Original online shows expand TV's limits

TV shows on the Internet aren't a new phenomenon. Amateurs have been making their own programs and posting them online for several years. And current prime-time shows are regularly available for viewing online.

But now big media conglomerates are getting into the act with the launch of whole networks, like TheWB.com. And heritage networks are creating original online content, including webisodes from "The Office" and all-new series, including NBC.com's "Gemini Division," which premiered this week.

"Gemini" is a 50-part series and each episode lasts about three minutes. The series stars Rosario Dawson ("Eagle Eye") as New York undercover detective Anna Diaz, who vacations in Paris with boyfriend Nick Korda (Justin Hartley, "Smallville").

Most scenes in early episodes consist of Diaz recording a video message to a friend back in America, recounting the details of her daily life, including the strange man she notices watching her at Notre Dame and her boyfriend's sometimes bizarre behavior. Future episodes promise to take a darker turn as Diaz sets out to solve a crime and uncovers a conspiracy involving genetic experiments and covert military operations.

Production values are fairly low -- but not amateurish -- with much of the series looking like it was shot in front of a green screen. Diaz's constant direct address brings to mind "lonelygirl15" or last year's Web-series-turned-failed-TV-show, "quarterlife."

On Wednesday, an entire moribund broadcast network brand will be revived online with the relaunch of TheWB.com. Once a popular and buzzworthy network, The WB ceased to exist when The CW was birthed from the remnants of The WB and UPN.

The revived site will boast a full roster of Warner Bros. library programming and shows that may have appeared on networks other than The WB but fit its hip, youth-skewing brand (e.g. "Friends," "Buffy the Vampire Slayer," "Everwood," "The O.C.").

"We had this brand, we know this audience very well, and the brand still resonates with young adults," said Brent Poer, general manager of TheWB.com. "Instead of going out and creating a new brand, we can bring back something people still love and enjoy."

Perhaps surprisingly, the site has also licensed some shows from studios other than Warner Bros., including the Fox properties "Angel" and "Firefly," both executive-produced by "Buffy" creator Joss Whedon.

"'Angel' and 'Buffy' were part of the lineup of The WB," Poer said. "If we didn't bring those two to what we're doing, we would have had people outside with burning torches. ... It's about creating a robust lineup. This isn't just 'roll out the library,' this is about creating a complete schedule that has a lot of great content."

Poer wouldn't discuss the terms of financial arrangements with Fox or its own business plan for TheWB.com.

"It's a very different model from television. However, we have very successful Hollywood producers -- McG ("The O.C."), Josh Schwartz ("Chuck"), Gary Auerbach ("Laguna Beach") -- who understand this is the wave of the future and that we really need to look at how we do short-form storytelling at a very different (cost)."

TheWB.com promises original programming -- both scripted and unscripted -- through the use of both foreign imports and new domestically produced shows. Unlike "Gemini Division," some of TheWB.com shows look like traditional series shot on location.

"They look like broadcast television," Poer said. "This is not YouTube quality. This is content that's coming from a studio, and as Warner Bros., we have to maintain a level of quality that viewers expect from us. This isn't about skimping and making cheap content.

"It's TV online," Poer said. "That's pretty much it."

Library programs will carry advertising in what's becoming the industry standard: 30-second spots at the start of the program and in the middle. Original programs will have co-branded opening ads and ads at the show's conclusion with the opportunity for product placement within the show itself.

New series on TheWB.com in the coming weeks include:

"Blue Water High": An Australian import about students at a surfing academy, each episode runs 22 minutes. TheWB.com will premiere 18 episodes from the first season with plans to pick up second-season episodes later. (Premieres Aug. 27.)

"A Boy Wearing Makeup": Poer said executives discovered 20-year-old Mathieu Francis of Alabama when he posted videos of himself giving makeup tutorials on YouTube. Francis is creating original five-minute episodes for TheWB.com. "It's incredibly viral," Poer said. "You look at it, say, 'I learned something,' and then you send it to your friends and say, 'You won't believe this.' " (Premieres Aug. 27.)

"Whatever Hollywood": A mix of music videos and reality show about three young women in Los Angeles who aspire to make it big in Hollywood. Episodes run up to four minutes each. (Premieres Aug. 27.)

"Sorority Forever": A mystery/drama set in a sorority house, the show was filmed in Spokane, Wash., and executive-produced by McG. Each of the 40 episodes runs 13 minutes with new episodes premiering daily for eight weeks. (Premieres Sept. 8.)

(TV editor Rob Owen can be reached at rowen(at)post-gazette.com.)

(Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service, www.scrippsnews.com.)