Indie Spotlight: ‘[Blank] My Life’ Examines Insecurities And Adds In Laughs

We receive a ton of tips every day from independent creators, unaffiliated with any major motion picture studios, television networks, new media studios, or other well-funded online video entities. The Indie Spotlight is where we’ll write about and shout out to a select few of them and bring you up to speed on the great (and sometimes not-so-great) attention-grabbing series you probably haven’t heard about until now. Read previous installments here.

The easiest way to explain how [Blank] My Life is different from other web comedies is to discuss the way its second season starts — not at a party, or in a bedroom, but in the mind of its protagonist, Susan, as she relives a childhood encounter with a sexual predator. It’s a fitting way to kick off a show that respects the intelligence of its viewers and offers them subtle characters and a vivid script, all while examining Susan’s mental state.

Susan is portrayed by Alex Spieth, who is also the creator and writer of [Blank] My Life. Early on, Spieth makes sure to let us know that Susan is struggling to keep it together. In the first episode, the memory of the aforementioned encounter leads her to burst into tears at an art museum. In the second, the idea that her babysitting charge could have another caretaker in her life leads to unshakeable paranoia. These scenarios are rendered not with dread but with confidently executed comedy, with Spieth snapping off one laugh line after another to describe Susan’s various predicaments.

After its first season arrived last year, [Blank] My Life is now rolling through its second rendition, with just the two new episodes out so far. If you’re at all interested in this web comedy space, this is a show whose combination of wit, heart, and honesty is worth keeping an eye on.

OTHER UNDER-THE-RADAR SERIES TO CHECK OUT

• Butch & Nellie Take The Rap Game. Two friends try to become the first gay rap duo to launch to stardom.
• #TRENTing. A brash, heavily accented animated character leads an odd current events show.
• 94110. This pilot, set in the Bay Area, is a winking take on similar web comedies that have come before it.

Got a series you’d like to see featured in the Indie Spotlight? Be sure to contact us here. For best coverage, please include a full episode in your e-mail.