The name Andrew Grantham ring a bell? Probably not. Regard-less, this Haligonian's work was among the most watched of any Canadian entertainer in 2011. Even up there with the Bieb.
Grantham is the comic genius behind the wacky Talking Animals series on YouTube. He gave a voice to a hungry German shepherd, the video of which was the second-most popular on the planet last year. It has registered more than 1.1 million views - and counting - on YouTube.
Corey Vidal, whose Star Wars a cappella tribute to composer John Williams was nominated for a People's Choice Award, and Tony Huynh and Paul Telner are not exactly household names, either. Yet they, too, are YouTube comedy sensations. The Picnic-face troupe is better known, so its sizable following on YouTube is understandable.
Then there's Montrealer Jon Lajoie, the Dawson College grad whose YouTube channel has more than 340 million views. He is the most subscribed Canadian comedian on YouTube. And can't forget the Just for Laughs Gags series - produced in Montreal - which has had more than one billion hits on YouTube.
All by way of saying that Canada has given rise to some of the biggest comedy stars on YouTube. And that comedy has become a real serious business on YouTube in this country
Canadians watch more You-Tube videos than anyone else. According to comScore, the aver-age Canadian viewed 271 videos on YouTube in 2011, an increase of 170 per cent over 2010. The entertainment category, which includes comedy, saw an increase of 217 per cent
Google clearly knew what it was doing in purchasing YouTube six years back. YouTube reported four billion views a day over an eight-month period as of last January. In 2011, it had more than one trillion views, which works out to almost 140 views for every person in the world.
And in what must certainly induce panic in parts of Hollywood, there is more video uploaded to YouTube in a month than what all three major U.S. TV networks have broadcast in the last 60 years - which apparently works out to 60 hours of uploaded video every minute. And three billion hours of YouTube videos are watched per month globally.
Aaron Brindle is big into analyses. He is with You-Tube Canada. He has been blown away by the numbers, particularly as they relate to Canadian consumption and Canadian comedians on You-Tube.
"These numbers have become almost absurd," Brindle says in an interview from his Toronto office. "What is really fascinating is how Canadians like Grantham, Vidal, Telner and Lajoie each have their YouTube comedy channels and they are among the most sub-scribed to on YouTube. And then again, perhaps it's not surprising, because people are looking for a little pick-me-up."
Brindle is particularly proud that the Canadians have been able to parlay their success on You-Tube into a decent living. Because they draw so many hits, they can now run ads against their content which "monetize" every time their videos are watched.
"They end up getting a percent-age of ad revenue - and a larger percentage than what Google gets," Brindle notes. "And when you start factoring in hundreds of millions of views, that can turn into a solid career."
YouTube has also served as a stepping stone for many. Picnic-face, out of Halifax as well, now has a show on the Comedy Net-work. And Montrealer Lajoie has established himself as a popular standup and stars in the FX net-work series The League.
"Corey Vidal started making videos - like how to dance like Michael Jackson - as a means to make money to get through university," Brindle says. "Now, solely with the content he creates through YouTube - he doesn't have any other platforms - he employs 12 or 13 people and is hiring. He basically has a YouTube production house. He just bought a house, and he's still in his 20s.
"Not too many people realize that there is a professional class of comedian that exists solely on-line. Even if viewers don't know who they are, they certainly know their work. Canadians stand out in traditional comedy, so why wouldn't we online?"
© Copyright (c) The Calgary Herald
This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read the FAQ at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php#publishers. Five Filters recommends: Donate to Wikileaks.
No comments:
Post a Comment