Sam Baron
Encyclopedia
Sam Baron is a comedian and film-maker from Cambridge, England.
His first feature film, Can You Survive a Week in Paradise?, was screened at the Cambridge Arts Picture House in 2004. In December of that year, his documentary Family Rights Group was screened at the Barbican Cinema
in London
, presented by Ken Loach
. He was also featured very briefly in the documentary They Made Me Do It Too: The Cult of Donnie Darko on the Director's Cut DVD of the film Donnie Darko
(2001).
Throughout his teenage years, he directed over 200 short films, often with collaborator Raphael von Blumenthal. With the advent of YouTube
came some recognition from a larger audience, and he moved into developing webisodes for several shows which eventually evolved into television pilots.
The pair are currently writing a feature film. They have a website where their short films and TV shows are available to download.
rap video "Lazy Sunday
" which became successful on the internet. It received praise from SNL writer Jorma Taccone
and "Lazy Monday" creators Mark Feuerstein
and Sam Friedlander, and a clip from the video was featured on CNN
. Later that year, the duo performed the song live on the BBC
show Let Me Entertain You
.
In 2007 they were commissioned by MTV
to create an awareness video about
global warming for the MTV
Switch campaign. The video, produced by Mark
Whelan and Cake Group Ltd., was shown around the world Al Gore
’s Live Earth
events in 2007, and screened on MTV
worldwide. The video, a rap about climate change, also
became a popular viral video on the internet.
Their 2008 video 'I LIK CHIN' spawned a spin-off website iLikChin.com, a User-generated content
site about "the olympic sport of chin-licking".
students who get themselves into wacky adventures to distract themselves from their depressingly comfortable middle-class suburban lives. It was vaguely popular on the internet video website YouTube
but was never developed into a full series. The entire cast and crew have subsequently disowned the pilot, with Baron choosing to euphemistically call it a "learning experience".
The second show, entitled Lemon Party, was a surreal comedy sketch show starring the two creators in every single role. The show also gained a large following on the internet and was picked up by the UK
television network Trouble, where the individual sketches were screened as part of another show, MyTV: Homegrown. The pair were also invited to host two episodes of that show, performing
original material written for the occasions. The first version of the hour-long Christmas Special they presented was decided to be too controversial and was subsequently banned. Their entire work had to be entirely re-written and re-shot at last minute, to comply with the channel's broadcast standards.
The third television pilot is 2008's House of the Rising Egos, co-created by the pair with comedian Jack Miller. They describe the show as an "anti-sitcom", a fake documentary about four university students who move into their first house together. In the show, the characters find that the dream of living with your best friends soon gets overshadowed by the minutiae of chores left undone, and in the vein of Seinfeld
and Peep Show
before it, it’s life's little foibles which test the strength of life-long friendships. The sitcom pilot, in which Baron plays ‘Sam’, von Blumenthal plays ‘Raph’ and Miller plays ‘Jack’, started off as a web-series, with short webisodes on YouTube
. But when these also became popular, the decision was made to create a TV pilot for the show.
on 2 January 2009 in the final episode of the series 'Pilots That Never Flew'.
The trio also host a weekly show on UCL
's Rare FM
radio station. However, in their own words, the show is "a hit-and-miss affair, with little to no continuity on a week to week basis - often the show is just really quite bad."
, and he is a first cousin once removed of Sacha
and Erran Baron Cohen
.
His first feature film, Can You Survive a Week in Paradise?, was screened at the Cambridge Arts Picture House in 2004. In December of that year, his documentary Family Rights Group was screened at the Barbican Cinema
Barbican Centre
The Barbican Centre is the largest performing arts centre in Europe. Located in the City of London, England, the Centre hosts classical and contemporary music concerts, theatre performances, film screenings and art exhibitions. It also houses a library, three restaurants, and a conservatory...
in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, presented by Ken Loach
Ken Loach
Kenneth "Ken" Loach is a Palme D'Or winning English film and television director.He is known for his naturalistic, social realist directing style and for his socialist beliefs, which are evident in his film treatment of social issues such as homelessness , labour rights and child abuse at the...
. He was also featured very briefly in the documentary They Made Me Do It Too: The Cult of Donnie Darko on the Director's Cut DVD of the film Donnie Darko
Donnie Darko
Donnie Darko is a 2001 American psychological thriller film written and directed by Richard Kelly and starring Jake Gyllenhaal, Drew Barrymore, Patrick Swayze, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Noah Wyle, Jena Malone, and Mary McDonnell...
(2001).
Throughout his teenage years, he directed over 200 short films, often with collaborator Raphael von Blumenthal. With the advent of YouTube
YouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
came some recognition from a larger audience, and he moved into developing webisodes for several shows which eventually evolved into television pilots.
The pair are currently writing a feature film. They have a website where their short films and TV shows are available to download.
Internet Videos
In March 2006 he co-wrote and starred in a UK response to the Saturday Night LiveSaturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live is a live American late-night television sketch comedy and variety show developed by Lorne Michaels and Dick Ebersol. The show premiered on NBC on October 11, 1975, under the original title of NBC's Saturday Night.The show's sketches often parody contemporary American culture...
rap video "Lazy Sunday
Lazy Sunday
"Lazy Sunday" is a song and short video by American comedy troupe The Lonely Island, released on December 17, 2005, broadcast on Saturday Night Live as the second Digital Short...
" which became successful on the internet. It received praise from SNL writer Jorma Taccone
Jorma Taccone
Jorma Christopher Taccone is an American comedy writer-actor-director. Taccone is one third of the sketch comedy troupe The Lonely Island along with childhood friends Andy Samberg and Akiva Schaffer...
and "Lazy Monday" creators Mark Feuerstein
Mark Feuerstein
-Career:Feuerstein got his break-through on television as a recurring character on the daytime soap opera Loving. When director Nancy Meyers was casting What Women Want, her daughter recognized Feuerstein from Practical Magic and insisted that her mother cast him...
and Sam Friedlander, and a clip from the video was featured on CNN
CNN
Cable News Network is a U.S. cable news channel founded in 1980 by Ted Turner. Upon its launch, CNN was the first channel to provide 24-hour television news coverage, and the first all-news television channel in the United States...
. Later that year, the duo performed the song live on the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
show Let Me Entertain You
Let Me Entertain You (TV series)
Let Me Entertain You was a daytime variety show that aired on BBC Two from 21 August 2006 and ended on 22 June 2007. The show is presented by British funnyman, Brian Conley, with co-presenter Christine Bleakley.-Format:...
.
In 2007 they were commissioned by MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
to create an awareness video about
global warming for the MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
Switch campaign. The video, produced by Mark
Whelan and Cake Group Ltd., was shown around the world Al Gore
Al Gore
Albert Arnold "Al" Gore, Jr. served as the 45th Vice President of the United States , under President Bill Clinton. He was the Democratic Party's nominee for President in the 2000 U.S. presidential election....
’s Live Earth
Live Earth
-Background:Founded by Emmy-winning producer Kevin Wall, in partnership with former U.S. Vice President Al Gore, Live Earth was built upon the belief that entertainment has the power to transcend social and cultural barriers to move the world community to action...
events in 2007, and screened on MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
worldwide. The video, a rap about climate change, also
became a popular viral video on the internet.
Their 2008 video 'I LIK CHIN' spawned a spin-off website iLikChin.com, a User-generated content
User-generated content
User generated content covers a range of media content available in a range of modern communications technologies. It entered mainstream usage during 2005 having arisen in web publishing and new media content production circles...
site about "the olympic sport of chin-licking".
Television Shows
Since then he has created and produced three pilots for television series' with Raphael von Blumenthal. The first show, entitled Tom's Life, was a sitcom about high-schoolstudents who get themselves into wacky adventures to distract themselves from their depressingly comfortable middle-class suburban lives. It was vaguely popular on the internet video website YouTube
YouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
but was never developed into a full series. The entire cast and crew have subsequently disowned the pilot, with Baron choosing to euphemistically call it a "learning experience".
The second show, entitled Lemon Party, was a surreal comedy sketch show starring the two creators in every single role. The show also gained a large following on the internet and was picked up by the UK
television network Trouble, where the individual sketches were screened as part of another show, MyTV: Homegrown. The pair were also invited to host two episodes of that show, performing
original material written for the occasions. The first version of the hour-long Christmas Special they presented was decided to be too controversial and was subsequently banned. Their entire work had to be entirely re-written and re-shot at last minute, to comply with the channel's broadcast standards.
The third television pilot is 2008's House of the Rising Egos, co-created by the pair with comedian Jack Miller. They describe the show as an "anti-sitcom", a fake documentary about four university students who move into their first house together. In the show, the characters find that the dream of living with your best friends soon gets overshadowed by the minutiae of chores left undone, and in the vein of Seinfeld
Seinfeld
Seinfeld is an American television sitcom that originally aired on NBC from July 5, 1989, to May 14, 1998, lasting nine seasons, and is now in syndication. It was created by Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld, the latter starring as a fictionalized version of himself...
and Peep Show
Peep Show (TV series)
Peep Show is a British sitcom starring David Mitchell and Robert Webb. The television programme is written by Jesse Armstrong and Sam Bain, with additional material by Mitchell and Webb themselves, amongst others. It has been broadcast on Channel 4 since 2003. The show's seventh series makes it...
before it, it’s life's little foibles which test the strength of life-long friendships. The sitcom pilot, in which Baron plays ‘Sam’, von Blumenthal plays ‘Raph’ and Miller plays ‘Jack’, started off as a web-series, with short webisodes on YouTube
YouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
. But when these also became popular, the decision was made to create a TV pilot for the show.
Radio Shows
With Raphael von Blumenthal and Jack Miller, Baron created a radio pilot "Welcome To Tuesday". Although it was not developed into a full series, it was aired on BBC Radio 4BBC Radio 4
BBC Radio 4 is a British domestic radio station, operated and owned by the BBC, that broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history. It replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. The station controller is currently Gwyneth Williams, and the...
on 2 January 2009 in the final episode of the series 'Pilots That Never Flew'.
The trio also host a weekly show on UCL
University College London
University College London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom and the oldest and largest constituent college of the federal University of London...
's Rare FM
Rare FM
Rare FM is the student-run radio station of UCL. The current station manager is Tom Riste-Smith.-Background:Rare FM was set up in 1998 as an affiliated society of UCL Union, headed at that time by Ed Jackson...
radio station. However, in their own words, the show is "a hit-and-miss affair, with little to no continuity on a week to week basis - often the show is just really quite bad."
Personal life
His father is Simon Baron-CohenSimon Baron-Cohen
Simon Baron-Cohen FBA is professor of Developmental Psychopathology in the Departments of Psychiatry and Experimental Psychology at the University of Cambridge in the United Kingdom. He is the Director of the University's Autism Research Centre, and a Fellow of Trinity College...
, and he is a first cousin once removed of Sacha
Sacha Baron Cohen
Sacha Noam Baron Cohen is an English stand-up comedian, actor, writer, and voice artist. He is most widely known for his portrayal of three unorthodox fictional characters: Ali G, Borat, and Brüno...
and Erran Baron Cohen
Erran Baron Cohen
Erran Boaz Baron Cohen is a British composer and trumpet player. He is the brother of the actor Sacha Baron Cohen.-Work:...
.