You, me and World War Three... #3
I write from the North West of Romania, less than 200km away from a country that as of Thursday the 24th of February officially became a war zone.
I don’t know about you, but sometimes I feel like I’m living in a Danny Boyle movie. And for someone in my profession that’s saying something.
Maybe diplomacy will win the day. Maybe Putin will shoot himself in the foot. I’ve given up trying to predict was going to happen next week, never mind next month.
Wherever you are, I hope this finds you well and with hope in your heart.
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QUOTES that popped for me this month:
"Better to trip with the feet than with the tongue" Seneca
"The truth becomes a firm foundation for a story about value and position. Money is a story we tell ourselves about value, status and position" Seth Godin
"The greater our knowledge increases, the greater our ignorance unfolds" President John F. Kennedy (Moon speech, Texas 1962)
READING
Coming to the end of a couple of books at the moment and starting a few new ones.
The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas - Nope, still haven’t finished it.
Getting Things Done by David Allen - It’s my 3rd time around but I haven’t finished it (the irony!)
The 48 Rules of Power by Robert Greene - I’ve heard about this book over the years. And having read a lot of Ryan Holiday’s work in the last 6 months, Greene is someone he referenced quite a bit. He also worked for him for a spell.
Zero to One by Peter Thiel - I can’t say I agree with Peter Thiel’s political leanings but anyone who built a company like PayPal (alongside Elon Musk) has to be worth a read.
Blogs I really enjoy
Two blogs I’m really enjoying at the minute are are Sunday Brain Food from the Farnam Street Blog & Letters from an American.
LISTENING
A lot of my time has been focused on getting #honesty launched so my listening has suffered. But I did get around to a couple of good ones this month.
Modern Wisdom > Jordan Peterson episode
Chris Williamson, the host of the Modern Wisdom podcast, has come a long way from his Love Island days. Having listened to his podcast for a couple of years it’s been a treat to watch his journey from micro podcaster in his living room to sitting across from heavy hitters like Jordan Peterson.
Choon I can’t get out of my head this month.
WATCHING
I’ve always loved The Beatles. One of the reasons is they remind me of my parents. Or at least a time when my parents were younger, so much younger than today (sorry). To the movie playing in my head, mop tops, screaming hordes and Love Me Do is the soundtrack to their young lives and a decade that changed everything. And a time, at least from this distance, that seemed more innocent.
Peter Jackson’s fly on the wall documentary of the fab four, is a country mile from mop tops and I want to hold your hand. It’s over 7 hours of 4 working class lads from Liverpool wrestling with new songs, the death of their manager, their sense of themselves and the weight of expectation that comes with being a Beatle. It’s not for everyone, but I loved it. Why? Because I felt I got to know them. I felt I got to spend time with them. There’s an ordinariness to them that I never expected. And to watch them cobble songs together from scratch – some of which are now considered classics – is an absolute treat.
A CONVERSATION THAT MADE ME THINK
#honesty, the miniseries I’ve been working on for 3 years premiered on YouTube last Friday nite, the 25th of February. We had 50 brave souls turn up in a zoom room to share that moment with us - the cast and team that made it – and it was a lot of fun. And a huge relief to just get Episode 1 out there.
The day before the launch, Russia invaded Ukraine. And, as I said at the top, I write this from the North-West of Romania, less than 200km from the Ukranian border.
On the morning of the launch, I was conflicted. How can we be launching a comedy series when the world seems to be on the brink of some peril I thought was consigned to documentary channels and history books? And throw in the dying days of the worst global pandemic in 100 years for good measure.
The only way I could resolve it was that storytelling matters. Even in the face of life and death. And the very real death of strangers I’ll never know a stones throw away.
If #honesty can entertain people then that’s a good thing to put out there surely.
MAKING
As I mentioned, after almost 3 years in the hopper, the season premiere of #honesty was finally unleashed last Friday, the 25th of February, on YouTube.
#honesty follows the journey of a 40-something born again life guru who gets left at the altar by his influencer fiancée as a stunt by their social media strategist.
You can see Episode 1 here.
Episode 3-6 go out every Sunday in March @ 19.30 (London time) so don’t miss it!
We’re aiming to have a wrap party on 1 April somewhere in London. Keep an eye on @honestyseries or my own insta @mr.niallbishop for more on that.
CAN I HELP?
If you think I can help with something or have any feedback drop us a line on inneroscarwinner@gmail.com
Thanks for reading. I appreciate it.
Niall