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BEHIND THE SCENES ON DIGITISER THE SHOW: EPISODE 6

17/12/2018

21 Comments

 
I feel the need to say something sincere and gushing about this final episode - and I'll try at the end here - but Digitiser has consumed my life for the past four months, editing day in day out, and I'm just... I'm ready to stop.

It's a weird thing, but writing affects me in a completely different way to editing. With scripts, when I've finished a first draft, say, my brain feels compressed, and like it's overheating, but with editing... I just get tired. So, so tired. 

Without wanting to tempt fate, I'm hopeful that now we know what the format is, series 2 is going to be a little easier. Certainly, I'm not sure I'd take on all of the editing myself again. Aside from anything, I didn't get paid for doing that, and I still need to cover the bills. So, that's something we're going to have to budget for as and when we do more. 

When will we do more? Well, we've promised two more specials next year and a live show, so there are those to think about, but the sensible thing to do would be to try and get everything to coincide with a longer filming block for a series 2. How quickly we're able to do that does depend on the sort of budget we have to play with. If I can get paid for doing the show, I can take on less of my day job over the coming year. That would be ideal.

You can help though by backing me on Patreon; from now on Patreon will not only fund this site, but further videos on the channel, on a regular basis.

Anyhow, for now... here's my behind-the-scenes commentary on the final ep of Series 1. Beware: SPOILERS!
FIRST GAMING MEMORY
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My earliest gaming memory you say?

Probably finding an early Pong clone console in the cupboard in the weeks before Christmas. I assumed my parents had bought it for me, but when my mum caught me with it she said it was for my sisters. "Then it's definitely for me," I concluded, smugly, given that I knew my sisters would never have any interest in video games.

Neither my sisters nor I received said Pong machine for Christmas that year. I still don't know who it was for...
FAT SOW
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Fat Sow will hopefully be back a bit sooner than you might think. She worked better than expected this series. If we can afford another puppet, I'd love her to be joined by Gossi The Dog in series 2, in an Orville and Cuddles sort of a way.

For me, one of the big successes of the series is how well the classic Digitiser characters have translated to live action. I never thought it was going to work, but thanks to brilliant performances from the likes of Ashens and Ryan Livermore, we nailed it. 
HENRY VIII
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I'd have had Eli Silverman in every ep if I could. His inability to read an autocue, or hold it together, fits beautifully with the overall shambles. There was a point while filming one of the segments where, out of the corner of my eye, I caught Eli dressed as Henry VIII, shuffling around behind the camera, and I just lost it. 

Also: did nobody notice that Henry VIII wears The Herald of Nivvin's hat? 

I think the characters generally work better when they sort of bleed into the actual show, rather than used as interstitials. That'll be something I'll look at doing more of in Series 2. And I'm sure everyone would appreciate a return appearance from Sonic The Hedgehog...
BEAUTIFUL VIRTUAL BOY
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Poor Anthony/DJ Trendy Peanut. Due to an inspired suggestion from Horsenburger, he did indeed stay face-down on the floor for the entire duration of the filming of this 20 minute segment. 

Thanks to Ste Pickford for the donation of the Virtual Boy, and Andrew Armstrong from Back Office Show for fixing it for us. I can't pretend I wasn't disappointed by it though. In the 20-odd years since it was released, I'd built it up into something that it would never live up to, but even though I was aware of this, I remained shocked by how misguided it is.

Here's a cheeky behind-the-scenes secret: the game footage was actually captured from an emulator, but I blurred the edges of the picture to make it look like we'd somehow filmed the games running on the actual hardware. 
ROBBOTRON
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John Robertson is a force of nature, and we were lucky to have him on the show. Turns out he and Octav1us are mates in real life, so all it took was a phone call from her. I've liked the mix of guests we've had - some slightly more serious, and others such as John and Big Boy Barry who have brought the chaos. 

We still have another two interviews in the bank, which I'll get edited and put out at some point, that are from both ends of that spectrum.

I've already got a bit of a wish list for guests in series 2. Including, of course, my good friend Violet Berlin, who was meant to appear in this series, but was sadly busy when we were filming. 
MOCKETY-MOC
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I loved filming this. Aside from being with some of my favourite people - having two of my closest friends there (Mr Hairs and Anthony) - having the entire panel (and the brilliant Kim Justice) come out to play on an end-of-the-show game just felt right.

This was shot on the fourth day of filming, by which point we were all comfortable with one another, I felt completely at ease in front of the camera, and it was the point right before physical exhaustion got the better of me. 

I'll be honest, I was properly scared before filming that I wouldn't be up to the task of hosting the show. I'd always felt weird and awkward when a camera was turned on me. Indeed, I voiced my worry to Gannon beforehand, and in typical bluntness he said "It won't work if you don't step up". That scared me even more, because I knew he was right. At some point I realised that being a character - even if that character was Mr Presenter Man - was going to ring hollow, and come across as stilted. 

Having mates there, having my wife there, gave me the confidence to take the leap and just be me, and hope that would be okay. I'm a terrible host, but I think there's something entertaining in embracing that terribleness. It sort of makes Digi what it is.
(NOT) THE END
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So, that's it for now, but the channel isn't going away. The backers are still due their exclusive episode, we've got plans for more eps next year (including the live show), and there'll be regular content on the channel - starting this week with a special little Christmas something.

I've already thanked everyone over on Twitter, but just to reiterate - there are almost too many people who contributed time, energy, or money to Digitiser The Show.

I'm deeply indebted to everyone, not least all the backers and those of you who have helped spread the word, everyone who worked on it, and - of course - my co-hosts. All four of them brought something unique to the show, and it was an absolute pleasure to spend the week with them. If Digitiser can be considered a success, it's as much down to them as anybody. 

Take it from me, it takes immense courage to put yourself on camera - it's incredibly exposing, and makes you very vulnerable. All five of us have felt that at some point over the past five weeks, so be kind when talking about the show. Without the hosts there would've been no Digitiser, and what they did can't be underestimated. 

There'll be a few changes to Series 2, building on what we learned over this first series. I don't need to tell you that there was a steep learning curve after the first episode (which will be back up again soon in a buffed-up version), but I think we succeeded in creating what we promised. I'm incredibly proud of it - when I look at it now, my head spins to think of how much work has gone into these six episodes, and how we balanced actual gaming stuff with the madness.

There's an old adage that you only remember the bad comments on any piece of work, but I've found with this that the opposite has been true. Ep 1 was a bit of a shitstorm, but I've been absolutely overwhelmed with the positivity that has come our way. Seeing how many of you have loved the show, and how many of you want more, has made all of it worthwhile. 

​Thank you.
21 Comments
Pete Davison link
17/12/2018 10:49:08 am

I already said this on Twitter, but I'll say it again here: you and everyone involved in Digitiser: The Show should be really proud of what you've created. It was a charming blend of good production values and barely held-together chaos, and that's exactly what it should have been.

You picked a great ensemble cast to join you, and I feel they all had distinct roles to play; you worked well together, you had good chemistry and humour, and the different combinations of people you used for different segments gave the show a varied but still consistent feel to it.

I hope you all had a great time working on this... and that you'll enjoy a well-earned rest after all the work you've put in! I'm looking forward to sharing the show with some less "Internet-savvy" friends in the near future (hopefully tomorrow night) who grew up with Teletext Digitiser... and as for me, I'm very much looking forward to this mysterious second series.

Go have a doubtless much-needed bit of R&R now, though; you've most certainly earned it.

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Rodent of the Astrowaste
17/12/2018 11:15:17 am

Not much to say here, except thank you so much to everyone involved, but to you first of all, Biffo. That's exactly what i expected (and more) from you and the fine fine people you dragged into your vanity project.

Admittedly, not being from the UK, i never knew the whole Teletext thingy (we were busy reading text-only erotic slashfics on the Minitel, at the time), but watching Found Footage made me feel right at home. And Digi The Show revealed itself instantly to be one of my favorite things on the interwebs.

There's not much point to my message except expressing a most sincere thank you to you and everyone else.

Moc Moc !

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Geebs
17/12/2018 11:47:48 am

Sorry to have to say this, but Chart Cat is really, really not working for me - and I'm the sort of horrible old fart who thinks that all of the young people are massively overdoing it with social medial outrage.

I know that you said the idea was to parody sexist old school videogame journalism, but for me it's one of those situations where, if you don't look at it from exactly the right angle, the satire just disappears. Maybe if it was some super-tryhard, testosterone-lotion-shilling lad's mag type from the 90s delivering the same schtick? An effete guy in a dressing gown just comes across like something from the seventies, and I think you're in danger of being seriously misunderstood.

Anyway, I've enjoyed the hell out of all of the other bits and congratulations to you and the team for everything you've done.

Yours,

Random internet person with no relevant experience or basis for criticism.

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Mr Biffo
17/12/2018 12:25:51 pm

I get that, but - again - that’s sort of the point. Digi seems to have quite a sizeable LGBT audience, and nobody from that seems to have an issue with Chart Cat. I’m comfortable with the intention behind it, and stand by it.

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Biscuits
17/12/2018 01:25:12 pm

Chart Cat doesn't work for me because because I deeply miss the progressively-degrading 'Ja ja ja ja ja ja ja ja ja ja' iteration, that was one of my biggest laughs with Found Footage.


But he does seem out of place. I was watching a bunch of Shooting Stars for the first time in ages before watching Digi - blimey, those pesky millenials would have a field day with that

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Mr Biffo
17/12/2018 03:36:39 pm

That wasn’t Chart Cat. That was Der Mega Katt.

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Biscuits
17/12/2018 06:14:33 pm

I stand corrected! He actually looks a bit like Phil Thomas Katt

Looking forward to more Digi show! I loved this run

Mark
17/12/2018 01:34:47 pm

I cannot say how much this show has entertained me and the absolute joy it has been to watch the anarchy and comedy unfold. From gannon completely fluffing his interview with Steve macneil to John robertson going full chaos at the end of the interview, I really enjoyed them. The segments with gannon and the looks from Octav1us when he says or you, biffo, say something even slightly crude or mildly offensive and jenny always being this level headed voice of reason and Larry just being there for the ride I have lived it. Never understood the man's daddy back on teletext but God I love it now and chart cat is gleefully wrong and Ryan is perfect as him.now onto eli. I live everything he does on here, having been a fan of barshens and cheapshow his completely insane shouting is brilliant. Fat sow and Henry the 8th were some of the funniest things I've seen in a long time. Considering how stale some of the stuff on YouTube is (or maybe I'm just not down with the yoof of today) this has been something I have looked forward to every week and can't wait to see what comes next.
Thank you to all who helped make this joyful show a reality and thank you biffo for basically being Mr digitiser and creating it in the first place.
Moc moc

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Stephen Sharp
17/12/2018 03:53:03 pm

I remember you saying that you hoped that your co-host's YouTube audience would boost the show but for me it's actually been the opposite. I came to Digitiser because I remembered Digitiser and since this series started I've discovered Jenny, Octav1us and Kimble Justice and now I'm spending most of my viewing time watching everything they've ever done.

Kim's A-Z of licenced games is goddamn fascinating.

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Mr Biffo
17/12/2018 04:47:09 pm

That's lovely. We only asked people whose work we liked, and hoped it'd go both ways. There are some AMAZINGLY talented people on YouTube.

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Rodent of the Astrowaste
17/12/2018 05:33:09 pm

Oh yes, i think it does work work both ways. I discovered Gameplay Jenny here. I'm kind of a fan, now. Anyway, i found Digitiser via Barshens, anyway. So, it's only a step (although a good one) in the discovery of what YouTube has to offer in term of talented silliness.

Alan
17/12/2018 05:08:42 pm

Already said it elsewhere, and not adding much that hasn't been said by others here, but I've absolutely loved this series, and both yourself and everyone involved should be very proud of what you've achieved. There seems to be a distinct lack of unsterilised fun in the world at the moment, so thanks for helping to redress the balance!

PS For what it's worth, I'm under the LGBT banner, and Chart Cat is one of my favourite bits :)

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Adam Villarreal
17/12/2018 06:31:04 pm

I believe you promised ALL the things that made this show lovely for the finale and I did not see Sex Frog and/or all of his mysteries. UNSUBCRIBED!

For real though, I want you to know that Digitiser has meant so much to me over the last 6 weeks, just as a shining example of the wonderfully creative spirit and go-for-broke attitude that most media has abandoned in order to look, "Cool." Thank you for not being, "Cool" Mr. Biffo and instead being genuine. You and the show are an inspiration to us weirdos all over. MOCK MOCK!

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Angry Baboon
17/12/2018 06:54:02 pm

waited until the end to post. Everything for me worked. Each week, progressively got better. Whole team - well done. Loved it almost as much as i love knight rider!

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Obraxis link
17/12/2018 07:43:20 pm

This show is exactly what I needed at the right time.
Working in video games for a few years now can sometimes get you quite serious (but passionate) about what you're working on. You can forget that you need to relax and enjoy random silliness when you can. I was lucky in that I was not only a kickstarter backer, but after an email to Biffo allowed me to help out on the show for the final grading.
I'm honestly thrilled at how the show turned out and I'm re-energized creatively because of Digitiser: The Show. I can't thank Biffo & the Digitiser team enough for everything and can't wait for more Digitiser to happen. Much love to everyone who helped make this show amazing.

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Wazman27
17/12/2018 09:23:13 pm

This show is fantastic all the people you had on was amazing and look like everyone was enjoying themselves and like you said once they started to relax they enjoyed it. Sonic sniff my rings was amazing the guy you got to do Sonic had me in stitches. The way you did the editing is brill if you do get someone else to do it make sure that they keep doing it this way or it will start to look normal. Digitiser is the best thing I have seen in a long time. One more thing you could do a draw to pick a viewer to appearer on one of the shows. Mr Biffo & the Digitiser team keep up the great work. :)

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Josh
17/12/2018 09:46:16 pm

Please bring LoopyLisa21f and Hugo for the next series. I'll pay.

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B3tan_Tyronne
17/12/2018 10:18:12 pm

I have so much appreciation for the entire team behind Digitiser as its has never failed to make me cry with laughter week after week and like others have said, it has help me discover the likes of Gameplay Jenny, Paul Gannon and Eli Silverman which in turn has lead me to their Cheapshow podcast which is now a staple of my week.
Utter brilliance from start to finish and long may it continue.

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Studas link
18/12/2018 10:06:52 pm

Congrats on the series; I've actually had something to watch on a specific time and day for the first time in years. My favourite character (other than the hosts/co-hosts) is Fat Sow, and I don't dislike any of the others. Gannon is a very funny guy and I think Mr Biffo is a great host. There's a lot of dark humour in there that gives the show a lot of character and there's plenty of retro gaming content.

I'd like to see a second series in the future. I'll keep my eyes peeled for the specials and the live show. Cheers.

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Craig Grannell
19/12/2018 07:30:04 pm

This. Circumstances meant I wasn't watching the last one live, but I'd watched the others that way. I honestly can't recall the last time I did that with any television.

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Balaska
1/1/2019 09:08:54 am

Hey Mr Biffo and all involved. I don't even know why I found it so funny, but I genuinley belly laughed each episode. I am also now addicted to Octav1us Kitten and Ashens vidoes, no doubt when I find time I will be watching Kim Justice videos and Nostalgia Nerd and OMG all the others, you opened my eyes to so much content I wasn't aware of. I watched Digitiser because it was Digitiser, I literally had no idea who any of your guests where, aside from Big Boy Barry. Thank you <3

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