The Garden Harvest: 10/10/25
Your weekly digest on the intersection of the Creator Economy and Legacy Media.
Welcome back to the Garden Harvest.
Each week, we gather and curate the freshest insights from the worlds of Creators and Legacy Media, so you can stay rooted in what matters and spot new opportunities where others can’t.
Let’s get into it…
FRESH CLIPPINGS
The Ecosphere is here
We’re all pretty familiar with Evan Shapiro’s media map (if you’re not, check it out), and now he has built one for the entire creator economy.
An ambitious attempt, to say the least… From top YouTubers and podcasters to the tools, studios, and agencies powering them, this was no easy task. The report compares platforms not just by followers but by engagement, because, as we’ve discussed here before, fandom and passion outweigh raw scale. It also highlights just how fragmented the landscape has become: creators are now the world’s most powerful marketing engine, but there’s still no single source of truth to measure it.
The goal of The Creator Ecosphere is to give the creator-industrial complex a shared language and a map we can all navigate together.
That’s a step in the right direction.
A new playbook for premium IP
David Freeman, CAA’s Global Head of Digital Media, has one of the best takes we’ve seen for how to release premium IP in the creator economy.
The example is IShowSpeed’s new doc-style sports series titled Speed Goes Pro, produced with OBB Studios and Dick’s Sporting Goods. This is a show that would have typically premiered on ESPN or Netflix. Instead, it launched exclusively on Speed’s YouTube channel.
The “studio”? Speed himself.
The financier? A brand.
The distributor? YouTube.
This setup flips every traditional rule: from concept to release in months (not years), no executive interference, full IP ownership, and direct distribution to tens of millions of engaged fans. Dick’s, far from being a product placement, acts as a creative partner, turning brand dollars into entertainment value.
If Speed Goes Pro can hit premium-doc standards and millions of views (episode 1 has 5.3M views as of this writing), imagine the scalability of this model.
Talent is now both studio and network. Brands are financiers and co-creators. YouTube is the new global broadcaster. As David puts it: Who among legacy media will be bold enough to follow?
Fox bets on vertical
Fox has taken a strategic stake in Holywater, the Los Angeles–based studio behind viral vertical series like The Re-Up and Night Off. It’s the first time a major legacy player has backed a studio born on TikTok and ReelShort, and it makes sense. After selling most of its legacy infrastructure, Fox is sitting on a pile of cash.
That freedom lets it invest in the kinds of formats legacy media once ignored. Holywater produces serialized dramas built for the phone: short, high-emotion, and ruthlessly efficient to produce.
As part of the deal, Fox Entertainment Studios will create and produce more than 200 vertical video titles over the next two years. Will those attract top Hollywood talent?
This one will be an interesting one to keep track of.
GARDEN VIEW
Hollywood’s playbook is being rewritten, and this is the conversation every filmmaker needs to hear. Hosted by Erin Norman (CEO and co-founder of SHARE), this panel brings together Tisha Campbell, Cindy Cowan, Producer Patrick, and Dave Brown for a raw, inspiring look at the future of independent filmmaking.
They break down how creators are funding their own projects, sharing profits with their teams, and building careers outside the system.
HARVEST QUOTE
“What if the goal was finding audiences instead of distributors?”
— Dana Harris-Bridson, Senior Vice President and Editor in Chief at IndieWire.
Only a taste of the great arguments Dana presents in her piece titled Sundance Won’t Save Filmmakers, but Communities Might.
It’s a mindset shift for filmmakers, sure. But what’s the alternative?
Have a great weekend…