Episode 28. Broey Deschanel

The Video Essay Podcast

Today's episode features an interview with Maia, the YouTuber known as Broey Deschanel. Today's topics include Maia's introduction to video essays, her creative process, why YouTube is currently in a "magic moment" of virality, censorship and the YouTube algorithm, how and why to cite the work of other video essayists, why humor is funny, and much more. We also discuss Maia's video "The Liberal Escapism of Bridgerton" and BREADSWORD's 2017 video, "Treasure Planet - Disney's Biggest Mistake."

1. Maia's "origin story" and early influences, why YouTube?, the accessibility of YouTube, why it's the best time to go viral on YouTube [1:39 - 8:01]

2. The YouTube algorithm, what it censors, and how to navigate copyright, the art of the thumbnail, best practices for titling a video [8:01 - 19:46]

3. How and why to cite other video essayists and the way Maia cites and builds upon her own past work [19:47 - 27:04]

4. "The Liberal Escapism of Bridgerton," when and why Maia appears on camera, balancing the correct number of sources, humor and not taking oneself too seriously [27:04 - 48:31]

5. "Treasure Planet - Disney's Biggest Mistake," the art of sourcing and sequencing clips, how Maia writes her scripts, using active language in voiceover, why the video essay? [48:31 - end]

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