Black People Making Moves on the Small Screen
Starting back in 2014, there was a rise in Black independent content-creators producing media on the small screen. The platform of choice was YouTube. One of the most popular shows to come out from back then was “Money and Violence.” It debuted in August of 2014. This was 1 month after the debut of “Power, Book 1.” At the time, despite its much smaller funding, this show was better than “Power.” Due to its acclaimed success, major studios were opting to fund this project. However, nothing is for free. Thus, these studios wanted part ownership. However, the creator of this show understood the importance of retaining his creative product.
Therefore, he refused to hand that over. He took to GoFundMe for crowdfunding and began producing season 2 of “Money and Violence.” Unfortunately, infighting—along with real hood-drama transpiring—brought the series to an abrupt end. However, the success of “Money and Violence” gave rise to other hood series such
as “Respect Life,” and other hood dramas that I didn’t watch. Also, around this time, HBO hollered at Issa Rae—who created “Awkward Black Girl,” and enjoyed medium success on its own merit—asked her to do the spinoff, “Insecure.”
Currently, we have independent content-creators that've created their own shows that have navigated away from the oversaturated hood-drama market—thus showcasing our varied interests. RDC World 1 has its series, Anime House.
King Vader created an independent Horror/Comedy. This is the category that “Scary Movie” falls into. His film is “Don’t Disrespect Halloween part 4.”
Although YouTube has many shortcomings, many Black people have taken center stage with their innovative videos thanks to the platform being built on independent creator-content. This has served to offset negative stereotypes levied against us. It has also allowed us to take control of our narratives.
As these independent content-creators become more skilled in creating shows, people will gravitate to their sitcoms over mainstream sitcoms shown on TV. However, as always, it's imperative that these independent content-creators retain control over their material.
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