So why do I keep reading about Twitch over here on Otherworldly Culture? It’s really not difficult to explain. Our shows and Internet presence continue to evolve and we see this as the next step in our evolution as broadcasters and content creation.
Trust me, I wouldn’t have changed this thing over if I didn’t think it was a really good idea. I’ve had enough change with this stuff. Let’s give you a brief history.
We started as East Coast Horror Group (you can still get T-Shirts if you want!) and joined up with Midnight Spookshow in their podcasts. We started as a show we would record and then release, but then moved into live podcasting using a number of the early tools available for live podcasting in those early days. After some personnel changes, we moved off on our own to continue podcasting and continuing to develop our programming. This was all audio podcasting at this point.
We continued on and had some more personnel switchups moving to OtherworldlyCulture.com with a widened categorical offering in our website with renewed emphasis on some non-podcast articles. We also started producing our live shows on YouTube, then Facebook, and the audiences evaporated on us in both locations.
The cool kids just aren’t there anymore. They are on Twitch. This is where people go for live broadcasting on the Internet and their tools really show this. We now have a single browser channel video that I can drop into any article like this:
…and they have a great chat client that can similarly be used…
In fact, if we just want to have a chat with NO SHOW AT ALL GOING ON we can.
Our hopes is that this new set up will allow us to rebuild a community. So here’s the current status on things.
We’ve moved our two live shows over to Twitch for their current seasons. That would be Dead On Movie Reviews and Dead On the Bases. On the record and release slate, Horror Realm Radio, which is produced by Pittsburgh’s top horror convention, Horror Realm, will continue to be released here and on their excellent YouTube site. Adam’s Interview from the Crypt is likewise recorded and then released on the OWC YouTube along with the Dead On… live shows. (I just realized how stupid it is that our live shows are both named Dead On…)
Article-wise, we continue to pump out occasional Reviews from the Crypt by Adam (does that make him the Crypt Keeper?) and Universally Loved by myself. As if that wasn’t enough, Adam is continuing to pump out press releases we receive from scores of streaming services on the ‘net.
One experiment I was involved in last weekend was a Live Stream “Watchparty” on Twitch. You got me commenting on a film with trivia and stories as a movie was unspooling for you on Amazon Prime. We didn’t get many viewers that first time (by design! I wanted to make sure it worked!) but this might be a cool way to invite guests to join us and tell us about their films. This new show has been dubbed OWC Prime Cuts and if I do a second episode, that’s when it will get a category. This isn’t my first rodeo. You never know what shows will take off and stick around.
So we need your feedback, folks! If you have general feedback, send it to me at tim@otherworldlyculture.com or you can use our handy survey at this link:
Should we develop a chat only event? Would you like an interactive game show of some kind? Would you like to contribute articles? See too much of something? Too little? Let us know!
I promise we’ll at least read the feedback. Our goal is to have fun and build a community…and have lots of fun in the process. We look forward to hearing from you.
Tim Kretschmann is the host of Dead On Movie Reviews, Now Streaming, and Dead On the Bases. He is also a columnist on OtherworldlyCulture with the column Universally Loved.