Brent Weinstein has a front row seat to the revolution currently underway in Hollywood. As the head of UTA's digital media group, Weinstein, 38, leads a group of agents who are responsible for signing the hottest online talents and helping them grow their YouTube channels into sustainable (and profitable) careers.
To the average adult viewers, many of these stars might look like kids who are just messing around in their apartments with their friends and a video camera but they are formidable entertainment companies in the making. Some of them have collected millions of fans without the benefit of a professional production studio or a marketing budget. These stars often write, direct, star in, edit and market their shows. George Clooney never had to do that.
"Their audience watches almost exclusively streaming content as opposed to TV," says Weinstein. "They are amassing huge, passionate audiences they can program to without any gatekeepers."
In a mod conference room in UTA's Beverly Hills headquarter, Weinstein excitedly tries to cue up his latest find on the room's giant TV. The computer system running the media is a complicated collection though so Weinstein simplifies and grabs a nearby iPad to show me a video by Todrick Hall. The 28-year-old singer/dancer/writer/director first attracted national attention when he tried out for American Idol in 2010 and sang a song he wrote in the first audition. He was eventually voted off the show but started his own YouTube channel which now has 483,000 subscribers.
The video Weinstein shows me has been viewed over 3 million times. Titled The Wizard of Ahhhs it's a 7 minute retelling of The Wizard of Oz set to a Glee-like mashup of modern music performed by acapella singers complete with costumes and sets. It's an amazing achievement and one that could never have been done in the traditional entertainment world.
The greatest example so far of a successful crossover star is Lucas Cruikshank. Since 2008 his Fred character has been delighting children and annoying parents with his high-pitched voice and child-like antics. UTA helped Cruikshank transition the character into two successful made-for-TV movies on Nickelodeon and a Fred TV series. Cruikshank went on to star in a non-Fred kids show, Marvin Marvin, which was recently canceled.
"When you add it all up, he made a tremendous amount of money," says Weinstein.
YouTube stars don't always have to crossover into film and TV. Plenty of people are perfectly happy raking in millions of dollars online. Earlier this year I wrote a story on Ian Hecox and Anthony Padilla, the pair behind the successful Smosh YouTube channel. Also represented by Weinstein, the pair had plenty of offers for TV show but they turned them down deciding they didn't want to leave their die-hard fans for the time it would have taken them to make a pilot.
But for some stars, moving into more traditional media makes sense and it's starting to make sense for filmmakers too. When Paul Fieg came to UTA looking for one of the agency's high-profile comedians to fill a role, they instead suggested John A. Baker, a 24-year-old YouTube star who goes by the moniker Spoken Reasons. His videos have attracted as many as 50 million views.
"He got the job," says Weinstein. "The studio then gave him a budget to market the movie to his fan base. They probably weren't going to be the first people in line but they ended up going to see the film because of him."
Weinstein is hoping to replicate that success with another client, Jimmy Tatro. The creator of Life According to Jimmy, a bros-first sketch comedy series, has a role in the upcoming sequel to 21 Jump Street.
The biggest thing that separates YouTube content creators from traditional Hollywood (besides the shortness of their shows) is that on YouTube, the stars are trying to create a two-way conversation. The most successful content is bits that inspire fans to comment, share or interact in some way. I asked Weinstein if he expects this kind of emphasis to cross into more traditional entertainment.
"I think it’s harder to have a two-way conversation in film and TV because the technology doesn't exist [yet]," says Weinstein. "But I think that’s why so many of these digital stars are having opportunities in film and television because they can bring those audiences."
Here are some YouTube stars Weinstein thinks audiences should be on the lookout for (in addition to the folks named above). They are all represented by UTA. When I asked him for names of people he doesn't represent, he told me that if the agency thinks they are good enough, they represent them.
iJustine: Justine Ezarik's channel features how-to videos done with humor and attitude. The 29-year-old Pittsburgh native also has a gaming site where she films herself playing games like Grand Theft Auto and Saints Row. Her most popular video is a spoof on the Black Eyed Peas song "I Got A Feeling."
Corridor Digital: Weinsetin calls these guys the Michael Bays of the YouTube world. They make effects-heavy videos on tiny budgets. Here's a recent video they made that brings video game characters into the real world.
KingBach: Andre Bachelor studied film at New York University but had trouble breaking through in Hollywood. He found his medium on Vine where he has 3 million followers.
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