Five Questions for Josh Raskin, Emmy-winning director of "I Met the Walrus"

"I Met the Walrus" was one of the first short films featured in the YouTube Screening Room, YouTube's platform for great independent film content. Featuring dazzling animation set to an intimate interview with John Lennon, it's been raking in accolades since its premiere in 2008. The latest award? A Daytime Emmy for New Approaches. The award-winning "network"? YouTube.

In this interview, director Josh Raskin discusses filmmaking and distribution in the digital age.

1. You've been nominated for an Oscar and "I Met the Walrus" is the first YouTube video to win an Emmy. How do you think about film (or video) before you start a project?

I really don't think much about film or video before starting a project. I worry about the idea, and then use whatever medium will best communicate that idea. In this case, the idea was to show literal interpretations of John's words flowing into each other, the way they might have appeared inside the head of an overwhelmed 14-year-old kid. Animation seemed like the best way to do that without a huge budget and really flexible actors.

2. What role does YouTube play in the promotion and distribution of your work?

YouTube is the main way people see our film. Outside of film festivals and TV specials, there aren't a lot of places short films can be seen. The internet is the only format with a short enough attention span. By allowing anyone with a computer and an internet connection to watch your film and spread it around, YouTube puts promotion in the hands of the people. Which is really the best possible system. It means the things that get watched most are the things people want to see, as opposed to the things with the most money behind them.

3. Are you seeing a sea change in how young filmmakers are thinking about creating and distributing their work?

The fact that anyone can make and distribute a film for next to no money has really leveled the playing field. Anyone with an idea and a bit of passion can put a film out. Everyone's a filmmaker. Some people just haven't done it yet.

4. You have a very distinct style of filmmaking. Have you seen an impact for your work on mainstream media?

We've definitely noticed echoes of our style in mainstream stuff. But our film borrows so much from everywhere that it becomes really difficult to draw those lines. Everything is inspired by other things. But the goal should be to do something new with those things, rather than just imitate them.

5. Do you approach Web filmmaking, or your online audience, any differently than you would approach traditional filmmaking and distribution?

Making a film is such an intensely personal process for me that by the time it's done, the fact that anyone sees it seems like a miracle. But I don't approach projects differently based on the audience. The truth is, whether it's online or in a theater, you never have any idea who's wataching your fim. I think as long as I'm making things that I care about, the rest will ssort itself out.

Posted by Nate Weinstein, YouTube Entertainment Team