Documentary filmmaker and writer, Oobah Butler, has been commissioned by Channel 4 to make two new documentaries ‘How I Made a Million in 90 Days’ and ‘How to Trick Your Way onto the Property Ladder’, both produced by Expectation.
‘How I Made a Million in 90 Days’ tells the incredible story of how Oobah Butler did just that. Setting himself the challenge to follow in the ways of the many ‘business gurus’ who claim to be able to give you the secrets to wealth, Oobah’s journey is a ride filled with unbelievable highs and crushing lows. Fully immersing himself in the world of investment and startups Oobah meets a range of colourful and questionable characters who offer real insight into how value is created, as he tries to figure out how much of the entrepreneurial dream he is being sold is legitimate and how much of it is a bluster of hot-air and delusional self-belief. And despite his overwhelming desire to rise to this challenge, Oobah will also discover at what point his conscience screams “enough!”…
In ‘How to Trick Your Way onto the Property Ladder, Oobah masterminds a range of stunts and tricks designed to get two young first time buyers onto the increasingly elusive first rung of the property ladder – eventually achieving just that. Oobah’s unconventional approach explores how we got into this mess in the first place: with UK house prices typically 9 times greater than average wages, and the widest wage-to-property disparity in over 150 years, how can today’s generation be expected to follow the conventional path to getting a house in the first place? And is it legal to hypnotise an estate agent into selling a house for a fiver?
Oobah Butler said: “I’m really excited to have the chance to do two new films with Channel 4. Me and my team have spent just over a year working on them, and they are very different.
“They’re both big subjects that are pretty much unignorable at this moment in time: our increasing obsession with get rich quick and the super wealthy, and the housing crisis in the UK. The first one follows me trying to make a million pounds in 90 days, is shot predominantly in the US, and involves a lot of chaos, fascinating characters, hard lessons learned, and money.
“The second lets me fulfil my dream and become Kevin McCloud in entering the world of property shows. In it, I try to solve the housing crisis in Britain, and help a couple in Liverpool try to get their first home. It’ll be great to see what everybody thinks of them. They’ve been so much fun for us to make.”
Tim Hancock, Channel 4 Commissioning Editor said: “After the success of ‘The Great Amazon Heist’, we’ve doubled down on Oobah’s brand of highly researched, deeply immersive television with two very different projects. Oobah bridges the divide between YouTube-ready stunts and long-form documentary making; resulting in highly unique, intelligent, funny, and frequently mindboggling results.”
Ben Wicks, Creative Director of Entertainment, Expectation said: “Nobody gets more deeply immersed in the worlds he is satirising than Oobah Butler, which is why these films are so inventive, funny, and deeply eviscerating. Spending every waking minute for 90 days being so thoroughly emerged in founder culture means Oobah’s attempt to make a million is the most devastating critique of late-stage capitalism you’ll see. His super-human determination to get just one couple onto the property ladder leads to such a thorough annihilation of housing policy in Britain, the only thing left to do is take a wrecking ball to it and use it as landfill. Oobah should now be rolled out to stress test every area of modern life, for the good of humanity, and to keep it entertained.”
‘How I Made a Million in 90 Days’ and ‘How to Trick Your Way onto the Property Ladder’ are produced by Expectation in association with Oobah Limited for Channel 4. The Channel 4 Commissioning Editor is Tim Hancock. The Director is Daniel Lucchesi, the Series Producer is Jo Maney, Production Manager is Eleanor Gecks, and the Executive Producers are Oobah Butler, Tristan Cross, Daniel Lucchesi and Ben Wicks.
Jon Creamer
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