What What (In the Butt)
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| What What (In the Butt) | |
|---|---|
| File:Samwell Heart-Mouth.jpg
Image from the video
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| Written by | Bobby Ciraldo Andrew Swant Samwell |
| Directed by | Bobby Ciraldo Andrew Swant |
| Starring | Samwell |
| Music by | Mike Stasny Samwell |
| Country of origin | US |
| Original language(s) | English |
| Production | |
| Producer(s) | Bobby Ciraldo Andrew Swant |
| Running time | 3:49 |
| Distributor | Brownmark Films |
| Release | |
| Original release | February 14th, 2007 |
| Chronology | |
| Followed by | "Protect Respect" |
| External links | |
| [{{#property:P856}} Website] | |
"What What (In the Butt)" is a viral video created by Andrew Swant and Bobby Ciraldo for the song of the same name by Samwell.[1] It is known for its numerous camp references to homosexuality and anal sex. The lyrics of the song, a production of Mike Stasny, mostly revolve around the title. The video was made in Milwaukee, Wisconsin[2] and uploaded on Valentine's Day 2007 to YouTube.[3] As of March 2016, the video had over 60 million views.[4]
Contents
Themes and imagery
With regard to the Christian imagery in the video, Samwell said, in an interview with KROQ-FM, that the opening image is "not a cross, but a flaming symbol that [he] just happened to use,"[5] but according to Stasny, "[Samwell] wanted it because he's a Christian but he doesn't do Christian morality. For him, having a burning cross is a way to pay respect to his beliefs."[3] The video also parodies the flower petal scene from the movie American Beauty.[6] Brownmark Films released an interview with Samwell on April 8, 2007, in which he discussed the public reception of the song at length.[7]
Performances and appearances
In April 2008, Samwell appeared on the BBC television show Lily Allen and Friends for an interview and performed a live version of "What What (In the Butt)" with choreographed dancers.[8] The video was also featured in episode #53 of ADD-TV in Manhattan.[9] "What What (In the Butt)" was an official selection at the Milwaukee International Film Festival and the Mix Brasil Film Festival.[10][11]
In June 2010 Samwell appeared on an episode of Comedy Central's Tosh.0, television show about viral videos. The segment told the story of how the "What What" video was created, followed by an acoustic duet version of the song by Samwell and Josh Homme, lead singer for Queens Of The Stone Age and guitar player for Kyuss.[12]
In 2009, the creators of the video, and Samwell himself, claimed that a feature film called What What (In the Butt): The Movie was in the works.[13][14]
On November 12, 2010, Brownmark Films filed a copyright infringement lawsuit against MTV Networks, South Park Studios, and Viacom for their use of "What What in the Butt" in a 2008 South Park episode.[15] In July 2011, a federal judge decided that South Park's use of the video fell under the fair use exception to copyright law, and thus the defendants did not owe damages. The decision was unusual in a copyright lawsuit because it was made on a motion to dismiss, before summary judgment had even begun.[16][17] The appeal was dismissed by the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals on June 7, 2012.[18] Additionally, the district court awarded attorneys' fees to the defendants because the lawsuit was "objectively unreasonable".[citation needed]
In January 2013, a behind-the-scenes video was released which showed footage from the original 2006 green screen shoot.[2]
In popular culture
- In the April 2, 2008 episode of South Park, "Canada on Strike", the boys post a viral video on "YouToob" (a fictional version of YouTube) of Butters performing "What What (In the Butt)".[19]
- In October 2011 a porn parody of Comedy Central's Tosh.0 was released called Tosh Porn Oh. The film (porn star Dane Cross's directorial debut) contained a segment based on the "What What (In the Butt)" video with Samwell replaced by the pornographic actress Skin Diamond. The segment features a recreation of the original video which, according to the end credits, was fully licensed by Brownmark Films.
- The "What What" song surfaced on an episode of Sweden’s Got Talent in which four naked young men danced to the song.
- The creators of the "What What" video projected images of Samwell's iconic pink zeppelin onto buildings in Los Angeles for the five-year anniversary of the project.[20]
See also
References
- ↑ Milwaukee Decider by DJ Hostettler (February 5, 2009), "Screening Room: Andrew Swant and Bobby Ciraldo". Retrieved 02-09-2009.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 http://www.avclub.com/milwaukee/articles/brownmark-films-celebrate-50m-views-of-what-what-i,83511/
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ YouTube video with upload date and current view count
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- ↑ Luczak, Renata "DANIEL TOSH IS BACK WITH MORE INTERNET EPIC FAILS WEB REDEMPTIONS AND FAN CHALLENGES AS THE SECOND SEASON OF "TOSH.0" CONTINUES WITH 16 NEW EPISODES BEGINNING ON WEDNESDAY, JUNE 2 AT 10:30 P.M. ET/PT""; Comedy Central; May 12, 2010
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Images.eonline.com
- ↑ 'South Park' Wins Lawsuit Over 'What What (In the Butt)' Parody Hollywood Reporter
- ↑ Music Video Owner Takes One In The…: South Park Spoof Held Fair Use Title 17
- ↑ Brownmark Films, LLC v. Comedy Partners, et al., No. 11-2620 (7th Cir. 2012)
- ↑ "Canada on Strike" at South Park Studios
- ↑ "What What (in the Butt)" Viral Video Inspires L.A. Art, Five Years Later" L.A. Weekly; 2/15/2012
