They say the best things in life are free, and the new film series We The Economy 20 Short Films You Can’t Afford to Miss has different directors offering up their entertaining takes on various economic issues. Viewing the shorts won’t cost you a single penny, as the program simultaneously launches October 21 in over 50 digital, cable, TV, and mobile platforms (including YouTube, Netflix, AOL, Amazon).
One of the shorts, The Unbelievably Sweet Alpacas!, is directed by Adam McKay, the filmmaker/writer behind Anchorman, Talladega Nights, Step Brothers and The Other Guys. Running close to six minutes, the animated piece has multi-colored, lollipop loving Alpacas yearning to find a job, only to find income inequality pervading their rainbow filled land. The voice cast includes Amy Poehler, Andy Richter, Billy Eichner, Maya Rudolph, and Sarah Silverman.
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Part of the inspiration for McKay’s involvement with We The Economy comes from his love for Michael Lewis’ book The Big Short. McKay penned the screenplay adaptation and will direct the film.
I was just adapting the Michael Lewis book The Big Short, and I’ve always been kind of just interested in it. Any time you start getting into politics and why things are the way they are, you always end up at economics as one of the big ones . . . It’s fascinating, and I really give Michael Lewis a lot of credit for really getting me excited about it.
Below is Adam McKay’s director’s statement on taking part in We The Economy:
“At least a dozen times as an adult I’ve found myself saying ‘Why the hell didn’t we have an economics and finance class in high school?’ Whether it was being ripped off on credit card rates or not knowing my rights when it came to paying back student loans or even what the Federal Reserve is, I’ve always marveled at how the one subject we all should know, economics, is the subject most of us are completely illiterate about.
Through the years I’ve read a dozen or so books, watched all the documentaries and asked a fair amount of questions. And as I learned the rudimentary basics of macro and micro economics I was amazed at how simple the world actually is once you penetrate the language and jargon. But still, most people act as though advance degrees and tweed jackets are required to even discuss compound interest. Or worse yet, most people treat the subject as a complete bore. But as a fan of pop culture I know there’s nothing boring about the economy, who runs it and who profits from it. In fact, it’s the juiciest subject there is. So when I heard about the WTE project and the fact that Morgan Spurlock was curating it, I knew I was in. I truly hope it’s the beginning of a movement to popularize economics. Lord knows our country needs it.”
I’ll be posting more on The Unbelievably Sweet Alpacas! and We The Economy tomorrow (I also interviewed documentary filmmaker MIao Wang), but the audio below has Adam McKay talks about his future projects, which includes The Big Short, a Seth Rogen project, and his work on Ant-Man.
For more information on We The Economy 20 Short Films You Can’t Afford To Miss, please go to: https://wetheeconomy.com/
