Adulting (web series)

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#Adulting
Created byBen Baur
Thandi Tolmay
Written by
  • Ben Baur
  • Thandi Tolmay
  • Zac Hug
Directed byTJ Marchbank
StarringBen Baur
Thandi Tolmay
Theme music composerGregory Nabours
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons2
No. of episodes9 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producers
  • Ben Baur
  • Thandi Tolmay
CinematographyMatt Miller (season two)
EditorErik Anderson (season two)
Original release
NetworkYouTube
ReleaseJanuary 14, 2016 (2016-01-14) –
November 29, 2018 (2018-11-29)

#Adulting is an American comedy-drama web series created by and starring Ben Baur and Thandi Tolmay. It follows two friends, Max and Faye, who are nearing 30 and have yet to put their lives in order.

After producing two episodes and launching them on YouTube, Baur and Tolmay funded the production of four more through a May 2016 Kickstarter crowdfunding campaign that raised nearly US $19,000.

Premise[edit]

Best friends Max and Faye are faced with the reality that they are nearly 30 years old and have no money, careers, or boyfriends.[1]

Cast[edit]

  • Ben Baur as Max
  • Thandi Tolmay as Faye
  • Peter Sudarso as Austin
  • Michael Perl as George (season one)
  • Aubrey Marquez as Eddie (season two)
  • Keir Kirkegaard as David (season two)

Development and production[edit]

Ben Baur and Thandi Tolmay, who graduated from The American Musical and Dramatic Academy with series director TJ Marchbank,[1] conceived #Adulting while celebrating Baur's 29th birthday.[2][3] Baur said, "We came up with the idea for #Adulting because we wanted to tell stories that were tragically relatable to this really odd time in life, when you're supposed to be a grown-up and you're just ... not."[1][4] Baur is known for starring in the 2012–2015 web series Hunting Season,[5][6] and in 2015 was named by Out to its Out100 list.[7]

After two self-funded episodes launched on YouTube were well received by fans,[2][8] Baur and Tolmay funded the production of four more through a May 2016 Kickstarter crowdfunding campaign that raised nearly US $19K.[2][3][9] Guest stars include Drew Droege and David Del Rio.[2] The new episodes premiered on October 7, 2016 at the Brooklyn Web Fest, and were later put on YouTube.[2]

Episodes[edit]

Season one (2016)[edit]

No.
overall
No. in
season
TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal air dateLength
11"Meet Max and Faye"TJ MarchbankBen Baur & Thandi TolmayJanuary 14, 2016 (2016-01-14)4:55
Faye reveals that her ex-boyfriend was threatened by her close friendship with Max.
22"Hipster Hell Hail Mary"TJ MarchbankThandi TolmayApril 22, 2016 (2016-04-22)6:44
Faye finds that she has little in common with her hipster internet date, who questions her about Hemingway and orders gluten-free pizza.
33"Pictures of Posteriors"TJ MarchbankZac Hug and Ben BaurOctober 16, 2016 (2016-10-16)8:53
Faye gets Max hired on a photo shoot, but commands him to resist his usual urges and not have sex with any of the models. Guest: Drew Droege as Dewey.[2]
44"Malbec and Malice"TJ MarchbankThandi TolmayOctober 16, 2016 (2016-10-16)7:49
Max and Faye decide to fix their lives, but a bottle of wine leads them to a sobering evening.
55"Downward Dog Disaster"TJ MarchbankThandi Tolmay & Ben BaurOctober 16, 2016 (2016-10-16)8:53
Max drags Faye to a yoga class, where he gets special attention from the instructor. Guest: David Del Rio as Damien.[2]
66"Bathroom Boyfriend Bereavement"TJ MarchbankThandi Tolmay & Ben BaurOctober 16, 2016 (2016-10-16)13:20
Faye faces a personal crisis while Max is busy at a business meeting. Guest: Peter Sudarso as Austin.

Season two (2018)[edit]

No.
overall
No. in
season
TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal air dateLength
71"Birthdays, Breakups, & Brunch. Part One: "The Birthday""TJ MarchbankThandi Tolmay & Ben BaurNovember 29, 2018 (2018-11-29)4:02
Max is having a personal crisis as he turns 29 years old.
82"Birthdays, Breakups, & Brunch. Part Two: "The Breakup""TJ MarchbankThandi Tolmay & Ben BaurNovember 29, 2018 (2018-11-29)2:53
Austin asks Max to move in with him, and Faye wakes up in bed with Austin's bro coworker David.
93"Birthdays, Breakups, & Brunch. Part 3: "The Brunch""TJ MarchbankThandi Tolmay & Ben BaurNovember 29, 2018 (2018-11-29)4:56
Max tells Faye and Eddie that he broke up with Austin.

Reception[edit]

Katrina Alonso of Out called #Adulting "hilariously awkward".[2] Writing for Instinct, Adam Dupuis deemed the series "binge worthy".[9]

Awards and nominations[edit]

Year Award Category Nominee(s) Result Ref.
2017 8th Indie Series Awards Best Web Series — Comedy Nominated [10]
Best Lead Actor — Comedy Ben Baur as Alex Nominated
Best Guest Actor — Comedy Drew Droege as Dewey Won [11]
Best Original Song "I Can't Make You Love Me" Won
LA Webfest Outstanding Comedy Series Ben Baur, Thandi Tolmay, TJ Marchbank, Rob Craven, Mark Heidel Nominated [12]
Outstanding Lead Actor — Comedy Ben Baur as Max Nominated
Outstanding Lead Actress — Comedy Thandi Tolmay as Faye Won [13]
Outstanding Guest Actor — Comedy Michael Perl as George Won
Outstanding Guest Actor — Comedy Drew Droege as Dewey Nominated [12]
Outstanding Directing — Comedy TJ Marchbank Nominated
Outstanding Writing — Comedy Ben Baur, Thandi Tolmay, Zach Hug Nominated
2019 10th Indie Series Awards Best Comedy Series Nominated [14]
Best Lead Actress — Comedy Thandi Tolmay as Faye Nominated
Best Lead Actor — Comedy Ben Baur as Max Nominated
Best Writing — Comedy Ben Baur, Thandi Tolmay Nominated

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c Isaac, Tim (January 27, 2016). "#Adulting Episode 1 – Hunting Season's Ben Baur deals with growing up in the new gay-themed web series". BigGayPictureShow.com. Retrieved January 30, 2017.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h Alonso, Katrina (October 5, 2016). "Exclusive: Ben Baur Talks New Episodes of His Latest Web Series #Adulting". Out. Retrieved January 30, 2017.
  3. ^ a b "#Adulting – A Comedy Web Series". Kickstarter. May 11, 2016. Retrieved January 30, 2017.
  4. ^ Reynolds, Daniel (April 30, 2016). "A Gay Man Faces Life at 30 in New Web Series". The Advocate. Retrieved January 30, 2017.
  5. ^ Grant, Drew (August 30, 2012). "Hunting Season: Really Old Sex Blog Gets New Life as Web Series". The New York Observer. Retrieved March 23, 2016.
  6. ^ Rome, Emily (September 7, 2012). "A gay Sex and the City? New web series Hunting Season tackles sex lives of gay New Yorkers". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved March 23, 2016.
  7. ^ "Out100: Ben Baur". Out. November 9, 2015. Retrieved March 23, 2016.
  8. ^ Goldberg, Michael. "Help Hilarious Web Series #Adulting Hit Its Stretch Goal!". Serial Scoop. Retrieved January 30, 2017.
  9. ^ a b Dupuis, Adam (October 18, 2016). "Binge Worthy Web Series #Adulting - New Episodes Are Here!". Instinct. Retrieved January 30, 2017.
  10. ^ "Nominations Announced For 8th Annual Indie Series Awards". Indie Series Awards. February 1, 2017. Retrieved February 1, 2017.
  11. ^ "8th Annual Indie Series Awards Winners". Indie Series Awards. Retrieved April 14, 2017.
  12. ^ a b "LA WebFest 2017 Award Nominees" (PDF). LA WebFest. Retrieved February 22, 2019 – via lawebfest.com.
  13. ^ "LA WebFest 2017 Award Winners". Roma Web Fest. 18 May 2017. Retrieved February 22, 2019 – via romawebfest.it.
  14. ^ "10th Annual Indie Series Awards Nominations". Indie Series Awards. January 2019. Retrieved May 4, 2019.

External links[edit]