meeval gazella faulkner
Bulah Landaker
I've been systematically informing the YouTube recommendation algorithm that I never want to watch any video posted by anyone with the word "angry" in their username. You can imagine how neckbeards have fallen to my sword of disinterest. You can imagine a little harder, and figure there's not a drill-bit sharp enough to bore through all that toxic content. Sunlight will never find these deserving motherfuckers.
Too much content is created out of a desire to be heard, instead of a desire to know and be known. Too much content is about other content, this very post of mine included (which is why I write free books to read online during my nights and weekends).
To be blunt, the internet's content, the perpetual doggo chasing its tail, has now deep-throated the thing and is molars-deep into its own ass, ignorant to the ashy flavor. The dominant moods on the most popular content platforms are psychosis, shrieking, and self-preservation.
And that's making the audience crazy. The gap between corporate-created content, which includes the blockbuster movie studio system and the prestige-television / Netflix alternative-streaming sphere, and the 'content-creator' / YouTuber industry is widening. To my surprise, the big guys, the Star Wars and Avengers shared universe worlds, are increasingly-inclusive in their content, crafting offerings for all types, not just white dudes in America. Elsewhere, the "content-creator" jackbags making $10,000 a month publishing Minecraft videos on YouTube are cruel nerve-balls without taste or talent. It isn't their fault, and I'd explain why, but I don't have three hours and enough construction paper.
This is mainly a staging device to present Neill Blomkamp's Oats Studios: the weird in-between of big-budget auteur content things. Blomkamp and his crew of professional weirdos have been publishing science fiction short films on YouTube since the start of the summer of 2017. The fourth film, Zygote was recently posted. They're ultra-slick and artfully thorough in design.
Who is Neill Blomkamp? He directed District 9 in 2009 under the supervision of Peter Jackson, netting an Academy Award best picture nomination. A remarkable achievement for not only a first-time feature film, but a science-fiction genre movie addressing South African apartheid.
All of Blomkamp's movies have a handheld filthiness to them that's more befitting for a YouTube / streaming environment and audience. He outpaced his ideal audience's gestation period. His design aesthetic for world-building, vehicles, and weapons are a harder, oilier military-future, another snuggly fit for the folks already familiar in streaming esports. His ideas are satirical, and heady, and a bit-too-obvious sci-fi, perfect for snacking over a 4G LTE network.
Consider Netflix's original films: Okja, War Machine, or I Don't Feel at Home in this World Anymore. Like Blomkamp's Hollywood feature films, they're blunt, obvious, and much too weird for theaters. But they're art and they're creative ideas that deserve to be witnessed, like Blomkamp's.
I recall seeing Blomkamp's Elysium in the theater years ago. I was sick as a dog with both mono and strep throat. Walking out, I joked aloud about the movie, "So, uh, was that movie about universal healthcare, or what?"
Blomkamp's preference for high-concept trash means his current manifestation as the Roger Corman of YouTube is well-earned. In an ideal world, he'd make a billion quick-hit ideas with workable special effects. If Zygote is any indication, we would be so lucky. Some of his might become features. Some might land on a streaming service, again, Netflix or a Netflix alternative (Hulu, Amazon, HBO).
Maybe others short films develop cult followings. Maybe Oat Studios will expand and become the incubator for artists? Just as we say in hushed tones that the likes of David Fincher got his first work directing music videos and James Gunn was a product of Troma studios, there might be a generation of visionaries produced from an institution like Blomkamp's.
We need increased professionalism in content produced for online platforms. It's a new, living medium, just as film went from moving pictures, to talkies, to its own craft. But the internet platform, and the content on it, needs to be watched carefully. It's too easy for artless psychopaths to scream into a camera about how the world is changing and it isn't what they're used to, and then mouthed fungus in the comments section all jerk each other off in agreed congratulations.
The Ghost Little blog publishes EVERY WEEKDAY. It's sometimes immediately relevant to the books' development process. Other times, it's only thematically-relevant. Thoughts and ideas influence the creative process in ways that you wouldn't initially anticipate. They're all worth detailing and discussing!
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While Netflix is often hailed as the king of streaming services, it's also known for frequently raising its prices -- and this year, it even started cracking down on password sharing. If the streaming conglomerate has finally priced you out as a subscriber, there are plenty of other options out there for watching TV shows and movies.
Combined with the fact that the company is now charging its account holders $7.99 for each additional user, customers are looking for alternatives. In addition, you might want to leave Netflix if you've become frustrated with its ever-changing titles and what is added/removed from the platform monthly.
There is more to the streaming world than Netflix: In fact, there are more than 200 streaming services available today. Our top alternative is Hulu, but we've rounded up the best streaming service alternatives that include live TV, unique originals, binge-worthy shows, and more for you to keep on streaming.
For more than half of the price of a monthly Netflix subscription, you can watch a wide array of TV shows and movies on Hulu for just $7.99 per month. The platform has original content like The Handmaid's Tale, How I Met Your Father, Dollface, and more, along with classic and popular movies.
However, two out of four of Hulu's subscription tiers still have ads. Also, its base subscription only supports one streamer at a time, so you can't share your account with friends or family as you can with Netflix.
Amazon Prime Video has original series like The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, The Boys, and The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power. What's great about this specific platform is that you can buy/rent movies/TV series a la carte, so if you're looking for something specific, it may be worth it.
While Amazon Prime is a decent Netflix alternative, it lacks the large number of original series and movies that Netflix offers. Also, even with your subscription, you still must buy/rent certain titles, making the overall cost go up.
To watch some of the most buzzworthy shows, you'll need Max (formally known as HBO Max). The streaming service costs $9.99 per month with ads and $15.99 per month for an ad-free experience and streaming in 4K UHD. The good news is that if you already have an HBO subscription, Max comes free.
Max is home to popular series like The Last of Us, Euphoria, Succession, The White Lotus, and more. You can also watch recently released movies from the past six months if you couldn't catch them in theaters.
Its higher tier no-ad subscription will cost you almost as much as Netflix. Also, keep in mind that with the Warner Brothers/Discovery merger, some content like Westworld, Raised by Wolves, and The Nevers, has been removed, and you're likely to see some more fluctuation with the content.
While you may think Apple TV+ is only compatible with Apple devices, the platform actually works on gaming consoles, streaming devices like Roku and Amazon Fire TV, Smart TVs, and, of course, on Apple TV and other Apple devices.
However, episodes on Apple TV+ roll out weekly instead of all together, making it hard to binge-watch a really good show. Also, there is currently no Apple TV+ app available for Android devices or PC users.
NBC's streaming service offers two tiers: a premium subscription at $5.99 that has limited ads but also live sports and events, and a plus tier that is $11.99 and has zero ads and allows you to download and watch select titles offline.
On Peacock, you can watch original series like Bel-Air, Dr. Death, Girls5Eva, and Wolf Like Me, as well as cult classics like The Office, 30 Rock, Parks and Recreation, the Harry Potter collection, and more. There's also live TV and sports you can tune into including WWE and soccer. Peacock also offers exclusive 24-hour coverage of every Olympics, including the upcoming 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris.
Of course, the downside here is that Peacock still has ads, and it recently got rid of its free tier. Some of the content is paywalled. Also, there is no 4K streaming option, so the quality could be better.
If you really want to leave Netflix to pay less, you can't go wrong with Peacock, since it is the cheapest option. However, if you're more interested in watching popular, original content, Max and Apple TV+ have shows and movies that everyone is always talking about.
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