Jukin and go90 set out to create a first-of-its-kind documentary series with the potential to forever change storytelling is it relates to contemporary events.
From the tragic (Hurricane Harvey) to the inspiring (The Women's March) to the absurd (Fyre Festival), each episode of "This Is Happening" focuses on one major event that defined the cultural zeitgeist, and examines three to four stories-within-a-story, where people who were on the ground for those events share their personal experiences, and their own first-person video footage.
The previously untold, goosebumps-inducing stories will put these shared experiences in a whole new light.
While a collective human experience is impossible to define, "This Is Happening" aims to become the intersection of individual and shared experience.
It is a distinct challenge in both storytelling and production to dive into different stories surrounding one life-changing experience to bring moments to life and help create global consciousness, but that is exactly what "This Is Happening" accomplished.
Between sifting through thousands of hours of first-person video footage, and navigating the copyright, clearance, and other legal issues associated with found footage, the production of each episode was a labyrinth of logistical challenges that Jukin's production team had to conquer.
From a narrative standpoint, finding the most compelling personal stories that stem from an event with tens of thousands of participants was like searching for a needle in a haystack, but the team was able to pare the overwhelming number of possible storylines to highlight only the very best.
Just as "Shot on iPhone" elevated everyday photos, "This Is Happening" elevates user-generated video to it's rightful place as the cornerstone of contemporary storytelling. With a powerful camera in every pocket and the ability to stream in real-time our society has been granted access to a richer, more textured view of current events from a cacophony of perspectives. By leveraging video shot by real people, This Is Happening crafts stories at a person-to-person level, obliterating the role of objective 3rd party camera observer to a preserve history in a way that is both raw and relatable. With only one episode of the eight-episode series released, it's too soon to make assumptions about the success of the series. However, if early feedback from viewers on social media is any indication, the series will continue to engage viewers and reshape how people remember the events that have defined contemporary America.
