THE FUTURE OF TELEVISION
The Future of Television reimagines what TV can look like in the age of the lockdown and internet dominance. “The Alex A*******s Show” is a big Queer cluster f*ck of chaos and joy, a camp-tech fantasy with public access, digital love, and drag; a salute to the time where we all sat on our own couches, viewing the same content at the same time, without control, submitting to the network and to our collective societal desires.
The Future of Television is a TV episode of “The Alex ******* Show”, a Queer CanCon variety show that provides a spotlight for non-celebrities. The show was made during COVID-19 in the safest way possible - remotely. Participants were asked to send in audition tapes (iwanttobeontv.cargo.site), from which we made a special features video (link) and shot the first episode on Zoom. The team, which consists of Sera Phim, Sydney Pulfer, and Olivia Curry, all met with the selected cast and collaboratively wrote the segments with the designated actors/participants, in order to create an honest and comfortable portrayal of their experiences and characters.
Creating a platform for professional performers and non-celebrities felt like the best approach to foster interesting and captivating chemistry between participants. In the future I would like to continue this project and hopefully reach a wider audience for audition tapes, as opposed to those that are just outside of my personal network.
For the first episode, we decided to do a surprise dating game show, a special musical guest, a quick interview-style commercial and a second hand shopping channel. Throughout the skits, a variety of typescripted/sterotyped “characters” are explored: the chaotic Paris-Hilton-esque ”sober” ex-addict, the shoplifter, the fuckboy, the scary cat lesbian, the playbunny gay twink, the furry cosplayer, the out-in-the-woods type and thensome. In a way, all of these characters are hyperbolic representations of different people within the Queer community or different facets of Queer identity. The episode tackles themes of love, addiction, mental health, celebrity culture, production, community and agency - topics that are centred in conversations in and around my Queer community.
Creating a platform for professional performers and non-celebrities felt like the best approach to foster interesting and captivating chemistry between participants. In the future I would like to continue this project and hopefully reach a wider audience for audition tapes, as opposed to those that are just outside of my personal network.
For the first episode, we decided to do a surprise dating game show, a special musical guest, a quick interview-style commercial and a second hand shopping channel. Throughout the skits, a variety of typescripted/sterotyped “characters” are explored: the chaotic Paris-Hilton-esque ”sober” ex-addict, the shoplifter, the fuckboy, the scary cat lesbian, the playbunny gay twink, the furry cosplayer, the out-in-the-woods type and thensome. In a way, all of these characters are hyperbolic representations of different people within the Queer community or different facets of Queer identity. The episode tackles themes of love, addiction, mental health, celebrity culture, production, community and agency - topics that are centred in conversations in and around my Queer community.
Credits:
Director, Editor, and Co-Producer: Alex Apostolidis
Assistant and Co-Producer : Sera Phim
Writers: Libby Curry, Sydney Pulfer, and Max Holzberg
Consultants: Hannah Eggleton, Emma Hornell, Matt Matt Tobin, Kelly McLeod, Nicole Crawford, Carolina Larossa, Emem Etti
Actors (in order of appearance): Alex Apostolidis as Host, Flo Nwakobi, Emerson Sanderson as Denim Pussy, Mildred Piss-Karen, Benni as Loretta, Ammar Al-Hulaibi as Chadley, Tristan and Alex Giardini as Rivalled Envy, Julien Johnson for Word of Mouth, Brace Belden, Louis-Felix D’Amours as Queb Shoplifter, Sera Phim as Bradley, Marissa Sean-Cruz as Garflissa, Finn Look, Matthew Barkowski as Cookie
Assistant and Co-Producer : Sera Phim
Writers: Libby Curry, Sydney Pulfer, and Max Holzberg
Consultants: Hannah Eggleton, Emma Hornell, Matt Matt Tobin, Kelly McLeod, Nicole Crawford, Carolina Larossa, Emem Etti
Actors (in order of appearance): Alex Apostolidis as Host, Flo Nwakobi, Emerson Sanderson as Denim Pussy, Mildred Piss-Karen, Benni as Loretta, Ammar Al-Hulaibi as Chadley, Tristan and Alex Giardini as Rivalled Envy, Julien Johnson for Word of Mouth, Brace Belden, Louis-Felix D’Amours as Queb Shoplifter, Sera Phim as Bradley, Marissa Sean-Cruz as Garflissa, Finn Look, Matthew Barkowski as Cookie