Kent Nichols – one of the viral video gurus behind Ask A Ninja – has an interesting new post at his site. He looks at the state of Internet video, calling it the golden age:

“The Indie TV movement is on the rise. The club of show runners is now open to anyone with a dream and the entrepreneurial skills.This is the golden age. Sundance in the 80s and 90s. A time when you can create something new and fresh, get seen by millions and have the chance to retain ownership over that property as it enters the big media system.

Yesterday I tested out the iTunes rental feature by renting “Once” — the film that won the best song at the Oscars. It’s a sweet, sentimental and sad at the end. Something you don’t get in the Hollywood system.

Put aside the fact that the dude is 37 and is dating her (she’s only 19 and they’ve known each other for five years — creepy).

$160k was the budget for 86 minutes of content or about $2k/finished minute. Not bad and definitely in the range of where webseries are right now. It also shows you what you can accomplish at that budget range.”

Kent goes on to say:

“We are still looking at the seeds of an indie driven TV movement like the American cinema saw in the 60s and 70s.”

A no-budget expos√© on the meat industry can result in the largest meat recall ever. A low-budget movie can win an Oscar. A well-placed video camera can capture the next “macaca” incident and end a political career.

It’s an amazing time. Making a television show, a documentary or maybe even a movie is within your reach, right now.