Being Geek Chic is a blog about one woman navigating the male-dominated industries of production and tech. It's written by Elizabeth Giorgi, Founder, CEO and Director of Mighteor - one of the world's first internet video production companies. Learn more about Mighteor here.
I’m sorry this week is just one giant promotion fest for all the things the Mighteorites and I are working on. I promise, very soon, we will get back to the business of talking about entertainment, feminism, business and life and career. But for now, I need to promote one more thing. And if I’m being honest, I’m very excited about this thing.
Today I am introducing the Internet Video Masterclass. A new web show that my team and I have brought into the world to help give brands, businesses, nonprofits and everyone in between, the tools they need to make better internet video for any and all platforms.
You can watch all of the videos here on our website.
Or, better yet, you can Subscribe to our YouTube channel so that you get all the latest. If you like these, I’ve already written season 2. And Beyonce may or may not be the theme of one of the episodes.
This is what we do every day at Mighteor: we make great internet video and we come up with ways to get it seen. I would be kind of failing myself and the entire premise upon which my business was formed if I was not growing and continuing to expand the usefulness of video content. Many of the things we talk about in the series are topics that we regularly discuss with our clients in planning their video strategy, and while I’m nervous about giving away all our knowledge, I’m truly hopeful that it opens the doors of possibility for other big things in Mighteor’s future.
So here is how you can help me out this week. Share the series with your friends. Your professional contacts. Your Twitter feed. The more we get this out there, the happier I will be.
And yes, I am aware that I’m a total goober in these videos.
No. I don’t know how to be less of a goober.
Twitter is for news. For celebrity bashing and loving and loathing and celebrating. For blabbing your emotional baggage. And for spreading your irrational rage. And if you’re me, it’s also for dealing with your randomly onset insomnia.
I have been having sleep troubles. And for whatever reason, when I can’t sleep, I find myself turning to Twitter for emotional support. I don’t know what it is, but something about being in the throws of wanting to sleep SO BADLY and not being able to makes me even more desperate to tweet. But lately, I’ve been trying to stop myself from tweeting and instead turning to YouTube to get caught in a ridiculous video vortex of giggles and silliness.
Here are my top 5 favorite videos for my especially sleepless nights:
The Brain Scoop with Emily Graslie
This channel is super new but super awesome. It is hosted by Emily Graslie, who is a scientist at the Field Museum and she talks about all kinds of weird science-y topics that have to do with the brain. It tackles all kinds of crazy things you didn’t even want to know about brains, with the occassional taxidermy thrown in for good fun.
Ever since being introduced to Graham Norton while in London a few years ago, I have been addicted. This show makes night time talk shows in America seem utterly pathetic. Something about putting a random bunch of famous people on a couch together is so much more entertaining.
I just love Karl Pilkington. And his new show The Moaning of Life is no exception. His particularly negative candor about life always gets me. Whenever I feel like something randomly terrible happens, I can pretty much always find a Karl Pikington quote that is relevant.
Super candid sex talk from an adorable woman who isn’t afraid to be really freaking honest? Yeah, that’s damn cool. I bet you’ll even learn something you never knew before!
Comedy Central’s Inside Amy Schumer
There is obviously nothing else to say about Amy Schumer. Her videos say it all. She’s fucking awesome.
Legal secretary by day, LEGO YouTube reviewer, brick filmer, and MOC builder by night – meet Kristine, a.k.a. BrickQueen! Let’s face it – all of us played with LEGOs as I child, and it was irresistible to play out little scenes and give the little figures personalities and storylines. (Mine was usually Harry Potter related).
The Brick Queen kicks our childhood productions up a few notches and posts reviews of Lego sets, films stop motion LEGO dramas, and more! Check out her YouTube channel here. My favorite? Iron Man and Hulk do Homework. Spoiler alert: it doesn’t end well.
Make sure to follow Brick Queen on Twitter (@Brick_Queen), and check out her interview with Being Geek Chic! You’ll discover her feminist perspective on LEGO reviews, the fictional character she’d invite for a drink, and her incredibly useful and wisely chosen superpower.
Q: What has led you to your passion?
A: I’ve been collecting LEGO sets pretty much my whole life. One day I was just surfing the Internet and YouTube and I randomly typed in LEGO. I found all these guys who were reviewing LEGO sets. I had no idea how many people like me there were out there, and I said to myself if all of these men can do this, why can’t a woman?
Q: You can choose one superpower. What is it?
A: I would choose the power to absorb the powers, skills, and memories of others.
Q: All time favorite LEGO series?
A: LEGO Super Heroes is definitely my favorite theme of all time. I love the variety of characters. It gives me the chance to make stop motions with so many different stories using all the heroes and villains from both Marvel and DC.
Q: If you could take any fictional character out for a drink, whom would you choose and what would you drink?
A: So many characters would be amazing to hang out with but I would have to choose The Doctor! (Preferably the Tenth, but the Eleventh is awesome too!) As far as drinks, I’ll have whatever he’s having.
Q: What would you tell your 13-year-old self?
A: Probably a lotI think the main thing I would tell myself is not to stop collecting when I go to high school and college. I collected some in high school but barely at all in college. I missed out on some awesome sets in those years.
Emma Bauer is a Being Geek Chic Contributor. Clearly, she’s got great taste. She is a PR enthusiast, history scholar, tea drinker, fashion devotee, and of course, aspires to Be Geek Chic.
Follow her on twitter: @emmalynnbauer
Allow us to introduce you to Jenni Powell (@JenniPowell on Twitter). She has a job many of us would kill for – Content and Speaker Coordinator of VidCon. (She’s also worked as a producer for The Guild, A&E’s Deadliest Catch and lots of other internet awesomeness… so yeah, girl has got cred.)
But on top of that, she’s the producer of The Lizzie Bennet Diaries, an online, modernized retelling of Pride and Prejudice, complete with Twitter, Tumblr, Pinterest, and video diaries. To give a quick rundown: Lizzie is 24, and a grad student in mass communication, Jane is a fashion merchandise coordinator, Lydia’s a flirty, feisty high school girl, etc.
Oh! And Mr. Darcy has a Twitter account (@wmdarcy).
Before you dive into Austen à la 2013, check our Powell’s interview with BGC:
Q: What has led you to your passion?
A: I took a long, round-about way of getting to where I am now. When I was a kid, I was incredibly shy and my Mom actually put me in dance lessons to help bring me out of my shell. It was the best thing she could have ever done for me as it sparked a love of performing in me. I originally wanted to go into acting but in college, my Mom (the women is full of awesome ideas that have made my life better) suggested I try something else for the first couple of years since I needed to take general ed classes anyway. I fell in love with Psychology and actually have a degree in Social Psychology from San Diego State University. I was in the middle of doing a master’s degree in the same subject when I basically realized there was this entire other thing that I had at one time really wanted to do and never tried. So I quit school and moved to Los Angeles and tried to get into acting. I ended up running a theater company and worked in production on a ton of student films and found I enjoyed that more. So that’s how I ended up as a producer and it is truly what I’m passionate about. The greatest thing about it is the producing uses a ton of the skills I learned in college and I get to learn new things every day because every project is a new experience.
Q: Why did you decide to be involved with The Lizzie Bennet Diaries?
A: One of the major reasons is because I adore Hank Green and Bernie Su. I worked with Hank on VidCon prior to LBD and Bernie and I had been good friends for many, many years and always said we wanted to work with each other more extensively. Then Hank and Bernie got together and BOOM, I got to work with both of them at the same time! I also loved the concept of adapting a novel to YouTube, it was something Hank and I had had long discussions about prior to LBD happening. It just seemed like everything was aligning to make this be an awesome project and I’m so glad my instincts were correct and that Hank and Bernie trusted me to help them make this project a reality.
Q: If you could take any fictional character out for a drink, whom would you choose, and what would you drink?
A: I’d have to say Snoopy. That dog seems like he knows how to party and has lead a fascinating life. I mean, he was WWI Flying Ace! And we’d definitely drink Manhattans. In a den with a large fireplace. While smoking cigars. And I would be able to speak “dog.”
Q: When did you first realize you were "geeky?”
A: I guess I’ve never really considered that question before. I guess I just always have been? That brings up a larger debate of course…are you born “geek” or are geeks made? Discuss amongst yourselves.
Q: What would you tell your 13-year-old self?
A: Don’t worry, you’ll meet this guy Stuart and everything will be awesome. And don’t worry about those knobby knees, they go away. And you’ll get boobs and they will be spectacular.
Q: What would be the title of your memoir?
A: Welcome to Cheeseville
Emma Bauer is a Being Geek Chic Contributor. Clearly, she’s got great taste. She is a PR enthusiast, history scholar, tea drinker, fashion devotee, and of course, aspires to Be Geek Chic.
Follow her on twitter: @emmalynnbauer
Every once in a while I forget where my dreams started. Not the specific stuff like “writing for Wired” or “getting into SXSW” - no, I mean the big, broad picture. A really wonderful friend reminded me this morning this crazy journey started somewhere. And probably with something simple. For me, the very beginning of all this craziness was the moment when I realized just how fundamental writing was to my mental well-being and the semester I decided to “try out documentary” for a class.
So here’s to remembering my first journal and my “Literature of Extra Terrestrial Life” class professor who allowed me to do a documentary for my final project. That silly journal was silver and had a sticker of an angel on the outside. I never wrote with pencils or pens. Only crazy colored skinny markers. For some reason, that was just the thing to do at age 11. And while that documentary on “alien appearance perceptions” was surely absolute shite, it got me on this crazy path and I’m so glad it did.
Hand in hand with my efforts are all the free advice people put on the Internet. It’s crazy how much free advice is out there when you go looking. Yes, some of it is not that wonderful. But this week, I found this post from fellow Minnesotan Sarah Von Bargen particularly helpful: 7 Things To Read If You Care About Your Business + Blog.
Of course, none of this would be on the path to a “business” without the great people who read, watch and tweet and comment. So as I embark on this crazy journey of putting my face on the internet, I’m more thankful than ever for the people who subscribe to me on YouTube. If you are one of them, you are awesome.
And I also couldn’t dream of being a “businesswoman” if not for the people who hire me on occasion to write and create. And I’m always looking for new people to add to that club. Here’s some stuff I wrote in the last week:
Five YouTube Channels Worth Your Time
Fear Hearing Loss? Five Headphones Designed to Protect Your Ears
Does the Academy Hate Geek Movies?
Have a great weekend, my friends!
P.S. You can buy that really cool print with the Octopus in a fancy hat wearing a monocle on Etsy from Stray Squirrels. If you like it, you should support a very creative artist. I mean, people, that’s an octopus… drinking tea!
