’d want to sit all the way at the back of course. And that $40 price tag with what it includes, is a win for me. For a fraction of a cost, I get to watch a full concert in the comfort of my own home (you know, not sweating it out with fangirls), in HD with viewing angles of each member (not tiny ants on stage) and get to replay it as an when I want to (no need to use up your phone storage for low-quality clips). Sure, the atmosphere and acoustics are different, but if you had a good set-up, you could very well host your own viewing party with your fellow fan-friends.
The concert was also curated to make it seem like it had a live audience by interjecting fan chants (but I must say I cringed) and setting up a sea of lightsticks to give the illusion of an audience, which are things you would see and hear in a regular concert. Bonus: Fans can connect their lightsticks via Bluetooth to have it light up in-sync with the concert! Audience interaction took place in the form of a massive video call session playing in the background and replying to the comments section, which arguably is more than what you get in a regular concert. Also, an Augmented Reality (AR) segment was featured. I’d imagine there are endless possibilities with AR integrated into a concert, virtual and live.
Overall, I feel virtual concerts are definitely a viable option and I could see myself choosing that over attending a concert IRL.
This pandemic has really pushed the boundaries of content creation and while creators, broadcasters, and even artistes scramble to adjust to the circumstances, new content formats and modes of collaboration emerge. Now having witnessed its potential, these changes could very well become a mainstay in the future. So, hurray to the new normal?
