‘Rhys Released’
1x10minute pilot episode of a sitcom, for
Channel 4.
My idea for a sitcom is to follow a young man’s journey
through university. However, while this young man is perfectly ordinary in
everyway, he has a way of expressing himself that very few have. YouTube.
In the evenings and
in his spare time, rather than studying for his course, Rhys Turner, the main
character, sits at his desk, talking to his camera. He creates ‘vlogs’ or
video-blogs, telling the Internet of his life, through anecdotes, sketches, and
sometimes, even music.
To get the best out
of this idea, I propose filming around half of the episode on a web-cam, breaking
the fourth wall style, and the other half as a normal sitcom would be shot,
following the main character.
The setting would
mostly be within the four walls of Rhys’ bedroom, in his university halls, but
some scenes may venture out into other parts of the flat, such as the kitchen,
living room, or maybe outside, or to his university itself. In later episodes,
I have no doubt that the narrative will take the characters beyond their
surroundings, to YouTube gathering, or anywhere.
The feel of the
series will be a relaxed, informal sense of having the characters invite you
into their world. The idea is to have the style emulate the styles of vlogs
that already exist on YouTube. Therefore, the will be low production costs, and
minimal fancy camerawork. The series would be best suited to simplicity and a
similar styling to the countless apartment-based American sitcoms.
The episode will
open with character introduction in the form of a conversation between Rhys and
another roommate, while Rhys is trying to make his first YouTube video. This
way, it is as though you have been dropped straight into his life, and you want
to know what’s going on.
The roommate in
question will be ‘Erin’, who is a bossy, mother-like figure that just wished Rhys
would get on with his university coursework, when all Rhys wants to do is make
this video. This immediately gives the audience a common ‘enemy’ with Rhys, and
therefore makes the viewer want to know how Rhys handles the situation
throughout the episode.
In a later scene,
Rhys’ best friend ‘Oliver’ is introduced as a loud, opinionated, smart arse
character to oppose Rhys in manner and personality. However, whereas Erin
opposes him in interests, and they don’t get along, Oliver opposes him in
mannerisms and manners alone, and they can get along relatively well – with banter
being the main form of communication.
Later still, the
final main character will be introduced – ‘Sky’. Sky is feisty, sarcastic and
colourful. She acts as the mediator between Rhys and Oliver when needed, but
gives as good as she gets in terms of banter. She is playful and brings a funny
edge to what could be an otherwise tense friendship.
She may also turn
into a love interest for one of the boys later in the series, if it were to
continue, but for the first episode, it is left open for the watcher to decide
what is going on between the three.
I believe that this
idea has multiple possibilities and a hook that no other sitcom, or television
show has, in the way that it gives an insight into a new kind of young adult –
the internet teen.
