Netflix has been killing the television production landscape massively. This applies to the creative people, especially writers. The model of Netflix has given birth to a new age that is very liberating as well as exciting.
If television producers including the Internet and traditional ones are to compete today, they will have to give their writers the freedom to create the stories that audience is craving for.
The Age of Writers
Writers in today’s time do not like to write a more extended series, a series where they have to continually recap and build up for the commercial break and then build down and then build up for another commercial break. Nowadays writers can write chapters of a book that people could read consecutively or instead, voraciously. With binge watch entering the lexicon of the Netflix Age writers are now free from the story structure imposed by commercial breaks. They can take more time with their characters, giving us more profound, more complex worlds and relationships on screen. This is a great thing for art and a terrible thing for people’s gym resolutions.
Success is not about Box Office or Ratings
Netflix has been tight-lipped about its success as well as the measure of its success. We all know that the success of the Netflix model is not measured in the traditional ways like weekend box office figures or critic ratings. Adding to that, it is not even beholden to advertisers. This serves as the most significant benefits for writers as it offers them a clean slate to write and create whatever they want, without having to tailor to a particular audience, demographic or market trend dictated by advertisers. Therefore, the ideas of the stories of Netflix, their concept and talent are given the first and foremost priority. This makes it target the lovers of great stories.
Netflix has a Committed Audience
Consumer’s behavior changes when they switch to Netflix immediately. Unlike TV they do not flip channels to see what else they could be watching. They make a decision, a choice to go into the walled garden of Netflix and browse.
Once they are in Netflix, which is blissfully advertisement free, they are in no hurry to leave. They trust their judgment, the viewing algorithm, the standard of the shows, as well as the quality of its content. They have chosen to be here because they know they will find something great and end up being thoroughly entertained. This category of the audience is the one that writers want to write for. An enthusiastic audience chooses to watch something great and entertaining and not just surf until something catches their attention for a moment.
The Netflix Age
Netflix is a platform for writers to express themselves and write the story that they wish to tell. People who travel also know the joys of logging in on your device in a hotel room that serves only local TV. It is sheer joy, and this joy is what is liberating writers in the Netflix Age.
