(image via weta)
In the beginning was the SNL Digital short. Then, there was the fateful *Dick-in-a-Box* short in December 2006 which achieved critical mass. Then, sometime later came the writers strike, which gave idle comedians the chance to keep their comedic skills sharp on the low-cost web doing videos. And the rest, true believers, is comedy history.
Lorne Michaels, being an entrepreneurial sort of counterculture comedy producing chap, has grasped the opportunity that this low-cost presents for his imprint Broadway Video (which, we cannot fail to note, already produces the magnificent 30 Rock, the gold standard of television comedy). According to the NYTimes, much of the SNL cast and crew spent their summer vacation putting together “The Line,” which Broadway Video is producing. From the NyTimes:
"The ability of 'The Line' to attract name-brand talent reflects the increasing number of writers and actors who are showing interest in original Web video. 'The Line” was the first straight-to-Internet series to be produced and financed by Broadway Video, the production company founded by the 'SNL' executive producer, Lorne Michaels. But it won’t be its last: the company says it will produce other Web series created by and starring SNL cast members, and Mr. Michaels also intends to produce Web performances by Jimmy Fallon this fall, as that former SNL cast member prepares to replace Conan O’Brien on Late Night next year.
"For the writers and stars of 'The Line,' the Web was a proving ground. 'We wanted to have an experience of shooting something on our own,' Mr. Hader said in an interview. 'This is a good medium to do it in because it’s a very low-stakes medium.'
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