I'm happy to announce that Fear of Girls has its own dedicated channel on gaming website IGN.com.
As part of this launch you can not only view the original 11-minute short that started the whole nerdy phenomenon, but you can also view some clips we've re-cut with unseen footage and a new (SUPER FANCY) title animation in a collection we call THE WORST GAMERS IN THE WORLD.
Check them out after the jump!
With the NBA finals beginning tonight (Lakers in 6 kids, don't bet against the president) this also marks the debut of a brand new website I'm proud to be a part of: Get Your Basketball On with Leroy Smith.
Leroy is the mastermind who motivated legend Michael Jordan. Or - as Leroy calls himself - a mastervator.
You see, in his sophomore year of high school, Michael Jordan was cut from the varsity team. Leroy Smith is the man who took his place - and thus motivated Michael to become the greatest basketball player of all time.
Catch me as dogged reporter Grant Whittaker in this fascinating series of interviews that explores the genius of Leroy Smith, and his unconventional -- some would say CONTROVERSIAL -- approach to motivation.
Click the thumbnails below to view the YouTube segments that comprise this hard-hitting piece of investigative journalism.
When do you walk away?
That's the underlying question of a brilliant documentary I saw this weekend called ANVIL: The Story of ANVIL.
The movie follows a couple of 50 year-old guys who briefly tasted success as a heavy metal band back in the 80s. Twenty-five, thirty years later --ragged and worn -- they're still chasing the dream.
It's easy to dismiss their goofy personas and juvenile antics as a real-life version of Spinal Tap, but this movie is so much more.
Three weeks ago marked the premiere of A Don't Hug Me County Fair and I have to say we've been playing to some pretty good houses.
("Pretty good" -- That's the Minnesotan in me leaking out.)
It's been fun to experience that weird, watch-winding process of staging a play. You rehearse, rehearse, rehearse. You think it's never going to come together. Then it gells, and you open, and from there the show evolves and starts to dance to its own rhythm.
Now the show is up, and the reviews have begun to come in. Here's a round-up, with links to the full articles.
Well, as of this writing, almost. But as of your reading, probably.
Thursday marks the launch of Fear of Girls 3, the story of two social outcasts who are SO far into their role-playing games they can't be bothered with, well... anything else.
You can catch it in three installments here on the YouTubes:
Chapter 1 · Chapter 2 · Chapter 3
If you are within driving distance of Minneapolis/St. Paul, there's a special premiere screening:
Riverview Theatre
3800 42nd Ave South
Minneapolis, MN
Dec 4th - 7pm / $10
All proceeds benefit that pillar of the Twin Cities film scene, The Minnesota Film and TV Board. They deserve some loving so go give them your bucks if you can. The line-up also features the work of my wonderful friends Jon Nowak, Andrew Hunt, and Jason Lausche. I sorely wish I was there, should be a great night.
They say never read your reviews, but in the nearly-three years Fear of Girls has been up on the web, we've garnered some doozies.
The best of comments after the cut:
It's a rare double-post day today.
Just a quick reminder that my friend Anna is in the new VH1 comedy series Free Radio TONIGHT at 9:30pm/8:30 central.
They have a new trailer posted on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K2sXx5fx0_E.
They also got a decent blurb in Entertainment Weekly.
It looks super great, check it out!
-Tom, keeping his post count up to three per week.
For those of you tired of C-list celebrities hawking inkjet cartridges and 'roided-out personal trainers getting shot with tennis balls, I have good news. My friend Anna is a series regular in a new comedy on VH1 called Free Radio.
The show is lightly-scripted and centered around a boob of a disk jockey who lucks his way into hosting the morning show. Anna plays the even-keeled co-host to Lance Krall's clueless man-boy.
I've seen snippets and it's great stuff. Plus, they managed to include a bunch of cool people from TV (like Jack Coleman of Heroes and Angela Kinsey from The Office). They appear as themselves doing interviews with the KBOM crew.
Check out the promo after the jump:
It's the weekend before Halloween, so to put you in the mood for donning some fake teeth and slathering some clown white on your face, here's the third and final PSA for ALIVE.
As you'll see, there's more trouble brewing for our friends at Falcon Rock.
-Tom, who's gotta go out and buy some fake teeth and clown white.
After a quick trip to Vegas, I am back. (More on that later...)
Alive is releasing new content. Here's another video clip/PSA.
Also, the viral marketing campaign got some traction from Wired News. Even made the front page!
To clarify my connection to this deal... I am friends with one of the producers on this project, and with Matt Vancil (of Dead Gentlemen and The Gamers fame) who co-created the concept with Judith & Garfield Reeves. The production company, Epic Level Entertainment, does a lot of game-related and sci-fi/fantasy stuff.
-Tom, who says, why network when you can nerdwork?
Hey, remember that zombie-sci-fi thing I helped out with a couple months ago?
Also, here's a short news piece about the project.
-Tom, who woulda been a zombie, but they needed union zombies.
