NONFICTION HOTLIST ORIGINALS
TR(ol)L: Total Request Live, New Kids On The Block And The Chain Letter That Changed The Internet
In 1999, an online chain letter sparks a campaign to get New Kids On The Block's decade-old "Hangin' Tough" video on MTV's Total Request Live, forcing the show to make a decision that would pioneer modern online trolling.
About the Film
In 1999, an online campaign to get New Kids on the Block back onto MTV's Total Request Live became one of the internet's earliest viral pranks. TR(ol)L tells the story of how a joke on message boards helped shape the culture of online trolling and digital activism that followed.
- DOCUMENTARY
- SHORT DOCUMENTARY
- POP CULTURE
- MUSIC DOCUMENTARY
- INTERNET CULTURE
- MTV
- TOTAL REQUEST LIVE
- TRL
- NEW KIDS ON THE BLOCK
- INTERNET HISTORY
- EARLY INTERNET
- ONLINE COMMUNITIES
- VIRAL CULTURE
- INTERNET MEMES
- TROLLING
- DIGITAL CULTURE
- Y2K
- 1990S
- FAN CULTURE
- HUMAN INTEREST
- Director
- Yourgo Artsitas
- Producers
- Yourgo Artsitas
- Editor
- Yourgo Artsitas
- Production Companies
- Celibone Productions LLC
Festivals & Awards
- Hot Docs
- DOC NYC
- Austin Film Festival
- JiHlava International Documentary Film Festival
- Montclair Film Festival
- Sidewalk Film Festival
- Comic-Con International Independent Festival
- Florida Film Festival
- Cinequest Film Festival
- Dallas International Film Festival
- HollyShorts
- Sound Unseen Film + Music Festival
- Salute Your Shorts
- Key West Film Festival
- Dances With Films
- American Film Convention and Independent Film Festival Boston
Production Stills
The Filmmakers
Yourgo Artsitas is a journalist and filmmaker. Yourgo has written for USA TODAY, SLAM Magazine, Switchboard Magazine, The Salt Lake Tribune and The Portland Tribune among others. In 2014, Yourgo was named one of the best sports columnists in the country by the Associated Press Sports Editors. Yourgo is also a correspondent for the Pulitzer Prize-winning podcast Pablo Torre Finds Out. Pronounced “Your-go” — like you're telling someone it's their turn.
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