Prepare yourself for 90 minutes of Lil’ Bub reacting to pictures of a shirtless Ryan Gosling eating bacon – viral media giant Buzzfeed is launching its very own movie studio
Variety report that Buzzfeed, fresh from a $50 million investment, are looking to expand their worldwide reach, and have changed the name of their digital media division to the far more epic-sounding Buzzfeed Motion Pictures.
They have some big dreams for the project, and say that the move is part of a plan to explore the future of digital video content, a scenario that may well see them teaming up with traditional Hollywood studios.
“The future of content companies is crystal clear: mobile, video, social and tech,” said founder Kenneth Lerer. “Expanding BuzzFeed’s business across each of these areas is the key to the future.”
Variety also report that the company is creating a new division with 20 staff to create content specifically for social media platforms like Tumblr, Imgur, Instagram, Snapchat and Vine, as well as “messaging apps.”
That last one seems vague, but it’s safe to assume that someone will soon have a full time job creating sets of Taylor Swift and Saved By The Bell emojis for iPhones.
“We’re in the midst of a historic shift in the media industry where news is increasingly being distributed on social networks and consumed on mobile devices,” said Chris Dixon of Andreessen Horowitz, the venture capital firm behind the investment.
“We believe BuzzFeed can emerge from this shift as a preeminent media company.”
I for one welcome our new listicle-distributing overlords.
Photo: Robin Marchant via Getty Images
