Staff Blog

Like a cheetah on roller skates, the Vimeo Festival + Awards are fast approaching, and we don’t want you to miss a thing — especially your chance to submit! Submissions close February 20, which means you have just one week left to share your best work in one or more of 13 categories. There are categories for everyone, and you don’t have to be a professional filmmaker to show us your stuff.

If the looming deadline doesn’t light a fire under your fingertips, maybe the chance to have your videos seen by famous people will inspire you. As you may have heard, our newly announced Festival + Awards judges include actor/director/Renaissance dude James Franco, world’s funniest human Aziz Ansari, 2012 Oscar Nominee Lucy Walker, snowboard superstar Travis Rice, and Radiohead’s Colin Greenwood.

Don’t miss your chance: Submit today!

Hey y'all!

It's been a while since I've had the chance to write to you, but I'm very excited to do so once again, especially because I've got great news: We have new Vimeo t-shirts! And you can buy them!

We've worked with the always-amazing BustedTees to develop four new designs sure to tickle your fashion fancy.

First, we have Camera Explosion:


Then there's the ultra-stealthy Black on Black:


Next comes the bold emblazonment of Super Vimeo:


And finally, the Classic Vimeo Logo on Sky Blue:


All of these torso adornments are available right now from the Vimeo store on BustedTees. With these four fresh designs in your dresser, plus your beloved Metallica tee, your work-week outfits are totally set. Happy shirting!

Hey Vimeo!

Let's play a game. A game of tag, to be exact. A game of virtual, technological, international tag, to be very exact. Laptop Tag is the name of the game, and you're all invited to play along by participating in this weekend's Weekend Project!

Laptop tag was invented by the friendly people at Proof Studio, so, without further ado, we'll let them explain what this is all about:



The guidelines this weekend are as simple as they get: participate. There will be no winners for this project. Actually, scratch that. Everyone who participates is a winner! Your prize is the satisfaction of contributing to a creative, collaborative project. (Sorry, no free Plus accounts this time around!)

Here are the specifics:

+Upload a singular laptop tag video, which should be around 5 to 10 seconds long. Don't edit a string of clips together for this project. We'll leave that to our pals at Proof Studio!

+Add your video to the Weekend Project Group and the Laptop Tag Group.

+If you'd like, make your video available for download, so that Proof Studio and other Vimeans can access the files and compile them!

Please remember that only videos made specifically for this project will be considered. All submitted videos must be approved by the Vimeo Staff before appearing in the Group, so don't worry if your video doesn't show up at first. We'll get to it promise!

All submissions are due by Tuesday, February 7th at 11:59 PM (EST).

Here are a few more pointers from Proof Studio:

+ Keep it snappy. Your video needs to be brief, so make it short, sharp, exciting and no longer than 5 seconds in length!

+ Lets go global. The objective of laptop tag is to eventually cover all the major countries of the world. So give us an insight into your culture; show us your friends, your pet, your life or just send a message that you want heard.

+ Be original. Bonus points are awarded to those who submit something unique or unusual. Be adventurous and unexpected, there are no limits to your creativity, so let's see it!

+ Don’t close the laptop! Closing your laptop will turn off your camera and usually delete the video, so watch out.

+ Make your laptop movements clean and swift. When lifting your laptop's lid, try to do so quickly and smoothly to ensure the transition between videos is at its most effective – however be careful not to damage anything!

+ Smart Phones and Tablets work too! You can also submit videos using the forward facing camera on either your smart phone or tablet device, just follow the same rotational movement and we’re all good.

And with that, I'll leave you with an example we whipped up here at Vimeo HQ:



Tag! You're it!

If you’re anything like us, you spend hours each day not doing work because you get wrapped up in all the amazing short-form documentaries on Vimeo. It’s incredible what can be captured in just a few minutes: the arc of a life, the growth of a business, the global impact of a simple idea. That’s why we’re thrilled to announce that we’re partnering with GE and video publisher Cinelan to power Focus Forward — Short Films, Big Ideas, a new documentary series about people using technology and innovative thinking to change the world.




Focus Forward has asked some of the world’s most celebrated documentary filmmakers ’ including Morgan Spurlock, Jessica Yu, Stanley Nelson, Lixin Fan, Steve James, Joe Berlinger, Lucy Walker, and more ’ to create 30 three-minute stories on everything from gene therapy to wireless technology to waste management. Films from the series will be premiered online and at festivals throughout the year. In fact, the first five Focus Forward films (alliteration is cool) just premiered at the 2012 Sundance Film Festival. Watch all five of them right now.

If you’ve got documentary chops, you can get involved in Focus Forward, too. The Focus Forward Filmmaker Challenge enables anyone to submit a three-minute story that embodies the Focus Forward ethos and compete for $200,000 in cash prizes — including a $100,000 Grand Prize. Submissions (which will be accepted right here on Vimeo) open in April during the Tribeca Film Festival. Learn more about the Challenge.

We’re extremely proud to be involved in this project, and to provide video support for the whole Focus Forward initiative. We’ll keep you updated as more films are released and deadlines draw nearer — until then, focus forward!

Today is a big day — one of the biggest in the short-ish history of our small-ish company. For the past year (37 years in Internet time), we’ve been working nonstop on a project that we’ve desperately wanted to tell you about. Because, frankly, it’s all about you. Our willpower muscles are pretty much at the breaking point right now, and so we are doubly ecstatic to finally let the tiger out of the satchel and make this officially official announcement: We built you a new Vimeo.



If your reaction to this news is, “But wait!!! I love the old Vimeo!!!” we totally understand. In fact, we’re happy you feel that way, because we love the old Vimeo, too. However, within our unconditional love there lies another sentiment: the burning desire to make Vimeo better. So, that’s what we did. We tore Vimeo down, thought hard about every aspect of it, and created the new Vimeo from scratch.

And whether you call it a redesign, a reboot, or a redistribution of awesome, we had three big goals in mind:

Big Goal #1: Put a greater focus on your videos
From day one of our existence, Vimeo has been committed to making your videos look as good as possible. And so the new Vimeo shines an even brighter spotlight on the videos you upload. We started by reimagining the video page, and designed the entire user experience around it to minimize distractions and put the focus where it belongs — on your videos.

Big Goal #2: Make Vimeo easier, faster, and more fun to use
In addition to increasing the visual splendiferousness of your videos, we enhanced just about every aspect of the Vimeo experience. We simplified. We optimized. We organized. We spiffed and speeded things up. We packed it with features that help you share, connect, and learn. We made sure it reminds you that taking video should be a blast and a half. Heck, even two blasts.

Big Goal #3: Give you the features you want
Every day we get great ideas about how to improve Vimeo from our incredible community, i.e., you. And the new Vimeo was a chance to take your suggestions, sprinkle unicorn dust on them, and turn them into realities. We’ve incorporated lots of your ideas, from minor tweaks to massive features, to the point that we’re making all of you honorary Senior Vice Presidents of Brilliant Concepts at Vimeo. The check is in the mail.

(Quick note to impatient types: If you’ve had enough preamble and you’re itching to see what the new Vimeo is all about, go to vimeo.com/new. You can always read the warm and fuzzy conclusion to this post later.)

To achieve these goals, we improved Vimeo in thousands of ways. Here are just a few of the bigger changes that will make the new Vimeo hands down the best Vimeo of all time:

Brand New Video Page: Bigger videos, better tools, and new keyboard shortcuts.

Better Browsing: More ways to discover things you like.

Your “Inbox” Is Now Your “Feed”: A whole new vibe for your homepage.

Following: An easier way to keep up with what you care about.

Better Uploading: Upload multiple files and more.

More Privacy Control: Better control over who sees what.

Advanced Search: Get specific and find what you’re looking for.

Browse Videos With Creative Commons Licenses: Discover videos available under various CC licenses.

Recently Viewed + Related Videos: Handy lists of what you’ve seen and what you need to see.

To learn more about these new big things in more detail, head over to vimeo.com/new. It’s also the place where members can sign up to try the new Vimeo as we roll it out over the next few weeks. Go ahead - you know you want to check it out!

Finally, while we’re on this theme of bigness, it’s also important to mention that the big idea behind Vimeo has not changed — we’ve just updated it for 2012. Vimeo is still and will always be a friendly place to watch, share, discover, and be inspired. We still offer the highest quality video on the planet. We’re still not putting ads before, after, or on top of your videos. We’re still home to a respectful, supportive community of creators. And we still love video — and the people behind it — with all our <3<3<3.

Enjoy the new Vimeo!

This week, we are immersing ourselves in wintry conditions. Not only will you find Vimeo at the 2012 Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah, you'll also be able to catch up (and catch air) with us at the Winter X Games in Aspen, Colorado. We're eXtremely eXcited to show some love to one of Vimeo's most creative and active communities � the super-cool one made up of action sports athletes and videographers.



If you're wandering around awestruck at Winter X, make sure to swing by the Vimeo tent. If you're not a Vimeo member yet, we'll welcome you aboard and help you create your first video on the spot. We're also giving away some major swag: goggle wipes, thumb drives, skis, snowboards, and even some Apple iPads!

Andrea and I will be in Aspen making videos all week, and we'd love to meet up. Let us know if you plan on attending by dropping a comment below, and stay connected to our X activities by looking for the #XVimeo hashtag on our new Vimeo Events Twitter account.

For those of you who can't make it to the X Games, don't get your snowpants in a twist. This blog post doubles as the announcement of a very special winter-action-sports-themed Weekend Project. The winner will receive a brand new GoPro Hero 2 camera to capture future action sports endeavors and the runner up will receive a Vimeo T shirt and a Plus account!

Here are the rules:

+ The goal of this project is to make a winter action sports video. We realize this means something different to everyone, so there's room for interpretation. Obviously things like snowboarding and skiing are valid subjects, but what other winter action sports are out there?

+ Videos should be no longer than 2 minutes, and while the video must be made specifically for this Weekend Project, you can use footage you shot in the past.

+ Also, you must have the rights to any music that you use in your video. If you need help with that, check out the Vimeo Music Store to download and license tracks.

+ Above all else: Be creative with your approach to this video. We love sick tricks as much as the next guy, but we'll also be judging filming and editing techniques. This video should show us your eye for all things radical, including camera angles!

+ Upload your video to the Weekend Project Group

+ Please remember that only videos made specifically for this project will be considered. All submitted videos must be approved by the Vimeo Staff before appearing in the Group, so don't worry if your video doesn't show up at first. We'll get to it, promise!

Since this is such a special project, we are giving you all some extra time. All submissions are due by Sunday, January 29th at 11:59 PM (EST)

See you on the slopes!

Your pals,

Ian & Andrea

***UPDATE: We had a great turn out for this special weekend project and I had a blast going through all the submissions. A big thanks goes out to all of you that participated. The winner is Miro with his video, Bike Riding in Snow. Miro showed us that despite treacherous conditions and the lack of a camera man, good fun can be had and a great video can result. The runner up is Alejandro Miyashiro who showcased some classic surfing in San Diego with his elegant video, Hamilton/Trent Winter Sess
Make sure to watch all of the submissions and thanks again to all that paricticipated!

Yo Vimeo!

It's that time of the year again: when independent film, skiing, and Robert Redford collide amid a wintry mix of celluloid and snow. Yup, the 2012 Sundance Film Festival is almost upon us. And, as you may have already guessed from the fact that we are even writing this blog post, Vimeo is going to be there.

Not surprisingly, Vimeans are well represented in this year's Sundance lineup, with Kibwe Tavares, This Is It, and Drea and Zack from California is a Place among the many Vimeo members whose work will be shown. With that in mind, we want to celebrate our community in proper Vimeo fashion — with a little get-together at the fest!

If you are in or around Park City, Utah on Sunday, January 22, please join us at the Wasatch Brew Pub from 7-9pm. You'll recognize us from the passion, creativity, and pure Vimeo love emanating from our corner. We may also be wearing Vimeo t-shirts.

Everyone's welcome — hope to see you there!

Sam (Jason, Jeremy and Jordan)

P.S. If you want to track us down at any other point, tweet at us! @SamMorrill, @jasondhi, @jordanjmcgarry

At Vimeo, we've seen first hand the increased demand for mobile video: traffic to our mobile site is up more than 100% percent since last year at this time. We're not going to sit back in our beanbag chairs and watch the numbers go through the roof. Instead, we're making it easier for smartphone-toting citizens to enjoy Vimeo from anywhere through a sweet suite of new mobile apps for Android, Windows Phone, and, coming in a few months, for Apple iPhone and iPad.

We're unveiling our Android and Windows Phone apps at CES (the world's
largest consumer electronics tradeshow) in Las Vegas next week, and we want
to give you, our favorite people in the universe, the first look at how they'll improve
your life immeasurably.

For starters, we've sculpted dedicated user interfaces for Android and Windows Phone to provide the best experience on any device, including the piping hot Amazon Fire. You can watch all the videos on Vimeo on your phone, plus access your own. You can like, comment on, and add videos to your Watch Later queue. Vimeo members can scope out their inbox, Watch Later queue, and liked videos, just like on a traditional internet browser. We've also included our upload manager so you don't have to start over if an upload is interrupted due to your phone signal crapping out at the worst possible moment.

Here are some bulletpoints that explain the all of the apps' wonderful attributes in excruciating detail:

The APPMAZIN' FEATURES of Vimeo's Android and Windows Phone Apps:

• Free to download from the Android Market, Amazon App Store for Android, and WindowsPhone Marketplace
• Compatible with all Android devices running Android 2.3 (Gingerbread) and above, Amazon Fire and Windows Phone devices running Windows Phone 7.5 (Mango) and above
• Watch and manage all your Vimeo videos and download them to your camera roll
• Watch videos from your Vimeo inbox, Watch Later queue, and videos you like
• Easily like videos, comment on videos, and add videos to your Watch Later queue
• Discover new and interesting videos curated by Vimeo Staff
• Easily upload your raw footage or previously edited creations in HD or SD
• Pause/resume uploads and get reminded when a video is paused
• Replace existing videos
• Edit titles, descriptions, tags, privacy settings, and credits

And there you have it! Cruise over to the Android Market, the Amazon App Store for Android, or the Windows Phone marketplace (TBD) and click whatever buttons enable you to get your download on. Enjoy our apps!

P.S. Remember how we mentioned the new Vimeo app for iPhone and iPad and then didn't say anything about it? That app is getting its very own blog post very soon. Stay tuned.