I only knew about Funny or Die when I attended the workshops. Before that, it was merely a website that some people I knew go on from time to time to take breaks. I never watched any of the videos or really heard anything about them. However, after attending their workshop on Thursday and watching some of their videos, I really enjoyed their work. I commend Mike and Chris for working in an area they enjoy and not simply giving up and settling once they realized how hard it would be breakthrough in the Hollywood industry. However, it made me realize that most of their success could be due to the fact that one of their co-founders is Will Ferrell. Because of their association with Will Ferrell and his long-standing career as a comedian, other actors and actresses naturally trust his taste in comedy. While I do admire the qualities and marketing strategies Funny or Die has implemented (Twitter, Facebook, etc), I believe it may have had it easy in terms of viral videos. Plenty of people on Youtube post many videos throughout their Youtube lifetime and still only a few amongst the millions become well-known. After Funny or Die's initial creation, it has become a great company in that those working there still have lots of creative freedom instead of the enormous companies that have many people with conflicting views. In addition to the creative freedom of writers, they have an abundance of actors willing to participate and scripts that can be filmed within a week or so. Basically, it seems like Funny or Die had the right timing, right people, and right idea. As the internet begins to potentially overtake television (with many shows being aired online), viral videos and companies such as Funny or Die may become more and more popular and perhaps eventually take over traditional forms of media.
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