When a former Patriots player recently sat for the cover photo of his tell-all memoir, the footage from this odd portrait session quickly racked up more than 22,000 hits on YouTube.
Maybe it was the odd title of the autobiography, “Locker Room Shenanigans: You Don’t Want To Know.” Or maybe it was the pure comedy that drew viewers to this episode of “Portrait STUdio,” a new YouTube series found on Above Average Network’s channel, which is run by “Saturday Night Live” producer Lorne Michaels’ Broadway Video. The channel’s series also feature shorts with stars from “SNL,” “30 Rock” and other comedy powerhouses, some of whom “STUdio” creators Richie Moriarty and Matt Catanzano hope to collaborate with on a second season.
Moriarty and Catanzano met while acting at Boston comedy theater Improv Asylum, and ever since then the two created a number of videos. “STUdio” features a photographer and his assistant, and all of the amusing things that happen at a shoot. Guest stars include the band O.A.R. (long time friends with Moriarty) and former Pats running back Sammy Morris (who plays the aforementioned memoir author).
“Sammy is the closest I’ve ever come to having an NFL player who’s a good friend that I chat with on text message,”?says Catanzano.
“And he was super interested in being a part of it,” adds Moriarty, who is a professional photographer by day.
Catanzano says the pair used a simple formula to brainstorm: “This is real, so what are the funnier versions of that and how can we make them exaggerated?”
