Image Source: AP Images
Why wait to catch the eye of big name studios? Black actors are now turning to the World Wide Web to create and produce TV series while bypassing the Hollywood red tape, The Ledger reports.
Issa Rae’s Awkward Black Girl opened doors for many Black actors and actresses. HBO recognized the talent that Rae’s YouTube TV series captured and the big name studio offered her a lucrative development deal. The Internet, according to the Ledger, is allowing Black content creators to reach their target audience directly without needing to win the affections of stiff network executives.
“Instead of wondering where the next opportunity can come, I said, ‘I am going to come up with it and do it myself,'” said Degrassi star Andrea Lewis.
Lewis is the mastermind behind Black Actress, a comedy web series that explores the obstacles that Black actors face in the industry. The episodes also include real-life interviews from actresses such as Naturi Naughton and Tatyana Ali. Both discuss the struggles of having a creative career.
Lewis created Black Actress after a Degrassi cast member introduced her as the “urban one.”
“I was seen as the Black one on the set, not as a peer or another actor who is trying to work,” she said. “It was an uncomfortable experience for me and also for the others who were there,” she said.
Lewis perceives the web as a breath of fresh air. There are no gatekeepers that infringe on her creative freedom.
The 19th annual American Black Film Festival (ABFF), which completed its four-day run on June 14, exemplified Lewis’ plight — and success — in being a Black film artist and turning to the Web as a creative platform.
“You’ve got to try to take your own destiny in your own hands and there is no excuse now,” Jeff Friday, co-founder of the ABFF, said.
Issa Rae, who is currently working on her HBO-ordered Insecure series, joined Lewis for the “How to Create and Monetize a Successful Web Series” panel at ABFF. Rae noted that these discussions are important — there are ways to make money from web series and people don’t even know it.
“I never thought that anyone would really pay to see my work online,” Rae said. “I got into this industry initially as a fan and to be able to use my platform to support other up-and-coming artists that I am a fan of. That’s an ideal situation for me,” she said.
Rae’s success comes from creating a handful of web series through her company, Color Creative.
BuzzFeed actress Quinta B. chimed in on the conversation, saying “Hollywood will come knocking” if you can gain an audience through a web platform.
