Some of the top creators around are taking more cues from Hollywood than you may expect. Instead of merely considering any view worthwhile, creators are seriously considering the quality of their views — i.e. whether the viewer takes away something meaningful from their content. Similarly, some have adopted the production schedules of a regular TV series and are finding ways to repurpose their own content for fans, sort of like a “self-syndication,” as Michelle Khare framed it.
That’s what actor Andrew Bachelor, aka King Bach; “BFFs” podcast host Josh Richards; and “Challenge Accepted” host Khare revealed during The Wrap’s Creators x Hollywood on Wednesday at Whalar’s The Lighthouse in Venice Beach. During the “Creators as Storytellers” panel, the trio explained to Shira Lazar, founder and CEO of What’s Trending and Creators 4 Mental Health, how they approach storytelling.
“Something I think a lot about is the quality or the type of view. There are plenty of pieces of content — movies, art, in general — that are seen by millions and millions of people, but they don’t actually impact or leave the person changed,” Khare said. “At the forefront of all of our storytelling is not just the ‘Save the Cat’ or the [Blake] Snyder beats or the beginning, middle and end, but how will the viewer actually experience their own story arc watching?”
Khare, who will be campaigning again for an Emmy nomination in the Outstanding Hosted Nonfiction Series or Special category, noted that there’s been a change in creator storytelling particularly on YouTube. She said there has been “a huge evolution of the depth and the scale that’s possible,” pointing to her own video that shows her recreating Tom Cruise’s plane stunt from “Mission: Impossible — Rogue Nation.” Cruise and now Khare are the only two humans who have ever completed the death-defying stunt.
“What’s been really cool about the past several years is that the barrier between creator and traditional Hollywood is getting so blurry. In many cases, you can’t tell the difference between the two,” Khare said. “What’s been really exciting is to be a part of that generation of people causing confusion.”
For Josh Richards, who has a first-look deal with Prime Video along with his production company CrossCheck Studios, how he approaches his storytelling depends on where a post will live. If a post is for TikTok or another shortform platform, Richards intentionally doesn’t write as much and relies more on improvisation. But the process around Richards’ more intensive content looks similar to what you would see on any Hollywood lot.
“With the higher, elevated content, like the sketch show or a podcast, we’re doing meetings and breaking through. We’re in the writers room process for six months, writing the show. And then after the writers room, we’re doing all the set scout locations, and then I’m going out and asking a bunch of friends to collab, get into these videos, and then we start shooting,” Richards explained. “That takes about, probably, three to four months to finish. Usually it’s one year for the entire show.”
There’s a very specific reason behind this intentionality. “We always want that reaction or that comment that’s like, ‘What show is this from?’ or ‘What movie is this from?’ or ‘This should be a movie, this should be a show,’” Richards said.
As for Bachelor, the creator who has been posting since 2012 has found a way to efficiently utilize his long library of content. Bachelor told Lazar that filmmaking is his “No. 1 passion,” but admitted that making movies takes a great deal of time. Bachelor has starred in “The Babysitter” and “To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before” and will star in the upcoming “Violent Night 2” alongside David Harbour and Kristen Bell.
When he’s starring in an acting role, Bachelor is fully invested in diving into his character and “sharpening my craft.”
“I’m doing these movies, so I know that my social media is gonna have to go on the back burner for a little bit so I can focus on showing up on set because I’m working with these legendary actors, you’ve got to come with it,” Bachelor said. “I’ve created so much content that I can just repurpose a video from a year ago. I can literally not shoot content for a year, still post on my channel and people would have no idea.”
“That’s such a cool economy you’ve created for yourself of self syndication,” Khare told Bachelor. “You’re not syndicating on other people’s platforms. You’re syndicating and still generating business for yourself.”
TheWrap’s Creators x Hollywood Summit was an invite-only gathering of the top creators, entertainment leaders and brand partners who are shaping the future of storytelling and the new entertainment economy.
The event was presented in partnership with global creator agency Whalar and The Lighthouse, both part of the Whalar Group. It is sponsored by City National Bank, Fox Entertainment, Lionsgate, Loeb & Loeb LLP and WEBTOON.