A few weeks ago I decided to add something onto my plate – a live web show on UStream. I’m quite familiar with live web TV – I’ve practically been hosting live online red carpets since the technology was available…but I’ve never done my own show.
Make no mistake – this isn’t a studio set show with three cameras, 4 guests, and a live performance – it’s just me and my laptop, often getting off track, nervously getting back “on” track, talking about what’s on my mind, and interacting with people who are watching. It’s not exactly professional, but….if I’m trying to become even more entrenched in this whole web entertainment world, it does help to understand how live web TV works.
So I launched my show on UStream a few weeks ago – The Taryn Ten at 10pm EST - not without a few (okay, a lot!) of technical glitches, of course. Toad Saulnier from All American Rejects was my first guest, and Bart, my hamster, was my one live audience member.
I’m now getting ready for my fourth “show” tonight and already I’m seeing what works…and what doesn’t. I don’t think the Top Ten list works. It’s hard to spend 30 minutes moving through a top ten list – it almost needs to just be a “bit” up front and then done with.
I LOVE having guests and taking questions from viewers. That’s my favorite part – so I’m going to try to focus on that from here on out. I want the talk to be entertainment/ web geek centric — so my guests will be anyone from web celebs to comic book loving actors.
This week, actress/supermodel Jaime King (Sin City/My Bloody Valentine) is stopping by. I have a goal - by Feb 1, I want to be producing my show in a professional studio with three cameras. I want to be able to cut to cool web clips and have a cute little jingle intro play in the beginning. I want it to feel…like a real show.
But I need your help. If you guys have seen a lot of live web tv, tell me what you’d like to see more of, and what you DON’T like. Let me know if you agree that I should ditch the Top Ten theme and just maybe do a little Top Ten bit at the very beginning of the show each week. Let me know what you think of doing a weekly giveaway, your thoughts on the title, and if you have ideas for an animated sequence at the beginning. If you or your friends know how to create animated sequences, let me know, as I will need to find someone to do that!
Thanks so much for your suggestions, and here’s a stream of the show if you want to check out previous ‘episodes’ (I’m warning you, it’s rough):
