Sidemen: “YouTube is training the next generation of TV producers”

YouTube is replacing film school as the training ground for the next generation of producers, according to the founders of the Sidemen’s newly launched production company.

The collective says years of publishing under constant audience scrutiny have created a generation of producers trained to read data, move quickly and build shows that connect directly with online viewers.

Speaking at the MIP conference* in London, Victor Bengtsson, chief executive of Sidemen Entertainment, said that approach now underpins how Sidemen Productions develops new formats.

“We know within 20 seconds from going live whether something is getting recommissioned,” he said. “If it doesn’t hit a certain benchmark, kill it. There is no ‘maybe it works in season three’.”

Sidemen Productions was formally launched last month following the success of Inside, the group’s reality competition format that moved from YouTube to Netflix. The company is now working on three eight-episode series for streaming platforms this year as it expands beyond its own channels.

Adam Cohen, head of Sidemen Productions, said many of the company’s producers began as content creators themselves. Even those who did not build large followings gained practical production experience by publishing consistently online.

“Making and producing videos for audiences every single week is essentially the film school of today,” he said.

Bengtsson described much of the team as “Adobe kids” who taught themselves graphic design and editing as teenagers before entering the workforce. The average age across parts of the studio is 24.

The company’s internal mantra is to be “offensive on purpose”, a reference to moving faster and operating leaner than traditional broadcasters. The first season of Inside was pre-produced in 27 days, filmed in seven and edited in nine before being released daily on YouTube. By the finale, more than half a million viewers were watching live, and 10 days after the series concluded it had accumulated 55 million views.

Bengtsson predicted that more creator collectives will launch in-house studios over the next five years, with online talent increasingly moving into executive producer roles.

“The space is going to become mature,” he said. “It’s going to have great professionals.”

*Inside the Sidemen – Why Content Creators are Building Production Companies of the Future, MIP London, 23 February 2026, London.