Welcome back. This week has been a wild one for brand collabs. Minecraft and Burberry. Fortnite and Polo Ralph Lauren. Not gaming related but even more bizarre—Kraft Mayo and Juicy Couture joined forces to create a “velvety smooth” tracksuit and yes, there’s bejeweled lettering on the butt.

–Hannah Doyle

The Gap Between Traditional Media and New Media is Shrinking

We’re entering Emmy and Oscars season in the world of show business…and creators have entered the chat.

Over the past few days, Markiplier was just nominated for an Emmy, and Yes Theory announced their feature film, Project Iceman, will be released in over 150 theaters nationwide.

Let’s take a closer look:

Markiplier’s science fiction YouTube Original series In Space With Markiplier, was nominated for Outstanding Interactive Media alongside Netflix’s Cat Burglar and Oculus TV’s Madrid Noir. The gaming creator is one of two YouTubers nominated for an Emmy this season, joining Tab Time’s Tabitha Brown.

Yes Theory has long-said that they’re shooting for an Oscar nomination with the Project Iceman release, and turned down a $1.25 million streaming deal to make it the way they wanted. Now they’re on a world premiere tour, and partnering with Cinemark to bring the film to the public starting December 4th.

“The way that we [made the film] defied how the [traditional] industry works,” Pedro Paiva, head of operations at Yes Theory told us.

Funding for the documentary came from the worldwide Yes Theory community, with 4,212 people making the credits. By retaining independence and forgoing a traditional studio partner, they had to take on distribution themselves. To do so, they assembled a team of five to secure venues for their red carpet tour, and solicit movie theater companies for a wider release.

Paiva expressed excitement about how their community has responded. “This is a natural progression of how we see Yes Theory impacting and building with our audience, because we want to change behavior and impact people’s lives, and we know that’s by moving into more in-person experiences, while relying on the strong leg that is content,” Paiva said.

Our Take

We’ve talked about the next Spielberg being a YouTuber, and these moves provide evidence that such a reality may be closer than we think. The most creative work is no longer gatekept by Hollywood. With creators being able to develop their own content and build an audience that follows, they are able to find views and distribution on their own terms.

Johnny Harris Opens a "Newsroom"

The Emmy winner and independent journalist revamped his Patreon this week, now dubbed as The Newsroom.

Context: For the last year, Harris had been posting to his Patreon 1-2x a month, sharing scripts and maps from his videos. At the start of October, he began soliciting feedback through YouTube community polls and Patreon, sussing out ways to improve the experience.

Now he plans to bring his fans into his production process, with tiers of support ranging from $2–8/month.

How it breaks down:

• Newsroom Writers can participate inpolls that influence video titles and thumbnails, as well as pitch story ideas.

• Newsroom Reporters get exclusive access to video scripts, music from Harris’ composer, Tom Fox (which Reporters can use in their own videos), and extended interview footage.

• Newsroom Correspondents get all of the above, plus a monthly behind-the-scenes video.

Our Take

With the low price tags, Harris is likely using Patreon to deepen his relationship with community more so than to develop a meaningful revenue-driver. He just turned his Patreon into a Masterclass, except the learning is happening in real-time, and never stops.

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Uscreen is trusted by more than 25,000 creators all over the world. Learn why at Uscreen.tv.

NELK Founder Goes Solo

If Friday night is the vibe of the NELK Boys and Full Send, the brand’s co-founder, Jesse Sebastiani, is aiming for something more chill with Sunday, the network and creative agency he started after selling his ownership in the NELK brand.

“[Selling my share] was due a while ago, there’s no bad blood, we’re just ready for a fresh start,” Jesse said in the brand's first vlog, posted this week. “I’m super grateful for all of this.”

The video gives a behind-the-scenes look into building Sunday, as the team creates merch, pitches new ideas, and holds consulting calls.

Our Take

Sunday’s more mature, slow-paced vibe is a stark contrast to what the NELK Boys were known for. Instead of chronicling a weekend of going “FULL SEND” in Vegas, Jesse’s opening up and sharing his entrepreneurial journey with his audience through authentic and raw videos. This feels like a natural evolution for their longtime audience. As one commenter, EMTD 99, put it, “Feel like old school Nelk fans have grown up with the brand and growing into Sunday is so fitting. Good luck Jesse.”

🔥 Press Worthy

• The Green brothers reopen their Awesome Sucks club.

• Dhar Mann and Jay Shetty start a podcast.

• Adobe releases its Creators to Watch list.

• The Ringer launches a podcast series on internet fame.

• TikTok looks to expand into music streaming.

• Lululuvely leaves gaming org NRG to go solo.