The Daily Online VIdeo Fix: Mario Brother Parodies

Since Donkey Kong's inception over 25 years ago, American pop culture has been fascinated with Mario, the hero character from the Nintendo's addictive video game. Soon after the success of DK, Mario was given his own adventure, starring Mario the plumber and his brother Luigi. CLICK HERE to get the full history of Mario Brothers according to Wikipedia

There has been a ton of merchandising, spin-offs and other schlock out there that has furthered the Mario Brothers legacy, but in terms of original online video I think the two videos below are great examples of quality content that have stuck a chord with audiences. Both videos are very different, but each are successful in their own way.

"Mario: Game Over" by POYKPAC was nominated for Best Comedy Video of 2007 in the Youtube Awards. The talented comedy troop had racked up an impressive 9,600,000 views and was originally posted in May 2007. Writer/Director Ryan Hunter does a great job with the cast. The down-home effects add to the charm of this indie production as well. I love that these guys just went out and made this on their own. No branding, sponsors, etc., just some good old fashion talent and determination.

On the other side of the spectrum comes Seth McFarline's short, which is part of his new original online series CAVALCADE. The series are a bunch of humorous shorts that are made for those with severe ADD. The pieces are quick, funny and have that McFarline flair. In case you have been living under a rock, Seth MacFarlane is the creator of Family Guy and American Dad. This online venture is sponsored by Burger King, which I think is a very smart move for the burger flipping giant. This Mario video has reached 6,100,000 people in one month. My only issue with the video is I wish it was longer.

Nintendo, thanks for giving us Mario. Hopefully, someone will soon make a few online videos with Activision's PITFALL hero. That guy was nuts, too!

First! Getting Hooked On New Media...

I fell in love with original online video from the start.  It was 1999 and the first Internet wave was washing over the country.   I was finishing up co-writing, producing and directing PRESERVING THE LEGACY, a three-year environmental documentary series for PBS.   At 26, I had travelled the world and discovered the incredible ways we were quickly destroying the planet.  This was years before it was cool to be aware about global warming.  My friends hated hearing about nuclear waste, the population explosion, our carbon footprint, Superfund, air pollution and so on...  Working on this series was an incredible experience, but left me with a feeling like I needed to create something on the lighter side once it was over.    

At the time, broadband and video were the big buzz words and companies were sprouting up like weeds on the Internet to cash in on they hype.   Start-ups were being given huge amounts of cash.   They needed content and they needed it now.   To me, as a filmmaker, the future was here.   For the first time, advancements in digital-video cameras and online editing software made it possible to create stories that didn't have to cost a ton of money.   Anyone could do it and that what companies were banking on...

I was pitching two series ideas.  STUDIO VISIT followed the creative process of emerging visual artists and LOCKOUT revealed the process of breaking bands.    After three months of getting nowhere, Eveo came along.  

Eveo was a startup based out of San Francisco and they were YouTube before there was a YouTube.   They were betting that user-generated video content would be huge.   However, before they launched their site they needed videos (which they called eveos)  to be seeded on the site so they could show their potential audience what to make.    They loved my ideas for LOCKOUT and STUDIO VISIT. Kids would see the videos, be inspired to make their own videos and then post them on the site.   Great.  Perfect.  Let's make it happen!

The deal was fast and loose.  Since they wanted my videos to inspire others to make their own, my videos needed to have a home-made feel.   It was to be a one-man-band operation.    Me shooting, doing sound, lighting, everything...   They wanted me to make as many as I could as quickly as possible.   I was going to get paid $300 per video.   Each video was to be 2 - 4 minutes in length.    I could do whatever I wanted as long as it was about breaking bands or emerging artists.   I needed to be smart and plan ahead.   If I wasn't careful, this process could become very painful and expensive.   If done right, I would be able to tell some great stories and be able to make rent for a while.   What followed was the most intensive filmmaking experience I've ever had in my life.

To be continued...