Keith Broke His Leg

Keith Broke His Leg is an American comedy web series created by Keith Powell. It premiered its first six episodes on August 25, 2015 through its official website, and released subsequent episodes intermittently through September 2016.[1] Set in Powell's home, and inspired by his real life, the show follows Keith through a series of visits with his friends and family while he recuperates from an unknown accident that left his right leg broken. Most guest actors who appear in the show play a parody version of themselves, including Aubrey Plaza, Fiona Gubelmann, Malcolm Barrett, Leonard Robinson, and Alexandra Krosney. Powell writes, directs, and produces all episodes in addition to starring.

Keith Broke His Leg
GenreComedy
Created byKeith Powell
Written byKeith Powell
Directed byKeith Powell
Starring
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons1
No. of episodes10
Production
Producers
  • Keith Powell
  • Loch Powell
Production locationsLos Angeles, CA
Running time7–14 minutes
Release
Original releaseAugust 25, 2015 (2015-08-25) –
present
External links
Official website

Upon its release, the show received much publicity due to Powell blogging for The Huffington Post, which highlighted each episode of the show.[2] The blogs discussed race, politics, relationships, friendship, marriage, and other current events as it relates to specific moments in the web series. Particularly, his blog post highlighting the "You Talk White" phenomenon (promoting the episode "Baller") received widespread attention on NPR, HuffPost Live, and various international news blogs.[3][4][5][6]

Series overview

The series is a semi-autobiographical comedy about 30 Rock star Keith Powell's self-discovery when he is suddenly stripped of his ability to be mobile. After an accident, Keith is forced to see the world in a new way when his wife, his friends, and especially his agent don't make life easy for the incapacitated. What results is a series of visits with the floura and fauna of the Hollywood comedy world, with most of the actors playing parodies of themselves. The style of the show is slower-paced and more observational than traditional comedies, with elements of drama, surrealism, and philosophy throughout. Powell has described the show as contemplative with "earned" jokes.[7]

Cast

Main
  • Keith Powell as Keith—the eponymous character. It is never revealed how he broke his leg. Keith has described his character as transitioning from "indifference and complacency to self awareness and empathy."[8]
  • Jill Knox as Jill— his wife. Powell and Knox are married in real life, and as on the series, she is a visual artist.

Guest stars

All actors play parodies of themselves unless otherwise noted.

Episodes

The first six episodes of Volume 1 were released through Vimeo and www.GetBroken.com on August 25, 2015. Two more episodes were released on November 12, 2015, with the last two episodes of the season released on February 12, 2016. Mailing list subscribers got to watch the episodes prior to the official release dates, and TV Insider released two episodes a week prior to the world premiere of the series.[1]

The series had advance showings at The Upright Citizens Brigade Theater in Los Angeles prior to its August 25 release, with 30 Rock co-star Jack McBrayer conducting a Q&A afterwards.

No.TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal air date
1"Pornhole"Keith PowellKeith PowellAugust 25, 2015 (2015-08-25)
Confined to the house with a broken leg, Keith must find new ways to occupy his time. Also, do women really like James Deen?
2"Engage"Keith PowellKeith PowellAugust 25, 2015 (2015-08-25)
Keith must do a favor for a questionable friend. Also, has “CP Time” gone out of style?
3"Soup"Keith PowellKeith PowellAugust 25, 2015 (2015-08-25)
Keith loves to cook, but when vegan friends invite themselves to dinner, all recipes and sensibilities go down the drain. Also, how much does it really cost to install a pool?
4"Baller"Keith PowellKeith PowellAugust 25, 2015 (2015-08-25)
Keith was born in West Philadelphia. Try telling his agent that. Also, will you PLEASE curb your dog!?
5"Id"Keith PowellKeith PowellAugust 25, 2015 (2015-08-25)
As Jill throws a “ladies night,” Keith is left to ponder the significance of a dream. Also, can you be taboo playing TABOO?
6"Chocolate"Keith PowellKeith PowellAugust 25, 2015 (2015-08-25)
Keith tells some friends the story of his first time. Also, has the universe conspired to cripple him?
7"Mellow"Keith PowellKeith PowellNovember 12, 2015 (2015-11-12)
When Jill throws a karaoke party, Keith is left to handle some unwelcome visitors. Also, how do New Zealanders pronounce “deck”?
8"Soothsayer"Keith PowellKeith PowellNovember 12, 2015 (2015-11-12)
Roxie (from “Engage”) returns to deliver Keith some prophetic wisdom. Also, why are hammocks so complicated?
9"Class"Keith PowellKeith PowellFebruary 12, 2016 (2016-02-12)
When Keith teaches a master class to an insensitive group of high school students, his patience is tested. Also, how do you pronounce George "Takei"?
10"Lullaby"Keith PowellKeith PowellFebruary 12, 2016 (2016-02-12)
Jill and Keith have a date night at home. Also, how can you tell when you’ve had too much to drink?

Production

Powell self-funded the first season, citing the personal nature of the project and his reluctance to initially crowdfund. He wrote an article on IndieWire detailing his process.[9]

The series is filmed on location in Los Angeles, California in Powell's real life home. Additionally, the home was featured on HGTV's "House Hunters Renovation" and "House Hunters Where Are They Now?"

The color palette of the show is highly saturated, highlighting the colors blue and red. Powell has stated that the entire production time took longer than usual due to the low budget of the series. In addition, Powell employed the use of drone cameras to take the place of cranes and dollies, and the series was shot exclusively on DSLR cameras.[9]

The theme song is composed by 30 Rock co-composer Giancarlo Vulcano, inspired by the Motown sound of the 1960s. Vulcano also collaborated with Powell for the score of My Name Is David.[10]

Reception

After the release of the first six episodes, Tubefilter called the series a "sleek, well shot, reasonably funny web series" and concluded "it's a nice way to spend an hour."[11] TV Insider stated "For seven seasons, Keith Powell was 30 Rock’s uptight and under-appreciated “Toofer” Spurlock, but now, the man who battled Frank Rossitano for the right to wear Harvard gear and battled Tracy Jordan over a certain word is stepping, with the help of crutches, into his own spotlight."[1] Review & Roast pointed out that Powell and Knox "played well off each other and it was obvious they had real chemistry."[12] Reviewing the show at the Raindance Film Festival, Vodzilla noted the show's dry pace, stating, "That mundane approach makes for a relatable series which lacks in laugh-out-loud moments but builds up to them with a restraint and gentle tone that makes them more satisfying... there’s surprising substance here." [13]

Awards and nominations

In 2016, Powell won the Best Actor (Comedy) award at the New York Television Festival.[14]

The series was nominated for seven 2016 Indie Series Awards, winning two, including Best Web Series – Comedy.[15] In 2017, it was nominated for an additional six Indie Series Awards.[16]

Year Award Category Nominee(s) Result
2016 7th Indie Series Awards Best Web Series — Comedy Won [15]
Best Lead Actor — Comedy Keith Powell as Keith Won [15]
Best Directing — Comedy Keith Powell Nominated [15]
Best Writing — Comedy Keith Powell Nominated [15]
Best Lead Actress — Comedy Jill Knox as Jill Nominated [15]
Best Guest Actress — Comedy Alexandra Krosney as Alex Nominated [15]
Best Sound Design Richard Sheehan Nominated [15]
2017 8th Indie Series Awards Best Web Series — Comedy Nominated
Best Writing — Comedy Keith Powell Nominated
Best Lead Actor — Comedy Keith Powell as Keith Nominated
Best Supporting Actress — Comedy Jill Knox as Jill Won
Best Guest Actor — Comedy Nic Few as Nic Nominated
Best Production Design Jill Knox Nominated

References
  1. "30 Rock's Toofer Breaks Out: Watch First Episodes of Keith Powell's New Series (Exclusive) – TV Insider". TV Insider.
  2. "Keith Powell".
  3. http://feeds.feedburner.com/ttbook
  4. "'You Talk White:' Being Black and Articulate". The Huffington Post. 13 October 2015.
  5. http://live.huffingtonpost.com/r/segment/30-rock-twofer-keith-powell-broke-his-leg/564268cb99ec6d499100015c
  6. https://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/black-30-rock-actor-claims-police-said-he-was-privileged-to-live-in-a-nice-neighbourhood-a6746516.html
  7. Behind the video: Keith Powell on truth, race & earned jokes. Vimeo.
  8. "Spotlight: Keith Broke His Leg". Apartment20 EnterpRises. Archived from the original on 2016-03-26. Retrieved 2016-04-05.
  9. Keith Powell (18 September 2015). "'30 Rock' Star Keith Powell's Secret to Making a Great Se – Indiewire". Indiewire.
  10. "GIANCARLOVULCANO.COM".
  11. "Keith Powell Of '30 Rock' Breaks A Leg In New Web Series". Tubefilter.
  12. "Review – Review and Roast". Review and Roast.
  13. http://vodzilla.co/reviews/raindance-web-fest-2016-reviews-il-sonnambulo-keith-broke-his-leg-match-not-found-almost-asian/
  14. http://www.indiewire.com/2016/10/new-york-television-festival-award-winners-nytvf-1201741579/
  15. "Nominations Announced For 7th Annual ISAs". Indie Series Awards. February 3, 2016. Retrieved March 22, 2016.
  16. http://www.indieseriesnetwork.org/2017/02/nominees-announced-for-8th-annual-indie.html
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