Flicks to click
By Christopher Null
Believe it or not, many film download sites survived the dot-com shakeout. Here's our guide to what's out there.
-
Shockwave.com
Focus: Shorts, animation, music, games
Format: Win Media Player, Real, Flash
Connection Speed: 28.8Kbps and upThe new Shockwave.com is the spawn of a merger between AtomFilms and the old Shockwave, two of the most popular sites for shorts on the Web. The new company continues to crank out shorts as well as animations, such as Shockwave's revival of The Critic. Altogether, the conjoined site is one of the most consistently high-quality entertainment hubs on the Net. From lowbrow humor (the Bikini Bandits and Angry Kid series) to excerpts from such shorts as My Mother Dreams the Satan's Disciples in New York, which won an Academy Award last year, many of the thousands of titles here will make you want to watch.
- iFilm
Focus: Shorts
Format: Win Media Player, QT, Real
Connection Speed: 56Kbps and upOnly slightly less popular than Shockwave.com, according to PC Data, Ifilm is more of a film destination than a site for shorts. The focus here is on gossip, news, filmmaking how-tos, and feature stories, with original programming playing second fiddle. While the text content is top-notch, a number of great shorts can be found here-â€"from digital cause célèbre 405 to original selections from the Spike & Mike animation series, to the online resurrection of Mr. Bill. Sure, the pop-up ads are a real nuisance, but Ifilm is better than ever.
- MediaTrip.com
Focus: Animation, shorts, music videos
Format: Flash, Win Media Player, Real
Connection Speed: 56Kbps and upHome of cult fave George Lucas in Love, MediaTrip made headlines again with the announcement that its popular Flash-animated series Lil' Pimp is headed to the big screen. Meanwhile, you can check out the antics of the country's youngest playa through the regularly updated online episodes. MediaTrip is also the host of countless feature stories, interviews, message boards, and so much other content you couldn't possibly sift through it all in a week.
-
Z.com
Focus: Animation, music, TV
Format: Flash, Real, Win Media Player
Connection Speed: 56Kbps and upZ.com is a raunchy, in-your-face experience designed to get hip young kids in on the act. There's such music-based entertainment as Red Hot Chili Peppers and Alanis Morissette concert footage, and Z.com has drawn attention for its Dare for Dollars Webisodes, which feature sob-storytellers taking on disgusting and/or embarrassing challenges for cash payments. From "Bobbing for Maggots" to "Whipped Cream Bull Riding Challenge," the episode titles are self-explanatory, not to mention grotesquely hilarious content.
- Hypnotic
Focus: Shorts, animation
Format: QT, Real, Flash, Win Media Player
Connection Speed: 56Kbps and upIn partnership with Universal Pictures, Hypnotic aims to be a kind of online/offline film factory, and has grandiose plans to distribute its programming through all types of media. If the site overcomes its bugginess, this might become a good idea. Still, it's a reliable source for high-quality independent films, such as those shown during its Million Dollar Film Festival, along with high- profile projects like Doppelganger, starring Rebecca Gayheart and Timothy Olyphant.
-
ALWAYSi.com
Focus: Shorts, trailers, TV, features
Format: Win Media Player
Connection Speed: 56Kbps and upIt's a little odd that some of the most popular programming at ALWAYSi (which bills itself as "The Independent Entertainment Network") is made up of clips and trailers for studio feature films such as Hannibal. The remainder of the site is indeed indie-driven, with such spoofs as American Beauty Pie and Pies Wide Shut dominating the shorts that are available for consumption. To be sure, there are some gems to be found among the 1,000 or so attractions at the site, but its content partnership with Ifilm means you don't need to scour ALWAYSi for the good stuff.
The visionaries of film, video, and animation have already set up shop online -- is Hollywood about to take the plunge? Our annual Hollywired report takes a look at where the industry is now and where it's headed.
