Comedy Film Fest nets vast viewers via digital deal

A new partnership with leading YouTube network Collective Digital Studio (CDS) puts a vast new audience within reach for the four-year-old Chicago Comedy Film Festival (CCFF).

Under the deal, Collective Digital Studio administers CCFF advertising and promotes CCFF across CDS channels and platforms, in exchange for a percentage of ad sales.

“The deal is huge for our filmmakers, allowing them to be part of a digital presence that is going to grow massively into a platform where all CCFF works can get wider recognition and viewership as part of the CDS Network,” says CCFF vice president Brent Kado.

“Our being part of CDS will hopefully lead to deals for filmmakers. It also allows us to be a focus of digital content in Chicago, which needs more solidification and unification for creators.”

Chicago native and Columbia College alum Patrick Zielinski joined CDS last fall and brought the proposed partnership to Kado.

Best known for Video Game High School, CDS oversees more than 600 YouTube channels —- featuring Freddie Wong, Epic Meal Time, Hannah Hart, Rhett and Link, The Annoying Orange, and FЯED —- that collectively garner nearly a billion views per month. 

“In my opinion Chicago creators have yet to realize the scope and power of YouTube,” Kado says.  “In many ways there still appears to be an old school approach to the way film and video is distributed and the way creators go about working toward bigger film and TV deals.”

“The kind of money and deals that are coming out of some form of YouTube content today is staggering.  It’s why Disney bought Maker for $900 million.  CDS is certainly a major player in creating this atmosphere.”

Kado and CCFF president Jessica Hardy co-wrote and –directed the 2009 feature comedy Off the Cuff, a behind-the-scenes sendup of a Chicago improv festival.  Hardy founded CCFF in 2010 to expand showcase opportunities for comedic filmmakers like herself whose worked is often underrepresented at mainstream film festivals.

Hardy won the Price is Right Showcase Showdown in April, scoring a Bradley Meat Smoker that she’s awarding to the best feature winner at this year’s CCFF.

CCFF runs Oct. 17-18 at Showplace Icon.  They’ve added web series and viral video categories, and plan to begin creating original CCFF content.  The final submission deadline for CCFF is June 15.