They already have their own film festival, so it only seems right that eventually online cat videos would get their very own Oscars-esque awards as well.
Fast on the heels (paws?) of the Internet Cat Video Film Festival in August, Purina (yes, the pet food company) is sponsoring the Friskies – an online awards show to honor some of the best internet cat videos of 2012. The show, which will stream live Wednesday on the Friskies website, was made with the Pet Collective (a YouTube channel from FremantleMedia, the TV production house behind The X Factor and American Idol).
"A dog lets you know right away what he's thinking, but cats are fascinating precisely because they are so inscrutable," Tom Maynard, channel head of the Pet Collective, said in an e-mail to Wired. "That's why cat videos are so popular – cats are completely unpredictable and an endless source of entertainment, and given the massive popularity of cat videos online, everyone felt it was about time they had their own major award."
The Friskies awards are the result of a search that began back in September, bringing in some 1,400 videos. (Check out a supercut of the best above.) From there, 12 finalists were chosen – three videos in each of four categories like "Catventure" and "Catchall" – and voted on by fans online. The internet community's votes will be combined with scores from celebrity judges like comedian Michael Showalter, Alamo Drafthouse founder Tim League and multimedia artist Wayne White, who's the subject of the documentary Beauty Is Embarrassing.
Winners will be announced during the livestream in a ceremony hosted by web celeb Michael Buckley. Top videomakers will be given, wait for it, "Catuettes" in addition to cash prizes. (The grand prize is $15,000 and the winning clips in each category will get $2,500 each.) The online ceremony will also feature – not kidding – a "Nyan Cat" interpretive dance, a meowing a cappella group and Will Braden, whose "Henri 2, Paw de Deux" won the Golden Kitty at the Cat Video Film Festival.
"Cats have vivid imaginations and explore the world with their heightened senses," Friskies brand manager Shaun Belongie said in an e-mail to Wired. "We love cat videos because they showcase that imagination and capture the fun of playtime in motion unlike any other medium."
Cat-ch (ugh) the Friskies live at 5:30 p.m. EST on the Friskies website.
