“Built to Be Weird”: How Eternal Family Grew 350% by Rebuilding Their Streaming Platform

Eternal Family is a streaming platform that feels more like a curated art experiment than a traditional content library. Built by a group of artists, filmmakers, and collaborators, it exists to showcase the kinds of videos that don’t have a home anywhere else; vintage animation, obscure & lost media, surreal documentaries, and everything in between.

From day one, the goal was to create something that feels alive. Eternal Family doesn’t optimize for algorithms or mass appeal. It’s built for people who are looking for something different and who know it when they see it.

Eternal Family launched with a full suite of OTT apps, commissioned original shows, and built a streaming experience that felt completely distinct. Early traction from the press and subscribers validated the idea. But as the platform expanded, the demands of running it became harder to manage.

As the platform grew, so did the complexity. The team was:

• Producing original series and experimental content
• Programming a regular release cadence
• Managing creative collaborations
• Handling technical operations on a custom stack

Much of the early infrastructure was built to move fast, but as the platform scaled, it became clear the original setup wasn’t sustainable long-term. Managing original productions, licensing deals, app support, and platform upkeep at once stretched the team thin.

In 2022, Eternal Family chose to remove their apps from their Uscreen plan, creating space to reassess the platform’s direction with the intent to revisit apps in the future. As the team shared, “It wasn’t one big collapse. It just slowly became too much. We needed time to figure out what Eternal Family actually was, and what it could become.”

By 2024, the Eternal Family team had gained the distance they needed to reflect on what was truly working. They realized that the heart of the platform wasn’t in producing dozens of new shows. It was in curating the strange, rare, and hard-to-find video work that aligned with their identity from the beginning.

Eternal Family would become a destination for licensed video art; unusual, analog-feeling, and highly intentional. With this new direction, they began rebuilding the platform from the ground up.

What changed during the pivot?

• They rebuilt the site using Uscreen’s website editor

The homepage was redesigned to randomize on each visit, minimizing filters and search to encourage self-guided discovery.

• They began rolling apps back out slowly and intentionally
  After sunsetting all apps in 2022, they relaunched iOS and Roku in May 2024, followed by Android, FireTV, and others. Rather than relaunching everything at once, each rollout was timed based on what mattered most to viewers and licensing partners.
• The visual hierarchy shifted to vertical thumbnails
  They adopted poster-style vertical thumbnails that gave the interface a more cinematic, analog identity that feels less like a streaming catalog, more like a gallery wall.

They moved fully into licensed content
Instead of producing originals, the team now curates work from filmmakers, archivists, and indie distributors who align with Eternal Family’s tone and ethos.

1. Relaunching OTT apps as a retention and legitimacy play

When the team relaunched in 2024, the apps took on a more strategic role, serving both the audience and the business.

Apps were especially important when working with distributors and filmmakers. Licensing partners wanted to know where their work would live, and being able to say “Roku, Apple TV, FireTV, Android TV” made Eternal Family feel like a serious platform, one with reach and staying power.

“Some of the licensing deals we’re doing, the distributor would ask what platforms we’re on. That’s when I realized we needed to get back on apps.”

TV apps gave their slow-burn, cinematic content the kind of screen it deserved. Viewers weren’t looking to watch quick clips on their phones. They were watching Eternal Family with intention, often from the couch, in the background, or as a full-screen experience. OTT made that feel more immersive and natural.

Meanwhile, the app relaunch also strengthened retention. Having the app available meant subscribers were more likely to dip back in without needing to remember links or log in on a browser. It gave Eternal Family a more permanent place in people’s lives. 

The rollout itself was paced with care:

• May 2024: Relaunched on iOS and Roku
• Following months: Expanded to Android, FireTV, and others
• Result: All seven OTT platforms are now live and actively used

“It wasn't just about getting back on apps. It was about how people felt when they watched there. That’s what made the difference.”

2. Getting creative with structure using intentional design choices

Eternal Family focused on building a mood-driven viewing experience that’s less like a content grid, more like a curated gallery. Instead of using calendar scheduling or built-in community features, the team leaned into design choices that encourage curiosity and emotional tone over fast sorting.

They used Uscreen’s website editor to shape a homepage that feels cinematic and self-guided with:

• Randomized homepage layout
• Minimal filters and search
• Vertical artwork replaces standard hero banners

“We rebuilt everything in Uscreen. We stripped most of the standard elements and replaced them with vertical key art. The idea was to make the homepage feel like a walk through a weird old video store,” the team shared. 

The team also leaned into playlist-style programming:

• Collections reflect themes, not categories
• Curation is presented like a mixtape or channel block

“It’s meant to feel like walking into a video store, think unpredictable, tactile, kind of ambient. The genres are there, but it’s really the artwork and the flow of discovery that lead the experience,” the team shared. 

The result is a platform that invites wandering, guided more by aesthetic cues than structured sorting. It’s designed to slow viewers down and immerse them in a specific mood, not push them toward any one piece of content.

That same sense of intentionality extended behind the scenes, too. 

As Eternal Family expanded its catalog of licensed work, the team needed clear controls to honor rights agreements and restrict access by region. Licensing constraints began to shape not just what viewers saw, but where and how they could see it.

So they enabled geo-blocking across both web and OTT:

• Protected licensing boundaries per region
• Ensured films are only shown where rights apply

“That’s one of the things we love about Uscreen because of the way geo-blocking is built in, we can be really specific with licensing. You can upload a film and just select where it plays. It’s invisible to the viewer, so they can’t play it.”

This blend of aesthetic restraint and operational precision allowed Eternal Family to create an experience that felt cohesive, intentional, and built for long-term sustainability. 

3. Building with a responsive platform made for creators

One of the biggest wins for Eternal Family hasn’t been flashy features or overstuffed dashboards; it’s been working with a platform that listens.

As part of Uscreen’s premium tier, Eternal Family has access to a dedicated customer success manager and, through that, cross-functional collaboration across support, analytics, and product teams. This level of partnership makes the platform feel less like a piece of software and more like a creative ally, one that adapts to how they work, not the other way around.

That experience also speaks to something bigger. Even beyond premium plans, Uscreen is built with creators in mind. The product team regularly reviews customer feedback across all tiers, using that insight to shape what gets built and improved.

4. Using analytics to guide content, licensing, and retention

Eternal Family uses Uscreen’s analytics to not only track performance but also guide high-level decisions around curation, app strategy, and licensing value. From content programming to subscriber churn, the team leans heavily on what the numbers are saying.

“We check the analytics at least once a week. It’s pretty routine now. We like seeing what people are watching on the different platforms.”

The analytics dashboard helped Eternal Family get sharper on retention patterns:

• They track which shows drive app usage
• They observe where churn happens based on publishing cadence
• They monitor what’s getting rewatched across TV apps vs. mobile

For a platform that licenses rather than produces, usage data has also become a tool for reporting back to distributors. Eternal Family can now tell licensing partners exactly how much viewership their work receives and where.

Instead of flat-rate or buyout licensing deals, the platform often uses viewership-based payouts, calculating royalties based on actual streaming activity. Uscreen’s built-in analytics make this transparent and easy to manage.

This model helps Eternal Family stay flexible. They can license a wide range of shorts, experimental films, and series without overcommitting to fixed rates. And for filmmakers, the model offers real-time clarity on what their work is earning.

The team also emphasized how this transparency builds trust over time:

• Filmmakers receive reports on their viewership
• Distributors know what’s working on which app
• Payouts are automated, not negotiated every time

“It’s the best part. People feel like they’re part of something. They know their work is being seen and that they’re getting paid fairly.”

The team also noted that app-specific analytics are key to their strategy. Viewer behavior on mobile vs. Roku helps them shape publishing schedules and rethinking when and where to surface older titles.

“It’s funny how different the behavior is across apps. That stuff’s super helpful. You start to spot patterns.”

By watching closely and acting on it, Eternal Family treats analytics not as a summary, but as a steering wheel. It helps the platform stay focused on what’s resonating, what’s fading, and how to keep evolving in a way that feels true.

5. Building a marketing engine designed for alignment

Eternal Family’s marketing mirrors its platform philosophy: focused, intentional, and built for the kind of viewer who takes time to engage. Instead of chasing virality, the team doubled down on clarity; doing less, but with stronger creative alignment.

“We use platforms like TikTok, and we do share trailers, but they’re not the conventional kind,” the team shared. “They’re more like surreal video reels. The goal is to hook people with a certain feeling, so they’re curious enough to dig deeper.”

The marketing strategy rests on three core pillars:

• Meta ads
  Paid media has been the primary growth driver. The team focuses on creative that speaks to their audience’s taste like videos with rhythm, mood, and intrigue rather than overt calls to action. “That’s still the number one way people find us,” shares an Eternal Family team member. 
• Creative agency collaboration
  Eternal Family partnered with a small agency to help scale what was already working. This let them maintain consistency while freeing up time to focus on curation and content. The team says, “the agency we work with has been a huge help in maintaining our tone without burning out.”
• Editorial reach
  Strategic press placements, from Vice to Interview, brought in viewers who already understood the platform’s aesthetic. This press strategy helps Eternal Family maintain a sense of cultural credibility while reaching niche audiences.

This approach isn’t just about awareness. It’s about alignment. The people discovering Eternal Family today are the ones who stay.

“Everything feels more true now. The people finding Eternal Family now really get it. And that’s who we’re building for.”

Since refining their strategy and relaunching on Uscreen, Eternal Family has become a sharper, more sustainable version of itself: one built for curators, not content churn. Their audience is more aligned, their tech is more stable, and their growth is the kind that sticks.

Here’s what that looks like:

📈 117% increase in subscribers
Driven by the return of TV apps and a sharper, more aligned platform experience

📊 350% platform growth in the past year
Fueled by Meta ads, stronger onboarding, and app relaunches

📺 7 live OTT apps
Across iOS, Android, Roku, FireTV, Apple TV, Android TV, and more

🔥 25% engagement rate
More than double the Uscreen benchmark for top-performing platforms

🛠️ Smoother operations across the board

• Geo-blocking protects content by region
• Viewership analytics inform payouts and retention
• Custom design through Uscreen gives Eternal Family a distinct brand tone

Eternal Family continues to grow through resonance. The platform’s presence feels more grounded than ever, and its audience more connected.

Story Written by: Aarushi Singh