First Details on Competition Show ‘Fight of the Living Dead’

Wearing tinted goggles and placed in a prison, the nine real-life YouTube personalities don't know what's going to happen next. But when they take off their goggles, they might wish they never had, as they face a simulated zombie apocalypse in the competition/reality mash-up series from Alpine Labs, Fight of the Living Dead, which has just been acquired by Cinedigm for their streaming network, ‘CON TV.

The goal of Fight of the Living Dead: to survive 24 hours in a simulated zombie apocalypse. You can't be eaten, but you can be kicked out of the game by zombies throughout the simulation or by other competitors during challenges. The series is expected to be available to stream on Cinedigm's new network, ‘CON TV, in late 2014.

All nine participants are YouTube stars with hundreds of thousands, and in some cases several million, channel subscribers. Fight of the Living Dead is taking these personalities away from their computers and into the middle of macabre mayhem, and we have the official press release with more details, including the list of participants, as well as a sneak-peek video from two of the show's stars:

LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- "Cinedigm (NASDAQ: CIDM) has acquired Alpine Labs' hybrid competition reality series FIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD, the first original series acquisition for ‘CON TV, Cinedigm’s direct-to-consumer, streaming network targeting Comic Con and pop culture fans. The announcement was made today by Cinedigm EVP/Digital Networks Erick Opeka and Alpine Labs Co-Founder Kevin Abrams and partner Jamie Denenberg.

FIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD (FOTLD) is an unprecedented mash-up of the reality and scripted genres. The show follows nine top YouTube stars as they attempt to survive the first 24 hours of a simulated zombie apocalypse. Contestants face challenges in an attempt to eliminate each other from the competition while trying to survive the undead’s relentlessly grisly, and frighteningly realistic onslaught. The series is a groundbreaking case study in transitioning YouTube stars into the larger media landscape by leveraging the massive digital reach of each cast member as well as the subscriber base of the most watched genre channel on YouTube, BlackBoxTV, which recently partnered with Alpine Labs. With a potential launch viewership base of over 10 million subscribers, FOTLD is well positioned to take full advantage of all avenues of distribution.

Launching in late 2014, ‘CON TV will feature additional original series like FOTLD as well as movies and TV series from Cinedigm’s library of over 52,000 titles, live events and panels filmed at conventions year round. The channel is a partnership between Cinedigm and Wizard World, the largest producer of Comic Con and pop culture events nationally.

FIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD is produced by Alpine Labs and Revolver Picture Company; Alpine's Kevin Abrams, Jamie Denenberg, BlackBoxTV’s Tony E. Valenzuela, and Aaron Lewis are Executive Producers, Revolver's Nick Phillips and Kelly Martin Wagner are Co-Executive Producers.

“We think FIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD is a killer concept,” says Erick Opeka, Cinedigm’s EVP of Digital Networks. “The series is a brilliant way to kick-off ‘CON TV’s original programming roster and introduce this innovative crop of talent to new audiences.”

“Alpine Labs’ continuing goal is to find new and exciting ways to challenge conventional entertainment models of production and distribution," says Alpine's Kevin Abrams. "Being in business with a creative, forward-thinking, entrepreneurially oriented powerhouse like Cinedigm is for us a match made in zombie heaven."

The FIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD cast includes notable YouTube stars including:

Prank Vs Prank: Jesse and Jeana 4.9 Million Subscribers on YouTube
Since the inception of PVP in 2007, Jesse and Jeana’s pranks on each other have grown to 650 million views to date and this month they were named the #1 Pranksters on YouTube by USA Today. https://www.youtube.com/user/PrankvsPrank

Joey Graceffa: 3.2 Million Subscribers on YouTube
A 22-year-old vlogger, gamer, parody maker, singer, and model, Joey was a contestant on Season 22 of THE AMAZING RACE, setting a record for the youngest team to have a Top 5 finish. https://www.youtube.com/user/JoeyGraceffa

Strawburry17: (Meghan Camarena) 650,000 Subscribers on YouTube
A contestant on the 22nd and 24th seasons of THE AMAZING RACE, Meghan Camarena is a popular actress, director, host and YouTube content creator. She hosts/produces a variety of nerdy-based videos on her main channel “Strawburry17” and uploads day-in-the-life videos on her second channel “Lifeburry.” https://www.youtube.com/user/Strawburry17

Alphacat: (Iman Crosson) 626,000 Subscribers on YouTube
Iman Crosson is an American actor, impressionist and YouTube personality known for impersonations of Barack Obama and rapper Drake. In February 2014, Crosson met with U.S. President Obama at the White House to discuss ways in which government could connect with the content creators' viewers concerning awareness of and enrollment in health insurance policies and other issues. https://www.youtube.com/user/Alphacat

iJustine: (Justine Ezarik) 2 million subscribers on YouTube
Justine Ezarik is an American comedian, Internet celebrity, actress and occasional television host. As iJustine, she has over 3,500 videos on her five YouTube channels which Wikipedia reports have resulted in over 500 million video views. https://www.youtube.com/user/ijustine

Olga Kay: 725,000 subscribers on YouTube
Olga Kay is a Russian comedian, writer, director, and performer.[1] Trained as a professional circus juggler, she later moved to acting and video creation. In 2006 she started the YouTube channel OlgaKay, creating shows such as Emo Girl and Olga Kay's Show. https://www.youtube.com/user/olgakay"