Jake and Amir

If you don't recognize their names you might recognize a few of their videos. Jake and Amir, by Jake Hurwitz and Amir Blumenfeld from College Humor, have one of the funniest web series on the net. Whether it's their witty banter, clever stunts, one-liners, or the relaxed but sharp shooting and editing style of the series - I'm hooked. 

Reminiscent of a Jim and Dwight's relationship in The Office, Jake and Amir are hilarious. With each episode about antics going on at work (in the College Humor office where they work across from one another) or some other random hiccup in their friendship, the timing and writing is brilliant. I could go on and on about my favorite Jake and Amir episodes, but check them out for yourself on College Humor or on JakeandAmir.com.

What an awesome job - to actually get paid for making content, right? Check out a few of their episodes below to get started. And a word of warning, with their lengthy archive of hilarious clips you might want to make sure you've got some time to spare.

• Jake and Amir: Coupon
• Jake and Amir: Silent Treatment
• Jake and Amir: Dating Coach
• Jake and Amir: Snack Attack

Two Weeks

As an idea that seemed wishful at best in early 2009, it's exciting to think that in just 2 weeks my friend Dave and I will be starting on a road trip to Indio, California. It's a trip that will take us almost entirely across the Western USA from north to south, obviously with us starting out in Canada and ending just a few hundred miles from Mexico. I can't wait.

Much like my Rushmore trip in 2007, our journey to Indio is being fueled mostly by a desire to explore, relax, and change up the scenery. Dave's folks have a place down there, which was the reasoning in the beginning to even consider the trip. With a bit of time in Salt Lake City, a night of celebrating planned in Vegas, a visit to the ocean, and a few days of drinking in the desert, I'd say that all the ingredients are certainly there for a memorable adventure.

As I remarked to Dave, I'll be shooting pieces of this trip as I do with almost all my trips with intention of putting a small project together. It has a lot of potential to be one of the most meaningful things I produce this year because of the personal narrative involved. This video is likely to be a mix of travelog and self-referential documentary as Dave and I have had somewhat of a touch and go friendship since first year of university.

In high school I sat next to a guy who knew Dave named Todd. He explained that Dave was going to the U of R too, and sure enough on my first day there I met him. Since that first day Dave and I have always been loosely in touch, connected by the same people, and have had our occasional lengthy discussion about things - this trip is by far the most time I'll have ever spent with him one on one though, and with both of us having such a broad view of things I know there's going to be no shortage of things to talk about.

After years of events, parties and hang ups, this road trip kind of seems like an opportunity to clear the air about a lot of things. Not just between Dave and I specifically, but about university life in general. As spontaneous as a lot of the road trip will be, I think it's also a great opportunity to put some of that post-university 'what now?' we're both experiencing to rest - or at least an opportunity to recharge or find some new motivation.

It's tough to say that this road trip is going to be as meaningful as my artistic mind is trying to make it, but let me just say, both Dave and I seem perceptive enough to grasp at any enlightenment the desert decides to throw at us. At the very least, it's a chance to get away from the ordinary.

As a side note, I just happened to be listening to Two Weeks by Grizzly Bear and thought the first few lyrics were fitting: "Save up all the days, a routine malaise, just like yesterday, I told you I would stay". Nostalgia is a powerful thing. Still friends after all these years - here's to a memorable road trip Dave!

My Videos on Vimeo

Several days ago (on July 31) I decided to create an account and start uploading a few of my shorts to Vimeo. Unlike YouTube, Vimeo is a bit more stringent about original content and linking individuals to their own work. This is great, but it also means that viewership on the site isn't nearly as large.

I've barely had a single view since uploading my projects, but I figure at the very least having my work on another site is worth the internet credit.  Maybe one of my shorts will pop up in a search or something. I'll let you know how it goes.

At first glance I'm impressed with Vimeo though. The vibe and artist friendly look is encouraging. There are no star ratings, simply a place for viewers to comment and click if they like your video - kind of like a thumbs up. All videos are linked back to your profile, which is less busy than the look of most YouTube channels, and your name is prominent on each page with your short.

YouTube is great and it's essentially the standard as far as video sharing sites go, but as I've mentioned before, I think diversifying is the only way I'm going to be able to compete against YouTube 'celebrities' who have already established themselves - at least until I get a viral video of my own. Just by adding some of my projects to Yobi.tv I've managed to get thousands more views and I wouldn't be surprised if my numbers there surpass what I've achieved on YouTube in the next year.

If you'd like check out my profile on Vimeo, you can view it here. It's also been added to my featured links in the sidebar with my other video profiles.

Here's my short Quirks from earlier this year embedded from Vimeo, please check it out if you haven't seen it yet.


Quirks from Luke Fandrich on Vimeo.