The next greatest show will be...
Lil Miquela, Janky, and more. The rise of transmedia entertainment.
Influencers are fake.
Lil Miquela is a 19 yr-old Brazilian-American influencer from Los Angeles. With 1.7M Instagram followers, she’s collaborated with some of the biggest brands including Calvin Klein, Prada, and even Samsung. She’s interviewed for Coachella, released music, and just recently started doing confessionals on her youtube channel. But what stands out above all of this is that she isn’t a real human. She’s a CGI robot navigating the world after figuring out she isn’t human.
While to some on-lookers, her uncanny valley-esque look is confusing and irritating, the majority of her followers are invested in her story, because it’s written as if she was real.
Miquela’s not the only one CGI Influencer, she has two ‘friends’ Bermuda and Blawko22. Although they aren’t as realistic, the designer-toy brand Superplastic launched their two CGI influencers: Janky and Guggimon.
~Transmedia~
The company that created Lil Miquela, is named Brud. They place themselves in a new genre: transmedia. Their studio is based in LA.
“Transmedia: a narrative that extends beyond multiple media forms that also plays to the strength those forms; may or may not be interactive”
Lil Miquela and Brud mark a new era of connection: relatability and authenticity. These two are more important for brands and companies than ever before. In a world where it’s getting easier for younger generations to call BS on bad marketing, the mediums of storytelling need to evolve.
Colin and Samir said, “Lil Miquela is to Brud, like how Mickey Mouse is to Disney”. A Character within a larger plot, connecting stories, sharing emotions, and crafting an image. Brud tackles their characters by asking - What would Mickey Mouse’s Instagram look like? How could he find more ways to relate and connect more to his fans?
The next greatest shows for Gen Z will have characters both sharing their personal moments and receiving critical feedback in real-time through all their social media platforms. And it's only just begun:
Shane Dawson, a veteran YouTuber with 23.1M subscribers, made a controversial, 8-part series about another popular creator Jake Paul. Shane was consistently tweeting and Instagramming in between the real-time production of the episodes. Each subsequent episode would reference feedback from comments, Instagram DMs, or twitter mentions. He would apologize for a mistake, take criticisms and then go on to pick fights with some.
The Mind of Jake Paul went on to receive collectively 167 Million views while keeping insane retention throughout the episodes - Each episode on average hit 20 million views. (Context: Keeping Up With The Kardashians, the most-watched show on the E! Network on average receives 1.9 Million views per episode.)
Now imagine a show like the Bachelor - a show that already captivates the internet, but now you give all the contestants access to Instagram accounts, Twitter accounts, and each episode is crafted in real-time adding points that the fans mention. Or if Nickelodeon or Cartoon Network would launch a cartoon, where students could follow on Instagram or Twitter, or subscribe on youtube in real-time to the characters. Just how people live-tweet the Oscars. Recurring shows where users can act a part, be their own judges, and real-time commentators, is the future.
One final thought
I recently asked a friend, “Does Ariana Grande or Lil Miquela feel more real?”
On one hand, you have the once-normal actress turned into a product for the masses. On the other, you have a robot crafted to feel a normal person. Yes, they are completely different and yes, Ariana’s marketing is aimed to make her more elusive. But this question has been ringing in my head.
What are your thoughts: will big entertainment companies start to leverage cross-platform narratives? Do you think Lil Miquela is pointing towards a different future?