I just recently completed work on Xfinity’s first-ever original web series Glued, a six 4-minute episode comedy about a couple who become obsessed with a new hit TV show (which essentially serves as the series’ MacGuffin). Played by real-life husband and wife John Ross Bowie (The Big Bang Theory) and Jamie Denbo (Orange is the New Black), their obsession with the show escalates over the course of the series, leading to everything from binge watching to a complete decline in their ability to deal with everyday life as all they are interested in is how and when they can watch the next episode. Hilarity ensues!
The show was created by the ridiculously talented Sharon Horgan, who penned and starred alongside Rob Delaney in the Amazon series Catastrophe, with Droga5 in association with Merman X Pulse Films. I think the agency recognized Sharon as the choice pick as she is a master of acerbic wit and observational comedy.
I was fortunate enough to be drafted in from the UK to work with Droga5 and edit out of Final Cut’s New York offices as I’d cut both seasons of Catastrophe with Sharon and have a knowledge of both commercial editing alongside long form which I hope proved helpful in crafting this hybrid series.
The main challenge was to make sure each episode was pacy, entertaining, and not too hard of a sell. Something quick, digestible, that an online audience would be drawn to, and also binge-worthy in itself, drawing a parallel to the fictional show that drives the comedy.
Strung together, the six episode series plays out like a full TV episode with a concise comic story arc.
The team on the job was awesome! It was a dream come true to work with Merman X Pulse Films director John Riggi (30 Rock, The Larry Sanders Show). The immensely talented team at Droga5 was great to work with - they helped to push the edits to the Nth degree and made them truly sing. And of course, my team at Final Cut New York - Stephanie Apt, Sarah Roebuck, Jen Sienkwicz, Spencer Campbell, Daniel Walker, T. Terressa Tate, Phil Brooks at Significant Others and the rest - were a pleasure to work with (and even more fun to do Karaoke with). I cannot thank them enough. All in all, a fantastic experience and I cannot wait to work across the pond again soon.
Xfinity’s Glued is available to watch now on YouTube and on their On-Demand service.
Click here for an installment of Glued.