“Ian Hollister’s Haunted Hospital,” the premiere episode of the new “Stranger Adventures” anthology series, arrived this week on the Web. This weeklong episode and the series is an interactive game; players are asked to participate in an adventure in which they follow clues toward cracking a 10-digit pass code to win reward money.
The series–which is advertiser sponsored–is a hybrid of high-end scripted drama, alternative reality gaming, mock reality TV and personal TV. It relies on first-person storytelling that uses character and location-driven narratives.
“Stranger Adventures” is the brainchild of Internet entrepreneur Chris Tyler; his partner in the venture, Red Car CEO Larry Bridges, serves as creative director and executive producer. Propaganda Films and Palomar alum Anne-Marie Mackay serves as co-executive producer with Bridges. The Santa Monica office of multi-city Red Car is handling production and post on the series.
In the game that launched this week, the first player to crack the code will win a grand prize of $25,000; the runner-ups divide the second prize of $10,000.
Supporting this episode is Prudential California Realty, which is incorporated into the storyline. This premiere episode revolves around an effort to lift a curse from a haunted hospital so that it can be sold. Within “Ian Hollister’s Haunted Hospital,” players not only see Prudential’s signage and products, they are directed to spend time on Prudential’s Web site to retrieve clues to the code.
Each of the season’s 10 episodes will arrive every other week and revolve around its own central character (the “Stranger”) and an adventure marked by clues and hints about the 10-digit code. Also, to help players along, the “Stranger” emails them graphic-enhanced text daily.
“It’s product involvement, not product placement,” Bridges said of this unique branded content model, noting that future episodes will each have one to two corporate sponsors. “The writing is with the clients’ brands and objectives in mind.”
Bridges also explained that the venture is tapping talented writers, including Writers Guild of America (WGA) members, to create the scripts. The first episode was written by Eric Heisserer, whose The Dionaea House is now in preproduction as a feature at Warner Bros. Bridges directed this episode, and he expects to direct additional ones. He also plans to tap commercial directors and directors of photography to work on the series.
“Stranger Adventures” is lensed with handheld DV camcorders and posted at Red Car.
Before launching, the team initiated five online trails and a pilot episode that ran in February. They were happy with the results. Bridges reported that trial players spent 41 minutes a day online, for six days, participating in the adventure, and 72 percent of the players finished the competition. “If a game is extraordinary fun to play, it will get around on the Internet quickly,” added Tyler.
Vendari Media is promoting the series, and invitations to play were sent to Prudential’s customer base. A trailer was also created for DVD via Hollywood Previews.
The series site is www.strangeradventures.com.
Directors Amy+Pilar and Jose Antonio Prat Join Reform School
Boutique content production company Reform has added comedy directing duo Amy+Pilar (Amy York Rubin and Pilar Boehm) and award-winning multicultural director Jose Antonio Prat to its roster for U.S. representation spanning commercials and branded entertainment.
Partners in both life and art, Amy+Pilar are know for their sharp wit and comedic timing. Their synchronicity is evident in a body of work across TV, film and commercials. Prior to joining Reform School, Amy+Pilar had been repped in the ad market by production company Knucklehead.
Amy has directed high-profile comedy sketches featuring stars like Amy Schumer, Kate McKinnon, and Sarah Silverman. On the episodic front, Amy has helmed for series such as Fresh Off the Boat, Casual, Superstore and Angie Tribeca--as well as the pilot for the hit Netflix comedy Dead to Me.
Before joining forces with Amy behind the camera, Pilar was a psychotherapist, a background that informs her ability to create fascinating characters and stage irresistible, nuanced performances. Amy and Pilar’s shared passion for comedy brought them together. Their collaboration began with a Synchrony Bank campaign, starring cult-comedy favorite Maribeth Monroe (Workaholics), and they went on to direct the pilot of the Hulu series Love, Victor. Amy+Pilar’s ad fare also includes spots for Uber’s “Go-Get” campaign and “Shift,” starring Martin Starr.
“We have been fans of Amy and Pilar for a long time,” said Ryan Ennis, executive director at Reform School. “They excel at capturing comedic performances and dialogue. Coming from the TV and L.A. comedy scenes, they’ve built a strong following and collaborated with some of our favorite funny people.... Read More