I woke up this morning feeling a little frazzled…and this video put a smile on my face. Happy Thursday!

For those of you who watched my live chat last night on UStream, I announced that I’m looking for a few extra roles to fill for the movie I shot in January. Except I don’t want “actors.” I want YOU.

I can’t give away what happens in the film, but I need your help to finish it. Over the next two months, I’ll be detailing several different ways you can do that (so if you prefer not being in front of the camera, that’s ok!). Anyone who chooses to be involved on-camera will, of course, receive credit and more importantly, an invite to the premiere!

First and foremost, I need 5-10 internet savvy folks to make homemade video blogs for me, responding to the BELOW POST (titled The Search for Katie). If you’re not comfortable being in front of the camera, simply comment on the post below (you don’t have to use your real name if you don’t want) or write a blog somewhere about the documentary film that I’m now making and send me the link.

Remember: the post below is not real. It is a fictional premise to the film, which was shot documentary style, following a friend of mine (Liz) on the search for her missing sister (Katie). In the film, Liz has strong evidence that Katie was taken by a cult-like organization. In the opening sequence of the film, Liz and I are reviewing the comments and video responses to my blog post. That’s where YOU all come in. You don’t have to use your real name, or play yourself, just send me a video response to my post.

Maybe you were a former YAC member who doesn’t like this ‘bad press.’ Perhaps you had a family member who joined a cult and you sympathize with Liz. Or maybe you’re just a ‘Taryn fan’ and you want to offer any help along the way.  Feel free to be creative – but not too wacky – after all, it has to appear real. My only other guideline is that you cannot be a current member of the YAC. :-) Make sense?

Make sure you upload your videos to YouTube, and send the link to taken@pinkhamsta.com. If you password protect the video, make sure you send me the password so I can view it!

If you have questions, feel free to leave them in the comments below.

Last Sunday (on a very boring Sunday, mind you), I stumbled upon Nancy. Nancy Roder. She’s the girl you always overlooked on the middle school playground. The one who never got picked in gym class. She never had cool clothes, and was more likely found by herself in the lunchroom than surrounded by friends. But you won’t meet a nicer person than Nancy.

I’m not really sure how Nancy’s specific character came about (it’s an odd amalgamation of my 4th grade art teacher and several kids I remember from middle/high school), but it’s safe to say that when I put on the wig and the glasses and the fake zits and braces I bought from a local costume shop, it’s not difficult to remember how I felt growing up.

So you’re probably wondering what the point of all this is? Nancy’s the part of me who never felt good enough. She wants to help those who never got a real chance and maybe make a friend or two in the process. Maybe I’m crazy, but I don’t want Nancy to leave. So I entered her in a contest. There’s a $100,000 prize at the end of the pot, enough to fund my first independent film. About Nancy. Here is her video entry:

She’s never been able to travel outside of Sherman, Oklahoma. Her dream is to see the world, make a few friends, and help other people achieve their dreams along the way. And when it’s all said and done, she’s going to buy an RV for her parents so that theycan see the world, too. It’s weird. I’ve almost taken on Nancy’s dreams as my own.

I want to make this project happen. In my head, it’s a feature/web series/personal quest that will allow me to reach my first dream of making a movie, Nancy’s dream of seeing the world, and helping at least ten individuals reach their dreams, too. (If Nancy wins, I’ve pledged to donate $10,000 to ten people for their assistance in the contest.) I’m also planning on handing out a few other little surprises along the way, but more on that later.

So here’s the deal. To win, Nancy’s entry needs to have the greatest number of ratings and comments. I’m coming into the contest a month after it began (so there’s a little disadvantage there), but I know with the help of friends and new media mavens I can help Nancy’s dream (and mine) come to be a reality.

Please, please, rate the video and comment everyday (which also helps increase your chances of winning one of the ten $1,000 prizes). Beyond the $10,000 I’ll give away if Nancy wins, I will be giving away some additional little prizes to people who include a link to the video on their blog. (I’ve got a Google Alert up on “Nancy Roder.”)

The contest ends Dec. 20, and the video with the greatest total of comments and ratings wins the prize. I just need you to embed, Tweet, Blog, Facebook, Digg, and/or email the YouTube link to anyone/everyone.

Thank you all so much for your help! And, if you’d like to see the original Nancy video that got this all started:

Wow. First off, let me just say thank all of you out there who have graced me with your comments and emails.  It was over two years ago that my first viral video surpassed the 2 mil mark, and now it looks like Wrong Hole is going to win the prize for most online views. Between YouTube, Break, and FunnyOrDie, it’s now well on it’s way over 3 mil hits.

Special thanks to blogs like  Today’s Big Thing, PureStyle Magazine’s blog, Spiked Humor, FastHack, Dave and Thomas Daily TimeKillers, The GoldenBoy Saga, GeorgeCarlinTV, Shoutback, and the many others who passed it along.

I didn’t realize that taking it up the bum could be such a universal source of comedy. I’ve received emails from Canada, the Netherlands, Germany, Phillippines, Russia, France, Poland, Turkey, Africa, the Middle East, Peru, and students from both West Point and the Coast Guard military academy here in the US. Some of my favorite excerpts I have posted below, as they were a little tough to decipher:

Rob (Netherlands): “you sounds so good, its almost magic, make a love song with a piano, and stuff!”

Kael (Location Unknown): “I shivered when I heard her. She has power. She remmembered me of Celine Dion.”

Stephan (Germany): “My simple question now is, if there are some recent pics of you for my desktop =) P.S.: You are not in the german Wikipedia”

Jim (Missouri): “I did notice one fault you have however as I browsed through your site, You’re a Liberal. Where’s your priorities?”

There were other messages, sweet and to the point, and others (more of the death threat type) from the Middle East and parts of America. But I won’t share those in an effort to keep this blog as positive as possible ;-)

Thanks for watching!

Taryn

I just shot this video, which played at the Streamy Awards, and was written/produced by my friends, the very talented Fine Bros. Check them out on youtube here: http://www.youtube.com/user/TheFineBros! Also look for guest appearances by Jessica Rose, Felicia Day, Dennis Haskins, Amber Lee Ettinger, and more. Enjoy!

Hey guys! It feels like it’s been forever since I blogged up here (I guess it has been almost a week! yikes!)  I’ve been sick and a little under the weather, so it took a little motivation to get to work today.

I wanted to let you know that although Hott 4 Hill 2 hasn’t seen that many hits on YouTube, on MySpace we have 150,000 hits! I also got some really awesome comments in my inbox (and 1,000 friend requests….OMG!) so I just wanted to share a few of them with you:

Hey just call me a fan of your video, hott4hill. thats fuckin awesome dude. im not one for politics, im military. i let the politicians fight their own war. but that video had me bustin a gut dude. keep singin.

my sides hurt that vid was the shit, you are really funny and hott(well.duh!) keep up the good work i hope to see more . p.s. editing was hella good to. Captain Pat

You didn’t say much about John….. It seems no one does. That’s ok, but why not? We should focus on the issues and not how cool Obama is. So vote Mcain!!! Love Mike…P.S Your Video was good! I’m glad there are young people who care. Even if we don’t agree!

2007 – A mashup of my adventures as a TV and web host.