Interviewing the interviewer: ‘In Between Two Ferns’

Art+Teacher+Andrew+Eckerle+makes+fun+of+Sophomore+Carter+Frimming%E2%80%99s+art.+-+Sophomore+Carter+Frimming+makes+fun+of+Science+Teacher+Matt+Ewald.

(Courtesy of Carter Frimming)

Art Teacher Andrew Eckerle makes fun of Sophomore Carter Frimming’s art. – Sophomore Carter Frimming makes fun of Science Teacher Matt Ewald.

     Sophomore Carter Frimming has decided to start a parody version of the popular show, “In Between Two Ferns,” which was written by Zach Galifanakis. 

     For those wondering what “In Between Two Ferns” is, it’s basically a show where the host brings in a guest to do an “interview.” As soon as the interview starts, it falls apart, as they end up dishing out insults back and forth.  

     Frimming was interested in parodying the show because of his background in broadcasting.

     “I was looking for a newer project to do in my broadcasting class and realized that the studio setup was perfect for this kind of video. I had done parodies in the past and this deadpan style of humor was right up my alley, so I just thought, ‘This is something that people might like so let’s give it a shot.’”

     There are bound to be bloopers when a student and their teacher are throwing insults at each other.

     “Oh yeah, tons of bloopers. Even though the show is pre-planned, a lot of lines still surprise the other person. In some cases, like with Mr. Eckerle, we broke script often which caused all kinds of bloopers.”  

     In the video with Art Teacher Andrew Eckerle, he made fun of Frimming for the set, saying, “it looked like a third-grader designed this.” However, setting up each time took about an hour to an hour and a half, according to Frimming.

     “To set it up each time is usually about an hour to an hour and a half. To set up the pieces you see usually takes about ten minutes. The camera equipment, tripods, microphones, and lighting take about an hour or more each time.” 

     Many might be asking themselves, how does Frimming plan all this? Is it like improv, does he come up with the jokes, or does the guest come up with their own?

     “Most of the time its jokes that I’ve written but when we had Mr. Eckerle on, he came up with some of his own jokes on the spot. So it’s usually a mix of scripted and improv.”

     Diving deeper into the process of making one of these, Frimming gave some useful insight into some “behind-the-scenes” action. However, according to Frimming, the process of making this was more complicated than most would think. 

     “About 2-3 weeks before the episode, we start writing the script, just to give us enough time to create a script we like. Then usually about a week before we buy the props that we’ll need, and then we usually bring them into the building the day before. The day of is when we set up all of the equipment and get the guests all set up, which takes about one to one and a half hours.” 

     Shooting the video itself takes a lot longer than the videos last themselves, according to Frimming.

     “Now, when it comes to shooting the video itself it takes about two hours but it can take longer. For example, Mr. Ewald’s episode took about two hours to shoot, while Mr. Eckerles’ episode took about the same. The final step in the process is editing, which is honestly the easier part. Since we film with three cameras, editing the video together takes about an hour.” 

     All this work is a lot on one person’s plate, however, Frimming does receive help during the process. 

     “It’s about a 50/50 split of work, but it’s nice to have somebody, especially when writing scripts, just so you can bounce ideas back and forth off of each other.”

     These first two episodes have been great and very creative, and luckily, there will be more. 

     “I plan to keep rolling them out once a month. One has already come out this month, so stay tuned for February’s episode.”

     According to Frimming, the next guest won’t be a teacher either. However, looking into the future, Frimming has some ideas for future guests. 

     “I’d love to have Mr. Burgess or Mr. Shadwell, but I’d also like to have some female teachers too. Mrs. Gintonio and Mrs. Stewart have been requested a few times, as well.”

     It is clear to many that Frimming has put a lot of work into his videos and they’re always quality and funny, as many can see the effort he puts into them. Make sure to check out his channel, Carter Frimming, for future episodes.