When I was in my second year of high school, I decided I’d take a break from trying to become an author. I decided I wanted a new avenue for telling stories. I realized that I wanted to make YouTube videos.
I got a camera and bought some editing software. I made a few videos sporadically over the following months. Every single one of them looked horrendous, were hard to hear and were edited incredibly poorly. They also focused on some pretty crass topics, most often toilet humor.
The following year, at the age of 15, I decided to take this seriously, and actually give it my all. I got an iPod Touch for Christmas and started shooting videos with it, learning how to frame shots well and take advantage of different lighting. Using a mixture of Power Point and iMovie I also learned how to cut footage precisely and add in all manner of effects. For the most part I produced corny comedic shorts like this…
I mean yeah it was still pretty rubbish, but I was proud of it at the time. I posted other things too, like; Let’s Play’s, Gaming News and Vlog’s about more serious topics like bullying. I got pretty good at keeping to my schedule and within the space of a year I was one of the top 150 most subscribed YouTube creators in my country… which shows how small New Zealand is, considering it was 2012 and I only had 3500 followers.
Anyway as a 15/16 year old, gaining 1000’s of views a week and dozens of fan messages, I became pretty arrogant. I can fully admit it. It went to my head. And then just as soon as I’d found this petty level of fame, I lost it. I had my channel and all my videos deleted, after using too much copyrighted content in my skits. It might seem immature, but as a 16 year old, to amass such a following, and then lose it, was soul destroying.
I tried for quite a long time to build myself back up, but never re-found the passion I’d once had. I made animations…
and reviewed video games…
and directed short films…
But by the time I finished high school I’d accepted this wasn’t going to be my career, and by the end of university I was posting content that I’d made half halfheartedly for just half a dozen views.
I guess I wanted to share this little glimpse into what I wanted to be for a time, just to say, it’s good to fail. It’s good to build something up, find some success, and then have it all ripped out from underneath you. ESPECIALLY when you’re young, and the repercussions are not so monumental.
For a long time YouTube was my future. Now I look back on the crude amateur productions I used to care so much about, and remember how easy it is to lose whatever “fame” you have. So no matter how big YOU think you are, maintain a little humility.
Quiet Stories 