How to Bullsh*t Your Way To Number 1
Lucerna Great Hall
What's the secret to creating fun content that spreads across the internet like wildfire? Oobah Butler of VICE deconstructs what makes a story go viral. Using examples like his own work with The Shed and the other two films he made in 2018, which were viewed by 160m people, we’ll learn how he developed compelling narratives with the perfect balance of irreverence and insight to make an impact in the internet era.
Oobah Butler
Filmmaker and writer
Oobah Butler is an award-winning filmmaker, writer and speaker. In 2018 alone, he made three films that were viral sensations, tallying up almost 160m views to-date. His debut book 'How To Bullsh*t Your Way To Number 1’ recently became a #1 best-seller on USA Today after its April 23rd 2019 release. Alongside the TV, radio and magazine interviews worldwide on NPR, Canal Plus, Politiken and more supporting the book, he has recently been interviewed in the New Yorker and endorsed by individuals such as Turner Prize-winning artist Grayson Perry, WIRED Editor Nicholas Thompson and scores of other world-renowned journalists. For the most part, his work uses comedy and absurdity to comment on the modern era. For example, after releasing his recent stunning film and article in which he made the shed he lives in TripAdvisor's top-rated restaurant in London, Oobah dominated headlines globally in the climate of ‘fake news’, being interviewed on television stations all over the world. Singaporean parliament used his work as an example to inform new laws on fake news; The Washington Post penned a feature about his work. The likes of The Guardian and The New Yorker referenced it as a critique of online reviewing culture, while it was endorsed by the likes of NOMA chef René Redzepi and Observer food critic Jay Rayner. In short, Oobah’s work inspires mass conversation because it is smart, divisive and devilishly entertaining. Over the past 18 months, he's received four awards for his work; Webbys 2019 award for ‘Video: Weird’; Content Creator of the Year at the Online Media Awards, Video Project of the Year at the British Media Awards and Best Content Idea - Digital 2018 at the British Society of Magazine Editors Talent Awards. Whether it’s swindling his way as a fake jeans designer, Georgio Peviani, to the top of Paris Fashion Week or letting his Instagram followers vote on every decision he made for a day and thusly ending up 250 miles from his home, his ambition is to explore different worlds in an interesting, contemporary way.