It's unlikely to have escaped your attention that I spent much of the last year and a half making a series of silly videos, which grew into something a little more complex. To say I'm proud of Mr Biffo's Found Footage would be an understatement.
I'm proud that it isn't easy. I'm proud that it's a very honest expression of something I'd want to watch. I'm proud that it sort of needs work and time and effort to really get what's going on.
I love writing kids TV - I feel lucky that I get to do it as my main source of income - but there are certain things that my "day job" doesn't afford me, and Found Footage was meant to be a massive splurge of everything I'd had bottled up inside my weird brain.
I've mentioned a few times on Twitter that I see Mr Biffo's Found Footage as the comedy equivalent of prog rock. It's the complex concept album to, say, Michael McIntyre's new Taylor Swift record. That's not meant as a criticism of McIntyre or Swift, but their work is designed to grab you immediately. I mean, I love a good pop song. I'm no music snob.
But the fact is... most of my favourite albums of all time are at the proggier end of the Spectrum. I love Marillion, Talk Talk, Kate Bush, Genesis before they turned into an unlikely pop group, Steven Wilson, Pink Floyd...
I love music that takes you on a journey, that tells a story, and is as much about atmosphere as it is about melody. I love music that mixes genres, and can change in a heartbeat. I get that it's not for everyone; I mean, you probably have to be a little bit mad to want to "work" at "getting" a record, but I find that a lot of music of this type stays with me longer, whereas a pop song won't speak to me on as profound a level.
That feeling is part of what I wanted to capture with Found Footage, even though it has proven a barrier for many people who just wanted some quick and easy funnies.
I've not really mentioned it until now because, well, I didn't want people calling me pretentious. The thing is... most of the great prog bands have also produced great pop songs. Of the artists mentioned above, Marillion have their Kayleigh, Talk Talk had Life's What You make it, Kate Bush had more hit singles than you can mention, and Pink Floyd got to number one with Another Brick In The Wall.
I was pretty sure that within Found Footage there were "pop singles". Several of the comedy sketches at least have the rhythm of something more mainstream, even if they do end up subverting that, because I can't help myself. However, the point of all this is to say that the series has finally had a "hit", and I never saw it coming...
I'm proud that it isn't easy. I'm proud that it's a very honest expression of something I'd want to watch. I'm proud that it sort of needs work and time and effort to really get what's going on.
I love writing kids TV - I feel lucky that I get to do it as my main source of income - but there are certain things that my "day job" doesn't afford me, and Found Footage was meant to be a massive splurge of everything I'd had bottled up inside my weird brain.
I've mentioned a few times on Twitter that I see Mr Biffo's Found Footage as the comedy equivalent of prog rock. It's the complex concept album to, say, Michael McIntyre's new Taylor Swift record. That's not meant as a criticism of McIntyre or Swift, but their work is designed to grab you immediately. I mean, I love a good pop song. I'm no music snob.
But the fact is... most of my favourite albums of all time are at the proggier end of the Spectrum. I love Marillion, Talk Talk, Kate Bush, Genesis before they turned into an unlikely pop group, Steven Wilson, Pink Floyd...
I love music that takes you on a journey, that tells a story, and is as much about atmosphere as it is about melody. I love music that mixes genres, and can change in a heartbeat. I get that it's not for everyone; I mean, you probably have to be a little bit mad to want to "work" at "getting" a record, but I find that a lot of music of this type stays with me longer, whereas a pop song won't speak to me on as profound a level.
That feeling is part of what I wanted to capture with Found Footage, even though it has proven a barrier for many people who just wanted some quick and easy funnies.
I've not really mentioned it until now because, well, I didn't want people calling me pretentious. The thing is... most of the great prog bands have also produced great pop songs. Of the artists mentioned above, Marillion have their Kayleigh, Talk Talk had Life's What You make it, Kate Bush had more hit singles than you can mention, and Pink Floyd got to number one with Another Brick In The Wall.
I was pretty sure that within Found Footage there were "pop singles". Several of the comedy sketches at least have the rhythm of something more mainstream, even if they do end up subverting that, because I can't help myself. However, the point of all this is to say that the series has finally had a "hit", and I never saw it coming...
JOG YOUR MEMORY
You might be aware that earlier this month I started a new Twitter account called Do You Remember This? (@memoryassistant). It spun out of a sequence in Mr Biffo's Found Footage, which was borne from my frustration at what I saw as the "laziness" of the countless nostalgia accounts and websites that are out there.
Indeed, the inspiration for Do You Remember This? came from having a rant about it on Twitter, and subsequently being blocked by the guy who runs @IL0veThe80s - who boasts an impressive 124,000 followers, and a bunch of similarly popular spin-off accounts. I was just moaning, like a whinger, about the fact he could get tons of coverage for simply posting pictures of things that people might remember, whereas I was struggling to get views for Found Footage. It was envy stemming from frustration.
At a loose end a few weekends ago, I decided - just on a whim - to Photoshop a few silly spoof "nostalgia" images and put them online, mostly for my own enjoyment, and for those who'd followed the daft spat I had with @IL0veThe80s.
It took three days for the account to go madly viral, The Poke to cover it, and for @IL0veThe80s to extend an olive branch. In fact, Ian who runs @IL0veThe80s has been generous enough to offer me advice on how best to present the posts on Do You Remember This?, in order to maximise their share-ability. Funny old world.
Do You Remember This has gained as many followers in less than a month as I have in three years. The likes of Ross Noble and Dara O'Briain are following it, and I'm scheduled to be doing an interview with The Guardian about its sudden success.
It's just weird; I would've killed for this sort of coverage and response to Found Footage, but instead I'm getting it for something which feels - by comparison - sort of throwaway.
You might be aware that earlier this month I started a new Twitter account called Do You Remember This? (@memoryassistant). It spun out of a sequence in Mr Biffo's Found Footage, which was borne from my frustration at what I saw as the "laziness" of the countless nostalgia accounts and websites that are out there.
Indeed, the inspiration for Do You Remember This? came from having a rant about it on Twitter, and subsequently being blocked by the guy who runs @IL0veThe80s - who boasts an impressive 124,000 followers, and a bunch of similarly popular spin-off accounts. I was just moaning, like a whinger, about the fact he could get tons of coverage for simply posting pictures of things that people might remember, whereas I was struggling to get views for Found Footage. It was envy stemming from frustration.
At a loose end a few weekends ago, I decided - just on a whim - to Photoshop a few silly spoof "nostalgia" images and put them online, mostly for my own enjoyment, and for those who'd followed the daft spat I had with @IL0veThe80s.
It took three days for the account to go madly viral, The Poke to cover it, and for @IL0veThe80s to extend an olive branch. In fact, Ian who runs @IL0veThe80s has been generous enough to offer me advice on how best to present the posts on Do You Remember This?, in order to maximise their share-ability. Funny old world.
Do You Remember This has gained as many followers in less than a month as I have in three years. The likes of Ross Noble and Dara O'Briain are following it, and I'm scheduled to be doing an interview with The Guardian about its sudden success.
It's just weird; I would've killed for this sort of coverage and response to Found Footage, but instead I'm getting it for something which feels - by comparison - sort of throwaway.
BIG THING
I never intended or expected Do You Remember This to become some big thing. Of course, it's nice that it's on the way to becoming really popular... but it's not a personal, passion project in the way that Found Footage was.
The posts don't take that long to do, so while it's great that they get retweeted... it also kind of doesn't mean much to me. Due to the nature of Memory Assistant, the posts aren't personal to me as Found Footage was. And yet, it's proving more popular than either Digitiser2000 or Found Footage have ever been.
Don't get me wrong; I'm enjoying doing Memory Assistant. I can't say it's a passion, but I like that it continues to scratch what remains of the same creative itch which led to Found Footage. I like the challenge of thinking about what might go viral (I can usually tell which posts are going to prove popular), and at some point I hope it might lead to Found Footage getting some more attention (I'm not holding my breath though).
I can't guarantee I'll be doing it forever, but for the time being Do You Remember This is a nice little antidote to the all-consuming enormity of what I'd spent much of the last 18 months doing.
So, in short, this time next year: please buy Do You Remember This - The Book!
I never intended or expected Do You Remember This to become some big thing. Of course, it's nice that it's on the way to becoming really popular... but it's not a personal, passion project in the way that Found Footage was.
The posts don't take that long to do, so while it's great that they get retweeted... it also kind of doesn't mean much to me. Due to the nature of Memory Assistant, the posts aren't personal to me as Found Footage was. And yet, it's proving more popular than either Digitiser2000 or Found Footage have ever been.
Don't get me wrong; I'm enjoying doing Memory Assistant. I can't say it's a passion, but I like that it continues to scratch what remains of the same creative itch which led to Found Footage. I like the challenge of thinking about what might go viral (I can usually tell which posts are going to prove popular), and at some point I hope it might lead to Found Footage getting some more attention (I'm not holding my breath though).
I can't guarantee I'll be doing it forever, but for the time being Do You Remember This is a nice little antidote to the all-consuming enormity of what I'd spent much of the last 18 months doing.
So, in short, this time next year: please buy Do You Remember This - The Book!
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