working title:

Like And Subscribe (Competition)

Two channels, 10,000 subscribers, 1 winner

⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯

Genre: Lifestyle / Documentary

Project Greenlight meets Kenny vs. Spenny
Runtime: 16 x 22 Minutes
Production Company: Fieldwork

EP’s: Ben Rayner & Ian Carleton

Log Line.

Two commercial filmmakers break away from their constraining day jobs and enter into a competition for creative freedom in the Wild West of YouTube. Follow Ian & Ben as they learn from industry experts and stumble through the successes and failures of a do-or-die challenge to see who will be the first to build a 10 000 subscriber channel.

Concept.

Ben and Ian are independent Canadian filmmakers. Their forunate careers have yielded some incredible opportunities and experiences, but together they feel as if something is still missing.
After a decade of working in the industry, it feels as if they are both still just starting, and now they want to take control.
In a world of clients and grants, bosses and products, cheap commercials, and compromised creative, it will take a drastic change in direction to finally make the content true to their voice. That change in direction needs a home, a platform, and an audience. That change in direction needs to succeed.
YouTube is the home to an astounding 700,000 hours of new content every day. In a sea of guilty pleasure, fail compilations, repackaged late-night clips, and cat tributes, there are also content creators producing some of the highest form of art and entertainment of this generation. These content creators have the freedom to express their voices on their terms, and they get paid doing it ... but how did they arrive at this place of success?
*Like and Subscribe* explores the universe of YouTube and the path to the powerful leverage of community building through the eyes of two filmmakers as they compete to see who can build the largest subscriber base in 16 weeks.
The show follows Ian and Ben, as they investigate the culture of YouTube through interviewing industry experts, influencers, and platform advertisers as they themselves strive for subscriber success.
Each episode features the hosts creating a YouTube video about a topic they are given.
Additional to the subject matter, they must also incorporate one piece of platform advice, learned through industry interviews from a seasoned veteran of the content creation world.
Ian and Ben race to meet the gruelling upload schedule as they strive to make content, now not only in their vision but in the vision of the YouTube algorithm.
After each upload, the greatest number of subscribers gained will determine the weekly winner, but the ultimate victor will be the channel that can get closest to 10,000 subscribers at the end of the 16-week race.
The winning channel will take home all of the glory, and a well-earned fully paid vacation.

Episode Arc.

**Opening & Recap**
An episode of *Like and Subscribe* begins with a recap of where each channel is presently at from the perspective of subscriber count, and growth from the previous release. These metrics are visualized in different poetic, analog formats throughout the season. For example, in one episode the hosts may present the channel growth by a glass of water being poured from a jug. The next week they may show the growth by stacking camera batteries in two competing towers, or by animating an increasing number on the “Take” count of a film slate.
Ian and Ben then break down and discuss how the expert advice from the previous week’s video performed and whether or not they would reapply the same idea in the future.
The current week-by-week leader board is then recapped with the standing winner from the following week, as well as the overall leader in the 16-week race.
The stakes are set for this episode with the leader predicting how much growth they are expecting, and the runner up explaining how far they need to travel to make up the difference.

**Treatment Creation**
**Topic selection:**
The current week’s video creation begins by pulling a subject at random from a series of pre-determined conceptual topics.
**Independent work:**
Once the week's theme is introduced, the hosts separate and start working on their independently produced video creation by brainstorming an idea that they each want to make that week.
These ideas are abstractly introduced by a series of fun stylized sequences. The way a concept is created may also be visualized through lighthearted reenactments of how the concept came to mind.
For example, while walking through the park pitching ideas to each other, Ian suggests, to camera, a video idea about dogs having momentary “shower thoughts”. He describes coming upon this concept one afternoon when he caught his family dog staring at a painting of a dog in his home, and wondered what was going on. The audience then sees a reenactment of Ian… staring at his dog… who is staring at a painting of a dog. These comedy beats will be quick, cut-away scripted moments that will help visualize the process surrounding video concept creation.
Secondary research is presented through further discussions and reference videos, then the episode’s treatment is drafted.

**Treatment read to camera:**
The section is wrapped up with a rough treatment outlined directly to camera by each creator for their video of the week.

**Expert Interview:**
The hosts then embark on an interview with an industry expert.
These experts speak broadly about the history of the platform, as well as a specific key tenet to a channel’s success, from their professional position. The hosts gain insight through the advice of the expert while acknowledging that each piece of advice does not fit all types of content.
Ian and Ben now take the learned tenet and apply it to a re-imagined creative, from their previously created video treatments.
Example:
YouTube channel collaborations. Ian takes the comedy dog script and approaches a successful dog training influencer and asks them to participate in the video as scripted characters.
**Video Production:**
The “behind the scenes” of each video as well as the ongoing challenges of video production introduces natural conflict, drama, and comedy beats as the two race to hit publish by their deadline.
**Review of work:**
A highlight look at the final products shows off snippets of each host’s video.
Ian & Ben return one week later to reveal whose video has gained the most subscribers and ultimately wins that week's competition.
They dig into the analytics of each video and discuss what was learned while talking about things to look forward to and things to dread in the next challenge ahead.

Style.

Like and Subscribe is presented in a hybrid first-person doc-u-style format.

The backbone of the show is a modern YouTuber approach to television, putting the audience inside the experience, with Ian & Ben often holding cameras while working through the narrative beats of the show.

In scripted and interview settings the format shifts to a traditional style of cinematic lifestyle or high-end doc content.

The collage of formats intends to create a contemporary approach to documentary television where the intimacy of first-person camera work is supported by the beauty of traditional high-end documentary filmmaking. The format welcomes the audience behind the scenes of the conception and construction of content that will ultimately result in each week's YouTube video.

Episode Breakdown.

A conversational recap of where Ian and Ben are in their journey of their YouTube Channel, and who is currently holding leading the race.
This includes a visualization (which changes each week) of where the channel currently is at in subscriber count, and how much it has grown since last week’s video release.
An example of the visualization could be coffee beans added to a grinder. Are there enough grinds to make this week’s coffee?
(1 minute )
This discussion includes quick cut away’s of last week’s video production key moments, while the guys narrate the high and low moments, and how it may relate to the week’s subscriber count growth (or lack thereof)
(1 minute)
A brainstorming session which includes, pitching ideas between the guys in a series of fun sequences and scripted cutaways.
This is a high-paced, condensed version of idea creation.
(4 minutes)
Experts ranging in experience and insight will be tapped to offer a key tenet for each episode. This interview format is produced in a traditional doc-style interview look.
(4 minutes)
The boys discuss other examples that presently exist which can inform their video’s creative. This will help to influence the look and approach for this week’s video.
(1 Minutes )
Ian and Ben discuss and plan how best to incorporate the newly learned YouTube tenet offered by the expert.
This lively debate results in a creative re-approach, which ultimately forms the final creative for this week’s video.
(3 minutes)
Ian and Ben move into production. The pitfalls, unforeseen issues, momentary inspiration, and ultimately execution of their individual scripted vision are all captured in a behind-the-scenes look at the making of this week’s YouTube video.
(4 minutes)
A highlight look at both final products of the YouTube uploads for the week.
(3 minutes)
After a week of video performance, A weekly winner will be announced based on the increase in subscribers gained by each channel.
(1 minutes)