Keep The Car Running

Somebody slipped me a bootleg (shh...) of the forthcoming album from The Arcade Fire, which is my current musical obsession. The stand-out track for me, like on "Funeral," is the first one - the hypnotic, mandolin-fueled "Keep The Car Running."

Episode 6 is uploading now. I've been thinking a lot this weekend about what's in store for Francis Stokes dot com. A year ago it was a place where I housed sketches, unfinished ideas and ruminations (basically, a normal blog,) before all my blogging energies went to writing about rising sea levels on Sludgie. Since then, I've treated this more like an online business card, a portal to whatever else I'm doing on the web.

Many of you have emailed or posted comments with questions that I haven't had time to consider, and I've posted nothing this past month other news about "God, Inc." Now that the last episode of "God Inc" is posting, what do I do next?

I'm planning to revive this site as a regular blog - something I've wanted to do for a long time. Several people on here, through emails and comments, have asked to know more about the actors and the history of the project. I'm thinking of making a second youtube account so I can post "Francis Stokes Dot Com" exclusives - the first being a behind-the-scenes compilation from "God, Inc." Feel free to post or email any questions you'd like answered. I'm also busy writing my new web series, and starting to pitch "God, Inc" as a TV show, so I'll keep you informed with news, updates and sneak peaks. And I will throw in some old video projects, other writing, artwork, journal entries and thoughts as well. No poems. Probably.

(And yes, to the many people who have asked, I'm planning to finally upgrade the website itself...)

Wall Street Journal Article

I just noticed that when you click on the link, you have to sign up or something, but the article is so brief you can actually read half of it anyway, so instead of you going to the trouble, I'll repost the content:

Comedy: Video
New sitcoms rise on the Web
January 20, 2007; Page P2

A new sitcom with a rapidly growing following twists the premise of NBC's "The Office" by giving it an otherworldly setting: the corporate headquarters of heaven. The show, "God, Inc," can be seen only online.



It's part of an expanding Web genre: comedy series by budding writers or filmmakers that borrow some of the pacing and structure of television sitcoms, though often with more offbeat concepts. Episodes are usually a few minutes long.

In some cases, TV executives are taking notice of these shows. The Cartoon Network's Adult Swim has commissioned...

[bla bla bla... crap that's not about "God, Inc." Anyway, the article ends:]

HOW TO FIND IT: Go to YouTube.com and search for "Gemberling," "God, Inc" and "Illeanarama."

WaPo, Fan Fic

"God, Inc" made it into an article in the Washington Post today, declaring a new breed of videos on Youtube: "Rules For Youtube: Make Art, Not Bore." What's interesting is that the article doesn't go into much detail about our show, instead assuming you've already seen it:

I know what you're thinking: "God, Inc.," "Learn to Speak Body" and "Le Grand Content"? I love those films, too!

That's what you're thinking. Washington Post says so. It's hard to describe what a weird feeling it is to read that - here I'm being treated like an established entity, and I was totally obscure when I was opening Christmas presents. While I haven't seen those other two videos, I have seen "Yacht Rock," a strange dramatization of the lives of soft rock superstars, which is mentioned in the article, and it's hilarious.

Also, we got our first example of fan fiction - a viewer who goes by Super Dachshund emailed me his thoughts on what Episode 6. "Deus Ex Machina," has in store. So here, courtesy of Super Dachshund, is "God, Inc, Episode 6:"

Austin is heading towards Piper's office. He's thinking, Shit! This is it. Time to go to the boss's office and get canned just like Charlie. Fuckin' company! The Big Guy's got no plan at all. Doesn't know what he's doing. He enters her office and politely closes the door behind him.

Austin: I uh, got your message.

Piper sits with her arms folded and scowling (as usual). Very long pause. They stare at each other. Finally. . .

Piper: Austin, we have a problem.

Austin: Well, y'know, I've been thinking

Piper: There's a war going on as you might know. The Pakistanis have invaded Canada. Now, normally this wouldn't be a problem but as it turns out it's a huge one. When I find out who's responsible . . .It seems no one bothered to pass this "great idea" through Population Control or Approvals

Austin: Oh shit.

Piper: You're damn right 'Oh shit!' We've got a war going on that is in no way part of His plan. The Big Guy is not too happy about this. He's approved a time shift. We're going to roll back to a week ago and replay all events leading up to this war. We need to prevent the war before it happens but we're stuck. We can't make the past events flow seamlessly to side step the invasion. We need an event that disrupts the current time line leading to the invasion. And that is where you come in. (Long pause) Austin, we need a miracle. Have it on my desk before 11 tomorrow.

Austin usually with eyes at half staff shows signs of life. His eyes pop. A miracle! Not some sappy, huggy, squeezy Hallmark moment but a no shit, 1777 Revolutionary War Fergusson/Washington miracle! He leaves her office with the first hint of a smile we've seen in the series. He's a man on a mission.

Later.

Austin has papers strewn about his office. Crumpled papers overflow his trash can. He finally has his opportunity but can't seem to get the proper inspiration. He's stuck. And then. . .it hits him. He's working furiously tapping out proposals, running simulations, and testing scenarios on his computer. Campy inspirational music in the background.

Gavin: Hey Austin, you coming? It's 8 o'clock.

Austin: No, sorry. Can't. I got a deadline tomorrow.

Gavin: Okay man. See ya tomorrow.

Austin continues to pound away on his computer eyes burning two holes in the monitor.

"MVP Award" is on the white board in blue marker with Piper looking moderately happy and everyone sitting in a rough circle. Austin has never looked more confident and at ease.

Piper: This week's MVP award goes to. . .Product Development for their new tundra mosquito!

Everyone except Austin claps. Keaton goes up to accept the trophy.

Austin: What the—

Piper: Your new tundra mosquito believe it or not, infected a Pakistani diplomat in Canada with encephalitis right before he was to announce the war. He was hospitalized and called away. In the meantime through secret channels Canada and Pakistan worked out their differences. Your mosquito averted a war!

Sarah: It's a miracle!

Austin (under his breath): You're damn right it's a miracle. It's MY miracle. Fuckin' unbelievable!

Piper: Oh and of course this changes the outcome of last week's Publicity figures. Amid, you win again.

Amid grins like a smart ass and Esther slams her notebook down.

Esther: Damn it!

"God, Inc" Update At 3:05 AM

I'm tired. It's been a pretty overwhelming weekend, since they posted "God, Inc - Episode 1" on the main page of youtube. At latest count, it was viewed roughly 460,000 times in the past 48 hours. Which makes my head spin. A big welcome to all my new visitors and commentors. Especially to those visiting the Harold Buttleman, Daredevil Stuntman website - I'm working on a DVD release and will hopefully have info on that some time this week - and Sludgie. We also now have a MySpace page, so we're officially in YOUR extended network!

As for "God, Inc," Episode 3 will be up by Tuesday at the latest. Just putting the finishing touches on. Thanks a million. I'm truly thrilled by the response.

Pixels The Size Of Rice Krispies

I’m working on a new video short, just a one-off thing I did a few weeks ago after some misadventures trying to clean my backyard pool, which I should be uploading some time this afternoon or tomorrow. Even though it's just a short comic thing, I'm a bit nervous - it's the first non-"God, Inc" video that I'll be posting on my YouTube page. However, it's certainly not the last - on the horizon are an old video I did with Stephen Falk called "looking for mr. miyagi", more of my feature film Harold Buttleman, Daredevil Stuntman, and the new web series, "ERF!" (not "Earth", as many have - understandably - assumed...). I've already shot a trailer for "ERF!" but I'm waiting to upload it until I'm closer to posting Episode 1...

On a (possibly boring) technical note, recently it’s seemed like each new video I upload to YouTube has looked slightly worse than the last. I’m shooting on a Canon XL2, and on YouTube my final product looks like it was shot with one of those Fisher Price pixelvision cameras. I was disappointed in how the last two episodes of “God, Inc” looked, but I figured it was because they were on the longish side. Then my 2-minute “update” video looked like crap. So I emailed YouTube for advice, and they turned me on to this link. This guy (whose voice sounds kind of like Ira Glass) has put a lot of work into figuring out how to optimize YouTube image quality, and he even has a tutorial video. In my case, I’m working with Final Cut Pro 3 instead of iMovie, but I found most of the same windows in the export box and was able to duplicate his settings (the only difference was that I couldn’t find AAC audio, so I used M-Peg audio instead). Anyway, for those of you who have been having the same kind of problems, check it out. Also, Nalts of the “Will Video For Food” blog posts some general remarks on compressing videos for YouTube here.

And did all these tips work for me? Don’t know yet. Waiting for my test video to finish uploading…

Nerdvana

My web radio debut on "Nerdvana" was a lot of fun - you can listen to it here. I also had an interview in an article in the Hartford Courant, so I've got a lot of visitors from Connecticut today. Welcome! You can view the whole "God, Inc" series by clicking the icon to the right. Your right. That way. The direction I'm pointing.

I'm working on my new web series, which is still in the development stage, but I did let the title slip on "Nerdvana" last week - it's called "ERF!" Meanwhile, "God, Inc" will continue in the future, either with new webisodes or, hopefully, as a TV series.

In my spare time, I'm fighting several unwanted house guests who took up residence in my garage slash carport (basically a carport with a door.) A possum, and some other form of rodent, left numerous signs of their presence, in particular a huge pile of feces and the remains of oranges from our tree. When I told my fiancé, who has mild OCD tendancies, that we had a nest of possum poo and orange rinds in the garage, she just sort of snapped and started laughing uncontrollably.

CORRECTION: A possum is not a rodent. It is a marsupial. I can't believe you guys didn't catch that. The possum had to log on to my wifi and comment himself. He was very offended. Which made me happy.

"God Inc" Featured On Vlog Soup, Buttleman on Knievel Comedy Site

A big thanks to Steve Garfield of "Vlog Soup" and "Rocketboom" for plugging our show! We're featured alongside vlogs about life in India and being on the campaign trail with John Edwards, which made us feel extremely important. Check it out.

Thanks also to 'zine writer Steve Mandich for featuring Buttleman on his Knievel Comedy page, an intensely thorough inventory (alongside such historic highlights as Penis Knievel and the cliffhanger episode of "Happy Days" with Fonzie jumping the now-proverbial shark...)

And a huge, heartfelt thanks to everybody who has left such nice comments. It's actually been a bit overwhelming. Except for the guy who called us weiners. He thinks we're weiners. But to the rest of you: thank you.

More Links

I did an interview for an AP article on youtube last week that appeared on the Yahoo home page and in the New York Times on Friday. Which was pretty unreal - the Wall Street Journal and the New York Times in one week. )It might only be the online Times, though - I got a print copy Friday and couldn't find it, although I was standing at the newsstand on Laurel Canyon in the rain and I gave up pretty quickly.)

Also, I did my first radio interview a couple weeks ago with a really cool guy, Daniel Lewis, who hosts a show called The Morning Rehab in Texas. He just posted the interview on his website.

Episode 5 is done and uploading now, and tomorrow I will see about getting iTunes going so you can download "God, Inc" for your video iPod.

Cafe Press

After many requests, I finally put together a page on Cafe Press to sell "God, Inc" related merchandise. If you've never used Cafe Press, it's a pretty cool service for people who have a popular website, or a movie to promote, or maybe just feel like selling t-shirts with their face on them. It's very easy and painless to set up, and a lot of fun. To check out our site, click here:

I designed all the merchandise, although I want to give credit to a MySpace fan, Trey (or as he calls himself, Treyster™) for creating the page header for us.

Episode 6 should be up very shortly - thanks for your patience!

God, Inc - Episode 5

A Big Thank You

This has been an amazing week. I just wanted to post a big, heartfelt 'thank you' to everyone who's watching "God, Inc." Your comments and messages have been wonderful.

I'm going on vacation until Sunday, so I won't be able to respond to any messages or comments until next week. But for now: thank you, thank you.

"God, Inc" Episode 2

Working On Episode 5...

So, I'm back in town and editing Episode 5 at the moment. Meanwhile, here's the latest in the response to "God, Inc:" We got featured in a Wall Street Journal article last Saturday. (No shit. The Wall Street Journal. You can imagine the reaction from my stock trader dad!) Also, Salon.com wants to feature us on their site and Comedy Central has asked to interview me for theirs. And I just did an interview for an AP article, due out tomorrow.

We also got featured on the Videos page on MySpace (for those of you MySpacers who haven't become our friend yet, check us out!) And someone is doing a Spanish translation, so there will be a subtitled version available shortly. And I promise, promise it will be up on iTunes by the end of the week.

Thanks again for watching! Back to editing...

The One Where Frank Gives An Update On Pitching

Almost done pitching to TV networks. It's basically me, Stee Falk, who plays Austin, and Tim Gibbons, an executive producer from "Curb Your Enthusiasm". Every network has a waiting area with big wall-sized posters of their shows staring down at you. Stee suggested we pitch Fox a half-hour show called "12" ("It all takes place over one half of a day...") I suggested we pitch BBC a British version of the American version of the British version of "The Office."

I filmed my first "vlog" for YouTube, talking about what's happening with "God, Inc". I haven't posted anything on YT since the last episode months ago, and I'm hoping I haven't completely lost all my audience. But I've been waiting to post it because recently YouTube introduced their revenue share program, and things seem to be slow in getting set up. As soon as my account is working properly, I'll post the update. And there are several more videos on the horizon - good stuff. Stay tuned...

Video Playlist - "God, Inc" Etc.

Click on the image on the side to view the next episode. There are six total.

God, Inc Org Chart

Andy Hark, an eagle-eyed youtube movie critic and fan of the show, has taken the liberty of making a completely accurate org chart for the series. Only one character, Ophelia, the Wiccan Publicist, is missing, because she first appears in Episode 5. Enjoy!

"God, Inc" - Episode 4

Welcome, Fine Visitor!

Here you will find a compendium of all Francis Stokes related web material for your browsing pleasure. Please have a powdered doughnut. To your right (my left) are links to the original site for my feature film debut, Buttleman, a comedy starring John Hawkes about a guy who thinks he's the next Evel Knievel, and to Sludgie, my offbeat eco-rant. The doughnuts are free.

Above, you'll soon find other recent projects, including my new web series God, Inc. Below you'll find desperately old blog posts for the days when this was a dusty little attic workshop called "Parts Flying From The Machine." There's nothing wrong with the doughnuts, just eat one.

God, Inc - Episode 6

"God, Inc" - Episode 3