Big Screen Little Screen October Meet Up

Web content creators strut their stuff in the Big Apple while putting in some face time with their fellow digital artists

Christina Kallas presents "42 Seconds of Happiness" at Big Screen Little Screen’s October Meet Up.

Big Screen Little Screen held their October Meet Up last night at Ogilvy & Mather's Manhattan offices with a new array of web series and viral videos.  Founded by Paul Kontonis and Matt Semel in June of 2007, Big Screen Little Screen is the premiere New York City showcase for web content creators to strut their stuff and get audience feedback on their work (no waiting for viewers to click the 'like' button).

Since its inception Big Screen Little Screen has hosted over 60 events and screened more than 350 web series.  "It's a perfect opportunity for creator's to showcase their work to a larger group and get immediate feedback," says co-founder and host Paul Kontonis.

While Big Screen Little Screen has played host to some heavy hitters in web entertainment, premiering original series from the likes of Ben Stiller and Zach Galifianakis, it's also a great place for newcomers to the world of web video to network and connect with likeminded individuals who are just beginning to unravel the intricacies of producing content for the digital age.  Wellington Lora attended for the first time last night with the hopes of making connections for his music licensing company, The Cueniverse.  "I'm just hoping to meet new people and see how we can all help each other," said Mr. Lora.

Paul Kontonis, co-founder Big Screen Little Screen

Beyond the networking opportunities, last night's attendees were able to interact with the evening's presenters with Q&A sessions following each screening.  Content creators were asked everything from the types of equipment used to how they secured funding.  October presenters included Marquis Smalls with The Married Bachelor, Christina Kallas with 42 Seconds of Happiness and Monica Link with the original reality series How Do I Get Hired.  Ms Link's series follows 5 habitually unemployed individuals and their work with a career coach to kickstart their careers.  "Everybody I know has been laid off or downsized," said Ms Link.  "I wanted to know how they were coping and what they were doing to find work in the new economy."  This led her on a year and a half journey to chronicle the efforts of her subjects to find work.  She hopes her series, which premiered online this week, will provide insight to others that may find themselves in the same situation.  She chose to screen her first episode at Big Screen Little Screen for the feedback from the group and to jump start awareness for her series to a large group.

In addition to the video presentations, Dot Gong from The 7th Chamber delivered a keynote address on how to drive viewership and develop YouTube rankings.  The 7th Chamber is a social video seeding service that propagates videos to the various social networks large and small. Ms Gong sums up her companies services stating, "If you want people to see your work, you don't go out and pass out fliers anymore.  You go

online and connect."

If you are interested in screening your own original content at Big Screen Little Screen, simply sign up on meetup.com.  When the announcement is made for the meet up, send an email to Paul Kontonis through meetup.com and let him know you want to present.  Slots are filled on a first come, first serve basis.