Mike Diva

Last updated

Mike Diva
Mike Diva Blue (cropped).jpg
Diva in 2018
Born
Michael Brenton Dahlquist

(1987-06-23) June 23, 1987 (age 37)
Sacramento, California, U.S
NationalityAmerican
Occupation(s)Film director, visual effects artist, musician and YouTuber
Website www.mikediva.lol

Mike Brenton Dahlquist (born June 23, 1987), known professionally as Mike Diva, is an American film director, visual effects artist, musician, and YouTuber. After establishing his YouTube channel in 2006, he created multiple internet videos that went viral on the platform, one of which being Japanese Donald Trump Commercialトランプ2016, a Japanese styled politically satirical video disguised as a campaign commercial for Donald Trump's 2016 presidential campaign, which gained international attention.

Contents

Diva has directed YouTube videos for Epic Rap Battles of History, [1] music videos for 3OH!3, Kill the Noise, The M Machine, Mindless Self Indulgence, Savant, Lil Nas X, and Doja Cat, [2] [3] segments of Saturday Night Live, commercials and other promotional materials for Xbox, Mixer, Halo Top Creamery, and the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority. [4] He also directed the Netflix special The Unauthorized Bash Brothers Experience.

Early life and career

Mike Brenton Dahlquist was born on June 23, 1987, in Sacramento, California. He was introduced to filmmaking at the age of 14 after downloading VFX software from LimeWire. [5] [6] After dropping out of college, he moved to Los Angeles, California to pursue filmmaking. He uploaded a prank video in 2011 titled "Sexy Sax Man" which revolved around Diva and his friend Sergio in various locations running around with a saxophone playing George Michael's "Careless Whisper" to people, which went viral on YouTube.

In June 2016, Diva's video Japanese Donald Trump Commercialトランプ2016 gained international attention, with some 8 million views on Facebook and almost 300,000 views on YouTube in its first 24 hours. The video is presented as a Japanese commercial promoting the Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump. The video was shot over a month and a half with virtually no budget and stars the cosplayer and wig stylist known as sushimonstuh. [7] [8] Slate described the work as "a dizzying, sorbet-hued phantasmagoria that gestures toward the coming end times." [7]

On August 11, 2016, Diva directed a similar politically satirical video for Super Deluxe about the Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton. The video depicted a fictionalized Clinton attempting to connect with the millennial generation using various internet memes. [9] [1]

In 2017, Diva co-wrote and directed a stylized horror spot for Halo Top Creamery titled "Eat The Ice Cream," The advert made headlines in Adweek , [10] AdAge , [11] IndieWire, [12] Munchies [3] and Gizmodo . [13] It won a number of awards, including AdWeek's Top 10 Ads of 2017. [14]

In 2021, Diva moved to New York City and began directing video shorts for Saturday Night Live . [15]

Artistry

Diva is known for incorporating various aspects of Internet culture and Vaporwave aesthetics on his films. He is inspired by Japanese commercials, as well as Michel Gondry, and the Daniels. [16]

Personal life

Diva previously lived in Los Angeles, currently residing in New York City. [15] He is apolitical and atheistic, and describes himself as someone afflicted with ADHD. He has an older brother who attended the University of California in Berkeley.

Awards and nominations

YearWorkCategoryAwardResult
2018Halo Top Creamery "Eat The Ice Cream"Best Marketing and Communications Educational EffortAdWheel Grand AwardWon
2018Halo Top Creamery "Eat The Ice Cream"Advertising, Media, & PR: Branded ContentPeople's Voice Award WinnerWon
2018Halo Top Creamery "Eat The Ice Cream"Internet Commercial (District 15)American Advertising Awards (ADDY)Silver
2018Halo Top Creamery "Eat The Ice Cream"Internet Commercial (Los Angeles)American Advertising Awards (ADDY)Silver
2018Halo Top Creamery "Eat The Ice Cream"Digital Marketing / Online Video AdvertsD&AD AwardsWon
2017Halo Top Creamery "Eat The Ice Cream"Humour in AdvertisingEPICA AwardBronze
2017Halo Top Creamery "Eat The Ice Cream"Advertising The 10 Best Ads of 2017 Won
2016Savant: Kali 47Special Mention AwardAmarcort Film FestivalWon
2016Savant: Kali 47Audience AwardFANCINE Festival de Cine Fantastico de la Universidad de MalagaWon
2016Savant: Kali 47Best Music VideoFantastic Planet Film FestivalWon
2016Savant: Kali 47Jury AwardLondon Short Series FestWon
2016Savant: Kali 47Jury AwardLong Island International Film ExpoWon
2016Savant: Kali 47Jury AwardOutlaw Film FestivalWon
2015ThresherBest Horror FilmComicpalooza Film FestivalWon
2015Savant: Kali 47Best VFXComicpalooza Film FestivalWon
2015Savant: Kali 47Music Video of the Year [17] 2015 Geeky Awards Won
2015Savant: Kali 47Jury AwardDragon*Con Independent Film FestivalWon
2015Savant: Kali 47Best Short FilmSteampunk Chronicle Reader's Choice AwardsWon
2015Savant: Kali 47Music VideoSteampunk Chronicle Reader's Choice AwardsWon
2013Mike Diva PresentsBest Direction 3rd Streamy Awards Nominated
2013Kill The Noise pt. 1Pick of the year MTV Clubland Won

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Man Your Man Could Smell Like</span> American television ad campaign

Smell Like a Man, Man is a television advertising campaign in the United States created by ad agency Wieden+Kennedy for the Old Spice brand of male grooming products, owned by Procter & Gamble. The campaign is commonly referred to as The Man Your Man Could Smell Like, the title of the campaign's initial 30-second commercial. The campaign was launched to market Old Spice's Red Zone After Hours Body Wash, but was subsequently expanded to include other products, following its success. The campaign targets female viewers, despite the product's intended market being male, as the company determined that women frequently make purchasing decisions for hygiene products even for male household members.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bryan Buckley</span> American filmmaker (born 1963)

Bryan Buckley is an American filmmaker, screenwriter, producer, and two-time Academy Award nominated director.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2016 Democratic National Convention</span> American political event

The 2016 Democratic National Convention was a presidential nominating convention, held at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, from July 25 to 28, 2016. The convention gathered delegates of the Democratic Party, the majority of them elected through a preceding series of primaries and caucuses, to nominate a candidate for president and vice president in the 2016 United States presidential election. Former U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was chosen as the party's nominee for president by a 54% majority of delegates present at the convention roll call securing it over primary rival Senator Bernie Sanders, who received 46% of votes from delegates, and becoming the first female candidate to be formally nominated for president by a major political party in the United States. Her running mate, Senator Tim Kaine from Virginia, was confirmed by delegates as the party's nominee for vice president by acclamation.

Charles A. Testa is an American taxidermist and owner of Ojai Valley Taxidermy in California. A commercial for Testa's business created by Rhett & Link for the show Rhett & Link: Commercial Kings became a viral video, and the catchphrase "Nope, Chuck Testa!" became an Internet meme.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">SourceFed</span> Former YouTube channel and news website

SourceFed was a YouTube channel and news website created by Philip DeFranco in January 2012 as part of YouTube's original channel initiative, and was originally produced by James Haffner.

This is a list of nationwide public opinion polls that were conducted relating to the Republican primaries for the 2016 United States presidential election. The persons named in the polls were either declared candidates, former candidates, or received media speculation about their possible candidacy. On May 4, 2016, Donald Trump became the sole contender and presumptive nominee.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Portal A Interactive</span> Digital content company

Portal A is a digital content company that creates branded and original entertainment. The company was founded by three childhood friends, Nate Houghteling, Kai Hasson, and Zach Blume. As of 2024, Portal A is independently owned with offices in SoMa and Downtown Los Angeles.

The 2016 United States presidential debates were a series of debates held during the 2016 presidential election.

Social media played an important role in shaping the course of events surrounding the 2016 United States presidential election. It facilitated greater voter interaction with the political climate; unlike traditional media, social media gave people the ability to create, comment on, and share content related to the election.

<i>Hillarys America: The Secret History of the Democratic Party</i> 2016 American film

Hillary's America: The Secret History of the Democratic Party is a 2016 American political documentary film about 2016 American presidential candidate Hillary Clinton and a critique of the Democratic Party. The film is written and directed by conservative political commentator Dinesh D'Souza and Bruce Schooley. The film had a limited release on July 15, 2016, before a wide release on July 22, 2016, and accompanies a book by D'Souza by the same name.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Paul Joseph Watson</span> English YouTuber, radio host, and conspiracy theorist

Paul Joseph Watson is a far-right British YouTuber, radio host, and conspiracy theorist. Until July 2016, Watson embraced the label "alt-right", but he now identifies as part of the New Right. In May 2019, Facebook and Instagram permanently banned Watson for violation of hate speech policies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Taco trucks on every corner</span> Quote by American activist Marco Gutierrez

The phrase "taco trucks on every corner" was used by American activist Marco Gutierrez, the co-founder of Latinos for Trump, on September 1, 2016 which received widespread attention during that year's presidential election. During an interview with MSNBC, Gutierrez referred to emigration from Mexico, stating that "My culture is a very dominant culture, and it's imposing and it's causing problems. If you don't do something about it, you're going to have taco trucks on every corner."

Donald Trump <i>Access Hollywood</i> tape Recorded discussion between Donald Trump and Billy Bush in 2005

On October 7, 2016, one month before the United States presidential election, The Washington Post published a video and article about then-presidential candidate Donald Trump and television host Billy Bush having a lewd conversation about women in September 2005. Trump and Bush were on a bus on their way to film an episode of Access Hollywood, a show owned by NBCUniversal. In the video, Trump described his attempt to seduce a married woman and indicated he might start kissing a woman that he and Bush were about to meet. He added, "I don't even wait. And when you're a star, they let you do it. You can do anything. ... Grab 'em by the pussy. You can do anything." Many commentators and lawyers described such an action as sexual assault. Others argued that the remarks were an assertion that sexual consent is easier to obtain for the famous and wealthy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Halo Top Creamery</span> Ice cream company

Halo Top Creamery is an ice cream company and brand sold in the United States, Australia, Mexico, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, the Netherlands, Germany, Denmark, Taiwan, Hong Kong, South Korea, Austria, United Kingdom and the United Arab Emirates. The brand is marketed as a lower-calorie alternative, partially substituting sugar with stevia, a plant-based sweetener, and erythritol, a sugar alcohol.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Doja Cat</span> American rapper (born 1995)

Amala Ratna Zandile Dlamini, known professionally as Doja Cat, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and record producer. Born and raised in Los Angeles, California, she began making and releasing music on SoundCloud as a teenager. Her song "So High" caught the attention of Kemosabe and RCA Records, with whom she signed a recording contract prior to the release of her debut extended play, Purrr! in 2014.

Justin Woolverton is an American entrepreneur and CEO of the ice cream company Halo Top Creamery. He founded the company in 2011, while working as a corporate lawyer.

References

  1. 1 2 Cagle, Tess (August 11, 2016). "Hillary Clinton's 'Meme Queen 2016' ad is her most effective yet" . Retrieved August 11, 2016.
  2. Miller, Shannon (February 10, 2022). "Mike Diva on Directing Doja Cat's 'Get Into It (Yuh)' Video". www.adweek.com. Retrieved July 29, 2024.
  3. 1 2 "The New Halo Top Commercial is a Dystopian Nightmare". September 8, 2017.
  4. "Los Angeles Gets the Singing Transit Etiquette Superhero It Needs". Bloomberg.com. October 19, 2017. Retrieved July 29, 2024.
  5. Big Vic Media (January 31, 2024). Mike Diva talks Directing Saturday Night Live and Music Videos . Retrieved July 29, 2024 via YouTube.
  6. Stories, Local (February 10, 2021). "Rising Stars: Meet Mike Diva - Voyage LA Magazine | LA City Guide". voyagela.com. Retrieved July 29, 2024.
  7. 1 2 Waldman, Katy (June 16, 2016). "You Will Never Unsee This Wondrously Strange Fake Japanese Advertisement for Donald Trump". Slate. ISSN   1091-2339 . Retrieved June 17, 2016.
  8. Mackey, Robert (June 16, 2016). "No, That Donald Trump Ad Is Not Real". The Intercept. Retrieved June 17, 2016.
  9. Meyer, Ken (August 11, 2016). "New Video Proves Hillary's Got the Dankest Memes on Lock". www.mediaite.com. Retrieved August 11, 2016.
  10. "An Ice Cream Brand Just Made the Perfect Cinema Ad to Run Before Horror Films – Adweek". www.adweek.com. September 7, 2017. Retrieved November 29, 2018.
  11. "Halo Top's Creepy Robot Declares 'Humans Require Ice Cream'" . Retrieved November 29, 2018.
  12. "Halo Top's Horrifying New Ad is a 'Black Mirror'-Esque Spin on '2001: A Space Odyssey' — Watch". September 8, 2017.
  13. "Holy shit this ice cream commercial". October 23, 2020.
  14. "The 10 Best Ads of 2017". December 11, 2017.
  15. 1 2 "Mike Diva Instagram post announcing his move to NYC and hiring by SNL". Archived from the original on December 25, 2021.
  16. Jones, Wil. "Interview: Youtube Meme Master Mike Diva on His Insane Donald Trump Video and Dancing Dogs". Complex. Retrieved July 29, 2024.
  17. "The 2015 Geekie Awards Winners & Nominees". Archived from the original on November 8, 2020. Retrieved May 26, 2016.