Jon Chu’s idea to make a dance-based television show might not that seem unconventional, especially with the popularity of shows like So You Think You Can Dance? and Dancing With The Stars. His idea, however, was for a series called The Legion of Extraordinary Dancers (The LXD), a show about people with special powers that battled evil through dance movies. The story would be told through elaborate choreography and music – and no dialogue, no cameos and under 30 minutes an episode. Rather than go to the television networks and try to convince them of this unorthodox idea, he went straight to pitching a web show, where many experimental ideas for shows are finding a new home.
“I think if we explained it to a network, they would have shut the door on us,” he said. “There’s no way we could have done this on TV. There’s no way I could pitch this to a studio with a straight face.”
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With shows like LonelyGirl15 making headlines and Red vs. Blue getting DVD pressings, web shows are growing in prevalence and influence. Online shows tend to have a lower production value and a shorter episode length, which allows for up-and-coming filmmakers to try out new techniques that normally would not have been greenlit by major networks. Because of the quick turnaround, seasons can be shot in a matter of weeks. Distributors who decide to pursue deals can see how popular the shows are without spending money on a pilot episode, and they have a guaranteed built in audience. “I wouldn’t say that every new show should start out online, but it’s a good option for people with a small budget,” CEO of Funny or Die Dick Glover said.
Finding a loyal viewership online is part of what helped The LXD get their deal with Hulu. One of Chu’s 15-year-old dancers from Step Up 2 asked the director if he could get him Miley Cyrus’ number. Knowing that was nearly impossible, his team came up with an idea of “challenging” Cyrus to a dance-off via a YouTube video. Four days later she posted her response with some of her dancers. What was even more amazing is that no one on Chu’s side had even attempted to contact Cyrus’ representatives; they relied on some friends who were backup dancers for Cyrus to relay the YouTube video to her. The battle went viral online, Chu explained, with over four million hits within the first four weeks. Chu wanted to take the show to the next level and tell fictionalized background stories behind each dancer. He knew the show belonged online and that it was not meant for a television audience. “We had an online audience and a YouTube channel that people wanted to see more of these dancers,” he said.
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Website Funny or Die has also benefited from finding an audience on the web. CEO Glover said they’ve struck four network television deals that are in various stages of production, moving their presence from online to the broadcast medium. Most notably, the first season of their sketch comedy show with HBO Funny or Die Presents… will go on sale on January 11, with a second season starting January 14. The venture had a head start due to a partnership with Gary Sanchez Productions, featuring comedians Adam McKay and Will Ferrell, and funding from Sequoia Capital. Michael Kvamme, an aspiring stand up comedian, told his father, who worked with Sequoia Capital, about his idea to create a website where users could rate videos online similar to the method of the website Hot or Not/ After all the paperwork was signed, Glover said they tested out the model with the site’s first video The Landlord, which has received over 70 million views to date. The Funny or Die website wasn’t even fully functional at that point The Landlord was posted and was very simple; now Glover and his team pride themselves on the fact that even though they receive millions of hits a day, the site has never crashed from traffic.