WIGS is a

web channel Streaming television is the digital distribution of television content, such as TV shows, as streaming media delivered over the Internet. Streaming television stands in contrast to dedicated terrestrial television delivered by over-the-air a ...

, part of the YouTube Original Channel Initiative. It presents web series,

short film A short film is any motion picture that is short enough in running time not to be considered a feature film. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences defines a short film as "an original motion picture that has a running time of 40 minutes ...

s and

documentaries A documentary film or documentary is a non-fictional motion-picture intended to "document reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction, education or maintaining a historical record". Bill Nichols has characterized the documentary in term ...

about the lives of women. WIGS targets a female audience. Most videos are around five to ten minutes in length. The channel was co-created by

Jon Avnet Jonathan Michael Avnet (born November 17, 1949), is an American director, writer and producer. Early life and education Avnet was born in Brooklyn, the son of Joan Bertha (née Grossman) and Lester Francis Avnet, a corporate executive with Avnet ...

, producer of ''

Black Swan The black swan (''Cygnus atratus'') is a large waterbird, a species of swan which breeds mainly in the southeast and southwest regions of Australia. Within Australia, the black swan is nomadic, with erratic migration patterns dependent upon c ...

'' and ''

Risky Business ''Risky Business'' is a 1983 American teen comedy-drama film written and directed by Paul Brickman (in his directorial debut) and starring Tom Cruise and Rebecca De Mornay. Best known as Cruise's breakout film, ''Risky Business'' was a critical ...

'', and Rodrigo Garcia, who directed '' Albert Nobbs'' and '' In Treatment''.

History

Jon Avnet and Rodrigo Garcia developed and wrote a handful of series and recruited writers and directors such as Lesli Linka Glatter,

Rose Troche Rose Troche (born 1964) is an American film and television director, television producer, and screenwriter. Early life and education Troche was born to Puerto Rican parents and grew up on the north side of Chicago. In an interview she stated, "M ...

Amy Lippman Amy Lippman is an American television writer and producer. Biography In 1985, Lippman graduated from Harvard University. She is perhaps best known as the co-creator of ''Party of Five'' with her writing partner, Christopher Keyser. She is polit ...

Marta Kauffman Marta Fran Kauffman (born September 21, 1956) is an American television writer and producer. She is best known as the co-creator of the NBC sitcom ''Friends'' with her longtime friend, David Crane. Both Kauffman and Crane were also executive pr ...

, and Julia Stiles, to direct projects for the channel. They have recruited actors such as Jennifer Beals, Jena Malone,

Troian Bellisario Troian Avery Bellisario (born October 28, 1985) is an American actress. A graduate of the University of Southern California, in 2010, she received her breakthrough role as Spencer Hastings in the Freeform drama series ''Pretty Little Liars'' ( ...

, and Julia Stiles. WIGS officially launched on May 14, 2012. The channel's first season includes 100 episodes of short films, series and documentaries. "Jan," written and directed by Jon Avnet, was the first series released by WIGS. While the channel's tagline "Where it gets interesting" does not fully match the acronym WIGS; on their website, the words "Where It Gets . . ." are used to begin to describe each series, and the last word is changed. For example, for the first series, "Jan," the tagline is, "Where It Gets Spicy." On February 19, 2013,

Fox Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush''). Twelve sp ...

announced the launch of an event series and multiplatform programming department and a multiyear partnership with WIGS. The multiyear programming, marketing and distribution pact with WIGS was intended to serve as an incubator for original content that can be programmed on Fox or other networks. WIGS will fall under Fox's Shana C. Waterman's purview. In May 2013, WIGS celebrated its first anniversary and combined viewing figures of over 33 million. The channel was at that point YouTube's number one channel for scripted drama. Beginning in June 2013, WIGS released seven of its series ("Blue," "Lauren," "Jan," "Christine," "Ruth & Erica," "Audrey," and "Vanessa & Jan") on

Hulu Hulu () is an American subscription streaming service majority-owned by The Walt Disney Company, with Comcast's NBCUniversal holding a minority stake. It was launched on October 29, 2007 and it offers a library of films and television serie ...

under the FOX banner. The series were recut into fewer, longer episodes for the new medium. In September 2013, WIGS announced that "Blue" would return for a 3rd season, adding

Eric Stoltz Eric Cameron Stoltz (born September 30, 1961) is an American actor, director and producer. He played the role of Rocky Dennis in the biographical drama film ''Mask'', which earned him the nomination for the Golden Globe Award for Best Support ...

and

Alexz Johnson Alexzandra Spencer Johnson (born November 4, 1986) is a Canadian musician, actress, and philanthropist. Her debut album ''Voodoo'' was independently released with her brother Brendan Johnson in 2010, followed by the demo release of ''The Basem ...

to the cast.

Series

The channel features series that follow the lives of different women. The stories include a poker player on a losing streak, a mother with a secret life and one that follows a woman on a series of speed dates. Many of them follow a woman's professional life, romance, war, or family structures.

History

Series

Awards and accolades

References

External links