It was by total accident that I happened to see one of Julie Nolke’s Feeling Peckish videos. After a rough night of tossing and turning, sleep seemed so far away. I rolled onto my side and lethargically grabbed for my phone. If I was going to be awake, I might as well look at what was happening in the world. I scrolled through Instagram, scanned Twitter, and checked the weather. The yellow icon was next; Snapchat stories played, some on repeat, albeit quietly so I would not wake the other half. I happen to tap on the Tastemade video line. The title mentioned something about inside-out nachos. I was intrigued since I am obsessed with nachos. Julie Nolke made these incredible nachos in the deep-fryer. And since I am from Wisconsin, where we deep-fry everything...I was in awe. They looked delicious and the video was so funny. I was laughing a little too hard for three o’clock in the morning. While I was thoroughly enjoying the video, my boyfriend was not too thrilled. That is until we made the nachos the next day.
On choosing to cook for vlogging:
I’ve always loved cooking. Particularly in University when I finally got to cook all my own meals for myself. I would experiment all the time with packed lunches or taking really unique dishes to pot lucks (i.e. Bacon wrapped meat loaf or scratch make biryani). It just felt like a really natural fit to put my love of cooking on camera.
The flip side of it is that I also felt very vulnerable about my acting career. It was a sensitive topic that I wasn’t booking jobs like I thought I would and so I wanted this outlet of mine to be completely separate. I didn’t ever want it to feel like work.
On starting a video blog:
It actually all started as a written blog. I had gone to school for acting in Toronto and upon graduation, much like the stereotype, I was an out of work starving artist. At that same time, I met my boyfriend/partner in crime/business buddy, Sam Larson, and we started funneling our pent up creative energy into a food blog. He would take the pictures (he went to film school for directing) and I would create the recipes and write the blog posts.
The blog was fairly successful but was also kind of a pain because it was so not what we wanted to do with our lives. He wanted to make major motion pictures and I wanted to act in them. So, this then lead us to actually filming our blog posts. That way I could practice being in front of the camera, trying out characters, and he could shoot/direct. From there it’s just evolved into what it is today.
Best experiences career has taken you to:
Top of mind is this year’s trip to Iceland. I was there shooting a travel show with a tourism company and we were lucky enough to explore all the natural wonders that Iceland has to offer. Every inch of that country is breath taking and the culture is so beautiful.
On Snapchat helping your fanbase:
Snapchat is a different beast altogether. The app is built to keep users anonymous while making sure people stay on the app. Until the recent “swipe up” update it was virtually impossible to get
audience members to leave the app and follow me on other platforms.
That being said, there is a large audience there and it’s important to continue to cultivate that relationship. I enjoy the app because it’s a fun way to connect with a different audience but I would also say that, of all the social media apps, it’s the most challenging one to benefit from as an influencer.
Favorite aspect of vlogging:
It changes on a day to day basis. I get restless easily and like to mix things up. Right now, I’m really enjoying editing. It’s one of those things that just makes sense when you’ve got a vision and pieces fall into place. I also love how easy it is to change a story with editing.
That being said I’ve always loved the writing process whether it’s scripts or creating recipes. Putting a brain child onto paper and then into reality is pretty special.
On making vlogging a career:
In my experience, there are a few basic ways to keep afloat with a YouTube career. Adsense is the ad revenue earned through each video posted on the platform. It is usually a very VERY small amount at the beginning. (I’m talking pennies). And realistically only the huge YouTubers can rely on it entirely.
Then there is branded content. These are collaborations with brands who want access to your audiences. The rates are always negotiated and are dependent on brand integration in the video.
And finally, there are contracted videos. These are videos contracted by production companies that we produce but usually don’t live on our channel. Tons of production companies are doing this now because their eager for original content.
Then, of course, then there are outside resources like Patreon for fan funding or you could sell merchandise.
On production time:
On average there, is probably a half day of preproduction that goes into each video even if it’s just a “vlog” style. The shooting time ranges from 2-6 hours and then it takes me about 3-5 hours to edit, export and post.
On choosing career path:
I didn’t choose the vlog life; the vlog life chose me…
No but seriously, I kind of fell into this path and it has led to some incredible things. The best thing about YouTube and online content creation is the fact that it’s still uncharted waters so the possibilities are endless. Anyone can become someone on YouTube and that’s incredibly inspiring for someone like me who once felt incredibly defeated by the traditional film industry.
It’s is still my ultimate dream to produce and act in films but I now have a different way to get there and it’s one that I now have control of.
Where video blogging will be in ten years:
I honestly have no idea. I thought about this question for a while and the fact is I don’t know where it will be in 6 months. Even if you just look at the platforms it’s tough to tell what will happen with Facebook, YouTube, Instagram etc. never mind the content itself.
But if I had to make a guess I would say that the personal feel of vlogging will continue to thrive. I think it will professionalize and possibly become more mainstream. I also think that video footage in general will professionalize. Technology in this area is advancing so fast while at the same time becoming affordable. My partner and I couldn’t do this same job 15 years ago with the cameras that were available so looking ahead I can only imagine what the technology might be like.
On growth of video blogging culture with YouTube:
I think the transition to video in any domain is natural. People want to be fully immersed in an experience and the best way to do that is through sound and sight.
The key to what creators are doing on YouTube as opposed to TV is producing content with a raw textured approach that feels authentic, uncut and intimate. So much of what I do is about communicating to real people through this medium and creating a connection. I think generally people feel there’s a place for them and individuals like them on YouTube.
Feelings on popularity and
success:
I feel really excited and optimistic about it! We’ve worked hard to build what we have now and I am thrilled with the community we’ve created. I want to continue to produce bigger and better content for the viewers who give me so much support.
Advice:
Ooh yikes. That’s tough because I still feel like I’m at the beginning of my journey. I guess the most important piece of advice, and maybe overtly corny, is to be brave. The internet is fickle and it takes patience and hard work to find your audience but even before all that you have to be brave enough to film something and put it out in the world for people to judge. And head’s up, the judging never stops.
The beauty of the internet is that people are free to speak their mind but the drawback is that it may not always be positive. You have to be brave enough to stick to your vision, your voice and your goal.
No comments:
Post a Comment