'Struck By Lightning' goes digital, saves energy
Chris Colfer talks about his first movie.
Low budget independent films may lack the funds for bells and whistles on screen and lavish star accommodations and perks off it, but that makes them a lot more eco-friendly. Case in point: “Struck By Lightning,” the first feature from “Glee” star Chris Colfer as writer and lead. “It was a very green film. There were barely any trailers — less pollution. So much energy was saved because it was shot digitally,” says Colfer. “We could do scenes in the dark because the digital cameras pick up so much more light and you don’t need to add any, so a lot less energy was used.”
"Our Show is Held Together by Chewing Gum and Tape": A Look at The Chris Gethard Show
This fall, TV Hangover will be premiering some new columns. In “Overlooked” we’ll look at the best television shows, web series, and Netflix gems that you’ve yet to fall in love with. First up: The Chris Gethard Show.
It’s not a stretch to say that The Chris Gethard Show might be the weirdest thing I’ve ever watched, which isn’t an easy crown to win considering I regularly watch the Adult Swim lineup and maybe even CW’s extreme musical chairs (?!) reality competition. But The Chris Gethard Show is weird from beginning to end in the best way possible. Originally at UCB and hosted by Chris Gethard, who may very well be Tumblr’s favorite inspirational comedian, the show made the move from the comedy club to a Manhattan public access network a little over a year ago. I’ve found that it’s a hard show to explain to people — it’s part talk show with an in-house band and viewer callers, part variety show, and often just completely indescribable.
Within just a few weeks the episodes can vary between a guide to learning about women, a comedy show where no one is allowed to laugh, a large game of truth or dare, speed-dating, or just a full hour of people sharing sad stories. No matter the topic, every episode is full of this infectious manic and punk rock energy that you can’t take your eyes off and can’t help but admire even when (especially when!) things go awry. But for the most part, the show just resembles a weekly party thrown by and for all the uncool kids, whether you’re a high school student, comedy nerd, or a lost adult. Afterall, the show’s motto is “Lose Well” and they once dedicated an entire episode just to celebrate the self-proclaimed losers of the world. There’s a recurring theme of failure throughout the series but also a constant reminder to keep going. If you fail at turning yourself into a human crane, wait a few weeks and try again!
The emphasis of the bizarre and uncool is actually what makes the show so endearing. The panel on TCGS is reminiscent of the Island of the Mistfit Toys — and considering I was once the jack-in-the-box in a truly awful junior high production of this, it makes sense that I gravitated toward the show immediately. The resemblance is only emphasized by weekly characters such as a Human Fish, a guy in a banana costume, and Mimi, the woman who impressively hula hoops through the entire show. The episode that TV Hangover attended a few weeks ago had even more of that vibe as we watched a parade of potential new characters including a magician for cats, a watermelon policeman, and the winner: The Guy Who Likes Cream BUT NOT TOO MUCH CREAM.
The audience also plays a huge role in TCGS. Anyone and everyone is welcome to to head down to the studios and attend a free taping to sit cross-legged on the floor, sing-a-long and watch the spectacle in action with a handful of like-minded peers. They are sometimes invited to participate in things like ruining the entire show or lining up to spank the host. And, of course, to dance like a maniacs to the musical guests (which have included some awesome performers such as Ted Leo, Laura Stevenson & the Cans, and Night Birds). Even if you can’t attend, the show takes as many callers as possible throughout the night — one regular caller, a high school student named Alyssa, even eventually had an episode dedicated to her. Many people tweet directly to Chris Gethard as the tweets are often read and responded to on air.
Basically, The Chris Gethard Show is one of the most truly original and fun shows in existence. Even if, most likely, you don’t have access to it on your cable, every new episode is streamed live on the site Wednesday night at 11pm — and I highly suggest checking out tonight’s episode where they’ll attempt to throw a party worthy enough of guest panelist Andrew W.K. (!!) All of the episodes are available on the archive of both blip.tv and iTunes, as well.
A few episodes to start with: The Kickboxer, The Dominatrix, Truth or Dare, The One Year Anniversary Show.
As an added bonus Chris Gethard — who was recently “adopted” by IFC, the same network that ordered a pilot based on his hilarious book — was nice enough to answer some questions asked by a few of our readers. Read on to learn about vetoed episode ideas, his idea of success, and more!
Aluminium foil is... not nice.
“The extensive use of aluminium foil has been criticized by environmentalists because of the high resource cost of extracting aluminium, primarily as a result of the large amount of electricity used to process bauxite ore. This cost is reduced via recycling, reduced energy requirements during transport due to lighter weight packages, and the fact that many foods that would otherwise perish can be protected over long periods without refrigeration. Some aluminium foil products can be recycled at around 5% of the original energy cost, although many aluminium laminates are not recycled due to difficulties in separating the components and low yield of aluminium metal.”
So you see, it is better to use less aluminium foil. To learn how to reduce your consumption, look here: http://www.mnn.com/food/healthy-eating/blogs/kitchen-recycling-tip-aluminum-foilcling-tip-aluminum-foil
