Tomorrow is the first NewTeeVee Screenings hosted by the fine people at GigaOM. They’ll be showing and judging online videos on a massive 16 by 12 foot screen.

Here are more details:

The NewTeeVee and Metacafe Pier Screenings summer series will be a live extension of NewTeeVee.com, showcasing online video technology and content in an outdoor movie screening format. Community-chosen selections of the best web videos from the Pier Screenings website will be projected on a large screen on an outdoor pier in San Francisco.

The event includes judging by the audience, with commentary from our own American Idol panel of Nick Douglas of Look Shiny, Irina Slutsky of PodTech, and Jackson West of NewTeeVee. In addition, we’ll conduct an interview with a surprise guest who’s uniquely qualified in the area of episodic video success.

And yes, there will be popcorn and other movie-esque treats. It’s free to sign up, so what are you waiting for?

This week will be a quiet week for those not attending CES or Macworld. Most of my colleagues will either be in Las Vegas or in the Moscone Center. This year, I’m not previlaged enough to attend CES.

But, even if you’re one of those unlucky souls not to be at either event, don’t lose hope! These are some of the events of note during this week:

January Ruby Meetup
When: Tuesday, January 9, 2007, 6pm
Where: CNET HQ, 235 2nd St, SF, 1st floor conference rm - “Magma”

Meet with other Ruby and Ruby on Rails enthusiasts for hack sessions and networking.

Electronic Frontier Foundation’s Sweet 16 Party
When: Thursday, January 11, 7pm
Where: 111 Minna Gallery, 111 Minna Street, SF

All teenagers have big dreams for their sweet 16, and the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) is no different: we want to throw the Best Party Ever, we want a new car, and we want to secure your digital rights.

We’re kidding about the car, but please do join EFF for a birthday bash to celebrate 16 years fighting for your rights. The party will be on January 11, 7-10 PM at 111 Minna Gallery in San Francisco. DJ Ripley and Kid Kamel…

SFlickr Meet
When: Thursday, January 11, 7pm
Where: Crossroads Cafe, 699 Delancey St, SF

Monthly meeting of San Francisco Flickr users. Meet other Flickr fans, socialize, and show off your latest work or camera gear.

The San Francisco New Technology Meetup will be kicking off the new year with its first meetup tonight. It’ll be good to get back into the swing of Web 2.0 in the new new year.

When:
Wednesday, January 3, 2007, 7:00 PM

Where:
CNET HQ
235 Second Street (between Folsom and Howard)
San Francisco , CA 94105

The companies that will be presenting are:
Podaddies
BizMile Tracker
Zemble
ComicVine

So, if you’re in the area, drop by for some great presentations and, of course, networking.

Tomorrow, there will be an event organized by Monte Jade that features a panel discussing the transition from an employee to a founder. This is especially relevant in the current fertile climate of Web 2.0 companies. Many times, the founders of these companies have made the jump, or are thinking about making the jump, from their day job to a potentially risky job as CEO.

The panelists include some founders who have successfully made this transition:

• Tom Cole - Partner at Trinity Ventures
• Dave Lu - Founder of FanPop
• Charles Ying - Founder of Mobile80

This event should be especially interesting to people who are curious to see the trials, tribulations, and delight in heading off on your own as a business trailblazer.

When
Tuesday, November 14, 2006
6:30 PM - 9:30 PM

Where
Orrick
1000 Marsh Road
Menlo Park, California 94025

For more details and registration, refer to the Upcoming.org page.

Photo by Scott Beale

Last night, I ventured over to the first annual Vloggies, the award ceremony celebrating the top video bloggers in the world. The show, which was held at the Swedish American Hall in SF, was absolutely fantastic. To be honest, I wasn’t sure what to expect–but, needless to say, my empty expectations were surpassed tenfold. Aside from a few technical issues in the beginning, the entire show went smoothly and professionally.

I go to a lot of tech events in the bay area, and the Vloggies was like no other tech event. This really was an award show. Most people showed up in their best dresses and suits, ready to receive or give awards. The show was also entertaining, striking the right balance between breadth and depth. This is really important, since there was no way they could have presented the thousands of video blogging nominees from all over the world.

The Vloggies was principally created and executed by John Furrier and Irina Slutsky of PodTech. Irina also hosted the show, and did a wonderful job.

Whenever I go to shows like these, I always find it surreal to watch video blogs on a big screen. When you think of Social Media, you usually imagine the millions of small screens that video blogs can easily reach. Traditional media is what we usually associate with big screens and budgets. It’s nice to see the big recognition that vloggers deserve.

In true SF fashion, there was a gaggle of top A-list bloggers, vloggers, and entrepreneurs were in the crowd, including Robert Scoble, Renee Blodgett, Kevin Rose, and Thomas Hawk. And obviously, there’s a steady stream of photos being uploaded to Flickr.