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Original Tongal Media Productions

02/10/2017

Comments (6)

General

Hi All,

Was just hoping to start some discussion. I've noticed this year that there's been, in my opinion, a larger number of Tongal-Sponsored Projects. (eg. Original youtube series, Christmas specials, Fan theories, What's next, Academy Awards, Documentary Project, project green light animated series. etc)

I think its all super cool! I know Tongal has always hosted some of their own projects, but it's seemed like lately they've been doing a lot more original content production for outside-site consumption, which is awesome!

I guess I just wanted to see other's thoughts, and if any Tongal Staff wouldn't mind sharing words on the the subject? as far as the future of tongal and as far as if this is an intentional direction change to be more of an original entertainment source as well as crowd source site?
I know you can't open up about specifics of the company's work behind the scenes, but as a community it would just be cool to hear a bit of the company's thoughts!

Comments (6)

Kyle Elliott

02/11/2017

I'm kinda hoping they get into the 24 Hour Dessert Delivery Business so I can get chocolate chip cookies or a whole cheesecake delivered to my house at 3am whenever I want.

Tony Lantry

02/22/2017

This site used to be about non-professionals having a chance to show their work. While the 'spots' weren't as good as they are now, everybody had a chance. Now this site has become a place where companies get cheap 'professional' commercials and Tongal gets a lot of money and only the professionals have a shot at winning any money for videos. It's kinda sad for those people who have a dream, but don't have the money to invest in professional equipment or hire actors. But that's usually what happens when the almighty dollar is involved.

Kyle Elliott

02/22/2017

That's why I've been sticking to writing and started pitching alongside established production companies. If Tongal didn't get such great content for brands, they wouldn't be coming back for more work at all. While I think the Ensure gig was insane to only be giving writers a total of $1,500 for a $135,000 project (1.1%) I also know this is the only place on the internet where I can make $500 for writing a tweet. I haven't been able to break into the production side of things yet, but I made enough from Tongal that...despite still living in my parents' basement at 28...I could afford a Mac and bought a RED Scarlet off Ebay to try and get more professional commercial work. The Equipment and Actors should usually be covered by the pitch money. The Ensure project is giving like $12,000 for the pitch, which is plenty for renting equipment for a week. The thing well-established Tongalers have is a huge portfolio of commercial work backing them, and I can't blame the brand for picking a sure thing over someone who just started. They're the ones risking a ton of money hoping the people are actually able to pull off these commercials and make them look professional on a tight budget.

Maddie Mindling

02/22/2017

Hi Caleb,

Thanks for posting this discussion! We’d be happy to share some of our thoughts with you and the rest of the community about this topic – and hopefully get a few more Tongalers to chime in. As you’ve pointed out, we’ve been posting a lot more Tongal-sponsored original content Projects to the site. We’re always striving to find new and exciting opportunities for our community – whether it’s in branded content or original – so this is partly due to this effort. But what is also important is that we see the potential in our platform to discover new, original voices and next-generation storytellers. By hosting Projects like these on our platform, we can help creators move past the hurdle of discovery and into the fast lane for development. Hopefully this offers some insight into why we're hosting both kinds of Projects. We welcome any feedback from you and the rest of the community, and are always interested to hear about what types of Projects (and opportunities) you’d like to see more of on Tongal!

Alexander Higginbottom

03/03/2017

Are there/is there any wildcard video submission projects coming along. I feel like it's been a while since a project gave non-pitch winners a chance to enter?

Maddie Mindling

03/04/2017

Hi Alexander, thanks for participating in this discussion. Wildcard Videos will continue to be part of Tongal's creative process for future Projects, so we encourage you to keep an eye out for them. We determine our Project structure based on our clients' needs and we always work to create as many opportunities for the community as possible. Hope this answers your question. We really appreciate your feedback. Thanks for posting!