Last week we announced a promotional contest for Jess Noble’s Friend, (starring her dad, John) asking for your visual representations of the meaning of the word. Here are the inspiring responses we received! Entries are to be judged by the inestimable Mr. Noble himself, at his convenience – we’ll let you know when we have a winner. Thanks to everyone who participated, and good luck!!
Have you ever heard of the concept of a “warm fuzzy?” We’re about to make Twitter a friendlier and fuzzier place.
This week, in honor of the short film, “Friend” (starring John Noble – written/produced by his daughter Jess- filmed by Fringe crew – edited by Ari Margolis), let’s share some appreciation to our Twitter friends. Doesn’t matter who they are; if they’ve made you smile, made you laugh, or inspired you, then a gesture of admiration is sure to be appreciated. As the saying goes, there just isn’t enough love in the world; especially in the day and age of social media.
Pick some followers and let them know why they are your friend. Please tag the tweet #FriendFuzzies. We’ll collect them and post them on Storify in a week or so.
“There’s a lot of things you need to get across this universe…warp drive…wormhole refractors…you know the thing you need most? You need a hand to hold.” – The Doctor
No one knows better than a Fringie how an unexpected friend can change your life. The Doctor was right; in a world peppered with pitfalls of loneliness and uncertainty, it can be nearly mpossible to get back up once we’ve fallen, unless we can reach for the proffered hand of a friend. That bright smile, that caring presence, can bring us back to ourselves again when we’re ready to give up.
Friends come an all shapes and sizes. They can be lifelong companions, or they can drift into your life for just a little while, and change you forever. They’re the family of your choice, the people who make life a little less scary, and a lot more fun. They’re not afraid to laugh at you as well as with you. They’re the ones who listen to you even when you don’t make sense, who love you in spite of (or maybe because of) your flaws. They’re there when you need an ear, or a shoulder…or a hand to hold.
In honor of the upcoming release of the short film “Friend,” starring John Noble, written by his daughter Jess, and produced by members of the Fringe crew, Fringenuity is once again issuing a challenge to your boundless creativity. We’re holding a contest!
This can be your own work (any medium) or a photograph. We’re not looking for professional photography, rather we want to make sure that those who are artistically challenged can participate if they wish. Staged or candid, either way is fine, but the photo must be your own, and you must have permission to post the image of any individual subject. No videos or written entries this time, but there’s a good reason, and the reason is that…
John has very graciously agreed to help us choose our winning entry. His time is valuable, and we’re very grateful, so we’re limiting this one to static visual art. All entries will be posted right here on More Than One of Everything.
A Fringe commemorative coin from the original mint that were sent to the cast and crew. There are very few of these left – ultra rare!
One entry per person. Entries may be Fringe themed if you wish, but as this is a completely different project, they certainly don’t need to be. In the event that the winner does not want a coin, prize will be a $25 Amazon gift card. All entries must be submitted to fringenuity@gmail.com with the subject line “A friend is…” Contest ends May 6th, at midnight PST.
Watch the teaser for “Friend” now!
Four stacks of files lay on the desk in front of Peter, along with his laptop. Jazz from WGBH played faintly in the background. Peter rubbed his eyes, stretched, and pulled another folder from the tallest stack.
At least he wrote everything down, even if most of it doesn’t make sense.
Olivia stood in the doorway, watching Peter as he skimmed the contents of the folder. How many nights had she done this with case files, going over the details dozens of times, looking for any clue that would bring her another step closer to resolution? And how many times had Peter coaxed her away?
She walked behind him, then leaned on his shoulder and set a small tumbler of whisky by his left hand. She rested her hands on his shoulders and began to massage the knots from his neck and back.
“Thanks, Liv. Ahh, that feels good,” he mumbled, never looking up from the file in front of him.
“How’s it going?” She asked softly, still rubbing his shoulders. “Anything I can do to help?”
“Find Walter…” he sighed. He took one of Olivia’s hands in his, and leaned back, resting his head against the back of the chair.
“Come to bed, Peter… You’ve been at this for hours.” She kissed the top of his head. “I miss you.”
“Is this how you felt all those times I tried to get you to take a break?” His voice was serious, but he was smirking. “Isn’t this the part where you kiss me and promise me mind-blowing sex if I’ll just come to bed?”
“Did that work?”
“Most of the time.”
“Then yeah, this is that part.” She leaned over and brushed her lips against his stubbly cheek. “If you shave before you come to bed… and if you can stay awake.”
“How can I refuse?” He chuckled and shut down the laptop. “But shaving, huh?” He wrapped his arm around Olivia as they walked out of the room.
“Well, it’s not a requirement… but it severely limits your options if you don’t,” she teased.
After being fans of this show for so many years, and having few options for official merchandise, May 7 is going to be like Cortexifan Christmas – and expensive. Break out those “Juniors” and Jacksons, because here’s what is in store.
Fringe Series Blu-ray
First, the complete series will be available on Blu-ray
A series of three official Fringe canon prequels is being written, with one book focusing on Walter, another on Olivia, and a third on Peter.
The Zodiac Paradox will give some background about Walter’s past, especially his friendship/work with William Bell.
Fans who love the music from the series can round out their collections with Chris Tilton’s Fringe Season Five Soundtrack.
Future LA Cops (From YVR Shoots)
The Pilot for Joel Wyman’s project show, Human, is scheduled to wrap filming this week. It won’t be long until the post-production product is screened in @FoxTV’s boardroom in order for the execs to decide whether or not they want to order it to series.
We can’t tell you how much we want this show to become a reality. Why do we have such confidence in something that barely exists, and feel so passionately about it?
- Its main creative team – Joel Wyman and Bryan Burk — are from Fringe.
- Most of the crew were those who had worked on Fringe. Aside from their tremendous dedication and talent, these people were incredible to respectful fans who watched filming. The Vancouver and the British Columbia film industries are fighting for jobs right now, so any work for these people is a good thing.
- Did we mention that the casting is amazing? Karl Urban? Michael Ealy? Yes, please.
- The concept of artificial life and human interaction/interfacing with machines is fascinating.
Some may say that we’re setting ourselves up for heartbreak. Pilot season is cutthroat, and many promising projects just don’t make it. But we’ve taken the stance that well… squeaking helps things get greased. Action at a Distance. And if Fringe fans have learned anything from taking an active interest in Fringe’s fate over several seasons, positive squeaks can have an impact.
We need to be advocates for what WE want to see.
We need to let FOX know that they possibly have a built-in, influential, and transferable audience for Human if they risk it.
For our first Official #FringeFanFriday, Fringe fanfiction writer – DixieGirl256 – has submitted the first part of a ten chapter-plus-epilogue story that deals with the month after Walter disappeared in 2015.
She says: “It’s my attempt to fulfill Joel’s hope that we would imagine our characters the next day.”
Story is rated T, however one upcoming chapter will be M rated.
We’ll be posting an update each week. Enjoy!
With wrap removed, the book is made to have a slightly distressed look.
Authors: Tara Bennett and Paul Terry
Publisher: Insight Editions
List Price: $50.00
Available: Now
After a bit of disappointment with a certain colossal Internet retailer regarding my highly anticipated pre-order of eight months, this gem reached my hands straight from the UPS man. (Thanks Barnes and Noble for not letting me down, unlike A-to-Z…)
I made sure that I had the afternoon free to peruse the book – that is how much I looked forward to reading it. After combing through it many times, I was ready to offer this review. Although it comes from a fan, don’t expect too much bias: This assessment also comes from a critical eye, and fans can be the toughest critics. So how does September’s Notebook stack up for this obsessed Fringe fan?
First, a little background.
I have a really nice manuscript written for the Fringe fandom book that I am writing. The title has been altered to better reflect the contents and scope of the book; part history, and part memoir. It’s Quantum Entanglements: A Fringe Fan Journey and a Collective Fandom History.
I am needing a bit of information to flesh out some areas better.
One of my major sections deals with the creativity of the fandom, and the things we have done because of our love for the show.
Will you take a moment to answer these questions? Also, comments with more details are always welcome, and will help me to include your stories into this account of our Fringe family. The more participants the better, so please spread the word.
There will be several more polls over the next few weeks about various topics. This poll will close March 15, 2013. Thanks for your time!
You are welcome to email me as well – fringefanbook at gmail dot com.
“To be a fully sanctioned cult show, the life of a program must continue through its fans after its death.” – Alex Geairns
“The community of the show is currently strong and vibrant and I have a funny feeling that the afterlife of the show, as much as we who have been making it for the last five years are finishing our portion of it, I think it will live on in that community.”
“And how that manifests itself? I don’t know. Perhaps there would be a movie. I think there will probably be a lot of fan fiction. Maybe there will be even some sort of filmed addendum to the show or televised or podcasts or however it manifests itself, but I feel like the afterlife of Fringe is the test case for how modern cult shows are going to live on after they go off the air.”
- Joshua Jackson / FOX conference call / January 18, 2013
Fringe may be over, but it’s not dead. Our Twitter fan community may not be as united as when the show was airing, but that doesn’t mean that all of the fans have crossed over to the other side to see the rest of their season five. There are plenty of things that you can do in this universe to keep the experience and community alive.
Fandom doesn’t have to be a full-on intense experience. In fact, people often drift in and out. I’ve been an X-Files fan for 20 years, and my interest comes and goes. Lately, it has been intensified… I suspect in an attempt to kinda fill the Fringe-sized hole in my heart…
A little here and a little there will keep the show in our memories, and as time passes, these kind of activities will act as guideposts for the newcomers to the fandom. Continue reading
And here we are, on this final day.
There are so many things I want to say…so much love, and gratitude, and wonder associated with this whole experience, I don’t even know where to begin. I can tell you that a little more than a year ago this outcome (whatever it may prove to be tonight) was my secret dream, but that I didn’t really dare to believe in it. We thought we’d try; that even if #CrossTheLine, and other ideas turned out to be spectacular failures, that at least we’d done something to try and help, and that even if the whole internet laughed at us (or more likely ignored us completely), that we’d be able to face the end knowing that we at least tried.
We never expected this…
My words are all trying to come out through my tear ducts instead of my fingers, so I’ll just quote Josh from this morning’s conference call:
“The community of Fringe became totally self-supporting, and I think that’s actually one of the more…you know if you talk about Fringe not just as a narrative experience onscreen – I think one of the more interesting things that’s come out of it is that community built around the show, and how powerful that can be in tipping the scales toward the show’s surviving or failing. Because you know by traditional metrics our show would have been off the air at least last year, but probably two years ago. Except the passion of our fan base made it impossible for our show to be dismissed, in maybe the way that even ten years ago science fiction shows quite often were lost. So I think the fan base, and the passion of the fan base, is a large part of the story of the show, Fringe.”
That’s what you are, what we are: an epic, beautiful fairy tale become reality. In a world where the good guys rarely win, where despair and apathy are so often an unchallenged part of the landscape of life, the Fringedom is a living testament to the power of love, and hope, and community. When we first started these campaigns, I hoped, we all did, but I don’t think any of us really believed we’d accomplish anything.
For us, and for so many others, you guys have changed that forever. I’ve learned things about myself, about persistence, and about hope, that will sustain my faith for years to come. Whenever I start to doubt the power of the individual, all I’ll have to do is look back at this day, these times, my friends.
Fringe was always special, that’s what drew us to it in the first place. But its fans made it magnificent, and our show will go down in television history as “the little show that shouldn’t have, but did.” We became part of the fabric of the show, creating our own story woven around a skein of scripts. Fringe will always be special, and so will its fans. So will you. Every one of you who tweeted, schemed, promoted, created, and fought, will always be a part of the unlikely story of the show that succeeded in brand new terms, the history of the impossible come to life.
“Impossible:” you guys have made me reevaluate the meaning of that word. Whatever happens tonight, remember that. Remember that you’ve been part of something beautiful, a chapter in an endless shining volume of hope. Take that with you after tonight, and look to it whenever you doubt your abilities. #KeepLookingUp: You’ll never see the possibilities if you don’t look for them. You taught me that, and I will never forget.
Today has been so full of emotion for all of us, I know there have been many tears shed already, least of all mine while writing this. So let there be tears, there should be. Tears of sadness if that’s what’s the final chapter holds, but also tears of triumph, and joy, and love, because this ending is so very rare in its completeness, and you have been an integral part of it.
Thank you Fringe, for teaching me these lessons. I love you all so much.
From http://zort.co.uk/
I’ve been avoiding this for as long as possible. It is bittersweet to be announcing the final Twitter event for Fringe.
So much happened here.
You guys seriously rock. It feels like saying goodbye to treasured comrades after the war is over. Oh sure, there will be reunions and other things to celebrate, but it will never be the same as living through these times as a fan. Our lives will go on and more serious battles will need to be overcome. My challenge to all of you, and my dearest wish, is for everyone to take what we have learned and experienced and use it to do something.
Beautiful. Bold. Amazing. Breathtaking. Creative.
Even if you make life better for one other person, you mean something; you have impact. No one is “insignificant.”
Fringe has shown that superpowers do-not-a-hero-make. Having God-like powers was often a detriment. Ordinary people had the capability to save the world. Their decisions changed destinies.
Simon Foster essentially traded his life for that of Peter Bishop.
A hero died today, sacrificing himself in order to get the Fringe Team resources they need to save our world. Edwin Massey, the Recorder of History, made history. - River Massey, The Recordist
My mother assured him that she would keep a magnet packed up and ready for when he came back for it. Before she died, she made me promise to keep the candle burning. And I did. It wasn’t always easy. At times, we were destitute. There were people who wanted to sell the magnet and the truck. They lost hope. But my mother never did. And neither did I. - Simone, “The Human Kind”
These people made a difference. And so have you.
There were times that I questioned, “Was all of this worth it? Did we really make a difference?” Then I woke up to this on Sunday:
It is here. The final week before the Fringe finale is upon us and the realization is sinking in that the on-screen journey of these wonderful characters will be complete. Our Fringe family – us and them – will never be the same.
Although we come from many backgrounds, ages, and all walks of life, we’ve become such a tight-knit community. Over the years, many of us have found friends among the ranks of Cortexifans from all over the world. We have laughed together — cried together — fought together to keep this story alive.
Many have nurtured creativity in someone else through encouragement and mutual sharing of an interest such as art or writing. Others have enjoyed listening to podcasts and sharing their theories. Several contribute to Fringe websites like Fringe TV and Wormhole Riders. Some have literally had their lives saved either directly or indirectly due to this show. No joke: We have heard the stories.
I never knew that when I made the choice to sit down and watch The Road Not Taken, that I’d be hooked, and it would set me down a path that has led to this point. It is fitting in a way that this episode about choosing our paths was my first. At the start of season 3, I set out to find other fans and found Fox.com and Fringe-Forum, where I came across fans of all kinds. I still talk with one long after leaving those forums; she went by the screen-name “RoughDiamonds,” but I now know her as @Fringeship–as Kelly–my friend. A chance meeting on Facebook and our failed attempt at Fringe promotion led me to Annie — @birdandbear — who would become the General Grant to my Sherman. The decision to join Twitter would be a turning point — I was immersed in the fandom.
Left to right: @birdandbear, @runpaceyrun, @brownbettyhigh, Jamie and @aimeeinchains The Fringe Event, Vancouver
In the end, this show really is about people. How many of us connected because of a mutual love for this show? And found that we had oh-so-much-more in common? Feel free to share your story in the comments.
It’s hard to think that this time last year, we weren’t even sure that Fringe would have a fifth season; the odds were definitely not in its favor. So, we decided to #CrossTheLine, and the social media impact of fans was one of the weights which tipped the scales for a final season.
As we head into the finale, I’d like to make a sincere plea for fans to be careful about spilling major spoilers online — in public places where other fans can see them. Posting a spoiler tag is not enough. Please consider not posting them at all. Fans are incredibly excited and anxious about this anticipated event, and it doesn’t make you cool to post things like OMG, I just saw asdfghjk and they were asdfghjk. Or to post entire episode plots on a forum, breaking the terms of the screener which you were given.
Respect fellow fans and the cast, crew and creative team who have poured their life energy into creating this show. If you spoil — you have no respect. End of story.
Courtesy of @pixelsmith
January 13, 2013 marks the anniversary of the very first Twitter event launched by this humble blog and its circle of geeky conspirators. Fringe fans crossed the line together on Twitter, hoping to make the trends list in order to gain attention for Fringe, by using the hashtag #CrossTheLine. It was chosen due to several meanings; it’s a prominent saying in the show, the episode was about Peter doing everything in his power to get home to his loved ones, and it was a rallying cry for Fringe fans to see how far we could go for this show we love.
As I continue working on the book that I’m writing about the fandom, I stop to pause and ask, “How did we get here?” I admit that even today, it all seems a little surreal to me. Well, for one thing, Fringe fans have the fighting heart of lions. I honestly don’t think I’ll ever be involved with such a dynamic, passionate, creative, and daring group of people again.
As I reflect, I wanted to give a little insight about how it all came together at the start. It was scary, and we were afraid of failure. But we did take that first step, crossed the line, and miraculously, others followed. And we know how far we all went—together.
This time last year, Fringe fans were on edge. FOX had publicly stated that the network was losing money on the show, and President Kevin Reilly said, “We aren’t in the business of losing money.” Everyone was worried, and that led to some negativity, rude comments about the network, and unorganized, desperate activities all in the name of saving the show. The dilution of the message was apparent.
On January 6, 2012 a group of fans who associated with one another on Twitter organized a brainstorming committee via Skype in order to discuss any ideas that could garner attention for the show – anything that could help convince people to watch it or to show how valuable a small, but passionately engaged fan base could be. Several of us had been participants in activities—such as Twitter Force and Operation White Tulip – which were organized and executed by The Fringe Network. The lessons we learned from being veterans of the Fringe Friday move rally were definitely helpful and a tremendous influence, forming a piece of framework that we expanded upon. The number one thing we learned from those experiences was the power of positivity. Railing that the network sucks and threating boycotts achieves nothing. We had to make our fan base important to FOX – We had to make our voices valuable.
There was a leadership void in the fandom, as many of the folks from The Fringe Movement had moved on. It was apparent that trusted, knowledgeable and dedicated individuals would be needed. Three of us—me, Annie and Kelly—had been friends acting as “lone gunmen,” coming up with ideas to try and “save Fringe.” That eventually morphed into a “Neural Network” that was based on Annie’s blog, “More Than One of Everything. We committed to organizing a Twitter trending campaign for the season four mid-season premiere of Back to Where You’ve Never Been. In addition, another key element was devised; checking into the social TV service GetGlue for the show and more importantly, its sponsors/advertisers.
Most of all – we had to prove that we were not fly-by-night; that we were in this for the long haul. What we had found is that many trusted us – after all, we organized The Blue Moon Awards, were writers for Fringe Television, and we were generally well-regarded in the Twitterverse. We meant serious business — this wasn’t a game to us. The fandom support came — this effort would have not succeeded without it. Fringe fan and graphic artist/cartoonist Cheri Nowak and @Nikolai3D contacted us with an offer to make Twitter avatar icons for the event.
@cheribot
@Nikolai3D
Trending video promotions were produced by fans
Word was spread via the major social media outlets and Fringe fan forums. Nikolai offered to develop his own tracker. Fans let guest actors and other Twitter users of influence know about the events and asked them to participate.
I’m getting ready to #CrossTheLine . Are you?….;;)
— Rebecca Mader (@bexmader) January 14, 2012
It’s important that you not only #CrossTheLine but that you cross it live! Fringe! All-New! Tonight! Watch It Live!
— Ari Margolis (@jonxproductions) January 14, 2012
And we all succeeded: 
We generated a very limited Twitter hashtag report for the event. This report and another more detailed report for the next event were sent to Warner Bros. President Peter Roth, along with other examples of Fringe fandom voices.
Kelly — @fringeship — put together a great campaign impact report:
There and Back Again – Fringe Trending Campaigns #CrossTheLine
Social TV was really coming into vogue, and we were there at the right time to take advantage of it. We all know how the story played out. Once that line was crossed, there was no going back. By the end of this, Fringenuity will have hosted 27 Twitter events for Fringe episodes, each a success.
Thanks to everyone who believed in us at the start and those who have since joined the fandom during these events.
Thanks to FOX for listening to the fandom and for giving us five seasons of this beautiful show.
Thanks to Ari for convincing FOX to use the hashtags on air.
Although Fringe may be coming to end, please don’t despair. We reached our goal – a planned conclusion for the series. Take the lessons learned and apply them to life. Live your dreams. Be a better human being. Do what’s right in order to achieve your goals. This year marks one of great change for me, personally. I’ve decided to finally commit to graduate school. Believe it or not, Fringe will have a small part in helping me get there.
How would you change the world if you could? What path will you choose?
Imagine the Impossibilities
John Noble and Joshua Jackson embrace at Fringe series wrap. *pic via @JWFringe*
Friday was a very emotional day for Fringe fans, on many levels. Cast and crew had worked all through Thursday night and well into Friday morning in order to complete the show’s final scenes. Finally, that bittersweet moment arrived:
#Fringe the final slate. twitter.com/BrentCrowell/s…
— Brent Crowell (@BrentCrowell) December 14, 2012
After 4.5 seasons, Fringe reached a planned conclusion, and we–the fans–have precious few new episodes left.
Science fiction history will note many things about Fringe, and our fandom will have a small page in that history. On a larger scale, we were really pioneers. Today, Nielsen announced that it would start measuring Twitter activity for television shows. I’d like to think that this grand social media experiment has been in preparation for what savvy networks knew would be the future. While it is sad to think that it’s too little, too late for Fringe, we can all be proud and maybe–just maybe–audiences who invest in niche genre shows won’t have to fight just to see intelligent, creative and inventive entertainment.
Ambergrams also started to trickle out among the recipients. We’ll add more reactions to our Storify page as they come in. Hopefully after a well-deserved rest, our main cast will let fans know what they think.
While celebration was happening for our show’s achievement, news came later on Friday which would remind us that while the world has its moments of beauty, it can also be unspeakably cruel…
“In the darkness, there’s always a crack. It’s how the light gets in.”
Today has been the darkest of days. The monstrosity we’ve witnessed has left us stunned, grasping to process the unprocessable slaughter of young children. We are heartbroken, seething with rage and grief. Over the last few hours, we’ve had several questions as to whether tonight’s hashtag campaign will proceed as planned, and the short answer is yes, we’ll be there.
These campaigns, that started out as promotion for a TV show, have evolved so far beyond that. To many people, they’ve become symbolic of our community, and of the belief that hope and love are stronger than their opposites. In light of these ideas, and after some discussion, we’ve concluded that cancelling tonight’s event feels too much like letting the light go out just when we need it most.
We’ll tweet for Fringe, because that’s what we do. But we’ll also be tweeting in an effort to find the crack, to let the light in and to remind ourselves that horror isn’t the whole of the story. There’s still love in the world. There’s still hope.
So tonight we’ll be tweeting two hashtags. We’ll still be using (#)FreeYourMind as planned, but we’ll also be using (#)FindTheCrack, as a way of affirming our faith in the light, in humanity, and in each other. I’d suggest using them in separate tweets, if you’d like to help with the trending effort, but since tonight isn’t really about trending, use them at your discretion.
Hug your loved ones. Weep for those that never will again. Don’t let the light go out – it’s the best of us, and it’s all we have.
Hello, Fringies! This week is a bittersweet one indeed for all of us. The final filming is taking place as I type, and hopefully is free from those who seek to ruin surprises. Joel Wyman — bless his huge heart — is keeping us updated on Twitter and is documenting the process for fans. It’s been said many times, but never enough: We are so lucky to have such passionate people making this show, because their love shows in each and every aspect.
Last week’s event was a success, with trending in the US and Worldwide for a nice duration. The West coast trended Fringe for a few minutes.
US trend for #HumanKind
Worldwide trend for #HumanKind
The Human Kind was another turning point for our Fringe team. Olivia has always been good at getting people to see things her way, and she was thankfully able to remind Peter that memories and love will keep Etta alive in their hearts. She has made an imprint on their souls that cannot be erased.
Windmark has seemingly made a gross miscalculation in taunting Peter with Etta’s last memories. To take a cue from Muse — for the Human Kind — “Love is our resistance.”
Many, many thanks to everyone who helped make this farewell project a smashing success!! In addition to bringing smiles to the faces of Fringe’s cast and crew, we raised a final amount of $1600 for our charities – more than three times the original goal.
Project Ambergram is almost concluded, with the last of the gifts themselves being delivered to cast and crew shortly. In the mean time, all of our charitable donations have been made! After an ad hoc Twitter poll conducted yesterday, we decided the fairest way to designate the funds was to split them between all charities, giving weight to Alzheimer’s research, our twice previous poll winner. Above the cost of purchasing and shipping the Ambergrams themselves, Fringe fans raised a remarkable $1600 in charitable donations, more than three times our original goal, and funds were distributed as follows:
Alzheimer’s Association - Inspired by And Those We’ve Left Behind: $600
FEAT – In honor of Jasika Nicole, her sister Sedric, and Alt!strid: $250
Arts Umbrella – In honor of the Vancouver cast and crew, and the power of art to change lives: $250
Oxfam International – Fighting poverty and injustice all over the world, donation inspired by Anna Torv: $250
Hurricane Sandy relief: American Red Cross – For the countless people affected by the disaster, including some of our own Fringies: $225
Hurricane Sandy relief: Humane Society – For animals injured or displaced by the storm. In honor of Gene, and in memory of Homey: $25
Way to #TakeTheLead to #BuildABetterWorld for #Human(and animal)Kind. You guys are amazing. :’)
Fringe 100th Episode Celebration
This week has been one of celebration and reminiscing for Fringe fans. Our show has reached the milestone mark of 100 episodes!
This is no small feat in the business of television. Very few shows make it past their 13 episode initial gauntlet — RIP Alcatraz and Terra Nova — so this is an achievement. Especially– given its ratings history — for Fringe.
Joshua Jackson told CityTV, “It’s thanks to the fans that we’re still here.”
We are still here, too, Josh; loving our show until the last credits roll and beyond.
Two years ago, I joined Twitter in an effort to try and help Fringe. Just hoping for a season four, I never imagined where that decision would take me. Some good friends — some of whom I have met, and others I want to meet; long nights of brainstorming ideas and event hashtags; a trip to Vancouver; an experience of a lifetime.
All of our collective journeys as fans have helped to lead to this point.
With only 6 more episodes to go, there is still a lot of story left to tell. This week’s episode is entitled, “The Human Kind.” Fringe has long explored what make us human, and how all kinds of small decisions and circumstances shape and mold us into the people that we are and will be. But what do you think of when you think about this title? Is it concerning some type of Observer — maybe those that develop feelings or empathy? Is this about the boy who is a part of Walter’s plan?
The show has had a definite Matrix-like feel, and this week’s episode even introduces a guest star — Jill Scott — as an oracle-esque character named Simone. She will have some important things to tell Olivia. We’ll also see if Peter’s timeline calculations and predictions will net him one dead Captain Windmark, or a whole heap of trouble.
As we launch into the homestretch, I think it’s key to remember some of the lessons Fringe has taught us.
One of these lessons is that love and shared experiences are all a part of what it means to be human. This week, we’re going to use part of the episode title:
“Humankind cannot bear very much reality.”
― T.S. Eliot
Be sure to make your first tweet of the night a thank you to @FoxTV and @WarnerBrosEnt for making season five possible.
You can grab a cool icon for the event. They are updated throughout the week.
1) Don’t use #HumanKind before the designated time: 1 HOUR before Fringe airs.
The event will take place 1 hour before Fringe airs – 8pm EST — November 16. Gently remind others that use the tag before the event to wait until the right time, and tell them that using the tag too much beforehand will lessen trending impact. This happened when Fringe fans tried to trend #WhereIsPeterBishop for the season four premiere. The # had been used all summer long, was not anything new on the Twitter radar, so it did not trend. Trending happens with terms that are relatively new, and many people tweet about them at the same time. Terms break out onto the scene, but trending becomes more difficult the more they are used. Be nice! We want everyone to feel welcome.
2) One # term per Tweet. Use only #HumanKind (What Are Hashtags?)
3) Lots of people tweeting matters more than the number of tweets.
Tell everyone Fringie about the event. There is strength in numbers – remember that the more unique tweeters we have, the more likely we are to trend, and for a longer duration of time. Send your tweets out steadily – remember to pace yourself. You want to avoid “Twitter Jail.” Sustained tweeting over time matters.
Trending can be a distraction, but we need you to keep those wonderful tweets coming. You may have also noticed that the # will drop off the charts after a while, only to trend again when Fringe airs. This is due to other viewers joining in by tweeting the hashtag on the bottom of the screen.
4) Those with lots of followers help out a lot!
Alternate accounts with few followers do not have as much “influence” towards trending. But tweets from accounts like @JWFringe, @FringeOnFox, @VancityJax and @johnnob58004412 make a big impact. Let’s try to build our Fringe fan follower networks. One easy way is to follow people on fan Twitter lists. Here is my Cortexifan list. Follow some Fringies! Another way is to follow some folks on Twitter “Follow Fridays.” You may have seen tweets that are tagged #FF – followed by a bunch of twitter names. This is because they are recommended people to follow.
5) We want to pique the interest of non-Fringe fans.
This is the key to our trending duration success. It gives a chance to get our message about Fringe out to another audience. Try to construct a list of thoughtful and informative tweets before the event. These can be copied and pasted for easy tweets. Use some witty Fringe sayings – link some of the official promo videos – speculate about what happened to September.
We all have our speculations about the show and where it is heading towards the ending. Let’s get some conversation out there.
6) We can discuss aspects of the show in our tweets.
TRY to include the word FRINGE (with no #) in your tweet if possible. Talk about the characters and the actors.
7) Private accounts must have their locked status removed, as the tweets from locked accounts do not count toward the trend tally.
8) Retweets are the easiest way to help out the trending effort.
Just search for the hashtag, and retweet the ones that are interesting to you. If you know how to use a Twitter application suite like TweetDeck or HootSuite, this is made even easier.
9) Remember to check in at GetGlue for cool stickers and so that Fringe will trend there as well.
If you are in the U.S. and have an iPhone or Android phone, give Viggle a try. Their check-ins are included in the data of several prominent social television analysis companies.
Courtesy of @nikolai3D
Last week’s event featured some really cool tweets due to the nature of the show. After all, we are asked to Imagine the Impossibilities. Our creative fandom also came up with some wonderful icons, some of which featured Peter as an Observer, and others morphed our characters into the world of “Through the Looking Glass.”
The trip through Walter’s pocket universe funhouse also gave us a glimpse of a character from season one — the Observer-like boy from Inner Child. However, we still wonder about the identity of mysterious “Donald,” the man who was working with Walter as he hid the components of his plan. I am liking the theory that he is a humanized September. The name Sam Weiss has also been tossed out there as a potential candidate. I predict that it won’t be long until we found out for sure, and no matter what, it will be surprising.
Speaking of predictions, it’s a pastime of most Fringe fans. We like to speculate about the direction the series is taking based on the small breadcrumbs received from each episode and from the clues of the past. So, what direction is Peter heading? The Observer that he fought gave him the dire warning that he made a mistake; that he didn’t know what he got himself into. One thing’s for certain right now: The ability to move like an Observer and to predict future events (sort of like The Plateau’s Milo Stanfield) could be quite useful. But there will be a downside to Peter’s rash decision to implant the Observer tech… will he lose his humanity–his emotions? Olivia seemed to notice that Peter is not quite right… Will she write off her gut feelings by attributing Peter’s increasingly off behavior to his grief?
And what exactly does the episode name Five-Twenty-Ten mean? We’ve seen these numbers before.
that things are going to get worse before they get better.
Be sure to make your first tweet of the night a thank you to @FoxBroadcasting and @WarnerBrosEnt for making season five possible.
You can grab a cool icon for the event. They are updated throughout the week.
1) Don’t use #IPredict before the designated time: 1 HOUR before Fringe airs.
The event will take place 1 hour before Fringe airs – 8pm EST — November 16. Gently remind others that use the tag before the event to wait until the right time, and tell them that using the tag too much beforehand will lessen trending impact. This happened when Fringe fans tried to trend #WhereIsPeterBishop for the season four premiere. The # had been used all summer long, was not anything new on the Twitter radar, so it did not trend. Trending happens with terms that are relatively new, and many people tweet about them at the same time. Terms break out onto the scene, but trending becomes more difficult the more they are used. Be nice! We want everyone to feel welcome.
2) One # term per Tweet. Use only #IPredict (What Are Hashtags?)
3) Lots of people tweeting matters more than the number of tweets.
Tell everyone Fringie about the event. There is strength in numbers – remember that the more unique tweeters we have, the more likely we are to trend, and for a longer duration of time. Send your tweets out steadily – remember to pace yourself. You want to avoid “Twitter Jail.” Sustained tweeting over time matters.
Trending can be a distraction, but we need you to keep those wonderful tweets coming. You may have also noticed that the # will drop off the charts after a while, only to trend again when Fringe airs. This is due to other viewers joining in by tweeting the hashtag on the bottom of the screen.
4) Those with lots of followers help out a lot!
Alternate accounts with few followers do not have as much “influence” towards trending. But tweets from accounts like @JWFringe, @FringeOnFox, @VancityJax and @johnnob58004412 make a big impact. Let’s try to build our Fringe fan follower networks. One easy way is to follow people on fan Twitter lists. Here is my Cortexifan list. Follow some Fringies! Another way is to follow some folks on Twitter “Follow Fridays.” You may have seen tweets that are tagged #FF – followed by a bunch of twitter names. This is because they are recommended people to follow.
5) We want to pique the interest of non-Fringe fans.
This is the key to our trending duration success. It gives a chance to get our message about Fringe out to another audience. Try to construct a list of thoughtful and informative tweets before the event. These can be copied and pasted for easy tweets. Use some witty Fringe sayings – link some of the official promo videos – speculate about what happened to September.
We all have our speculations about the show and where it is heading towards the ending. Let’s get some conversation out there.
6) We can discuss aspects of the show in our tweets.
TRY to include the word FRINGE (with no #) in your tweet if possible. Talk about the characters and the actors.
7) Private accounts must have their locked status removed, as the tweets from locked accounts do not count toward the trend tally.
8) Retweets are the easiest way to help out the trending effort.
Just search for the hashtag, and retweet the ones that are interesting to you. If you know how to use a Twitter application suite like TweetDeck or HootSuite, this is made even easier.
9) Remember to check in at GetGlue for cool stickers and so that Fringe will trend there as well.
If you are in the U.S. and have an iPhone or Android phone, give Viggle a try. Their check-ins are included in the data of several prominent social television analysis companies.
I Predict rainbows for Fringe’s ending.
Happy Fringe Friday!!
Tonight we follow Walter (and Peter) down the rabbit hole…
In the mean time, things are very much in motion! The coins have arrived, I’m driving down to Austin to pick up the slabs tomorrow, and thank you cards are in production.
In case anyone hasn’t seen them yet, here are the photos of the engraved slabs, coins, and cards:
[nggallery id=9]
I’ll take some more as soon as I get them home. 
And because it takes a lot of trust to send money to strangers over the internet, I want to give you guys total transparency, so here are all of our receipts so far:
[nggallery id=11]
So far we’ve raised a total of $3096.04. Unfreakingbelievable.
We’ve spent:
$1225.00 on challenge coins
$760.00 on Ambergrams
$187.01 on thank you cards
And I’ve withdrawn $300 to cover shipping costs. Hopefully(!) this is an overly generous allowance and we’ll be able to put back what we don’t need, but we are sending stuff to multiple locations, including one (probably?) to Australia. 
And they’re fragile, so we’ll need to baby them.
I’ve adjusted the cash-o-meter thingy to reflect the current balance left in the Paypal account. Our new challenge to you is to help us meet our new goal of at least $1000 in charitable donations.Toward that end, we’re happy to offer some nifty incentives – details will be posted shortly, as soon as we can assess our resources. Stay tuned! And those of you who’ve already donated so generously, don’t worry, sponsor packages will be cumulative and retroactive.
Fringe fans are good people, and they want to help wherever possible. We had four very worthy causes to start with, and then we had a natural disaster. Hurricane Sandy killed more than 100 people, and left tens of thousands homeless, with Brutus coming hard on its heels. It has also affected several of our wonderful and beloved Fringies. In light of the disaster, it seems reasonable to reassess our initial intentions, but this is not a decision we could ever make on our own, so once again we’re asking for your input. Please take a moment to give us your feedback on a potential change in our charity fund designations.
Despite the mood from Etta’s death, we had a great deal of fun during this past week’s Twitter event. #ShowNoMercy trended before the airing of An Origin Story, and during almost the entire duration of the show. Not too bad, considering the Hurricane relief telethons that aired on several networks that night. (Please see the message at the end of this post regarding the hurricane.)
The hashtag was also very accurate, as we saw the shocking manner in which Peter dealt with the Observer captive.
This week we’ll see the consequences of Peter’s quick decision to implant the Observer tech into his body. The quest to fulfill Walter’s plan also continues in Through the Looking Glass and What Walter Found There. This title is obviously influenced by Lewis Carol’s book, “Through the Looking Glass and What Alice Found There, ” a favorite of Fringe producer J.J. Abrams. Plus, this was the easter egg in An Origin Story.
“Go Ask Alice” is a line from the drug-influenced song ”White Rabbit,” by Jefferson Airplane. The song has been played in the show. The rabbit is thought to be a symbol of people chasing their curiosity.
Fringe book update:
I am deep in the process of writing the manuscript for the Fringe fan book. While doing so, I need to go to the people that make the book possible: The fans.
One of the chapters of the book will feature short segments from fans. It will be titled, “Real is a Matter of Perception.”
*** I have received 15 submissions from fans from around the world. But I’m looking for more. ***
I am looking for 200-400 words about your:
1) Experiences in the Fringe fandom. Examples of things to think about include, how did you start watching the show, when did you delve into more active fandom, and what does Fringe mean to you.
2) If possible, relate how Fringe has changed your life.
As a separate request, I am also interested in people’s experiences with the following:
1) Creation of fan creative works such as fan fiction, vidding, blogs, podcasts, art, or any creative outlet to express love for Fringe. Examples include painting vehicles with Fringe art, creating Fringe inspired food, getting Fringe tattoos, etc.
2) Encounters in meeting Fringe cast, or in visiting the Fringe set.
3) Information about international fan involvement.
4) Experience from fans in the Live Journal or Reddit community, as I have little experience with them.
I can be contacted on Twitter:
@aimeeinchains or @fringefanbook
R.I.P. baby Bishop. You are missed.
— Josh Jackson (@VancityJax) October 27, 2012
It all ends here, like it started. Another Big Bang, and we’re broken-hearted now… “Last Man in Space” by Violet Sedan Chair
Fringe fans are like Peter and Olivia, in a way. Our love for the show is earned, tragedy-by-tragedy.
Now that we’ve had the weekend to process that last episode, there is no doubt that it was a huge turning point for our characters. A couple of folks seem to agree.
The bullet that saved the world has now become a reminder of two deaths; mother and daughter. However, the daughter would not get the second–or even third or fourth–chance given to her mother.
What a miserable future, indeed.
Peter looked like a man set ablaze. With their child ripped away for certain from him and Olivia, I fear Peter will go back to that dark place that he fell into in Reciprocity. Or will he take the vengeful route of his actual father, Walternate? We know that when his family is threatened, that he’s quite capable of violence. There is an old Chinese proverb that offers some wise advice:
“He who seeks vengeance must dig two graves: one for his enemy and one for himself”
When faced with a captured Observer, will Peter retain his humanity, and not become like the enemy? After all, love can be the most destructive force in the universe. Or will he…
Peter, please remember your mother’s words:
Einai kalytero anthropo apo ton patera toy
Be sure to make your first tweet of the night a thank you to @FoxBroadcasting and @WarnerBrosEnt for making season five possible.
1) Don’t use #ShowNoMercy before the designated time: 1 HOUR before Fringe airs.
The event will take place 1 hour before Fringe airs – 8pm EDT — November 2. Gently remind others that use the tag before the event to wait until the right time, and tell them that using the tag too much beforehand will lessen trending impact. This happened when Fringe fans tried to trend #WhereIsPeterBishop for the season four premiere. The # had been used all summer long, was not anything new on the Twitter radar, so it did not trend. Trending happens with terms that are relatively new, and many people tweet about them at the same time. Terms break out onto the scene, but trending becomes more difficult the more they are used. Be nice! We want everyone to feel welcome.
2) One # term per Tweet. Use only #ShowNoMercy (What Are Hashtags?)
3) Lots of people tweeting matters more than the number of tweets.
Tell everyone Fringie about the event. There is strength in numbers – remember that the more unique tweeters we have, the more likely we are to trend, and for a longer duration of time. Send your tweets out steadily – remember to pace yourself. You want to avoid “Twitter Jail.” Sustained tweeting over time matters.
Trending can be a distraction, but we need you to keep those wonderful tweets coming. You may have also noticed that the # will drop off the charts after a while, only to trend again when Fringe airs. This is due to other viewers joining in by tweeting the hashtag on the bottom of the screen.
4) Those with lots of followers help out a lot!
Alternate accounts with few followers do not have as much “influence” towards trending. But tweets from accounts like @JWFringe, @FringeOnFox, @VancityJax and @johnnob58004412 make a big impact. Let’s try to build our Fringe fan follower networks. One easy way is to follow people on fan Twitter lists. Here is my Cortexifan list. Follow some Fringies! Another way is to follow some folks on Twitter “Follow Fridays.” You may have seen tweets that are tagged #FF – followed by a bunch of twitter names. This is because they are recommended people to follow.
5) We want to pique the interest of non-Fringe fans.
This is the key to our trending duration success. It gives a chance to get our message about Fringe out to another audience. Try to construct a list of thoughtful and informative tweets before the event. These can be copied and pasted for easy tweets. Use some witty Fringe sayings – link some of the official promo videos – speculate about what happened to September.
The episode is titled, An Origin Story. Origin of who… or what? The Observers? One of the timelines? Speculate about this idea. Cool tweets are more likely to earn re-tweets, and this immensely helps trending.
6) We can discuss aspects of the show in our tweets.
TRY to include the word FRINGE (with no #) in your tweet if possible. Talk about the characters and the actors. Maybe use the episode title, An Origin Story. We’ve been able to trend Fringe, Broyles, John Noble, and William Bell!
7) Private accounts must have their locked status removed, as the tweets from locked accounts do not count toward the trend tally.
8) Retweets are the easiest way to help out the trending effort.
Just search for the hashtag, and retweet the ones that are interesting to you. If you know how to use a Twitter application suite like TweetDeck or HootSuite, this is made even easier.
9) Remember to check in at GetGlue for cool stickers and so that Fringe will trend there as well.
If you are in the U.S. and have an iPhone or Android phone, give Viggle a try. Their check-ins are included in the data of several prominent social television analysis companies.
There are many many things I love about Fringe fandom but one that I am consistently astounded by is the consistency and devotion it has shown Fringe twitter social media events. Many would say, there is no need to continue these efforts since we have gotten a final season. Many international fans still, have little reason to stay up to the wee hours of the morning to join the twitter party. And yet, twitter on Fridays has become a meeting place where we can all tweet a “Hello” to one another, quote our favorite lines from the show, and debate (yes debate) the next mindblowing plot twists that are thrown our way.
One thing I will say, Fringe fandom sure can trend! Our tweets are friendly, funny, and we genuinely have a great time on Fridays. Trending #AnotherWay was no exception.
#AnotherWay jumped on the US trends at the top position within 5 minutes and it hit the worldwide trends at the 7-minute mark after event start. #AnotherWay stayed on the the US trends for nearly 50 minutes.
Here is a screencap of Fringe check-ins on Getglue:
#ForTheRecord “For The Record” is still trending!!! Fringe fans don’t F Around!
— Ari Margolis (@jonxproductions) October 13, 2012
We did good Cortexifans. Real Good. Last week’s event was exceptionally successful, #ForTheRecord. Fringe fans initiated this tag, but other users picked it up and our little fandom creation trended in various locations worldwide, and for an extended duration in many of them. Hopefully, some may have been curious enough to check it out and saw something about this little-show-that-could… Our faithful number-cruncher @Fringeship will be reporting on past events soon. She’s a busy woman, but her love for Fringe knows no bounds.
It is also fitting that another element in an episode was used to symbolize Fringe fans. In the Premiere, we could see our fandom’s resilience in that of dandelions. In The Recordist, the young child — River — symbolized the fans. His comic books were definitely a shout-out to our various creative works such as fan fiction, art, and the numerous other ways that fans express our imaginative sides due to the show’s tremendous inspiration. It is interesting to note that the actual author/artist of the comic books is a Fringe crew member named Trevor Metz. So thanks, Trevor!
Fringe fans have certainly made history in our endeavors, and I’m currently in the middle of recording it.
And we are still making history that you can be part of.
Ms. Torv? May I have your autograph?
Won’t find this on FF.net!
The last we saw our heroes, the family took off in the old Vista Cruiser, which Peter once again brought back from the dead.
Each Fringe season follows a pattern, and traditionally, the fourth episode of the season is quite momentous. Think back to The Arrival, Momentum Deferred, Do Shapeshifters Dream of Electric Sheep, and Subject 9. Each of these added a pivotal new element to the ongoing story; good or bad. Everyone who has been able to view the episode early has advised that tissues are required equipment, and it’s a gamechanger.
The Bullet that Saved the World promises to be a:
Most of you all know the gig by now, but take some time to refresh yourself. We also have a couple of extra goals mentioned at the end of the event protocol.
A week or so ago, I was invited by the lovely Carissa Pavlica to participate in this week’s round table discussion of The Recordist. I love writing about my show, but it’s been such a crazy year that I haven’t had much opportunity, so when Carissa invited me I jumped at the chance to have a say. I had a great time responding, and seeing so many different takes on the questions. Check it out! I hope you guys enjoy it as much as I did.
At only $450 away from reaching our goal, we’re fast approaching the conclusion of our final fan project. We’ll be placing the orders very soon, so if you haven’t done so already, please visit our polls page and give us your input! Polls will be closing this Friday, October 19th, but donations will remain open through the end of the month. We’d really like to be able to make a donation to all four of our wonderful charities, and we know that those donations will mean as much to our recipients as the gifts themselves, so please be as generous as you can and pass the word along to everyone you know!
And now, here’s some concept artwork for the challenge coins, vaguely inspired by the First People calendar:
These are only mock ups of course, the coins will be engraved, similar to the example below in execution. The hashtags on the “tails” (tulips?) side of the coin encompass some of the most positive messages conveyed by the campaigns, and the Observer side is an attempt to illustrate how Fringe became more than a TV show, it became a sort of meta story about itself, about all of us, and all of those other wonderful words around the edge. Artwork may change per manufacturer specifications, we’ll post a proof as soon as we get one from the company. Meanwhile, feel free to let us know what you think of the design.
And here’s the (not quite finished) cover of the Thank You cards:
We’re almost there! Stay tuned for more updates as we get them, and a huge thanks to everyone who’s already supported this final labor of love!
We’ve come up with three options for engraving into the large amber slabs. We can make them all the same, or we can use different phrases for different people. I used Bart’s name in the mock ups, because it’s nice and long.
Option A: “There are stories you come across. These bright, bright lights. They drift across our minds, unforgettable. Fringe is one of them. You lit up our imaginations, and we will never forget.” – Applicable to anyone
Option B: “There are stories that leave an indelible mark on your soul, an imprint that can never be erased. Fringe has left its mark on all of us, and it will never be forgotten. Thank you.” – Applicable to anyone
Option C: “”Only those who risk going too far, find out how far they can go.” You took every risk, to tell an unforgettable story. Thank you for leading the way.” – Slightly more applicable to the showrunners/writers.
Feel free to sound off in the comments after you cast your vote!
[nggallery id=8]
We are very much hoping to be able to donate something to all of these very worthy causes, but in the event we have to choose just one of them, which would you prefer to see extra funds sent to?
Alzheimer’s research: This tragic disease was prominently and heartbreakingly featured in “And Those We’ve Left Behind.” It also fits very well with our overall theme of memory preservation.
Arts programs for children: Bringing the visual and performing arts to underprivileged children in Fringe’s Vancouver home turf. Arts education is always a great cause to support, and although they’re very private about their charity causes, we have reason to believe this is a favorite of Josh and Diane’s.
Training and support for families of children with Autism: Once again in honor of Jasika, her sister Sedric, and their family. This Houston based organization works to train family members of children with Autism in helping them to learn through applied behavioral techniques. One of our most wonderful Fringies suggested FEAT, as they’ve been a wonderful support system for her own family.
Oxfam: Adorably supported by Anna, this international organization does many kinds of good works all over the world.
Stay tuned for further updates coming SOON!
Many fans would love to see photoshoots and/or cover stories for the final season of Fringe.
First of all, we have a very real opportunity to earn Fringe a TV Guide Fan Favorite cover.
You can vote as often as you like. Voting closes Sunday, October 28 at midnight Pacific Time. We’ll reveal the winner in the December 10 issue of TV Guide Magazine.
Get the word out using social media: Fringies are experts at this, so let’s put our power to good use. Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr, Google Plus, GetGlue, LiveJournal, etc.
But we want to take this mission a step further…
Entertainment Weekly was first to announce and showcase the gorgeous Season Five promotional pictures, and TV Guide conducted a much-enjoyed Anna Torv and Josh Jackson interview. Let’s let them know that Fringe fans would love a farewell cover, story, and/or photoshoot for Fringe.
Here are some very good reasons from “Anna Torv’s most devoted fan,” Jennifer Moon (@Starbuck7121):
The end is near Fringies…the series finale is set for February 1st, 2013. But before we all grab our nearest Kleenex boxes and go into mourning, how cool would it be if we could convince Entertainment Weekly and TV Guide to feature Fringe on their covers (maybe even with new photoshoots) one last time?If there was ever a show that deserved a final season cover feature, it’s Fringe. From the very beginning the show has defied the odds. While being a critical darling, we all know it never pulled in the ratings that most networks and studios want to see. But what makes Fringe special (besides the out-of-this-universe cast and crew) is its extremely devoted fanbase who fought to keep it on the air long enough so we could see the story it was meant to tell. And what a story it has been. Fringe is a master class on how to blend science fiction, family drama, and epic romance. The final season seems, by all accounts, poised to blow our collective minds.I’d like to challenge all of my fellow Fringe fans to ask EW and TV Guide for final cover features – this could be another fun way to demonstrate our appreciation to everyone involved with the show and let them know how much they will be missed. Let’s do everything we can to make sure Fringe goes down in the record books as stuff of sci-fi legend!
Last week’s event had a smaller turnout than the premiere event, but this was expected. #AnotherWay still trended for a significant amount of time worldwide, in the U.S, and many countries, and reappeared at several intervals after initially falling off of the trend charts. Plus, Fringe dominated GetGlue, as normal for Friday nights.
The Twitter events are more than just a trending effort. In the two years that I’ve been part of this online community, I’ve come across people from more countries than I can recall entirely from memory — from almost every continent. There is nothing quite like the reactions to the show, seen in real time. Last week’s horrifying scene in the Science Ministry was something that we all took in together — Simon’s fate a shock to all. We’re experiencing truly social television.
This week’s episode, “The Recordist,” follows the Fringe team’s scavenger-hunt quest to retrieve Walter’s informational tapes. Along the way, they come in contact with a community of people that act as historians and archivists; preserving human history for posterity.
“The preservers of history are as heroic as its makers.”- Pat Neff
Every word that Walter said on the hidden tapes are things that he wanted to be remembered. It is fitting that he preserved the first tape in amber, since amber is a symbol of preservation. (So much so, that we’re organizing a special amber project.)
One might say that the tapes were filmed…
#ForTheRecord
TWITTER EVENT PROTOCOL
Be sure to make your first tweet of the night a thank you to @FoxBroadcasting and @WarnerBrosEnt for making season five possible.
1) Don’t use #ForTheRecord before the designated time: 1 HOUR before Fringe airs.
The event will take place 1 hour before Fringe airs – 8pm EDT — October 12. Gently remind others that use the tag before the event to wait until the right time, and tell them that using the tag too much beforehand will lessen trending impact. This happened when Fringe fans tried to trend #WhereIsPeterBishop for the season four premiere. The # had been used all summer long, was not anything new on the Twitter radar, so it did not trend. Trending happens with terms that are relatively new, and many people tweet about them at the same time. Terms break out onto the scene, but trending becomes more difficult the more they are used. Be nice! We want everyone to feel welcome.
2) One # term per Tweet. Use only #ForTheRecord (What Are Hashtags?)
3) Lots of people tweeting matters more than the number of tweets.
Tell everyone Fringie about the event. There is strength in numbers – remember that the more unique tweeters we have, the more likely we are to trend, and for a longer duration of time. Send your tweets out fast – but remember to pace yourself. You want to avoid “Twitter Jail.” We know we can hit worldwide trending now, so sustained tweeting matters. Trending can be a distraction, but we need you to keep those wonderful tweets coming. You may have also noticed that the # will drop off the charts after a while, only to trend again when Fringe airs. This is due to other viewers joining in by tweeting the hashtag on the bottom of the screen.
4) Those with lots of followers help out a lot!
Alternate accounts with few followers do not have as much “influence” towards trending. But tweets from accounts like @JWFringe, @FringeOnFox, @VancityJax and @johnnob58004412 make a big impact. Let’s try to build our Fringe fan follower networks. One easy way is to follow people on fan Twitter lists. Here is my Cortexifan list. Follow some Fringies! Another way is to follow some folks on Twitter “Follow Fridays.” You may have seen tweets that are tagged #FF – followed by a bunch of twitter names. This is because they are recommended people to follow.
5) We want to pique the interest of non-Fringe fans.
This is the key to our trending duration success. It gives a chance to get our message about Fringe out to another audience. Try to construct a list of thoughtful and informative tweets before the event. These can be copied and pasted for easy tweets. Use some witty Fringe sayings – link some of the official promo videos – speculate about what happened to September, or on the fate of Gene the cow. Cool tweets are more likely to earn re-tweets, and this immensely helps trending.
6) We can discuss aspects of the show in our tweets.
TRY to include the word FRINGE (with no #) in your tweet if possible. Talk about the characters and the actors. Maybe use the episode title, The Recordist. We’ve recently been able to trend Fringe, Broyles, John Noble, and William Bell!
7) Private accounts must have their locked status removed, as the tweets from locked accounts do not count toward the trend tally.
8) Retweets are the easiest way to help out the trending effort.
Just search for the hashtag, and retweet the ones that are interesting to you. If you know how to use a Twitter application suite like TweetDeck or HootSuite, this is made even easier.
9) Remember to check in at GetGlue for cool stickers and so that Fringe will trend there as well.
If you are in the U.S. and have an iPhone or Android phone, give Viggle a try. Their check-ins are included in the data of several prominent social television analysis companies.
Originally posted at FringeTelevision.com.
A review will first be posted there for episode 5.02, “In Absentia.”
A Beautiful Dream Inside of a Horrible Nightmare
As the Fringe family of Olivia, Peter and their young daughter, Etta, enjoyed what Peter might call, “the perfect day,” I could not help but to smile. These precious moments of a happy family are few and far between on the show. However, there was also a conflicting dread, as I witnessed father and mother enjoying their precious toddler’s joy in her discovery of the effect that blowing air against a mature dandelion has on the flower. Fringe fans everywhere probably felt the same, as we know when Peter and Olivia are happy, something’s gotta go wrong. And the wrong that came has got to be the most gut-wrenching imaginable.
Since the renewal announcement for a final season of Fringe, the Fringenuity team discussed the social media campaigns and how to proceed for the last season. We definitely wanted to continue to show our support for Fringe. However, we also understood how challenging it was for international fans to tweet along live given the time zone differences.
Realistically, we knew that with Season 5 secured, some fans may opt for well-deserved shut-eye. Our social media campaigns are now focused to show our love for a show that has given so much to its fans and brought together the best fandom I’ve had the pleasure to be part of.
It was therefore, so thrilling to see all of you again, rise to the occasion on September 28th, at 8pm ET and exemplify why our campaigns made a difference.
#TheyAreHere hit the worldwide trends within 7 minutes of the tweet event start time and soon was seen on other country trends as well. #TheyAreHere peaked at #3 in the worldwide trends and trended for a little over 40 minutes and over 50 minutes in the US. (Thanks to @FringeIndo for submission of the Indonesia trends). Look closely at the trend in Spain!
There was also some local trending of #Fringe following the West Coast airing (Both #Fringe and #TheyAreHere trended in San Francisco).
The Premiere event for #TheyAreHere wildly exceeded our expectations, with strong trending worldwide, in the United States, and many, many other countries. We dominated Getglue, and trended on Google +. #Fringe also significantly trended, which is a very welcome, rare occurance. There will be an in-depth report from @Fringeship soon.
This week, our reunited Fringe team will pick up where they left off. Although it seemed that all hope was gone, Walter was able to find some mix CDs, and his sheer joy in the synth beats and simple, yearning, vocals of Yazoo’s “Only You,” floored me, only to be topped by the sight of a lone dandelion, emerging in defiance from a crack in the sidewalk. What was first a symbol of a scattered family, is now a yellow beacon of hope. Hope can be found in the smallest of cracks.
Nothing grows in scorched Earth? Oh Windmark, you need a lesson from Joel Wyman.
@goldenmonkey7 Thanks. I chose a dandelion because they are impossible to eradicate, very much like the human spirit.
— JOEL WYMAN (@JWFRINGE) September 29, 2012
Like dandelions, we know how to find the crack.
But hope is only good to those that take action. How will the team fight the Observers now? Will they resort to methods that contradict their moral compasses?
“I got to believe there’s another way. There’s always hope, right?” – Peter
“There must be another way and I promise you I will find it.” – Olivia
Although it may seem that the world has left us with only bad choices, we know that there is always:
#AnotherWay
Be sure to make your first tweet of the night a thank you to @FoxBroadcasting and @WarnerBrosEnt for making season five possible.
1) Don’t use #AnotherWay before the designated time: 1 HOUR before Fringe airs.
The event will take place 1 hour before Fringe airs – 8pm EDT — October 5. As these events become larger, we are gaining more new Fringies in the effort. Gently remind others that use the tag before the event to wait until the right time, and tell them that using the tag too much beforehand will lessen trending impact. This happened when Fringe fans tried to trend #WhereIsPeterBishop for the season four premiere. The # had been used all summer long, was not anything new on the Twitter radar, so it did not trend. Trending happens with terms that are relatively new, and many people tweet about them at the same time. Terms break out onto the scene, but trending becomes more difficult the more they are used. Be nice! We want everyone to feel welcome.
2) One # term per Tweet. Use only #AnotherWay (What Are Hashtags?)
3) Lots of people tweeting matters more than the number of tweets.
Tell everyone Fringie about the event. There is strength in numbers – remember that the more unique tweeters we have, the more likely we are to trend, and for a longer duration of time. Send your tweets out fast – but remember to pace yourself. You want to avoid “Twitter Jail.” We know we can hit worldwide trending now, so sustained tweeting matters. Trending can be a distraction, but we need you to keep those wonderful tweets coming. You may have also noticed that the # will drop off the charts after a while, only to trend again when Fringe airs. This is due to other viewers joining in by tweeting the hashtag on the bottom of the screen.
4) Those with lots of followers help out a lot!
Alternate accounts with few followers do not have as much “influence” towards trending. But tweets from accounts like @JWFringe, @FringeOnFox, @VancityJax and @johnnob58004412 make a big impact. Let’s try to build our Fringe fan follower networks. One easy way is to follow people on fan Twitter lists. Here is my Cortexifan list. Follow some Fringies! Another way is to follow some folks on Twitter “Follow Fridays.” You may have seen tweets that are tagged #FF – followed by a bunch of twitter names. This is because they are recommended people to follow.
5) We want to pique the interest of non-Fringe fans.
This is the key to our trending duration success. It gives a chance to get our message about Fringe out to another audience. Try to construct a list of thoughtful and informative tweets before the event. These can be copied and pasted for easy tweets. Use some witty Fringe sayings – link some of the official promo videos – speculate about what happened to September, or on the fate of Gene the cow. Cool tweets are more likely to earn re-tweets, and this immensely helps trending.
6) We can discuss aspects of the show in our tweets.
TRY to include the word FRINGE (with no #) in your tweet if possible. Talk about the characters and the actors. Maybe use the episode title, In Absentia. We’ve recently been able to trend Fringe, Broyles, John Noble, and William Bell!
7) Private accounts must have their locked status removed, as the tweets from locked accounts do not count toward the trend tally.
8) Retweets are the easiest way to help out the trending effort.
Just search for the hashtag, and retweet the ones that are interesting to you. If you know how to use a Twitter application suite like TweetDeck or HootSuite, this is made even easier.
9) Remember to check in at GetGlue for cool stickers and so that Fringe will trend there as well.
If you have an iPhone, give Viggle a try. Their check-ins are included in the data of several prominent social television analysis companies.
See you all for “In Absentia” on Friday!
Fringies, I know you’ve all been incredibly patient and excited for the Season 5 premiere. What better way to celebrate the show by sporting an icon for the twitter event #.TheyAreHere? If you’ve been reading our posts, you know that the campaigns helped in part to get us our precious final season. Fringenuity and Fringe fandom will be here to continue to celebrate the show. As usual, we’ve had generous contributions from fans to help make these icons possible. There are many of choices so feel free to peruse.
Examples from @Cheribot (with a Loyalist and a Resistance set):
Download Cheri’s icons here – TAH – Cheribot.zip 
SIMON FOSTER: When I was in my freshman year at college — I’m at Stanford. And in the middle of the night, my roommate comes banging on my door. Tells me to wake up, come check out the TV. I tell him to go away. I… I have a girl in my bed. But he won’t take no for an answer. So me and the girl… Emily… We get dressed, go to the common room. On the TV they’re showing footage from… Chicago, L.A… London. Observers going from house to house and… dragging people out into the street.
ETTA: That was 2015. The Purge.
SIMON FOSTER: I’m watching people… being dragged from their homes, led into the street, and being… put down like dogs. And suddenly… I knew. I don’t know how, but… I knew. That’s… why my parents sent me so far away for school. They were part of the resistance. They — they sent me away to protect me. That was the night they were killed. And that was the night… I knew I wouldn’t give up… until the Observers had gone.
Imagine it is 2015 . Where do you see yourself? Suddenly, bald men dressed in suits and wearing fedoras appear all over the world, demanding control — Those who resist, are targeted. The Purge has begun. Do you join them? Go into hiding? Die fighting?
Previously, on Morethanoneofeverything.net…
Earlier this year, things were looking pretty hopeless for the future of Fringe. Who would have thought at that point what the future would hold: Just a little more than a week until the start of season five. The gift of a final concluding season is ours because of our love and dedication to this spectacular example of storytelling. We all crossed the line to save what we love.
Fringenuity is continuing our Fringe fan social media blitz, but the objectives are different this time, because we have nothing to lose. Although the Twitter campaigns have always had a positive and hopeful party-like atmosphere, let’s face it; there was always the underlying fear that the show would be canceled. This time, we’re going to have a huge send off for the show. It deserves no less.
FOX Broadcasting will continue its awesome support by displaying our chosen hashtag during the episodes. (I hear ABC might be doing the same for Castle fans — how awesome it is that Fringe was first.) September’s ominous warning to Walter at the end of S4′s finale has been communicated to fans all summer long: “They are coming.” Forget “he is here.” THEY are here, and a climactic battle for the future will commence. Fringe fans will herald the beginning.
Let’s come back full force on Friday, September 28, and let the world know that
#TheyAreHere
Be sure to make your first tweet of the night a thank you to @FoxBroadcasting and @WarnerBrosEnt for making season five possible.
1) Don’t use #TheyAreHere before the designated time: 1 HOUR before Fringe airs.
The event will take place 1 hour before Fringe airs – 8pm EDT. As these events become larger, we are gaining more new Fringies in the effort. Gently remind others that use the tag before the event to wait until the right time, and tell them that using the tag too much beforehand will lessen trending impact. This happened when Fringe fans tried to trend #WhereIsPeterBishop for the season four premiere. The # had been used all summer long, was not anything new on the Twitter radar, so it did not trend. Trending happens with terms that are relatively new, and many people tweet about them at the same time. Terms break out onto the scene, but trending becomes more difficult the more they are used. Be nice! We want everyone to feel welcome.
2) One # term per Tweet. Use only #TheyAreHere (What Are Hashtags?)
3) Lots of people tweeting matters more than the number of tweets.
Tell everyone Fringie about the event. There is strength in numbers – remember that the more unique tweeters we have, the more likely we are to trend, and for a longer duration of time. Send your tweets out fast – but remember to pace yourself. You want to avoid “Twitter Jail.” We know we can hit worldwide trending now, so sustained tweeting matters. Trending can be a distraction, but we need you to keep those wonderful tweets coming. You may have also noticed that the # will drop off the charts after a while, only to trend again when Fringe airs. This is due to other viewers joining in by tweeting the hashtag on the bottom of the screen.
4) Those with lots of followers help out a lot!
Alternate accounts with few followers do not have as much “influence” towards trending. But tweets from accounts like @JWFringe, @FringeOnFox, @VancityJax and @johnnob58004412 make a big impact. Let’s try to build our Fringe fan follower networks. One easy way is to follow people on fan Twitter lists. Here is my Cortexifan list. Follow some Fringies! Another way is to follow some folks on Twitter “Follow Fridays.” You may have seen tweets that are tagged #FF – followed by a bunch of twitter names. This is because they are recommended people to follow.
5) We want to pique the interest of non-Fringe fans.
This is the key to our trending duration success. It gives a chance to get our message about Fringe out to another audience. Try to construct a list of thoughtful and informative tweets before the event. These can be copied and pasted for easy tweets. Use some witty Fringe sayings – link some of the official promo videos – speculate about the plans of William Bell, or on the fate of Olivia. Cool tweets are more likely to earn re-tweets, and this immensely helps trending.
6) We can discuss aspects of the show in our tweets.
TRY to include the word FRINGE (with no #) in your tweet if possible. Talk about the characters and the actors. Maybe use the episode title. We’ve recently been able to trend Fringe, Broyles, John Noble, and William Bell! Something tells me that Etta and Observers will trend as well…
7) Private accounts must have their locked status removed, as the tweets from locked accounts do not count toward the trend tally.
8) Retweets are the easiest way to help out the trending effort.
Just search for the hashtag, and retweet the ones that are interesting to you. If you know how to use a Twitter application suite like TweetDeck or HootSuite, this is made even easier.
9) Remember to check in at GetGlue for cool stickers and so that Fringe will trend there as well.
With this difference in purpose, we are setting our expectations for lower participation in these events than before the renewal announcement. Without the execution fear hanging over us, there won’t be such a flurry of anxious determination. On the other hand, we’d like to be proven wrong and see more people participate than ever and Twitter trending all over the world once again. Many people have watched Fringe over the summer due to streaming access and news of a definite end date. Fans have been gained. Let’s try for the next few weeks to engage people online whether on Twitter, FB, Tumblr, GetGlue, etc, and talk with them and remind the about Fringe’s return.
To further celebrate, we are hosting a Loyalist/Resistance art contest. The winner will receive Fringe season four on DVD or Blu-Ray. Here is one of our cool entries, courtesy of @berry_hearts.
Another contest will be announced Friday, September 21 for those that are better with words than pictures.
There will also be a very special, fun promo video featuring alternate versions of the Fringe characters. We’ll have icons from @cheribot, @sarahproost, and anyone else that would like to contribute.
The lovely ladies at Pop Culture Nexus are having a Fringe week to celebrate the premiere.
The fanzine, The Bridge, is set to be released in time for the premiere.
Another great bit of creative fun involves some 2036 roleplaying. Check out these accounts on Twitter.
Yeah?Scan THIS… “@heedobeyserve: Attention: Reward for bringing September to us. #Fringe” twitter.com/cerveris/statu…
— Michael Cerveris (@cerveris) September 7, 2012
The best part of all this: I’m no longer going to be cursing Nielsen on Saturday mornings. Sweet freedom. Because we all believed in hope, we’ll now be able to just relax and enjoy one hell of a ride.
It won’t be long until #Fringe Friday nights return! And there will be a battle for hearts and minds.
To prepare for the showdown, we’re looking for Loyalist and Resistance themed propaganda art/posters. This includes propaganda themed fan videos. Winner will be chosen at random. The prize is one (1) copy of Fringe Season Four on DVD or BluRay.
Entry is open to international fans — we will work with the release dates for separate region codes.
Link us your work (@Fringenuity), and tag entries,#ResistOrServe. You can also email entries to fringenuity@gmail.com. Be sure to include a twitter name if you have one.
Entries will be accepted until 12am PST, Thursday, September 27, 2012 — One day before the Season Five Premiere.
Each poster/art/vid will be counted as one entry.
Entries will be collated into a gallery and exhibited in celebration of the start of Fringe’s epic final season.
For more about propaganda art, see:
http://www.smashingmagazine.com/2010/06/13/100-years-of-propaganda-the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/
Thanks, and let’s see how each side might convey their ideals and attempt to influence the opposition.
So here we are, drawing either too quickly or not quickly enough (depending on which second you ask) towards the beginning of the end. What an incredible ride it’s been. Thinking back on my own experiences over the last few … Continue reading
Biggest, bestest Birthday wishes to one of our own! In case anyone was unaware (how’s the weather in that cave?), Emma (@dalliel) is an integral part of Fringenuity operations, and single-handedly organized the stunningly successful Fringe Event in Vancouver. She’s a lovely person, a wonderful friend, and a truly dedicated Fringie. Happy Birthday Emma, and thanks so much for everything that you do!!
It was fairly common knowledge that Fringe would be filming at the University of British Columbia on Monday, August 13. Unfortunately, we were under the impression that nothing would occur until afternoon. However, they did film earlier in the day, and as such, we missed Anna Torv, who would leave before the majority of set visitors arrived.
Several of us took a cab to UBC, and although the campus is like a city-in-a city, it wasn’t long before we found what we looking for: Without spoiling too much, there was a huge Observer propaganda poster on the clock tower and many Observers scurrying about.
I shook my fist and yelled, “Fight the future!”
After they were through filming this scene, we decided to check out the area where the crew parked their vehicles and the cast trailers were located. I also got to meet Vancouver photographer and blogger Susan Gittins. She is so kind and I am glad to have finally met such a class-act supporter of Fringe.
We scoped the area out, hoping to see someone of interest, but were soon informed that filming was taking place near Hospital Lane. Our group met up with some other Fringies hanging around the street. Josh came out several times and was seen talking/texting on his phone. At some point, he did not look amused at whatever information he received. This may have been possibly because of something that occurred which we would find out about later.
John also came out for a rest in his chair. Later, he left via chauffeured vehicle, but he did have them stop and spoke to us for just a few seconds. We did see Anna Torv for a very brief moment before she left, and Georgina Haig was also present. After this scene wrapped, we saw Josh come out and speak with some folks, then he started to walk up towards us.
And time seemed to stand still….
He came right up to us—as we said a chorus of, “Hello, Josh”—and said, “Are these the Fringe Event people?”
I was able to let him know that some of us were responsible for the hashtag campaigns, but he really did not have too much time to chat. He was very kind in taking a couple of group pictures though. Which made my trip. I once said that all I ever wanted was a hug from Josh Jackson, and I did want my comic signed since I wasn’t able to see him at WonderCon. Both happened on this trip.
Say, “Fringe!”
Josh and Georgina appeared in a spoilery scene later, which I will not describe out of respect for the unspoiled. Josh was also seen talking to some local photogs, and he seemed upset. We found out why: A local paparazzi had been stalking his romantic partner, Diane Kruger. How awful that they can’t have a moment’s peace! (Please don’t visit JustJared’s website, as they are the worst offender, and support this sleazy practice.)
There was a really cool actor named Mark that played an Observer who talked and interacted with us. A special effects man also gave us some insight into his work on Fringe and many films/shows. Many in our group left before filming wrapped for the night because we had heard that Josh and Georgina were both tired and cranky. We decided it would be respectful to leave them alone when they finished their work for the evening.
Things to keep in mind if you have a chance to watch a show film:
This day was one of the highlights of this trip. It was so cool to see some actual filming. And of course, to meet the actor I adore and respect, and who is my favorite character from any work of fiction—Peter Bishop.
Some of us spent a bit of time drinking and catching up in the venue’s bar Friday night. We heard Radiohead’s “Creep” playing, and thought of Fringe promo wizard, Ari Margolis. Not because of the song title, haha, but because they are his fave band. If things had gone differently, Ari would have been in Vancouver as well. He was there with us in spirit.
So… staying up until the wee hours and having to get up for a major walking tour wasn’t exactly a good idea, but hey, I’m a night owl, and chatting with some of my fave Fringies was one of the highlights of the trip. I skipped the morning debates to sleep a bit more, and because I am very passionate in my opinions regarding Fringe. I’m not a morning person in the least, so higher brain function was a bit much to ask for at 8 am in the morning.
The walking tours started off fairly well, though I was not so well-prepared to pound concrete for almost 4 hours. We saw the steps where Walternate was made aware that Olivia had escaped from Liberty Island in Olivia, and the steps where Peter kissed Fauxlivia (Vancouver Art Gallery).
The alternate universe headquarters is the Vancouver Public Library.
Markham’s Books
The Rosencrantz from episode 6B
Where Olivia Shot Shapeshifter Charlie
Barrett’s garden from Marionette
And there were a ton more places. One location that I’ve been to several times is Gelarmony, a gelato shop. It served as the location where Peter took Walter for a strawberry milkshake at the end of Marionette, as September stood across the street and informed his colleagues, “He is still…alive.” The clerk was more than glad to allow me to snap a pic as I geeked out. No strawberry milkshakes here, unfortunately, but their gelato is bar none the best. (On another visit, I heard Coldplay’s “Viva la Vida,” the song used in the Where Is Peter Bishop video. Talk about serendepity!)
The highlight of the day, and a crowning moment for the entire event was our trip out to “the Bishop house.” The house is beautiful and large, and is actually several units together; people do live there. There was a spacious, covered porch, stained glass windows, and a small patio with a chair… on the roof. It was enough to bring me to tears thinking about the place that served as home for the Bishop Boys, and a scene for so many pivotal moments in the series.
“You were abducted, of course you need crepes.”
“Olivia, please don’t tell him.”
“I’ve seen the two of us together, and it’s beautiful.”
“I want what you want.”
“I remember. I remember everything.”
That night, I gave my presentation about the Fringe fandom.
Team Fringenuity: Tas, Cheri, Kelly, Emma, Annie, me and Nikolai.
Afterwards, I was starving, so we sought out a bar with food and karaoke. Me, @birdandbear, @tribeoftyrones, and @agentdunhams had a great time. I tried poutine there for the first time and they made a fist rate alcoholic vanilla coke. It was hilarious watching Tas and Olivia dance around the karaoke bar, and we all got up there to sing a Fringed version of “We Are the Champions…” Video may exist, but I’m not sure if it should see the light of day. So… once again… another late night, but damn, it was a blast. My feet were beat, so I skipped the excursion out to Rice Lake (Reiden Lake) in the early morning. I may wander out there before I leave Vancouver.
One of the best experiences of The Fringe Event was the tour we received of The Orpheum Theater. The history behind this old playhouse is very interesting, and our tour guides, especially Arthur, were quite knowledgeable and a joy to listen to. Arthur said that science fiction actually has a lot in common with the purpose of the theater; a way to open doors to other worlds. The ceiling dome over the seats of the theater was stunning, and we found out that the artist was friends with one of the theater’s benefactors, so some of the people depicted included the friend, his wife and children. There was one mural depicting Orpheus, a warrior, and a tiger. When asked what this meant, I replied, “Music tames the savage beast.” I recommend that fans acquaint themselves with the story of Orpheus.
We were given the opportunity to actually walk onto the stage, and of course we had to reenact the Cortexikid circle:
We were also treated to a view of the lighting room and a look at the rigging that held the dome in place.
The tour volunteers were impressed with Fringe fan’s level of curiosity and genuine interest in what they had to say. We were among some of the best tours they had every given due to our inquisitive and reciprocal nature. They taught us, and we taught them.
No electrolights here
There were some more locations in Gastown, including the spot where Olivia and Peter had their reuniting, twirly kiss in “A Short Story About Love.”
After the tour, several of us had drinks at The Irish Heather Bar. There was a couple that actually kindly moved their seats when we we told them about Fringe filming there. (Everyone here has been so kind!) So, we were able to toast “To Agent Dunham” in the same seats that Peter and Broyles did the same in “A New Day in the Old Town.” Another big highlight of this journey.
“To Agent Dunham.”
Then it was off to the Old Spaghetti Factory for the final Fringe Event goodbye dinner. This was a great celebration of the weekend, a thank you for the wonderful organizers, and a tearful goodbye to many amazing Fringe fans met through the weekend.
Part Three tomorrow — A big day.
Tuesday night (August 7) I couldn’t sleep, and it really didn’t matter since we had to leave for Yeager airport in Charleston, WV at 2:30 a.m. Wednesday morning. Plane left for Atlanta at 6 a.m. and then off to Seattle. The plane trip was boring and routine, but I did feel awed at the view of the Rocky Mountains. I arrived at SeaTac around 10:30 a.m. PST. Annie (@birdandbear) had arrived only minutes before, so we met at her baggage pick-up with hugs, since the last time we had seen each other was after WonderCon in March.
Then… we waited. We both had tickets for the same Quickbus to Canada at 2:30 p.m. The idea was allow a cushion in case anything went wrong with our flights. Well, everything went off without a hitch. A lot of time was spent chilling on top of some rocks. Yes, rocks. There were large granite slabs outside the airport near the bus loading area. I commented to Annie that the rock was loads more comfortable than Delta’s plane seats.
Finally, it was time for our bus to Vancouver. Sadly, this part of the journey was not as epic as we had envisioned. First, the driver was highly unorganized. Next, our bus smelled. You know, like a bathroom that has not been cleaned. The driver had to scan our passport cards, but his machine was not working, so we had a “wonderful” side trip to downtown Seattle so he could obtain a new one. After a bottleneck due to construction, we were on our way.
The stop at the border was fairly uneventful. We explained that we were going to a fan convention for a show that films in Vancouver, told him how long each of us was staying, and what we did for a living. After several delays—and near gagging to death on the stench—we made it to the Coast Plaza Hotel almost two hours later than expected.
Lesson: Don’t take QuickBus if you value breathing and being close to a schedule. Glad I am taking the BoltBus back…
We were greeted by @runpaceyrun, @fringeship and @tribeoftyrones! Hugs all around! Annie and I were starving, so we made our way to the nearby Olympia Greek restaurant. Good food and good friends! Then sleep for my first night in Vancouver.
Thursday was spent getting acquainted with the city and meeting Fringies. A large group of us met at Earl’s Restaurant. Later, the present Fringenuity team met with TFE organizers to discuss the event and filming location walking tours. I had tweeted a pic of Fringies to Joshua Jackson, and I received quite a nice reply!
@runpaceyrun, @jaromjz, @BMap2A, @brownbettyhigh, @dixiegirl256, @fringeship, and @tribeoftyrones
On Friday, we received word that Fringe was filming at Terminal City Ironworks. Little did @Dixiegirl256 and @brownbettyhigh know when they made their way to our hotel room, that we were going to the filming. The original plan was to go grab lunch together, but on this trip, everything is subject to change based on Fringe filming. So, we headed out there, and waited around. We noticed many extras, and the wardrobe/makeup trucks. We saw one woman dressed up as a geisha, and some of the extras looked like they were dressed as rock music fans. Another group of fans and local autograph collector @Canadagraphs was there.
We picked out a nice spot to camp out, and it wasn’t long before a crew member, Gavin, came out and talked to us for a bit. He was really great to talk to. We saw Georgina Haig, Jasika Nicole, and Joshua Jackson pass by on their way to their trailers for lunch. As Josh passed us the first time, he said, “Enjoying the weather ladies?” We played it cool, and were respectful. Our number one rule is to not be pests to crew or cast. If they want to talk with us, they can come to us.
After a while, Jasika Nicole came over to us. She really wanted to thank fans for their support and was more than glad to sign and take pictures with us. She recognized the bag that @DixieGirl256 was carrying, because it was one that she had made. She was so sweet and energetic in person. Sadly, I look like Hell in my pic with her, but that’s OK. She signed my ComicCon TV Guide.
Later, who should we see crossing the street, but John Noble! He came right to us. We asked how he was feeling after his break due to his sleeping issues, and he said that he was better, and so grateful for the love and support from fans. He also discussed how they were happy to be back for S5 due to the tremendous fan support. I’ll always remember him telling me, “Come here, Love,” when getting a pic with him. He also signed my ComicCon TV Guide.
It was soon time to head back for the first night of TFE. I had a presentation to give, and a moral quandary: Do I miss what may be my one chance to meet Joshua Jackson—who plays my fave all-time character—or do I keep my commitment to do what I said, and was scheduled to do? I chose to go back, although it hurt. When I got to the venue, I also learned I could have stayed because the audio system was not working properly. Emma had tried to contact me, but I did not have access to Twitter while “out in the field.” My presentation would have to wait until Saturday. Although I was happy for my friends, a part of me hurt inside when I found out that Josh did talk with them. They did think of me and have Josh sign my copy of his Beyond the Fringe comic book.
But the introductory night was lots of fun, and I met a ton of Fringe fans. Plus, I got to meet the location scout for the show, Tom. Someone told Tom that I was part of the group that organized the social media campaigns, and he said, “So I have you to thank for me still having a job?” I probably was beet-red from blushing, but to hear this was probably the best praise that one can receive. I said we were a *small* part. We talked about his job, the fans, campaigns, and I loved the fact he worked for The X-Files and Eureka—two of my other fave shows. His insight into how shows choose filming locations was interesting and I wish that we had more time to talk.
And my choice to come back for the presentation was the right one. Karma is good.
Part 2 Tomorrow…
This is an excerpt from The Fringe Event program:
One of the best things about Fringe is that the show inspires creativity in the fanbase. We’re a passionate bunch, and use many outlets to express our affection for our special show. Fans create art of all kinds, write fan-fiction, blog, create podcasts, and make videos about Fringe. The Fringe Event is a celebration of this very inspirational and special show; one that will live in the hearts of its fans for a lifetime. My experiences as a fan, and with Fringenuity, inspired me to write a history of the Fringe fandom—which I plan to release before the end of this year. To kick things off for the weekend, I will be giving a presentation that highlights some of the many fan initiatives, projects, and other creative works that have been inspired by Fringe.
The Fringe Network—Where Is Peter Bishop?—Fringenuity’s social media campaigns
These are just a few exemplary examples of how the Fringe fandom came together in order to show our love for the show. What we may have lacked in Nielsen numbers, we made up for it by being vocal and passionate. Fringe brought us together and created a special bond; not only between fans, but also with cast, crew, and the showrunners. I hope that you’ll enjoy this glimpse into how the most reciprocal relationship in television came to be.
The presentation was verbal and very much from the heart, so the effect felt by the audience will not transfer well, but here is the PowerPoint that I used for my discussion of the Fringe fandom:
There were cheers and tears when the Where is Peter Bishop video played. Click here for an interview with the video editor.
Watching that WIPB never fails to tear me up!
#tfe2012— Kelly(@Fringeship) August 12, 2012
Tala, my WIPB dog woke up early in the morning – I took a look at Twitter and noticed that the
#TFE2012 bunch just watched the#WIPB vid!— Sunny (@greyandsmart) August 12, 2012
.
@aimeeinchains is currently doing an amazing presentation all about the#Fringe fandom! twitter.com/TheFringeEvent…— The Fringe Event (@TheFringeEvent) August 12, 2012
Mentions for amazing Fringies
@elialys@robvenger@estelle5fringe@dubzoey@gsmpodcasts among others!— The Fringe Event (@TheFringeEvent) August 12, 2012
Plenty of laughs for “The Angry Fringe Birds” cartoons, and cheers for fanfiction, videos and the hashtag campaigns.
Thanks to everyone that made the past few years some of the most inspiring that I’ve experienced in my life. Lifelong friendships—that cross continents—have been forged because of this epic story. I look forward to writing a history of all that we’ve achieved as a massively quantum-entangled force.
Family is who you choose, and Fringe fans will always be part of mine.
Referenced Links:
http://watching-tv.ew.com/2011/03/11/fringe-fox-save-this-show-cancellation/
http://www.fringetelevision.com/
http://www.thefringepodcast.com
http://www.youtube.com/user/estelle5?feature=results_main
http://www.fanfiction.net/tv/Fringe
http://davidwumusic.com/fringemunks/
http://morethanoneofeverything.net/2011/07/18/?p=226
http://www.fringetelevision.com/2012/02/introducing-fringenuity-how-we-can-help.html
As we know, Emmy nominations were announced today.
*sigh*
No love for Fringe, again…
But what do Cortexifans do in situations like this? We get creative!
Inspired by today’s “scandalous” events, fan Donna Hazel (@oconnellaboo) wrote a cool piece of fanfiction. We’re sharing it here with you all to cheer you up.
We don’t need some awards show to know that Fringe is special, and that the cast are world class in every way. We are all strong together–united in love for a story and characters that will live on beyond their television run.
Enjoy! Donna is one of my favorite fanfiction authors.
So… We Were Successful!!!! Thanks everyone for once again showing the power that helped earn Fringe a fifth season–the fans!
With Comic-Con happening next week–and Fringe filming commencing soon–I figured now would be a good time to update status about the book that I am writing this summer and fall. If you missed the initial announcement: It’s a history of the Fringe fandom, our creative works, and of our efforts to keep Fringe on the air. The working title is Quantum Entanglements: Fringe Fans Acting at a Distance.
I’ve been thinking about this project ever since the success of Fringenuity’s #CrossTheLine social media campaigns, and now I have an excellent outline to start.
The hope is to have the book ready for publication shortly after the series finale. I plan on making it available as a print book through Amazon’s CreateSpace and as an e-book for Kindle.
Since the topic is about fans, I’ll be contacting some folks about their roles in various capacities. If you’d like to contribute in some manner, please send your proposal to fringefanbook@gmail.com.
I’m really excited about this project. It’s nothing fancy, but if Fringe fans want something done, we have to do it on our own. I want to make this something enduring—something to document this special family and the times we will never forget.
- Aimee
This book has not been authorized by FOX Network, Warner Brothers, or Bad Robot Productions. It is an act of love, and a study in fan culture and social television. I expect no real profit from this venture. Just enough to cover image licensing fees, art work, editing, and a bit for my time in writing it.
Some topics to be covered, but not a final list:
To celebrate Fringe’s final Comic-con panel, we’re asking the Twitterverse to try to trend two (2) hashtags, one before the panel, and one during the panel.
What better way to kick off all of the excitement for the fifth season than to spread the word that #TheyAreComing?
AND….
When news broke that executive producer Jeff Pinkner left the show—leaving co-pilot Joel Wyman as Fringe’s singular showrunner—some fans were worried about how the amicable departure would affect the show’s creative direction in the upcoming fifth season.
Joel accepted the role of executive producer during Fringe’s second season. The team formed between Pinkner and Wyman gave us an accelerated Fringe story, diving right in to the underpinning mythology of the series. Their combined writing talents penned many amazing episodes such as August, Olivia, Entrada, and The Firefly. They also collaborated with other writers on the majority of pivotal episodes in the series.
Even so, we’re not worried. Joel has cultivated an amazing reciprocal relationship with fans. He loves the show dearly, and has made it known just how much he understands the desire of fans to see our beloved show and characters receive the ending that they deserve. Fans that have met him have described just how passionate he is about Fringe—that he loves what he does.
Let’s show some appreciation for the talented and hardworking man behind the curtain: The man that wears many hats; executive producer, writer, director and showrunner.
We’re going to tweet #InWymanWeTrust during the Comic-Con Fringe panel.
Please read carefully.
Event time = Sunday, July 15
We will tweet the hashtags:
#TheyAreComing at 12: 30 PM EST (9:30 AM PST)
#InWymanWeTrust at 1:00 PM EST (10:00 AM PST)
(Need your local time? Here’s a time converter.)
We are really fortunate to have some talent in our Fringie pool. @SarahProost and @Cheribot have gracious created some icons for this special Comic-Con event.
Two sets by Sarah:
Full set of icons in many more colors can be downloaded here – Sarah – TAC icons.zip
Icons by Sarah:
Full set of Sarah’s icons can be downloaded here – Sarah – IWWT icons.zip
Icons by Cheri:
Full set of Cheri’s icons can be downloaded here – Cheri – IWWT icons.zip
There is a special project for those fans that will be attending the Fringe Comic-con panel. You will want to read about @flowerrings’ White Tulip Project here.
Be sure to check-in at GetGlue during the panel for a special Fringe Comic-con sticker.
Happy Birthday Joshua Jackson hit the worldwide Twitter trends for a few minutes this afternoon. Thanks to everyone that made it happen!
Joshua Jackson’s 34th birthday is on Monday, June 11th.
Some JJ fans decided it would be really cool if we could try for a Twitter trend on that day.
Whether you’re into Fringe, Dawson’s Creek, Mighty Ducks, or anything else/everything else Josh Jackson related, we need you all to listen up. 
Joshua Jackson (@VancityJax) Twitter Birthday Event
Pass this around to wherever Josh’s fans may hang out. The more unique people that tweet this phrase at the same time, the more likely it is to trend.
The submissions window for The Bridge is officially open!!! You have from now until Monday, July 2, to send your submissions to: TheBridgeZine@gmail.com
Please keep in mind that this is the first issue- if your submission doesn’t make it in, do no be discouraged! It may appear in future issues. If your submission is selected for issue 1, you will be contacted. Since this is a fan project, you retain all your material’s rights. The Bridge is a way to share what the fandom is doing with each other, and Fringenuity is simply distributing your awesome work! Here are the guidelines for submission:
-Please include your name as you want it to appear (nicknames are fine!). You may also include any website info, your twitter handle, or an e-mail address. You don’t have to include these, but it is strongly encouraged, especially the twitter handle
-If submitting an article or something written, please send it as a Word or Pages file- NOT a pdf! I’m not going to tell you how long it should be, as different submissions may be different lengths (for example, an article versus a fic). Please also keep in mind that these submissions may be edited for length, spelling etc. and you will be contacted about any small changes made. Like any other magazine, any edits made are done to make your submission the best it can be, and so it physically fits within the format of the ‘The Bridge ‘zine. If there is a picture that goes with your article, please send that as well, but please adhere to the artwork guidelines below.
-If sending artwork, please remember that this is a digital distribution, so your files don’t have to be 300dpi. I’m pretty open when it comes to file formats, but do NOT send a pdf. Artwork can mean anything visual- photos (and photos of artwork, like sculptures, cakes, etc.), illustrations, comics, crafty things- whatever you can think of!
-For videos, .swf and any H.264 file formats can be embedded right into the ‘zine document. Audio files can also be embedded, as well. Please e-mail if you are thinking about submitting one of these, as these files are much bigger. Instructions will be given on how and where to send these files.
-Feel free to submit more than once, and submit different materials.
-By submitting your materials, you understand that this a not-for-profit fan project, and that Fringenuity does not claim to own anything you did- we are here simply to get it out there into the Fringie world! You own all the rights to what you submitted, so feel free to post it on your own websites, as well. The Bridge itself will also disclaim that this is indeed a fan project, and that we are in no way directly affiliated with Fringe, Fox or Warner Brothers. We just love our show and like to get creative about how much we love it!
If you have any questions, please feel free to e-mail The Bridge at the e-mail above, or tweet @Fringenuity or myself, @CheriBot. Remember, submissions can be pretty much anything! Can’t wait to see what everyone comes up with- Good Luck!
Here is an update and some information about The Fringe Event fan get-together that takes place August 10-12 in Vancouver, Canada. The entire Fringenuity team will be in attendance.
Check out the Event website, and follow @TheFringeEvent on Twitter for updates.
Even if you cannot attend, we’d appreciate it if you would spread the word to others in the Fringe community. Thanks!
Check out what appeared on Deadline Hollywood today:
The episodes in the videos are A Short Story About Love, Nothing As It Seems, and Brave New World: Part Two.
Warner Brothers also has their own site promoting Fringe for the Emmys. The full episodes are Welcome to Westfield and Letters of Transit.
I’m really hoping that members of the Television Academy give Fringe a good look. We’d absolutely like to see some Emmys beside those Blue Moon Awards.
Feels like it’s been quite awhile since Brave New World Part 2….was it really only two weeks ago?
Since the finale, the Fringenuity team has been enjoying a little break in which to catch up on everything else that’s not Fringe, but fear not! We have some really cool activities to keep us busy through this long (long!) summer. After a little bit of spring cleaning, we’re ready to announce the first of those: an ambitious summer re-watch and dissection of every episode of Fringe.
We aim to cover an episode a day for most of the summer, starting this Fringe Friday, June 01. This is an interactive project that depends on volunteers and participants, so if you have time please join us! Announcement and more information follows – looking for a discussion leader for the Pilot ASAP!
by birdandbear » Sun May 27, 2012 10:39 pm
Announcing the MTOofE Summer Re-watch and Dissection! Starting this Fringe Friday, we’ll be watching and discussing an episode a day, all summer long (almost)!
The way it works is simple: Sign up for the episode(s) of your choice, and post a recap/analysis when the scheduled date arrives, keeping in mind the goal of generating discussion for that episode. Personal opinions and wild theories are welcome as we take an in depth look at Fringe episode by episode and as a whole, making connections across four seasons. Once opened by the episode leader, discussions will stay open indefinitely, making it easy to jump in at your convenience. We’ll strive to cover an episode a day for the first three seasons, and then take a short break for those attending The Fringe Event before we finish up Season Four in time for the fall premier.
Signups for episode leads are currently only open for the first season. Future season signups will open as we get closer to their scheduled dates, provided there’s enough interest in dissecting the first half of season one.
This is Fringenuity’s first attempt at a strictly forum based activity, please bear with us as we feel things out. We’ll do our best to stick to the schedule provided, but that sorta depends on our lead volunteers, so sign up NOW!!
For more information, please see:
As promised, this is the first of the last three post on the Fringe campaigns using social networks to voice our support of Fringe. The episode “Worlds Apart” marked the first episode back after Joel Wyman came on twitter to announce that Fringe was picked up for a FIFTH season!
The hashtag hit worldwide trends within 10 minutes of the event start time and soon found its way on trends in different countries including Argentina, Indonesia, and United Kingdom to name a few. I’d like to thank fans for diligently collecting information and forwarding it to our attention. (I try to catch most of the information during the very active hour before the east coast airing but on this particular Friday, my computer was misbehaving so I appreciate the data you guys shared.)
For those that are hanging out on G+, we’ve been told that #WorldsApart was trending there too (behind “NFL Draft”).
On GetGlue, #Fringe retained a solid lead during its air times.
Tweet Stats (from @hashtracking):
Tweets: 27.4K
Contributors: 7.4K
Reach: 3.2M
Exposure: 12.5M
Social TV information from 3 analytics companies:
Bluefin Labs:
Trendrr.TV: (Total activity is determined by Twitter, Facebook, GetGlue, Viggle, and Miso activity.)
SocialGuide.com:
Notable Tweets:
It has been a long journey and some of you have been part of this incredible socialTV experiment to unite our support for Fringe since the start. Others have since joined as we moved through the second half of season 4 and the weekly hashtags were picked up by FOX. And then there are some of you who have decided to contribute your own talents to these campaigns via icon and banner designs, fanvids to promote events, and other ways (keep reading below).
It has been a long and mostly uncertain road but your unwavering devotion and support of the show and our wonderful achievements continue to strike a deep chord and to resonate through fandom and beyond. As stated earlier, while the finale is upon us, Fringenuity will continue to develop and host fun events through the summer and we will look to you, fandom, for your ideas and contributions.
Without further ado, your icon packs for May 11th finale:
I know what you’re thinking- what’s a fanzine???
A fanzine is an unofficial publication made by fans, for fans. It has its roots in sci fi and comic fandoms, and is a wonderful, fun way to learn about and interact with other people.
If there’s one thing I learned from being a part of the Fringe community, it’s that being a fan and taking part in all these “extracurricular activities” is just as much fun as watching the show. I’ve also made a lot of great friends from all over the world through Fringe, and I find it so amazing how 1 hour of television can connect so many people together. Every week, Fringies are creating things inspired by the show, and it got me thinking- what if all of this information was compiled into one massive thing? Sure, we have websites and blogs, but what if there was one unique entity that any and all Fringies could contribute to and pool their creativity into one place?
The idea formed- what if we had a Fringe fanzine?
Here’s where you guys come in! Starting the end of May, we’ll be taking submissions of all kinds for content. This announcement is to get you thinking and your creative juices flowing. Your submission can be anything- an article, a review, artwork, fanfic, games, recipes, photos- whatever you can think if that would make for an interesting magazine that YOU would want to read!
I will have more details as to how and where to submit, but here are a few key points:
-The fanzine will be a free, digitally distributed e-publication in the form of a downloadable pdf document. PDF’s can be easily read with free Adobe Reader software.
-For now, I will start with one issue, and if a lot of content is received and there is an interest, more issues will come out, so do not be disappointed if your submission isn’t in the first issue!
-Issue number 1 will be coordinated to be released right before August’s “The Fringe Event” in Vancouver.
-The fanzine will be called “The Bridge,” as it is the thing that connected the universes in the show. In our case, the publication can be another thing that further connects the community together.
This is all not for profit, and all for fun. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me (@CheriBot) or @Fringenuity on twitter.
Let the brainstorming begin!
We reached the endgame, but we were blindsided at this critical stage when the real master of puppets was revealed: William Bell! Not just a voice – not a CGI rendition – not a stand-in cloaked by shadows: The real Leonard Nimoy. David Robert Jones was revealed to be merely another player on the board, and Bell made it clear he was willing to sacrifice any important piece to achieve his vision.
Olivia showed her own further significance in the struggle, as she used her powers to manipulate Peter’s broken body to fight Jones, much like a chess piece. Walter and Astrid were active players, but will Astrid be a sacrificed pawn?
The season four finale offers closure to yet another chapter. It seems like only a short time ago that fans were asking “Where is Peter Bishop?” The promotional video has only increased the excitement for what will prove to be yet another fantastic, heart-stopping finale. This summer is going to be another long one…
I’m beyond grateful that we’ll have thirteen more episodes with these characters, and I look forward to seeing what the next chapter in this epic tale has in store. Whatever happens with the finale, let’s have faith that the showrunners have a direction in mind, and won’t let us down.
There is a brave, new world of change in the television industry. Fringe fans have been some of the most enthusiastic in embracing social media to build a vocal community, one that has shown how attentive and invested it is in the show. Cortexifans have a lot to be proud of.
“I think it is absolutely fair to say that without the support of the fans and social media, there would be no season 5.” – Jeff Pinkner
Since January 13, Fringe fans have gathered in force, using Twitter, Getglue, Facebook, Google Plus and Tumblr to share our love for the show. This was a measurable, meaningful way to demonstrate that affection to FOX, Warner Brothers, and the show’s financial supporters.
Yes, we have our fifth season, but let’s raise our collective voices one more time this season – not out of a desire to save the loved – but to celebrate the continuation of that love.
Out of adversity, comes strength.
The event will take place 1 hour before Fringe airs – 8pm EST. As these events become larger, we are gaining more new Fringies in the effort. Gently remind others that use the tag before the event to wait until the right time, and tell them that using the tag too much beforehand will lessen trending impact. This happened when Fringe fans tried to trend #WhereIsPeterBishop for the season four premiere. The # had been used all summer long, was not anything new on the Twitter radar, so it did not trend. Trending happens with terms that are relatively new, and many people tweet about them at the same time. Terms break out onto the scene, but trending becomes more difficult the more they are used. Be nice! We want everyone to feel welcome.
2) One # term per Tweet. Use only #BuildABetterWorld (What Are Hashtags?)
3) Lots of people tweeting matters more than the number of tweets.
Tell everyone Fringie about the event. There is strength in numbers – remember that the more unique tweeters we have, the more likely we are to trend, and for a longer duration of time. Send your tweets out fast – but remember to pace yourself. You want to avoid “Twitter Jail.” We know we can hit worldwide trending now, so sustained tweeting matters. Trending can be a distraction, but we need you to keep those wonderful tweets coming. You may have also noticed that the # will drop off the charts after a while, only to trend again when Fringe airs. This is due to other viewers joining in by tweeting the hashtag on the bottom of the screen.
4) Those with lots of followers help out a lot!
Alternate accounts with few followers do not have as much “influence” towards trending. But tweets from accounts like @JWFringe, @FringeOnFox and @VancityJax make a big impact. Let’s try to build our Fringe fan follower networks. One easy way is to follow people on fan Twitter lists. Here is my Cortexifan list. Follow some Fringies! Another way is to follow some folks on Twitter “Follow Fridays.” You may have seen tweets that are tagged #FF – followed by a bunch of twitter names. This is because they are recommended people to follow.
5) We want to pique the interest of non-Fringe fans.
This is the key to our trending duration success. It gives a chance to get our message about Fringe out to another audience. Try to construct a list of thoughtful and informative tweets before the event. These can be copied and pasted for easy tweets. Use some witty Fringe sayings – link some of the official promo videos – speculate about the plans of William Bell, or on the fate of Olivia. Cool tweets are more likely to earn re-tweets, and this immensely helps trending.
6) We can discuss aspects of the show in our tweets.
TRY to include the word FRINGE (with no #) in your tweet if possible. Talk about the characters and the actors. Maybe use the episode title. We’ve recently been able to trend Fringe, Broyles, John Noble, and William Bell!
7) Private accounts must have their locked status removed, as the tweets from locked accounts do not count toward the trend tally.
8) Retweets are the easiest way to help out the trending effort. Just search for the hashtag, and retweet the ones that are interesting to you. If you know how to use a Twitter application suite like TweetDeck or HootSuite, this is made even easier.
9) Remember the second phase of the social media plan is equally important.
Using @Getglue to promote Fringe and the show’s advertisers.
Fringenuity will have things in store throughout the summer. There is something really cool coming up very soon. No matter what FOX decides to do with hashtags for season five, we fully intend to continue organizing fan events for the fifth season.
I am preparing a book about the Fringe fandom and our social media efforts.
Also, if you are not aware, there is a Vancouver fan get-together planned in August: The Fringe Event.
We have only 2 more episodes to show why this fandom is so very special in the way we unite together! We would love to see Fringies send off season 4 with a huge (Big) Bang – not of the variety that David Robert Jones is thinking of, but one that will cause waves through social media. It is what we’ve been doing all along and it is what help secure us Season 5.
There are a lot of goodies this week in addition to icons and banners so get to downloading and showcasing!
Examples from @Cheribot:
Download Cheri’s icons here - DBD – Cheribot.zip
Examples from @SarahProost (2 styles to choose from!):
Download Sarah’s icons here - DBD – SarahProost.zip
Examples from @zort70:
Download Ian’s icons here - DBD – zort70.zip
From @PietroVescovo the following animated .gif icon is offered (click on image to see animation effects):
@greyandsmart offers this set of icons below:
From @sercanerdogan (2 icon styles to choose from):
Download Sercan’s icons here - DBD – SercanErdogan.zip
This week talented Fringies created 2 banner designs that can be used to spread the word about campaigns.
Design by @Flow_L:
Design by @wombat06:
OTHER FUN GOODIES:
We have a couple of fans that offer up other media to Fringie up your world.
@LauraRacero has created the following wallpaper for your desktop, ipad/tablet, iphone/smartphone screen (mockup images shown below):
Download Laura’s wallpapers here: Fringe – LauraRacero
@N3OMOD has created ample userbanners, facebook covers, and twitter skins for your consideration (a very small sample shown – go to http://theoutofmind.it to view full collection and download links).
Full collection can also be downloaded here – DBD – N3OMOD.zip
As always, we cannot thank you enough for your level of enthusiasm and engagement with these campaigns. It maybe be #DarkestBeforeDawn, but we Fringies are resilient and we will see this wonderful social media campaign experience through! See you all on Twitter and GetGlue Friday.
Dear Fringies, I apologize for the lateness of this post. Real life has a way of interfering when you are trying to geek out over your favorite show. But without further ado, here is the information from the #FightTheFuture campaign for episode 4.19 “Letters in Transit”.
The hashtag hit worldwide trends within first ten minutes of event start and trended solidly for approximately 40 minutes. We are noticing a trend where the hashtag reappears again during show start as second wave of Fringies tweet along after seeing the hashtag on the bottom of their TV screens.
Some screencaps of #FightTheFuture trending in various countries: (Please note, I try to capture what I can between 5pm & 6pm EST so the position of the hashtag on the trend may not necessarily reflect the highest level of trending it hits in countries listed. We also know there are delayed effects due to time zone differences.)
If you note closely, that last screencap shows William Bell popping up on the worldwide trends after that incredible reveal of him trapped in amber.
Fringe also made its way into the worldwide topics on the Discovery tab.
OFFICIALLY PICKED UP FOR 13 EPISODES! Our team thanks FOX/WB and our INCREDIBLE fans for their support. JHW/JP/AG youtu.be/gvWqOZL8JXA
— JOEL WYMAN (@JWFRINGE) April 26, 2012
We did it, Cortexifans! Each and every one of us made a difference!
It feels incredible typing “season” finale. There will be a much larger victory/thank you everyone post from Fringenuity soon, but for now, I have to share my personal joy.
This renewal is the result of love and dedication from many different people. Like a strong strand of DNA, various little things had to line up and zip together in order to make the 13 episode pick-up a reality. Red Vines did not save Fringe. Love expressed in a very vocal, positive and quantifiable manner, played a large part.
Hearts and Imaginations: You all showed up for a united social media campaign and made it a tremendous success. So much so, that it wouldn’t surprise me if Fringe fan efforts are the topic of case studies for social television marketing. (I will be writing a book this summer. Details soon.) Fringe fans crossed the line for the love of a special, epic story. We proved that all it takes to change the world is thought and the right actions. Because of everyone’s efforts – each tweet, graphic, video, conversation, check-in, and each DVD loaned to new viewers – our ongoing fan love story is not a tragedy, but one with a happy ending. Not very many science-fiction genre shows have this opportunity. Fringe will go out not with a whimper, but with a bang.
FOX and Warner Brothers: Let’s just say you have some good karma now. Supporting our hashtags was one of the best ways to reach out to the audience and let us know you care. Many of us know that this was not a decision made only on financial grounds. We know you love Fringe, and are very grateful that you both tirelessly negotiated a way to make it work for everyone. Have you ever had your mail rooms flooded with love letters from loyal fans? Your perseverance in making this choice will reward your companies in both tangible and immeasurable ways for many years to come.
Folks in the media that believed in the show and fans: You know who you are. Tirelessly writing amazing reviews about the show’s intricacies – Trying to convince people to give it a shot – Supporting the hashtag fan efforts – You all are unsung heroes.
As excited as we all are for SEASON FIVE, there is still a “small” matter in the here-and-now… This Friday, it’s time for part one of the season finale, Brave New World.
But this isn’t Huxley’s sci-fi nightmare vision of a world ruled purely through the advancement of science, though David Robert Jones may have taken notes. Jones’ masterplan is to use science to become like Shiva or his own version of Oppenheimer. The chess board has been set, and like any grand strategist, he has a countermove to the closing of the bridge between universes. Will he take the Fringe team by surprise?
Walter will also be assisting on a case that will make him face “his painful past.” Plus we may have a look at the full extent of Olivia’s powers.
Things are going to be rough for our characters, but there is always hope.
“Even when it’s the darkest, you can step into the light.”
“This is my favorite time of day. The sunrise, when the world is full of promise.” – Olivia
1) Don’t use #DarkestBeforeDawn before the designated time: 1 HOUR before Fringe airs.
The event will take place 1 hour before Fringe airs – 8pm EST. As these events become larger, we are gaining more new Fringies in the effort. Gently remind others that use the tag before the event to wait until the right time, and tell them that using the tag too much beforehand will lessen trending impact. This happened when Fringe fans tried to trend #WhereIsPeterBishop for the season four premiere. The # had been used all summer long, was not anything new on the Twitter radar, so it did not trend. Trending happens with terms that are relatively new, and many people tweet about them at the same time. Terms break out onto the scene, but trending becomes more difficult the more they are used. Be nice! We want everyone to feel welcome.
2) One # term per Tweet. Use only #DarkestBeforeDawn (What Are Hashtags?)
3) Lots of people tweeting matters more than the number of tweets.
Tell everyone Fringie about the event. There is strength in numbers – remember that the more unique tweeters we have, the more likely we are to trend, and for a longer duration of time. Send your tweets out fast – but remember to pace yourself. You want to avoid “Twitter Jail.” We know we can hit worldwide trending now, so sustained tweeting matters. Trending can be a distraction, but we need you to keep those wonderful tweets coming. You may have also noticed that the # will drop off the charts after a while, only to trend again when Fringe airs. This is due to other viewers joining in by tweeting the hashtag on the bottom of the screen.
4) Those with lots of followers help out a lot!
Alternate accounts with few followers do not have as much “influence” towards trending. But tweets from accounts like @JWFringe, @FringeOnFox and @VancityJax make a big impact. Let’s try to build our Fringe fan follower networks. One easy way is to follow people on fan Twitter lists. Here is my Cortexifan list. Follow some Fringies! Another way is to follow some folks on Twitter “Follow Fridays.” You may have seen tweets that are tagged #FF – followed by a bunch of twitter names. This is because they are recommended people to follow.
5) We want to pique the interest of non-Fringe fans.
This is the key to our trending duration success. It gives a chance to get our message about Fringe out to another audience. Try to construct a list of thoughtful and informative tweets before the event. These can be copied and pasted for easy tweets. Use some witty Fringe sayings – link some of the official promo videos – speculate about the plans of David Robert Jones. Cool tweets are more likely to earn re-tweets, and this immensely helps trending.
6) We can discuss aspects of the show in our tweets.
TRY to include the word FRINGE (with no #) in your tweet if possible. Talk about the characters and the actors. Maybe use the episode title. We’ve recently been able to trend Fringe, Broyles and John Noble!
7) Private accounts must have their locked status removed, as the tweets from locked accounts do not count toward the trend tally.
8) Retweets are the easiest way to help out the trending effort. Just search for the hashtag, and retweet the ones that are interesting to you. If you know how to use a Twitter application suite like TweetDeck or HootSuite, this is made even easier.
9) Remember – once again – the second phase of the social media plan is equally important.
Using @Getglue to promote Fringe and the show’s advertisers.
We are asking that Fringe fans to make their first tweet of the night a thank you to sponsor, @NissanLeaf.
We have only 3 more episodes to show FOX, Warner Bros., executive producers, writers, cast and crew the love this great fandom has for Fringe through Social Media campaigns. While we all wait for news of renewal, we cannot stress how important your consistent and enduring support has been to ensure our voices are heard.
Here are the icons you can choose from for this Friday’s twitter event!
Examples from @Cheribot:
Download Cheri’s icons here – WA- Cheribot.zip
Examples from @SarahProost (3 styles to choose from!):
Download Sarah’s icons here – WA – SarahProost.zip
At the start of the season, the Bridge between worlds kept the two universes stable, while linking them together. Now, David Robert Jones’ plan is threatening the two universes with catastrophe on an apocalyptic scale. Everyone from both worlds will need to work together to save everything they love. There will also be a link to some well-known characters from the past. Hopefully this may answer some of the lingering questions surrounding them.
As we reach the final three episodes, tensions are high concerning the show’s renewal status. We all need to keep our spirits up and keep doing what we do best: Working together – unified – as global advocates for Fringe. Every one of us matters. Each tweet matters. Our goal is not simply to trend, but to share the love of Fringe with each other, and possibly others, in the process. This Friday, let’s have one of the best tweet-outs yet!
Here’s some excellent motivation:
Sorry in the delay in getting this information up but it is all good news I promise!
In the eleventh campaign aimed at raising awareness of the large Fringe fandom that exists in social spaces not (yet) covered by Nielsen’s, Fringies united April 13th to tweet #AcrossTheUniverse. This is the first time I’ve observed us hit the worlwide trends so quickly and at such a high position. From where I was looking, #AcrossTheUniverse jumped into second position in the worldwide trends within the first few minutes of event start (by a few minutes, I mean THREE). The hashtag stayed in the upper half of the worldwide trends and overall, trended solidly in for over 50 minutes. In the United States, trending was observed for over an hour. #AcrossTheUniverse appeared in multiple country trends as well, see below. If you look closely, you’ll see that someone also showed up in the trends (clue: “Yeah, honey, do you mind?”) – these screenshots were captured post #AcrossTheUniverse trending times.
Alas we are still awaiting news regarding #Fringe. However, we are feeling really great energy around this week’s campaign and with both our showrunners Jeff Pinkner and Joel Wyman AND Josh Jackson joining fans in livetweeting sesssions during episode 4.19 “Letters in Transit”, this 12th campaign is sure to be another success.
Remember, these are SOCIAL media campaigns and work best when we can get as many fans to participate and also generate interest in non-viewers to give Fringe a try. Here are the icons you can choose from for this Friday’s twitter event! (Please note file names with .gif in titles are animated icons).
Examples from @Cheribot:
EDIT: Please scroll to the bottom to read!!
There’s a story in which Ernest Hemingway and friends were sitting around one evening, being all writery, when a bet was made as to whether a story could be told in less than 10 words. The others scoffed but Hemingway was certain, and once the money was on the table he settled the bet with haunting finality, scribbling the following quickly on a napkin:
For sale: Baby shoes. Never worn.
While the validity of the legend may be in dispute, the point – that brevity can be more powerful than a thousand words – is elegantly illustrated, and since Fringies are nothing if not creative, we decided to have some fun with it.
And boy did we ever! Inspired by the title of A Short Story About Love, we decided to give you guys an extra word to make it a little more (or less, depending on your viewpoint) challenging. Seven little words to tell us something about love in the time of Amber. And the responses were amazing; some were sweet, some sad, some hilarious – it quickly became apparent that judging on merit alone was going to be nigh impossible, and so early on we decided to select our favorites and then “draw” winners from there.
Once we eliminated all the retweets, casual banter, and invalid
( less/more than seven words) entries, we were left with just over 500 entries. Our criteria for initial judging included:
So we were all set to start, and then this really cool thing happened….
A few weeks ago Joel Wyman dropped by Twitter to chat with us for awhile, the subject of the contest came up, and and Kristen (@FraggleBerlin) jokingly asked if he’d like to judge. His response? “Yeah! How would I?”
After we picked our jaws up off the floor we decided it would be easiest if we gave him a range of eligible numbers and then had him “draw” (read “choose random numbers”) from that pool. Based on the guidelines above, we narrowed it down to 113 solid entries, and last Thursday, Joel delighted and honored us all by doing just that. Joel’s random numbers were: “7, 28, 54, 67, 89, 110.” And I had so much fun tweeting the winners live…
Here are those very lucky winners once again:
Check out this special Earth Week promo video for the Fringe “Fight the Future” Twitter event for this Friday. Props to a certain eco-friendly Fringe sponsor!
Emma (@dalliel) did a great job with this! Be sure to share it wherever Fringies may roam.
It has arrived! This week’s episode is the much-anticipated nineteenth of the season. Like season two’s Brown Betty, and season three’s Lysergic Acid Diethylamide, season four’s Letters of Transit is sure to be innovative and a primer for the next season.
I don’t want to discuss the episode too much, but let’s just say the future is not looking bright for our two universes, and the Observers are involved. Plus, LOST fans will be thrilled to see guest star Henry Ian Cusick. It is fitting to see “Desmond” playing a role in “another life” on Fringe.
The groans from fandom was palpable when Nielsen ratings dipped to a 1.0 for the episode “Everything in its Right Place” featuring both the Lincoln Over Here and the one Over There.
The truth is April 6th was the beginning of some very big religious holidays (Good Friday and Passover) and we expected that many people would have obligations prioritized over that of watching Fringe live.
We can’t control the Nielsen ratings so how did we fare with the campaigns in social network space? SOLID. Good enough to hit worldwide trends in a little over 10 minutes and to sustain that trend for approximately 40 minutes! Other county trends hit with #FaceYourself included Argentina, Brazil, Italy, Spain, the U.K., and the United States where by my count, it was trending for nearly an hour.
As we await news regarding #Fringe, it is important to continue our efforts in supporting our show and letting FOX know we are here and will continue campaigning for the rest of the season. We have trended worldwide with the different Fringenuity hashtags 10 out of 10 times. Help us continue this fandom history-making record this Friday. Here are the icons you can choose from for this Friday’s twitter event! Please note file names with .gif in titles are ANIMATED icons!
Examples from @Cheribot:
Download Cheri’s icons here – ATU – Cheribot.zip
Examples from @SarahProost:
Download Sarah’s icons here – ATU – SarahProost.zip
After last week’s loss of Captain Lee, this next episode is going to be bittersweet. In his honor, @cheribot has designed a picbadge that can be worn on a Twitter or Facebook profile.
Though the tears for a fallen hero have barely dried, life goes on in the Fringeverses. Walter will be assisting the Over There Fringe team with a Fringe event investigation in this Friday’s episode, The Consultant. Plus, David Robert Jones will reveal his next target – will it be something huge? From the promotional video for this episode, I definitely have a feeling that this is one you don’t want to miss seeing as it unfolds this Friday.
This past week, a Social TV Summit was held that included 200 television industry executives. What does this have to do with Fringe, you may ask? The answer is that the emergence of this activity – which blends watching television with social media outlets like Twitter- may very well be what keeps beloved, ratings-challenged shows like Fringe, on the air. It also gives insight to the business end of television –how can all of this activity possibly be used to monetize a show?
Fans can be quick to damn the networks for killing our favorite shows, but in the end, the system is set up to make profit. Networks and production companies need to make money, and they are trying to figure out how to do so among the tides of change. As the saying goes, evolve or die. Hopefully Fringe will not be a casualty during this transition period.
As genre television fans, we are on the precipice of what may be the dawn of a new era in the measurement of entertainment consumption, and how it affects advertising. It is fitting that Fringe – always on the edge of Nielsen ratings doom – is the perfect experimental test subject. Fringe is actually lucky to have arrived during a time of great change. Fringe fans are making history right now in the ways that we utilize different social media technologies when we view and talk about the show. Since this topic is of great interest, for obvious reasons, I wanted to share some relevant information about the changes in television viewing and social media, as they relate to Fringe.
You guys must be super excited to see the Alternate Universe this Friday! Either that looking forward to a double dose of Lincolns. Here are all the wonderful icons you can choose from this Friday for twitter event! Please note file names with .gif or “ani” in title of the files are ANIMATED icons!
We have EIGHT wonderful sets from great and different talents this week:
Fringies, I am incredibly moved when I see the tracker data for #ChangeYourWorld during the Fringe Twitter Event. You are an amazing and dedicated fandom and we keep gaining Fringe the exposure it deserves in this Social TV experiment that we started in January.
First, some outstanding news from FOX. The network has decided to embed the Fringenuity Twitter Campaign hashtags in the remaining episodes of this season (click here for the Variety article). This is an amazing gesture to fans that have supported the show – if you ever thought that the network was not paying attention because you were not a Nielsen viewer, now is the time to change your mind. I am convinced more than ever that networks are looking at this data and trying to come up with ways to leverage this rich information on audience and viewing patterns. I encourage all of you to continue to participate in these social media campaign events and spread the word because a united voice of fandom IS bringing positive attention to the show we love so dearly.
We’re very proud of all the Cortexifans who took part in last week’s #ChangeYourWorld event. The results were astounding, and a full report will be available soon.
This Friday’s Fringe episode, Everything in its Right Place, promises the usual excitement. Plus, we’re returning to the alt-Amberverse. Also, after all this time, fans are going to learn some of the backstory for each version of Lincoln Lee!
In honor of the occasion, this week’s tag will celebrate the Fringe tradition of exploring the road not taken -of looking inside yourself for answers -even if “yourself” is another version of you. Prepare to:
#FaceYourself
Watch them, they’re awesome!! Tweet them – spread the word to help make (#)Change Your World the most successful Fringenuity campaign yet! While you’re promoting tonight’s campaign, don’t forget about the #FringeFansCare Oxfam water project – an effort that goes hand in hand with this week’s hashtag. Donate a filter, save a life, and make a change in YOUR world today.
#ChangeYourWorld Promo Vid #1 – @Gillybee66
#ChangeYourWorld Promo Vid #2 – @dalliel
#ChangeYourWorld Promo Vid #3 – Believeinwonder
While three quarters of the Fringenuity team were in Los Angeles for WonderCon, we let a few things slip by us – chief among them posting these wonderful #WhereYouBelong promo videos to our home site. Really, really sorry about that you guys. Even though it’s after the fact, I wanted to post them here for the record, and to illustrate our deep appreciation for all the efforts of those who work tirelessly to make Fringenuity what it is. I’ve been doing some archiving, and the correlation between these promo vids and the success of the campaigns is unmistakeable; the more videos, the more the word spreads, and the more impact we make. So better late than never, right? Thanks vidders, for all your hard work!
Promo Vid #1 – @dalliel:
Promo Vid #2 – @gillybee66:
Promo Vid #3 – @Fringeship:
Promo Vid #4 – @bubblevillefan:
We are continuous delighted when we receive the icon packs because we know Fringies are equally excited to use them during our Friday Twitter Events. Here they are for the March 30th #Fringe event!
We have FOUR wonderful sets from FOUR different contributors this week:
Truly, the best experience on Friday March 23rd, 2012 during the airing of “A Short Story About Love” was watching tweet reactions as fans witnessed the #WhereYouBelong tag on the bottom right corner of the screen when the episode started…but I am getting ahead of myself.
The nearly month-long hiatus has a difficult one given the situation that left our protagonists Peter and Olivia decidedly…apart. With Fringe’s return, fans will be rewarded with 8 straight uninterrupted Fridays of new Fringe episodes. Fringenuity intends to be there with fandom for every one of them with social media campaigns to support and bolster the show and keep fans and newcomers excited and watching live.
We knew the networks were starting to pay attention to the campaigns, but we were thrilled beyond belief when we were informed that FOX was contemplating displaying the campaign hashtag on the screen. This is a great moment for all Fringies that have been with us on this journey and experiment to try something different and be noticed as non-Nielsen viewers. FOX’s gesture signifies both the network’s support of Fringe and acknowledgment of fans of the show.
A day before the twitter campaign, Damian Holbrook, Senior Writer for TV Guide revealed in an exclusive article that FOX was going to broadcast #WhereYouBelong in place of the #Fringe tag usual found on the TV screen during the airing. (Click here for full details).
Also, incredibly exciting was news that Joel Wyman (@JWFringe), Josh Jackson (@VanCityJax), and Michael Cerveris (@cerveris) would be joining fans on twitter to celebrate the return of Fringe, episode 4.15, directed by showrunner Joel Wyman.
The twitter campaign launched with a big bang, landing #WhereYouBelong in the Worldwide trends within minutes of event start. The hashtag trended solidly for an hour and in numerous countries including Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, France, Germany, Indonesia, Italy, Spain, the UK, and the US.
There were some amazing results from the last trending Twitter event on Friday. In addition, Fringe executive producer Joel Wyman joined in the fun, as did Joshua Jackson, Michael Cerveris, and Rebbecca Mader! Many fans were surprised to see that TV Guide posted an article about FOX Broadcasting supporting the Fringe fan Twitter tag. Will they do it again this week? The answer is yes, and for the rest of the season!
We are extremely pleased that the network has heard Fringe fans, and wants to work with us all in pioneering the next steps in social television. This week’s episode is titled, “Nothing As It Seems,” but we’re excited to make the perception of Fringe fans into a transforming force.
Great job Cortexifans! Can we do even better this week?
Sure we can! Fringe fans are no strangers to initiating change. This week’s hashtag is #ChangeYourWorld
How would you change the world if you could, Peter? What would you wish for? – Elizabeth Bishop: “Subject 13″
During the past few weeks, we were discussing ways for Fringe fans to make an impact in our world. With such a deeply passionate and cohesive group of people, there is an amazing opportunity for each of us to harness our energies to do good for the planet and other people. The Fringe cast are great supporters of various charities/causes. Each of the Fringenuity team also feels strongly about giving back for a better world. And we know you all do!
Everyone has their favorite charities, but we came to the conclusion that there is one that we can agree on – water is a basic need for every human being- everywhere.
Today is World Water Day. What better way to start a series of Fringe Fans Acting at a Distance then to coordinate efforts to provide people with clean drinking water?
We’re planning for a coordinated effort to support Oxfam International’s efforts to provide the necessities of life to disadvantaged people. There is a relatively inexpensive and effective way to do so.
We’re asking that Fringe fans donate $14 for the purchase of a “Clean Water Jar” that can provide safe water for drinking, cooking and bathing to families in Cambodia. Our very own Emma (@dalliel) spent some time there and saw the need firsthand.
Anna Torv is also an advocate for this item:
A small gift on behalf of Fringe fans.
“Sometimes the world we have is not the world we want. But we have our hearts and our imaginations to make the best of it.”
Thanks for taking a look. Now let’s see how many Clean Water Jars Fringe fans can obtain by the season finale! Tag your tweet #FringeFansCare.
If you don’t have Twitter, send us an email at Fringenuity@gmail.com to let us know about your donation.
The icon packs are nothing short of awesome for the March 23rd #Fringe twitter event!
We have three wonderful sets from three wonderful artists:
Examples from @Cheribot:
Download Cheri’s icons here – WYB – Cheribot.zip
Examples from @SarahProost:
Download Sarah’s icons here – WYB – SP.zip
Examples from @zort70:
Download Ian’s icons here – WYB – zort70.zip
Here are some really cool banners from @frozenaura:
And a beautiful cake from @CryptImaging!!:
We are immensely grateful to all the artists who donate their time and effort to get these icons out for Fringe fandom. Wear them proudly and let’s get trending this Friday!
The hiatus is over, and there are EIGHT new episodes that will air uninterrupted to finish out this epic season four.
The Fringenuity team has returned from WonderCon! The Fringe (and Alcatraz) panel was amazing. We were lucky to see the introductory scene for A Short Story About Love, which airs THIS Friday, March 23rd. Let me tell you, you do NOT want to miss this episode, one that has been described as satisfying all palates, from shippers to mythology lovers – and of course, those of us that love everything in the show.
We are ready to take Twitter and GetGlue by storm once again!
This week’s Hashtag was carefully chosen based on our criteria.
It is #WhereYouBelong
1) Don’t use #WhereYouBelong before the designated time: 1 HOUR before Fringe airs.
The event will take place 1 hour before Fringe airs – 8pm EST.
As these events become larger, we are gaining more new Fringies in the effort. Gently remind others that use the tag before the event to wait until the right time, and tell them that using the tag too much beforehand will lessen trending impact. Be nice! We want everyone to feel welcome.
2) One # term per Tweet. Use only #WhereYouBelong
3) Lots of people tweeting matters more than the number of tweets.
Tell everyone Fringie about the event. There is strength in numbers – remember that the more unique tweeters we have, the more likely we are to trend, and for a longer duration of time.
Send your tweets out fast but remember to pace yourself. We know we can hit worldwide trending now so sustained tweeting matters too. Trending can be a distraction but we need you to keep those wonderful tweets coming.
4) Those with lots of followers help out a lot!
Alternate accounts with few followers do not have as much”influence” towards trending.
5) We want to pique the interest of non-Fringe fans.
Try to construct a list of thoughtful and informative tweets before the event. These can be copied and pasted for easy tweets. Use some witty Fringe sayings, link some of the official promo videos, make statements about where you feel the characters belong. Cool tweets are more likely to earn re-tweets, and this immensely helps trending.
6) We can discuss aspects of the show in our tweets
TRY to include the word FRINGE (with no #) in your tweet if possible. Talk about the characters and the actors.
7) Private accounts must have their locked status removed, as the tweets from locked accounts do not count toward the trend tally.
8) Retweets are the easiest way to help out the trending effort.
Just search for the hashtag, and retweet the ones that are interesting to you. If you know how to use a Twitter application suite like TweetDeck or HootSuite, this is made even easier.
9) Remember, the second phase of the social media plan is equally important.
Using @Getglue to promote Fringe and the show’s advertisers.
We are asking that Fringe fans try and make their first tweet of the night a check-in to GetGlue that is a thank you to sponsor, @NissanLeaf. An example:
Thanks @NissanLeaf for sponsoring Fringe! In an eco-friendly Leaf is #WhereYouBelong
Ok, so do you agents have that down? Awesome!
We’ve been successfully trending for each episode that has aired this season, and have trended many sponsors and advertisers on GetGlue. Let’s keep showing the love for our show and have the best turn-out yet! Please watch live Friday night, if you can.
We are being heard folks. Here is one of our biggest supporters:
And an awesome promo video from Emma! (@dalliel) Please share it!
We’ve suffered enough March madness with the Fringe hiatus and are all super excited for the return of the a brand new episode of Fringe on March 23rd entitled “A Short Story About Love”. To celebrate Fringe’s return to our TV screens, we are launching a contest linked to the title of the episode.
Fringies can talk endlessly about the show but can you write a short story about the love and related it to Fringe in 7 words? Yes, you read correctly, SEVEN WORDS.
The rules are simple. Tweet a seven-word (no more and no less) short story about love and catch our attention with the hash tag #VeryShortLoveStory. Again, this is not restricted to romantic love and can point to the multiple themes of love found on the show. For example, love of a child, love of a parent, love of science (even if it is mad science). You can make your story serious, humorous, suspenseful, etc.
Contest begins March 16th (now) and ends March 23rd (4:59pm, i.e. right before the start of social media campaigns). We will select three winners. Multiple entries will be accepted but you can only win once. Plagiarism of any kind will result in disqualification of entrant and all associated submissions.
What we will look for in your short story: character, conflict, resolution, (place if you can squeeze it in) and of course, its link to Fringe.
The prize. Each winner will receive a set of these (pictured below):
That’s right – BUTTONS of the twitter campaigns you’ve made so successful!
Get your foil thinking hats on Fringies.
We are delighted and moved that so many of you shared your #FringeConfessions we’ve decided to engage Fringies in a visual project. We have monitored tweets and we know that many of you sometimes adopt a “Fringie” lens when looking at the world. So we want you to capture what a Fringe world looks like through your eyes. What do you see in your surrounding environment, in people around you, in everyday things that remind you of Fringe? Take a picture of anything that reminds you of Fringe. These should be real life pictures and not screencaptures of the show or any other show.
In the link below, we have a list to get you motivated but we know by far, you guys will come up with things even more creative! The list is for ideas only, the pictures you take will be from your own inspiration! Pictures do not necessarily need to evoke only one theme or character from the show and can encompass broader themes. Tweet out your pictures with the following hash tag #FringePix (and include a brief explanation if the connection to Fringe is not obvious) or submit them to Fringenuity@gmail.com. We’ll collate the submissions we get in an online photo album to share with all.
Get snapping Fringies
I had been reading fanfiction for 2 years before Fringe aired, but never felt driven to try writing any myself.
That all changed when episode 117 “Bad Dreams” aired on 4/21/09.
Executive producer Akiva Goldsman wrote AND directed that by himself. Since that airing I can pretty much tell when Akiva Goldsman has been involved in the writing of a Fringe episode. This man can reach your gut and your soul with his words and his directing style in a huge way. The tragicness of the Nick Lane character, Liv’s whole reaction to seeing events through Nick’s eyes, and Peter’s reaction to the fact that Liv could have been experimented upon by Walter & Belly with cortexiphan, were riveting, to me.For the first time in my life since puberty I started to write again. I wrote my very first fanfic, a Fringe fanfic, called “Shame,” under the penname “wjobsessed.” Sometimes I go back and reread it, and I still like it.
Akiva Goldsman’s episode and Fringe awakened my writer’s muse and I am very grateful.
Since then I have written 24 more Fringe fanfics, and I’d write more if I had the time.
Thank you Akiva, Jeff, and Joel, for making me want to write again.
I opened up our email tonight and there were more tales about how Fringe has changed people’s lives. Here is another touching round.
It is very touching to see all of the tweets under the #FringeConfessions tag on Twitter. It goes to show that Fringe is an inspiration and a positive force for many viewers. For those that believe in the power of stories, this is a tremendous display of affection for the epic masterpiece that is our beloved show.
We received quite a few email submissions, and would like to share these with everyone.
How many times have you heard from the non-Fringed, “Why do you talk about Fringe so much? It’s just a TV show…” I know that I have heard it plenty of times, from people that have their own obsessions that I don’t question – Sports, religion, cooking shows…. etc.
But this does give a reason to pause and consider that question. In fact, we had a great suggestion for a hashtag from @Cortexifans on Twitter: #FringeConfessions
How Far Have You Gone For Fringe? Has the show changed your life? Well, we want to hear about it.
From Fringe-mobiles to Peter Bishop tattoos, we want to hear about your Fringe-inspired fanworks. Or if the show has led you to make changes in your life, how about sharing that experience with the fandom?
Send your best #FringeConfessions to Fringenuity@gmail.com. We’ll publish them on site and tweet the link to Warner Brothers and FOX. Please include your twitter name, or you can choose to remain anonymous.
You could also just Tweet simple things like this:
#Fringe has made me want to be more creative and imaginative. #FringeConfessions
Walter Bishop has inspired me to become a scientist. #FringeConfessions
There is a reason that we love this show so much. For many, it has been a transforming force in their lives. Part of our mission is sharing the love of Fringe with others.
There is no better way to do so then for each of us to tell our own stories about what Fringe means, and what the show has done for our lives.
Happy Fringe(less) Friday! Only three more weeks…
We’re thrilled to announce the winners in our recent #FringeIsALoveStory contest! You guys certainly didn’t make it easy – there were so many wonderful submissions, in some cases it was an extremely difficult choice. So here are our very talented winners, and fear not: if you didn’t win this time, we have more fun contests coming up shortly.
All of the pieces from the puzzles of the Fringe past, present and future came together in an episode that promised “Answers.” This past summer, I took part in Fringe Television’s Summer re-watch of seasons 1-3. Each review was to take into account how the different episodes connected together. Reviewers were also to consider the effect that a missing Peter would have. This will be a different kind of review, as I consider this episode very much a compilation of key threads in the loom constructing the Fringe mythology – unraveled by a new set of circumstances in a new time-line, and expertly rewoven into a much stronger, brilliantly colored canvas. Joel Wyman and Jeff Pinkner assured viewers that three years of Fringe history were not wasted. The End of All Things shows how the past weaves its threads into the current tapestry.
Yes, there have been a ton of Where, Who, What, When and Why throughout the series, and some of it is addressed in this brilliant culmination.
TV Guide is once again asking readers and television viewers for their favorite shows and cast. Here’s a chance for us to further harness social media for Fringe over hiatus. This is especially important since TV Guide was a little taken aback by the response they received over their Fringe cancellation prediction. Let’s take this opportunity to show once again which show has the most passionate fans on the planet.
Voting is on Facebook, so sorry, you have to have a Facebook profile to do so.
Like “TV Guide Magazine”
Go to “Fan Favorites”
Show your love for your favorite shows & stars! Vote as often as you want – and come back every day to vote in a new category. Voting ends on March 16th at noon ET, and the winners will be revealed in our April 16th issue.
There is some stiff competition in the Drama category, but none of these shows have the power of Cortexifans. You can vote as many times as you wish. And here is some special encouragement:
You heard the Chief Observer!
And the #WhereIsPeterBishop video. We did an amazing thing – SO PROUD you guys!!
http://www.fox.com/fringe/videos/11157270/fans-ask-efforts?bctag=season+4
Thanks to Fringenuity team member, @dalliel, for this video.
February 24th marked the airing of Fringe episode 4.14 “The End of All Things”. The hash tag #LoveIsTheAnswer was selected not only because the 14th episode of each season has had “Peter and Olivia”-centric themes but because it represents many of the motivations of characters found on Fringe. Furthermore, we felt it expressed the heartbeat behind these weekly social media campaigns and summed up the overall sentiment Fringe fandom has for their show.
Just a day before this campaign, the buzz generated by Fringies through social media received some attention via several blogs (blastr, spoilerville). In addition, members of the Fringenuity team introduced themselves to discuss the genesis and desired outcomes of these social media campaigns (fringetelevision). All through Friday, we monitored activities anticipating an influx of new participants to the campaign. And boy, did assistance come!
Fringenuity hashtag campaigns will be on hiatus until FRINGE returns. It’s just too difficult to trend when an episode is not airing. We will be back with a roar when Fringe returns FRIDAY, March 23rd, with A Short Story About Love. We’ll be asking for your hashtag ideas, so think about it.
There will be some really cool activities coming up, so stay tuned!
Not that fans will be quiet! There are episodes airing for the first time outside the U.S.
Fringe fans from all over the world are very passionate. Spurred on by the success of US Fringe trending efforts, our friends overseas are making noise for Fringe in their countries. Our support is important because Warner Brothers makes revenue from selling licensing rights to other networks airing the show. If they make more revenue from Fringe from others sources, WB may be able to cut what it charges to FOX, which has first licensing rights.
We will help support these localized efforts. However, please keep in mind we need a united front when Fringe returns in the United States.
First, Latin America will be trying to gain the attention of Warner Channel, home of Fringe for their countries. They are asking for worldwide support from the entire Fringe community to trend #FringeOnWarner.
The United Kingdom will be leading an effort to trend locally in their country this Wednesday, 10pm on Sky1 (February 29.)
Their details for the effort are here.
The last Glyph code from “The End of All Things” had an important message for us.
Together, using our hearts and imaginations, all of us can make Season Five a Reality!
A new promotional poster for Fringe has been released. It shows Walter, Olivia and Peter ascending an escalator from a dark forest of trees.
It sure looks like something we’ve seen before…
@birdandbear wrote a really detailed analysis of this album when it was released. I think lately that the songs “Last Man in Space,” “Keep Climbing,” and “Slow Vibration” are very relevant to the current Fringe storyline.
We have so many goodies for you Fringies this week!
We have three wonderful icon packs for our #LoveIsTheAnswer Fringe twitter event!
Here are a few of examples from @SarahProost:
Lots more colors, download them here! LoveIsTheAnswer - Sarah style.zip
Examples from @zort70:
Lots more colors, download them here! LoveIsTheAnswer – zort70 Style.zip
Examples for @Cheribot:
Lots more colors, download them here! LoveIsTheAnswer - Cheri Style.zip
@birdandbear has created some Olivia Twitter skins that can be downloaded here.
And last but not least, @berry_hearts has created this beautiful wallpaper (different sizes found here).
Thanks to these contributors for sharing your art with Fringies. Remember, refrain from using the hash tag until the first wave starts at 8:00p EST. Icons can be worn anytime. See you all on Twitter and GetGlue.
