Have a look at this video, a cooperation between the web series "Eurobubble" writer Yacine Kouhen and "Old Continent" communications agency: spot on messages, and more to the point than some videos on next year's elections, coming out of the institutions. Why do I like it? Because it's trying to be fun and light while remaining accurate. Because it does not try to please everyone. Because it's visually interesting but short. And all this, I bet, with a relatively small budget.
Well done!
Love the disclaimer "This is not a message from the European Parliament" Really? Don't say.
Just a small question though: why an American sounding voice-over?
Videos, communications, Europe and some other loose ideas
Showing posts with label Eurobubble. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Eurobubble. Show all posts
Wednesday, October 2, 2013
Monday, April 22, 2013
Eurobubble: blink at your own risk!
The much anticipated web series 'Eurobubble' - well let's say much anticipated here in Brussels - has finally put out its first episodes. We have three so far. And that is exactly 10 min and 17 seconds of video in total! I am pointing this out merely because I like them all, especially considering the tiny budget the producers have at their disposal. But I have noticed that the length of the episodes is rapidly decreasing. The first episode was 4:39; the second 3:08 while the third episode came down to 2:38. And each episode has 30 seconds of titles (more on that later). I am scared that if I blink, I'll miss the next one! Seriously, I am all for short videos, to keep people's attention span. But isn't this cutting things too short?
Here is the first episode - the long one!- to give you a taste:
Let me say immediately that I applaud this initiative and I really enjoyed watching them all. Why?
First and most importantly: it's well written. When I spoke about it in one of my previous posts, my worry was that it wouldn't be funny enough. But it is quite funny for a selected audience, I guess, as most of the funny bits are for 'insiders'. It flows and the description of the characters and the situations is accurate and witty.
Second: the graphics and the music are good. The Catch me if you can-style title sequence is definitely well done - if perhaps a bit long - and I suspect Steven Spielberg had a slightly bigger budget!
Third: as non-professional actors go, I think Yacine and the rest of the cast is doing a very good job, probably because they are all pretending to be....themselves!
Having said this, the main issue I have with the series is its speed, which is the flip side of the coin of the qualities I just mentioned. It feels as if someone has left their thumb on the fast forward button. I know it is fashionable to speak fast, especially for non-native speakers, so you can show how well you master the English language. And a lot of people think it makes you look smarter. When I was working for Newsnight, I remember the morning meetings as a race to see who could speak fastest, as if what you had to say would be considered more insightful or newsworthy if told at max speed. I justified it to myself - probably wrongly- by saying: 'we are a news programme, news has to be fast. But in this case, the speed makes some parts of the script incredible - can you actually find a job so easily and quickly in Brussels these days? - or prevents you from understanding some lines, which is a shame. And the lovely graphics appear and then disappear in a nano-second: they are great but fly by and you can't take them in. I guess you could pause the film and read it, but why should that be necessary? Is it so problematic to keep them on screen for a little bit longer?
Maybe I am just getting older - an wiser hopefully! - but I do believe that smart and fast do not always go hand in hand; and neither do funny and fast for that matter. So could we calm down for a second?
Here is the first episode - the long one!- to give you a taste:
Let me say immediately that I applaud this initiative and I really enjoyed watching them all. Why?
First and most importantly: it's well written. When I spoke about it in one of my previous posts, my worry was that it wouldn't be funny enough. But it is quite funny for a selected audience, I guess, as most of the funny bits are for 'insiders'. It flows and the description of the characters and the situations is accurate and witty.
Second: the graphics and the music are good. The Catch me if you can-style title sequence is definitely well done - if perhaps a bit long - and I suspect Steven Spielberg had a slightly bigger budget!
Third: as non-professional actors go, I think Yacine and the rest of the cast is doing a very good job, probably because they are all pretending to be....themselves!
Having said this, the main issue I have with the series is its speed, which is the flip side of the coin of the qualities I just mentioned. It feels as if someone has left their thumb on the fast forward button. I know it is fashionable to speak fast, especially for non-native speakers, so you can show how well you master the English language. And a lot of people think it makes you look smarter. When I was working for Newsnight, I remember the morning meetings as a race to see who could speak fastest, as if what you had to say would be considered more insightful or newsworthy if told at max speed. I justified it to myself - probably wrongly- by saying: 'we are a news programme, news has to be fast. But in this case, the speed makes some parts of the script incredible - can you actually find a job so easily and quickly in Brussels these days? - or prevents you from understanding some lines, which is a shame. And the lovely graphics appear and then disappear in a nano-second: they are great but fly by and you can't take them in. I guess you could pause the film and read it, but why should that be necessary? Is it so problematic to keep them on screen for a little bit longer?
Maybe I am just getting older - an wiser hopefully! - but I do believe that smart and fast do not always go hand in hand; and neither do funny and fast for that matter. So could we calm down for a second?
Thursday, January 10, 2013
Eurobubble: the new West Wing?
A brave video producer and screenwriter (who in real life trains people to help them speak in public!) has started working on a new series, a comedy series I need to add, about........Eurocrats! The series will be called Eurobubble and the first episode should be ready in February.
Here is the trailer:
Let's start by saying that political series are absolutely my favourites. I must have watched all the 7 seasons of The West Wing at least 5 times! And I have managed to go through two seasons of Borgen watching them in Danish with Dutch subtitles! I mean, how is this for commitment to the genre?
So, I am totally thrilled that there is someone out there willing to make a new series based in Brussels. The fact that it is going to be a comedy makes me happy and worried at the same time: happy because inevitably if you want to grab some audience talking about the ins and outs of working in and around the European institutions, you will desperately need to inject some sense of humour. And here comes the worry: will it be funny enough? Will it highlight some of the absurdities of the European capital or simply make fun of it all? I am not going to put the cart before the horse by starting with my negativity and I am hoping to meet the creator Yacine Kouhen to ask him directly, so will keep you posted. Instead, I am welcoming the initiative - in light of the repeatedly mentioned need to connect the EU with the European public, especially the young. And I can actually think of a few interesting examples myself for possible ' lobbying' episodes! And for those who wanted to know a bit more about the producer and the series, have a look at the article published in the magazine Europe & Me, another worthy initiative that tries to create a truly European young public. Come to think of it, I can actually already see the subject for the next post: are there perhaps too many initiatives that get lost in that huge cauldron called 'doing something for Europe'? And am I in it as well? Oh dear.
Ps: Ah, and before you think I am mad, I do speak a bit of Dutch!
Here is the trailer:
Let's start by saying that political series are absolutely my favourites. I must have watched all the 7 seasons of The West Wing at least 5 times! And I have managed to go through two seasons of Borgen watching them in Danish with Dutch subtitles! I mean, how is this for commitment to the genre?
So, I am totally thrilled that there is someone out there willing to make a new series based in Brussels. The fact that it is going to be a comedy makes me happy and worried at the same time: happy because inevitably if you want to grab some audience talking about the ins and outs of working in and around the European institutions, you will desperately need to inject some sense of humour. And here comes the worry: will it be funny enough? Will it highlight some of the absurdities of the European capital or simply make fun of it all? I am not going to put the cart before the horse by starting with my negativity and I am hoping to meet the creator Yacine Kouhen to ask him directly, so will keep you posted. Instead, I am welcoming the initiative - in light of the repeatedly mentioned need to connect the EU with the European public, especially the young. And I can actually think of a few interesting examples myself for possible ' lobbying' episodes! And for those who wanted to know a bit more about the producer and the series, have a look at the article published in the magazine Europe & Me, another worthy initiative that tries to create a truly European young public. Come to think of it, I can actually already see the subject for the next post: are there perhaps too many initiatives that get lost in that huge cauldron called 'doing something for Europe'? And am I in it as well? Oh dear.
Ps: Ah, and before you think I am mad, I do speak a bit of Dutch!
Yacine Kouhen
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