Viva La Dirt League
Viva La Dirt League or VLDL are a New Zealand group of professional sketch comedy YouTubers. The founding members are Rowan Bettjeman, Alan Morrison and Adam King, but their productions have featured other regular cast members such as Hamish Parkinson, Britt Scott Clark, Ben Van Lier and Ellie Harwood. , their YouTube channel has 3.68 million subscribers, and over 1 billion views. Background. Prior to forming VLDL, Bettjeman and Morrison's short, "Beached", was selected for showing at the New Zealand International Film Festival in 2010. Bettjeman and Morrison present a weekly news media online clip show  Media Ocre Awards for the WatchMe.co.nz. The group went full-time in 2017. The group's sketches have been nominated for Streamy Awards. Fans of the group include English actor Andrew Koji. The group is represented by Creative Artists Agency. Section::::"PUBG Logic". "PUBG Logic" is set in an online multiplayer battle royale game (ostensibly "PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds"). Characters are player's avatars and the comedy focuses on the bugs, gameplay limitations, and exploits in the game. Use of the "PUBG" imagery has been endorsed by the game's creators, and due to the popularity of the game, and the group 's sketches, they have attended gaming conventions (Armageddon) and tournaments (League of Legends Pro League) to promote these characters. A supercut of the first season has reached over 17 million views on YouTube. Section::::"Epic NPC Man". "Epic NPC Man" is set within ""Skycraft"", an entirely fictional MMORPG world where the adventures of role players and non-playing characters (NPCs) are explored. The series consists of short sketches deconstructing the logic and culture of MMORPGs and the fantasy genre, typically spoofing game franchises such as "The Elder Scrolls", "World of Warcraft" and "The Witcher". Initially, "Epic NPC Man" was presented almost  exclusively from the perspective of Greg (Morrison), a lowly garlic farmer and quest-giver in the tranquil but unremarkable village of Honeywood. Other recurring characters include the blacksmith Bodger (Bettjeman) and the sorcerer Baradün (King). Many scenes have been filmed at Howick Historical Village. Section::::"Baelin's Route: An Epic NPC Man Adventure". In 2020, the group crowdfunded (NZ$660,000 (c. €390,000) via kickstarter) a short film set in the "Epic NPC Man" universe. "Baelin's Route: An Epic NPC Man Adventure" premiered on YouTube on 9 May 2021. The film, written by Morrison, and directed by Morrison and King, stars  Bettjeman as Baelin, a non-player character whose normal route, from home to fishing spot, is interrupted by a human player (Ben Van Lier) and a damsel in distress (Phoenix Cross) making him into a reluctant hero. It had over 900 thousand views within 24 hours of its release. Section::::"Bored". "Bored" is a series of sketches primarily based in a computer store. New Zealand Radio Award-winning presenter Ellie Harwood co-stars as an employee. Studio. A kickstarter campaign for a filming studio and office space for the company raised over US$2.5Million in March 2022, with a location to  be determined.