Post-Post-Modern Superstardom
In the world of reality television (and I use the word “reality” loosely), various groups of people are “documented” for our sick pleasure. There’s the New Jersey “guidos” on Jersey Shore (gag), rich women who don’t know what to do with all their time and money on Keeping Up with the Kardashians (vomit), and teenagers who got knocked up way too early on Teen Mom (why?). I can’t keep up with “mainstream” reality TV, because quite frankly, it doesn’t interest me and I don’t have time for that shit.
If you are like me and think reality shows are ridiculous, you might find yourself asking: Where can I find an ironic reality show? Or what else can I do with my time instead of avoiding my homework and refreshing my Facebook newsfeed every five minutes?
I have an answer, and the answer is Dalston Superstars, Vice.com’s mockumentary about the lives of “young creatives” (AKA #hipsters), living off of their parent’s trust funds in East London.
The mini-web series follows a group of five friends: Sam, Anna, Maeve, Stefan, and Vee.
Maeve—Former “muse” who didn’t realize her full potential as an artist and moved to Dalston from Australia to “progress as a creative.” She has her own website and stars in her own photo shoots.
Sam—A freelance stylist who also DJ’s and models occasionally. Sam describes Dalston as having everything you need, “It’s got like clubs when you want to go crazy. It’s also got clubs when you want to be slightly more chill.”
Anna—Originally from LA, she’s also Sam’s girlfriend, and an art student. “Styling just seems so shallow. Maybe I can go to Africa and style there. The women there are so beautiful, but the clothes are really whack.”
Stefan—A trust fund baby, currently trying to find himself in a period of transition. He finds tumblr as a great source of inspiration. Being the son of the producer of Malcolm in the Middle, to him, “The life of a privileged child is not all it’s cracked up to be. I go to the ATM to get some cash out, and there my balance is a glaring reminder that I’m not like everyone else.”
Vee—Photographer and musician who dabbles in fine art and fashion related photography, as well as other creative forms of art. She likes to experiment with different mediums in photography and she shoots photos with her Macbook. “Ever since the London riots I thought art is a way to build bridges. So I thought if I shoot people that are in the riots or poor people on my Mac… you can make connections.”
If these character synopses aren’t obvious enough for you, Dalston Superstars is mainly a show of ignorant, misguided youth living out each day on narrow-minded societal norms. Sound familiar? Yeah, if you have circled around the LA “it” scene, you probably have seen them, or perhaps you’ve even seen them stomping around town in Long Beach’s own East Village Arts District.
The episodes document their wild lives, ranging from their ridiculous use of “#” (hash-tags), Vee’s club night, their involvement in an infamous art collective in Dalston, to Stefon’s dad cutting him off from his trust fund after he discovers his private tumblr blog.
In one episode, Stefon is no longer able to pay the rent, which forces his roommate, Maeve, to look for work. After a few hours on the job, Maeve describes her experience working: “Now that I’ve done the 9 to 5 thing, I completely understand what the occupy wall-street thing’s all about, cause working sucks.”
Some people may take Dalston Superstars too seriously, but it is only trying to be serious, because if it really were serious then it would be lame. It is only slightly disturbing because it is a scarily accurate portrait of the hipster persona. But if you are familiar with Vice, you know that they don’t hold back when it comes to social critiques.
I do not think I can capture the amount of humor and irony produced in this short yet hilarious four episode web-series. The show premiered in November and the last episode released was the “Christmas Special” in late December. Now, if the show will continue, that is unknown…
Popular
Recent
California State University, Long Beach
1212 Bellflower Blvd Suite 239,
CA, 90815
