unforum

[Oscar Langley]

Marble Hornets was the first Slendervlog and it was around for almost a whole year before any others. A little before it went on its first season break EMH started and then TT and others followed filling the void. But there isn't going to be a new surge of Slendervlogs filling the void this time because it's already been done and there just isn't that much demand for Slendervlogs anymore to begin with. EMH, TT, and DH are supposedly ending soon and after that I imagine that any other remaining Slendervlogs will follow suit. There will probably still be some crappy vlogs popping up from time to time but I doubt there will ever be another semi-professional Slendervlog.

[Blackout_2014]

[Oransel]

So, you are surprised that people are getting tired of watching pretty much the same story for the 5 years straight? Troubled teenagers with mental and personality problems angsting about being stalked by Slenderman and his peers still excite you like before? I am not even covering the questionable quality of the story and cinematography of some series.

Something original and interesting gets everyone's attention, then other works try to play with the genre and advance it... And then everyone starts to do it, bringing tons of low-quality products, eventual oversaturation and fatigue to all related series. Examples include westerns, old sci-fi series, recent vampire and zombie manias... We will see the demise of comic books movies soon too.

In the case of horror (Slenderman) it's even more pronounced because wide audience does it best to fight fear with laughter and casualization. When SM got really popular (circa late 2012 with 8 pages game etc.), flood gates were open for parodies, 20$ jokes and laughingly bad series. Of course you'd not be able to watch and make ongoing series with the same perception as you did in 2009-2011 when everything was genuinely creepy and disturbing as fuck. Early MH, TT, EMH... So good. Now? Answer yourselves.

[AssassinB]

[Oransel]

[Lithp]

I was actually really interested in finding new series, until my friend loaned me his PS3. Once I run out of shit to do again, I'm sure I'll go looking for Slendervlogs. Maybe some people just need a break. If the comments are to be believed, some people here don't really have a lot else to do when a Slendervlog isn't updating. It might help to go outside & talk to girls find a new TV show, or something.

Now, will I be able to find a series that strikes my fancy? Who knows? There's a lot of uncertain variables, there.

But here's an interesting question: Why would you say that comic book movies are about to die off when comic books themselves show no sign of dying & have been around for like eternity?

See, that's why I'm not so convinced about the "disappearing demographic" theory.

[Oransel]

[Peppercorn]

We need dedication in the fanbase just as much as we need series that are good enough to catch people's attention again... after all, these two things produce each other. All it should take to solve the "oversaturation" (that word is oversaturated) is something that is not only good enough to reinvent "tired clichés", but is recognized as such. It will happen eventually, but anyone impatient for such a series to come along should be sure to lend the kind of support that will allow it to.

[The7kproductions]

[Peppercorn]

Actually, I was saying that it wouldn't be easy for even a higher quality new series to get noticed. What I meant was that if people want there to be something good enough to "bring back" the mythos, they should make an effort to take some risks as a viewer... yes, this means giving something a chance when it only has a sub-par beginning. When I said "lend support", I meant providing feedback that could allow it to get better, and acknowledging it when it has proven itself. There are probably some out there that could take a place among the Greats, if only they had recognition.

[The7kproductions]

To be fair I was just using what you were saying as a jumping point.I was more or less just addressing this community as a whole rather than what you said. This is the community that thought that my statement that the inclusion of ONE ELEMENT (the operator symbol) doesn't automatically condemn a series was so preposterous that I MUST have been some sort of troll.

[Carnahan]

These topics are usually pretty generic, but I'll admit this thread has had some good thoughts.

My thoughts on the matter (which overlap whenever someone ask me "advice for starting a new series") are almost contradictory in nature. If you're asking about "starting a series" then you're almost setting yourself up to start with a -1 handicap. What I mean is... you're not going to be able to go the MH route anymore (this is what I found, it involves Slondors, now let's go from here) -- I mean, by all means, try it, but you'll experience the unfortunate drought of views that some otherwise good series suffer.

If you're trying to make your project feel as if it actually exists in the real world, then you can rarely get away with your in-game presence making a YouTube channel purely for the "weird things" going on. Again, your mileage may vary, but the genre as a whole (found footage, etc.) uses that as its trope. Its possible to thrive with, but you set yourself up for immediate suspension of belief and that magical word "immersion."

It's a delicate balance. Are you trying to make an ARG and something that people may actually believe exists in our world? Or are you making a film project that you wish to have a streamlined story? Neither is the right or wrong answer, but it does influence how you handle your production. Posting your trailhead in the "slenderverse" tag isn't conducive to legitimate views and natural discovery if the first bit of Google research reveals that a person who looks suspiciously like the main character posted the very same video to an out-of-game Tumblr account. Obviously, with how mainstream Slondors is now, you're going to be hard pressed to remain the silent producer is you have even the slightest trace of Internet presence prior to the project, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't try, if that's the premise you're going for (this is real!).

Some older series have done it, and I still see it today. In my mind, the best way of engaging, surprising, and taking in viewers who typically wouldn't be interested in a horror series, is by faking it. Obviously, the choice of health series may been seen as cliched at this point (haw haw) but think of the medium. I could easily see a new series being prominent by creating a RoosterTeeth / typical YouTube vlogger (John Green, etc.) hybrid. Post two Let's Plays! and one personal vlog a week for a month, THEN let the "weird" stuff start to creep into your life. Maybe have a shadow over the shoulder for one of the Let's Plays that wouldn't have been noticed, had people not realized they were experiencing a horror project.

Of course, these are just my personal opinions and thoughts.

[Kio1]

I definitely agree with everything you've just posted, honestly. I think that as far as Slender Man goes, we've seen a lot of him, and I think that if we not only delved into realms that we haven't seen Slender Man go to. What I mean by this, is that we need more than JUST Slender Man in a series, I think we need more reasons for everything that's happening.
I think what we need to see is more than just a tall man in a suit, and I don't mean just some guy in a mask, or possessions and whatnot.
We need a series to think outside the box, and while there's been a handful of good ones, they all tend to head in the same direction.
A dead end.
I think that as much as inactivity in a series can build up anticipation for the next video, it isn't good to keep everything so spaced apart.
( While personal lives can be an issue, I believe the creators should be well aware before getting into something like a video series that has such a wide audience. )

I think one series that has a lot of potential that gave off a traditional Marble Hornets-like vibe was TheAlleyStory, which I believe I've seen you post about.

It seemed like it was going somewhere, and then just stopped.
I recently checked to see that they uploaded a new video, and in seeing that they've been having tremendously spaced out videos, it's good to finally see that they're posting again and actually putting time into videos.
But on top of what I said, I really just hope that they don't just post one video, and expect to get away with another 6 months or so of inactivity.


But interesting post though, hopefully someone comes out with something that really expands the universe.

[lachesis]

[punxtr]