September production diary: my #bossbabe era

Hey folks!! I'm writing to you from one of the busiest months of my life, but one that's been completely invigorating so far. I'll start with the most imminent project:

2010s Pop Feminism: A Painful Look Back

Oh dear.

My new video on the legacy of the pop feminist era is closer than ever. It's now written, filmed, and halfway to being edited. This is the longest video I've ever made, clocking in at around 75 minutes, because it's basically two full-length videos in a trench coat:

Part 1, THE KING'S HAIRCUT (seen above), looks at the ideas and tactics that led feminism to absolutely blow up from 2012 to 2016, reaching unprecedented audiences and making gender equality feel inevitable.

Part 2, NEVERTHELESS, SHE PERSISTED (seen below), unpacks why the movement, despite all its momentum, fizzled out without ever delivering the changes it promised. Finally, I outline the vision for feminism in the 2020s; a feminism that's similarly appealing, but much better-equipped to get shit done.

The Fleabag at home:

I've realized there's a chance this video becomes the definitive retrospective on the movement – I mean, probably not, but I'm treating it like it could be. Trying to learn from my mistakes here: since I didn't anticipate Millions of Dead Genders to succeed in 2021, I was sloppier than I should've been with analysis/phrasing, which turned out to be a problem when that video became the go-to explainer on MOGAI.

This video has taken an extra level of care & polish that's really only possible because of y'all supporting me on here. The influx of patrons from my last upload gave me the opportunity to hire a script editor and, for the first time, rent a studio space to film in! It was awesome, and I hope you'll see your support going to good use.

The video will premiere on September 20th, but an early cut will go up here a good while sooner. Beyond hyped to share :)

Ooh, she’s above-the-line

Some exciting personal news: I’ve been hired as the associate producer for an ambitious podcast that’s being developed at HotDocs. It's a totally new role for me, one that's already teaching & challenging me in unexpected ways. (This is a polite way to say that 90% of my job so far is making phone calls to strangers. Agony!!)

Though there's no guarantee that we get picked up for a full season, I really believe in this project. We're recording our pilot in a few days, and I'll let you know how it went!

100k festivities

My YouTube channel is nearing the 100 000 subscriber threshold, a full eleven years after I started posting videos to the platform. We're in the medium leagues now, and I want to celebrate!!

• I'll be receiving a Silver Play Button soon, and I want to put it somewhere really silly, but I can't decide where. Sound off in the comments, and I'll add your suggestions to a patrons-only poll!
• In early October, Vic and I will be hosting a celebratory livestream where we'll bake ourselves a self-congratulatory cake and answer questions from the live chat. It's not guaranteed I'll hit 100k by that point, but we'll do the stream regardless, because it's almost funnier if we haven't?

Okay, back to the editing cave for the next 10 days. Be well!!