5 years ago a bunch of my shorts got to the top of r/videos. Last Friday I released a sketch show with Bill Burr on The Roku Channel based on those shorts. AMA

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You came and that’s all that matters.

Region locked, where can I pirate it??

Very Poignant Note. idk

Where does you dark sense of humor come from? Family trauma?

In second grade I peed my pants and confidently played it off like I spilled water on myself. Literally no one bought it, everyone laughed, and the embarrassment has informed every decision I've made since.

What was the writing process like? Was it just you or did you write with the people you listed? What in gods name is it like working with Bobby Lee? He seems like an absolute maniac whenever I've seen or heard him on a pod.

We had a writers room for about a month before pre production. I came in with a bunch of ideas, but had tons of help from crazy talented comics and writers. Adam Lowitt, Jak Knight, Chelsea Davison, Dan St. Germain, Claire Epstein, Eric Vega, Zack Bornstein and Keisha Zollar were all in the room. And Bobby Lee is the best. I hope this doesn't hurt his brand at all, but he was not a maniac in the slightest. At least not that I saw, who knows.

What was the process for getting this show made?

Pitch deck, package with top talent, blood sacrifice, pitch to studios, blood sacrifice, writing, pre-production, blood sacrifice, principal photography, editing, delivery.

For the blood sacrifice, did you find chickens or goats more effective? Or, did you go full Hillary and use unbaptised babies?

As long as the chickens and goats are virgins, you're all good.

I’m curious what the verification process is like to ensure that the chickens and goats are indeed virgins

Anal doesn’t count, you’re fine.

So...if you ever had to kill a man with your bare hands, how would you do it?

Start a serious relationship with him, 1 year anniversary trip to the grand canyon, gentle shove.

How was it like working with Bill? He seems like a genuine everyman kind of guy. Congrats!

Being a huge fan, I was just trying to play it cool around him on set, but Bill is really the man. As abrasive as his comedy can be, he's the most supportive and caring guy when it comes to other artists. Also, no matter where you stand on his comedy, you have to at least admit he's the best in the world at ranting to himself in a room with no audience.

Hey, sorry I’m too tired to think of a question right now. I checked out a Roku from my library just so I could binge your show (I’m a big fan of Bill Burr and Bobby Lee), and I thought it was a lot of fun. I actually found myself laughing out loud a few times. You look about my sons’ age, and I would be so proud of them if they’d accomplished this. So, as weird as it is to say (sorry, I should never comment on reddit when I’m tired), I’m proud of you!

Thanks Dad, I love you too.

Heyyy I just heard you on his podcast- you sound like a good shit!

You had said you had some ideas that didn't make it into season one that you'd like to explore in season two. Was this due to time constraints, or were your ideas too dark/obscure and you were told "this isn't going to fly?" (In so many words) by Roku/dumbass higher up? Or something else I hadn't considered?

Thanks for doin the AMA and I look forward to checkin out your show- sounds awesome

https://youtu.be/k5mos8DRlH8

This was an idea that was written for the show, and we just made it on our own after it was rejected. Apparently studios don't like shit suicide jokes.

Excited to watch this. You’ve worked with down great comedians on this. Who else would you like to work with in the future?

Oscar Issac needs to be in more comedies. Not that I'm gonna get to do that or anything.

Does Bobby Lee still thinks Vince Vaughn is mad at him?

I hope not.

Maybe it's just the halloween that's still in my system, but the immoral lessons and dark humor in the anthology format remind me of Tales from the Crypt and Creepshow, with Bill Burr as the Cryptkeeper.
I was wondering if other works have inspired or influenced you along the way?
(And little late to the ama I guess, but given the opportunity I just want to say it's the best thing I've seen in a while)

Thanks so much! The Cryptkeeper was definitely discussed during the development of this show. I thought it would be funny to just have a version of Rod Serling from The Twilight Zone that was jaded and unreliable.

Inspirations: Coen Bros, Black Mirror, Roy Andersson movies, Four Lions (funniest movie I've ever seen), Martin McDonagh, Nathan for You, that's all I got right now.

What would you say makes your shorts more interesting than these shorts?

absolutely nothing.

Is Bill Burr as awesome in real life as he seems on his podcast?

Please say yes.

Yes.

Oh god now I'm worried I forced that out of you.

Was he actually? :D

no no no. No Burr slander is tolerated here, he's the best. Same guy from the podcast with an even better heart.

Great show!! What actor or actress do you think was the perfect fit for their role in one of your sketches?

We got some insane talent for the show. It was crazy to have these actors that I've watched my whole life come in and make our dumb jokes way funnier. Someone that caught me off guard though was Kurt Fuller. He played the priest in episode 2 opposite Sarah Burns (who was also killer). As an older guy who's worked with a ton of serious filmmakers in his career, I didn't expect him to come in and have so much fun with us.

Can I be on your show? I don’t want to toot my own horn but uh, some call me the second coming of Carrot Top so, like, toot toot, yeah, got that going for me, which is nice. Where do I audition?!

If you were the first coming of Carrot Top this would be a different story.

I just discovered you, your channel, and your new show all thanks to this AMA. The system works. I've watched multiple shorts already and have to say these clips touch me in places I haven't been touched in since my grandfather passed away.

With everyone in the world being offended by everything, I'm jelly of your ability to just say fuck it and do what makes you laugh and what you love. I like you, and I also hate you.deep in the penis hate you because of thr jealousy.

So my question is, has it been difficult dealing with any backlash or disconnect from family? Any big disagreements about these thoughts you have in your mind that make it to video?

Glad to hear your grandfather is dead. Anyway, my family still loves me even though they think I’m weird and disturbing sometimes. I think

You still like Arcade Fire?

Of course, who’s asking?

I think that I heard you on Bills podcast!! I didn’t pick up that I could just watch it on the computer, that’s cool! I love Bill so I’ll give it a go :) my question for you- what’s the best story you have from working with all the comedic gems you were able to cast? Since the show was originally made for Quibi is it all shot vertical?? Please say no.

The version on Roku is not vertical!!! We had to deliver both for horizontal and vertical for Quibi. No further comment

I love your work, and Immoral Compass is fantastic. I'm really hoping this leads to more for you because I love how the stores are directed and shot. You show more than tell and it makes it way more interesting and hilarious. If you had to choose one car to drive for rest of your life, what would it be?

Thanks so much for the compliment, but I don’t know shit about cars. 2007 Toyota Sienna.

What's up fool 👍🏽 I've watched the trailer and going to watch the show soon. What's the best thing about working with Bill Burr? Funnest experience on set? How long had you been working on the show before it got "on air"?

The best thing about working with Bill, other than getting to watch him perform, is how supportive he is. He produced the show as well, and always had our backs when we came up against a problem. Funniest experience on set for me, by far, was watching Vince Vaughn and Bobby Lee struggle to get through a scene while cracking up.

And we pitched the show in 2019, if that answers your question.

Hey Tyler, congratulations on the release! I binge watched the entire season, and then forced my girlfriend to binge it with me the next day. Bill's bits were hysterical, and I was super excited to see Vince and Bobby on the show too. Great work!

My question for you would be, are there any plans for a season 2? Also: please tell me you broke Bill's balls about that God awful hair plug, lol.

Thank you for doing this AMA, best of luck to you in your film career!

Thanks so much for subjecting your girlfriend to the show. It was Bill’s idea for the hair plugs, but I was 100% behind how terrible they looked. Our makeup artist who applied it, Lawrence Mercado, did such a good job the network thought they were real and wanted to airbrush them.

Congrats on the Bill Burr partnership! He’s definitely one of my top 3 comedian greats! Did he give you any advice that will stick with you?

He's the best. The first network we pitched the show to wanted to change the idea a bit, and I went with it in the room. When we walked out, he was like "Don't ever fucking do that. It's not your fault their shitty network sucks." In layman's terms "Stay true to your vision."

Whats a roku?

It’s like a Quibi but still alive.

What other things are you also working on? I'll be on the lookout. Thank you for making this awesome series. The Autopsy was brilliant. Along with all the others. Keep doing what you do. Cheers

I’m working on writing a few things right now, trying to figure out the next thing. Season 2 would be nice….

How difficult was it to shoot during the pandemic? Was it challenging to get production off the ground due to all the regulations?

Fucking wild. Testing 4 times a week and face masks and shields all day. Pretty sure half the cast wouldn’t recognize me if I saw them in public. That being said, no one got the vid.

How excited are you? Is this your end game or just a side quest?

I’m dead inside so I’m not quite sure how to answer that.

I've heard a lot of comedians have depression, how are you doing mentally now that things have taken off? How are you handling the extra stress if there is any? Hope all is well. Love your work by the way.

Oh I'm fine. I'm not a comedian and things haven't taken off. Get everyone to stream the show so I have to go to therapy.

Were there added stresses going from making youtube videos to working with Bill? I think I would have turned into a complete mess. How many more videos will you be making with him?

To be honest, not really. Of course I was a little nervous to work with big talent, but guys like Bill actually make my job easier. He crushed it, and our show has a much bigger budget than our $0 shorts. We actually got to hire people that knew what they were doing to help us.

Anyone else having problems getting this to play on their phone? I’ve used chrome and safari and neither one plays for me.

Godammit Roku.

How is Bill off camera?

A lot like Bill on camera.

Just watched it all today actually- funny to see this AMA.

If I had to ask a question, which skit was your favorite? I think mine would be these three, the stalker, the priest and the first one about the loving husband.

I’m not telling my favorite, but I like your choices you sick fuck.

How is Bobby Lee in real life? He's one of my favorite comedians and podcasters and seems to really be hitting his stride lately in comedy and acting. I love how open and honest he is about things and his sense of humor really gets me so I was curious if you got to hang out with him!

Super professional and completely delivered! I really appreciated that, he easily could've fucked around with no consequences, Bobby and Vince are legends. The shooting schedule was really tight so we didn't really shoot the shit much, but he was hilarious on and off camera between takes.

Big fan of your work, Congrats on your new series! This is some of your best work, love the ideas and editing.

In your podcast you said you shot 20 episodes however only 10 aired. What are you going to do with the other 10 that weren't released? Will they be released on Roku or on your YouTube channel?

I fucked up i guess. We shot 20 sketches, not episodes. They’re all in there. Oops

So crazy I just saw Burr’s post on IG about this! What advice do you have for an actor/comedian/writer/whatever else, who is new and trying to find their way?

I stopped trying to make what was popular and started making what I personally thought was funny or interesting. Throughout film school I wanted to be Scorsese or Paul Thomas Anderson, but when I accepted I was never gonna be those guys, it allowed me to actually be myself and do what I’m good at. Fuck, Boogie Nights is so good though.

How did you manage to get started? I mean those first little hurdles, like being able to get a production budget together, and a team that was able to help make those early videos?

I guess my follow up question is how did you then make the transition to getting Bill Burr's help?

I went to film school at UCF in Orlando. I met a bunch of talented people there, my DP Neil Odonoghue and Gaffer Mike Collins (that actually ended up working on Immoral Compass). After school we all got jobs but still wanted to make our own stuff. On the weekends we made short films with whatever equipment we could find. I’ve known my friend Eric Vega (who wrote on Immoral) since middle school and he starred in most of them I don’t think I ever spent more that $600 on a video. Then when I was 24 I wrote a feature and shot it with my friends in my mom’s house. I got a handful of gigs directing since then, and in 2019 I pitched this show based on my shorts. Bill saw them, was interested, and we put this thing together and sold it. The way I got connected to Bill was through my management and a production company, but it was really based on the YouTube videos. I never met Bill until our first network pitch actually. Was quite a rollercoaster tbh.

I’d imagine he got started making videos solo/with few people that had very low/no budget. This is based on me trying to get started making my own shorts, and all the advice I’m seeing says “Fuck all that shit, get your phone which has a good enough camera in it, and make something. Doesn’t matter if it’s trash, just make it.”

Then again I’m just an amateur and know basically nothing about this stuff, so I’m probably wrong. Just trying to share the little knowledge I have

Basically.

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Find talented friends to help you, then make a bunch for no money. Once you find your groove, then start putting your money into it (but still not much). Most of my shorts on YouTube were made for hundreds of dollars, not thousands.

What do you do when you become creatively exhausted?

I am just getting started in making my own short films (have a few comedic shorts in mind, but also want to make some more dramatic ones). I am writing out breakdowns of each short, and it takes a lot out of me. I find after writing out one or two I want to take a break for like 70 years lol

I feel like that every day. It’s brutal. I’ve been working on an idea since February and I can’t crack it. I think you have to accept that it’s not supposed to be fun, it’s supposed to be fulfilling. Those are 2 different things and should be treated as such.

It's been 5 years?? Where does time go? I've been subscribed since I saw you on Reddit and watch everything you release.

But time makes you bolder, Even children get older, And I'm getting older too…

I watched all of it last night and it was fantastic. Every part was so well connected to the main story and absolutely hilarious.

Did you write the majority of the sketches?

Thanks so much! Nah, just around half. And even then, got some great notes and punch ups from the writers on the show.

Do they all involve poop?

I wish

What was it like working with Billy Blue Balls Burr??

Like going to work with your cool uncle.

Am I seriously the only one who read the title and was thinking shorts as in the clothing item?

Nah you're like the 3rd person to comment that. You're not special.

Well maybe not for that.

Good point. I don't know what you're capable of.

Why did you chose “roku”? It never made sense to me why someone would put a bunch of work into something they’re passionate about and then just sell it to a piece of shit unheard of network that butchers the release, sets the show up for failure and only even tried to get streams from a single country.

Edit: can’t reply to your reply but fair enough. I’ll keep an eye out for a re-release that I can watch from outside of America.

I didn’t choose the Roku life, the Roku life chose me.

13 videos over 7 years? I need more, they are all so good.

Watch the show then dummy!!

Is it ok if I can’t think of a question but just wanted to say congrats?

No. Come back with a better question.

Al Madrigal, he insisted on his casting in the doctor skit didn’t he? Damn it Al, you are the greatest.

Al was way too good for how dumb that idea was. He turned it into possibly my favorite sketch of the season.

How fucking crazy is it to think back 5 years and think how you had no idea you'd be working with these amazing comedians?

I’d be more surprised if I didn’t sacrifice those lambs to the dark lord exactly 5 years ago today

I'm currently creating shorts and sketches and am always wary of self-promotion on reddit. Did you share your content on r/videos yourself or did someone else?

Any advice on getting your work out there?

This is probably the toughest question in the ama. Of course you want your stuff to get out there but you don’t want to look like an asshole shoving it in peoples faces. I even cringed a little at the idea of doing this ama. All the stuff of mine that got to the front page was posted by someone else, but I tried to get it into the best position possible by uploading in the early morning, giving it a unique title and screenshot, etc. There’s definitely a way to walk the line without being a self promoting dickwad.

Do you know who Max Forest is on YouTube? Seems you two have similar styles in dark comedy.

Nope, but I just watched Don’t talk to strangers. He’s a wild boy.

Why have I never heard of this before? It looks great.

Lack of paid promotion is my guess

Just watched all of these in one go last night and they were incredible! I think that the short anthology format was perfect, it really trimmed all the fat off the jokes and made them feel punchier in a brevity is the soul of wit type of way. I have never seen a format like this before. Was the short anthology format always your intention or was in a necessity? If it was intentional did you did any pressure to change the format to something more traditional?

This was always the intention! It’s just what the idea always has been. There was a little pressure to get a recurring cast, but I don’t think it would work the same.

Did you do anything on your pants or just shorts?

No one likes my pants

Big fan of your work, Congrats on your new series! This is some of your best work, love the ideas and editing.

In your podcast you said you shot 20 episodes however only 10 aired. What are you going to do with the other 10 that weren't released? Will they be released on Roku or on your YouTube channel?

We shot 20 sketches!! Not episodes. Did I fuck that up or did you?

Hey, I remember you. Weren't you ripped off by that one hack female "comedian" youtuber scene for scene? I'm referring to this vid

Oh hey! Yeah that’s me.

Are you my boy?

You’re mine.

If you could get canceled by any white woman, who would it be?

Helen Keller would be interesting

Ubisoft goes Steamworks bye bye, always on DRM?

yes. that.