At the start of the course, we were asked what we defined a web series or serial to be. I thought of all those web series/serials I’ve watched on YouTube (i.e. The Big Lez Show and creations from AwesomenessTV) and attempted to see the connection between each, whether they were animated or not. Essentially, they’re low-budget in aesthetic.
Unlike television shows, such as Friends (1994 – 2004) or Game of Thrones (2011 -), or any motion picture film, web series/serials use their low budget to create this certain aesthetic. This ‘low-budget aesthetic’ allows for unknown and upcoming directors (or film team) to work on projects for their portfolio, it will generally contain less-skilled/experienced actors, and allow leeway for errors and technique.
Web series are meant for just that: the web. This means that the audience generally aren’t watching these series/serials on the television or a bigger cinematic screen. The creators will generally be amateur filmmakers, and will have their intended audience watch their work on smaller screens such as laptops, tablets and mobile phones. The use of smaller screens allows for the filmmakers to have more leeway in the mistakes they make onscreen – the quality of filming is not cinematic, sticking to the low-budget aesthetic.
Though, that’s not to say television shows have not adapted this kind of ‘low-budget aesthetic’. Television shows such as The Office (2005 – 2013) and Broad City (2014 -) have used this aesthetic to allow leeway with camera movement and content, using that to their advantage to make a comedy that feels ‘real’. In fact, Broad City was a web series in 2009-2011 before it premiered on Comedy Central in 2014. Like web series, the way that these shows have been made (like they’re on a low-budget) make them appear more personal, and allows for the audience to better connect with it.
When we were in class and attempting to decide what camera we should all use – the cinematic one or the DSLR – almost everyone chose the DSLR. This was essentially because it didn’t need to be of such a high cinematic standard, and it wouldn’t suit being a web series if it was. This means that, as a class, we are thinking more in-depth about what the aspects are of a web series’ low-budget aesthetic for our own final project. I think that we will be able to successfully and collaboratively create something of substance in this web series/serial, with the ‘web’ platform complementing our low-budget and amateur skills.