I can say with full confidence that our collaborations and friendship with you is the single greatest thing to come out of our RU-vid channel and we’re so thankful for that first comment you left. Love you both. ❤
The things you mentioned is why i love watching your videos. You guys feel genuine, love your chemistry together and the quality of your videos in my opinion are A+. Its fun to watch your older videos to see how far you have come. You guys are unique and make things fun and interesting. Great job! And side note: im glad you dont let those online jerks get ya down
Being your authentic self is why you guys are the absolute best! Such great advice Jamie! It is so amazing that because of board games we have all made friends from all over. It is so special to hear that y'all travel to go see friends you met because of your channel.
Great timing on this. Been kicking around this idea for a bit. Thanks for sharing. If Meeple becomes trademarked in the US how does that affect you all?
This has ben one of the biggest demonstration of how much you care about your community and followers. Great video and it's really nice to learn from amazing and honest people like you that shared the same passion that us as boardgames enthusiasts. I'm not an English native speaker, but I love your channel and I also follow other content creators both in English and Spanish, but I'm feeling that in Spanish there is still some room to jump in and create quality content, and that's why I found this video super interesting and inspiring. Thanks again and my love for your channel will keep growing. Also if you come to Europe, maybe to Essen, and want to visit other countries and you will come to Prague, please let me know as I'm based in Prague and I'll love to meet you and maybe play something with you guys. I'm in the discord but that platform is still very challenging to me, so I'm not super active there. Anyway, I'll shut up and keep looking for more great videos. Cheers from Prague! 😂
As I'm watching this - these recommendations, your advice, etc - resonates with me as just a working professional. I think everyone should be doing all these things in their life to support others. Also, I love you guys! But you knew that. :). I talk about you guys all the time at my FLGSs -- because you guys show so much love to the hobby, to others, and to one another.
This was awesome Jamie! Another tip I'd share - JUST START POSTING. It can be intimidating to post your first few videos and you'll come up with 100 different reasons why you should wait. Your first few videos are going to be terrible, their not going to get many views, but you only go up from there!
Absolutely this. When I started, I already knew it wouldn't be as good as I would wish it would be. I already knew that if I was still around 10 years from now and looked back on my early videos, I would have all kinds of notes on how to improve it. But I also knew the more you do something, the better you get at it. I also knew that it would be great to HAVE something TO look back on in 10 years, so I HAD to start!
Thanks for this video! I wish literally everyone made these things - it's so good to get reinforcement of what I'm getting right (and getting wrong and just shrugging and saying whelp I am who I am with - and I LOVE that you enable that consistently throughout this video)
Terrific video! I love how honest it is and how encouraging it is, too❣️ My channel is just for fun & I'm always shocked & thrilled when new people find it and like it😆 The boardgame community is such a great community of people❣️ Thanks for making such a good video---it's really a gift to the community & all those people out who watch & deep down long to make videos, too🎉
hey jamie. Thank you for your informative, honest and amusing video. In August I'm starting my third year of RU-vid in Germany with a board game channel. I really liked all your tips. They are very helpful for newbies! (Thanks for the Davinci tip. I didn't know it and downloaded the program straight away). The Why of your opening question is also with me: meeting and getting to know people (of course also presenting board games) - but first of all, meeting lovely people. I hope I will be able to meet you in person and say hello and thank you for the wonderful hours at Foster the Meeple. Maybe at some point at the SPIEL in Essen. All the best from Hamburg, Germany. Your Carsten
Two things: First, I really like when creatives in any space help lift up others, it's always great to see :) Second, I see and very much appreciate the spooky horror game shelf directly behind you :p Keep up the great work!
Having started my RU-vid channel around 6 months ago, using the only table in my 24m² tiny apartment to shoot playthroughs, thank you Jamie for the things you're saying! 🥺 It's not always easy to keep a positive attitude when you see the slow growth, but it's so rewarding when I see someone new subscribing! This is also my first ever comment on someone else's RU-vid channel so I'm already learning from this video to engage more 😂 PS: love all the Taylor Swift references, from a Swiftie since 2009! 🫶🏻
Very interesting! I have no intention of making content on RU-vid, but my 10 year old son wants to. Can you redo the video in French so that I can make him listen to it? ;). I'm kidding. This gives me several topics to discuss with him (he won't be on RU-vid for several years, he can learn to edit in the meantime :) )
Another great video from you guys! I’m thinking of starting a RU-vid channel myself, so this has been very helpful. Love you and Jeff! You guys are so genuine! Appreciate all you do! Keep up the great work!
Awesome video, Jamie! Super appreciate all you do and all the tips you’ve given! Definitely keeping the “doing it for fun” factor when making things, otherwise, why bother?
This video was so helpful and enlightening! I've been fumbling through making a few videos and find perfectionism to be the most difficult hurdle. I think your point about people coming to youtube wanting that personal connection and just being yourself really hit home that I've been focussing on the wrong things when I try to film. Anyway, thanks! I love the vibe you folks have, your sensibilities and down-to-earth approach to board games and youtube are inspiring! Cheers
Thanks for the tips. I’m keen to have a go. BTW I watched you solo top 10 and I liked most of your choices. My picks are Fleet the dice game, Rebuilding Seattle and the Pinball series. I do share your love to Final Girl, the best solo game 😊
Jamie - just want to say thank you for all the advice and I love all the boardgame videos you and Jeff do. You both just seem so genuine and sincere. I have recently started a youtube channel for D&D so I truly appreciate the tips. I have a several questions if you don't mind: I am having a hard time coming up with content at times, how do you get through this type of issue? I release one video a week (generally Friday - Sunday, still trying to get the filming and editing down so I can release more consistently but "writer's block" has been a killer. Do you plan what videos you will do based on "what is hot at that moment" or just what you feel like doing that week/day. Thanks and I am looking forward to your videos as usual.
I tried thumbing this up a few hundred times, but it just keeps clicking on and off. Sorry I couldn't give you more than 1! Really great info and being "yourswelf" is such a great topic 😁
I always enjoy watching your videos. Honestly, it was your personalities that made me first subscribe! I love all the silliness between you and Jeff. You guys make the videos fun and entertaining.
I could tell this was a hard one to make. I did like seeing all the pictures and rooms, and the different games. I say you and Jeff should try out a double bean bag video, you know for science and fun. 😊 Keep up the great videos ❤
You guys are for me! and I hope you get way more positivity than the negative. Great video thank you for sharing, fascinating insights from behind the scenes.
A great and insightful video, thank you Jamie! Cool to learn what hardware/software you use for the process, and you made some super great points that gave us plenty to think about. While we don't seek to copy anyone else, our first video didn't come off very authentic at all because we were reading a script (maybe a mistake there) and I was super anxious and afraid 😅, it's our first time on RU-vid like this, and it can be a bit daunting. 100% agree there is a lot of learning and work to do to for this. Thanks again for the video :)
That’s a really good point on the script reading! Unless you’re doing a tutorial video I find scripts to be a little stiff and it’s better to just chat with the camera! Sometimes I might write down a few bullet points to job my memory like I did for this video!
@@FostertheMeeple Aha yeah - we've decided to keep the scripts for that kind of video going forward. We just recorded two more the last week with zero script and had a much better time with it - it was less stressful for us and easier to film. (And edit! I didn't have to cut away so much, reading a script made us slip up way more 😅)
Thank you for saying the algorithm is not against you. As a content creator I love helping others as well with their channels and I hear it all the time "The algorithm hates me" Nah, it wants you to succeed. They want to make money off your videos. Just gotta keep getting better your thumbnails/videos.
Thanks for sharing your insight and experiences! I'm inspired to explore Davinci Resolve a bit more now - your editing skills are amazing. :) If you want to share, I'm wondering what all your degrees are? I remember you saying you have a biology degree...
I will definitely have to look at this when I get a moment. I just started my channel a few month ago, mainly for fun and mental health. If it takes off it does. I don’t have a ton of space or fancy gaming area but it works.
I’m not sure if my replay is actually showing up since I linked my page as it seems to not be but my page name is Where There’s A Wilz, There’s A Play if you want to check it out. I’ve actually played on BGA with both of you. Wiscowilz is my user name.
Amazing video Jamie! 😊👏🏻 I 1000% agree with everything you touched on throughout this video and such important things to talk about in the board game space. You are such a great voice in this community and seriously I am so honoured to call you a friend. 💕 And of course Jeff as well!
Great advice and thoughts! I also love making content (and editing)! I feel like my why for this channel has changed a little over the years, or maybe grown to have more reasons, because I didn't know that I liked making videos before this channel. But now I have a bunch of RU-vid channels! 😆 I like that you said so much in the learning category - what people don't realize is that being a RU-vidr isn't just filming a video, but doing all the behind the scenes work and basically running your own business. I also like the expectations vs reality - especially when you make a video that you really like and think is cool but then it doesn't do well (and vice versa is also baffling 😅)
Such a great video. I think back to when I first got into creation and still remember the day and where I was when I received the notification that you and Jeff tagged me in the first board game tag video of yours. Believe it or not it brought tears to my eyes. One of my most memorable moments in content creation. From the bottom of my heart thank you both. Love you both, love what you do, and love the friendship. Miss you both.
My wife and I are contemplating starting a RU-vid channel for board gaming and we found this video quite helpful. However, one glaring question remained unanswered: Do you think we need to learn to speak Canadian in order for the channel to really explode, or is speaking American going to be enough? Our next step depends on your answer. Don't let us down.
Enjoy you and Jeff with your sincerity with game reviews. I thought I would experiment back some 20 years ago. I believe my interest was watching “Board games with Scott”. He was interesting to view. I found my voice upon trying to be very dry and BORING. So I nixed the idea but continued with the hobby and watched Tom Vasel and the growth of his videos. However, it seemed that he added so many spin off reviewers and rambling for 1 1/2 hours and it became more of selling a game than review. Please keep your channel simple as it is with you and Jeff. 👍👍👍
Hopefully people are not getting into such a niche space with the expectation of making any semblance of a living off RU-vid. You're right, you really do have to enjoy the entire process or you're just going to stop. Love the video.
This video has been really informative and helpful. Regarding Collaboration, we have stuck our toes into trying to do some collab work. However, I have been stuck on tech side of things and trying to get a set up that works. From a video side, we are leveraging our cell phones for most of the recorded content that we do. What direction would you give or do you see other creators in this space use for collab tools?
Great question! We have used OBs with OBS ninja and Streamyard for distance collabs, depending on what kind of phone you have, you can actually use your iPhone as your webcam! Another tip, you can get both people to record their own video and audio and send it to one person to edit and then just chat through discord (just make sure you use headphones so there is no echo!)
@@FostertheMeeple Thank you for taking the time to respond. It's very much appreciated. I have played with OBS, but really haven't gotten the hang of it. We'll have to sit down and put some real concerted effort into learning that tool. It did take a couple of sittings to watch this whole video, but I have to say as a creator in this space everything you said hit home. We're a small channel, but have started focusing on doing content that's more in tune with community building from where we started. This was also really motivating and we have had a lot of busy life stuff lately. We'll make sure to get back in front of that camera soon and record some more video!
That was the best content creator/board game crossover video ever done. Nearly a solid hour of straight facts! I will be recommending this video to anyone who's thinking of starting any type of content (not just youtube) in the board game space. The journey I've had through content creation matches up with your experience so much. Working for a publishing company now has been an incredible journey. I love discovering more and more people and all the wonderful perspectives in the wider board game community. I know how much work it takes to make a video like this. So much respect to you Jamie!
I felt some real emotion in your voice in some of these comments, particularly in the negative section... and that hurts me to see - because you're such a delightfully light and fun person to watch. I have absolutely zero desire to be a public figure (and be subjected to the ugliness of the world through comments) and I hope you and Jeff are ALWAYS taking care of your hearts and protecting yourselves from the nastiness that can come your way on platforms like this one. You guys are so silly, fun, and your brightness flows through the screen! Much love, -Caleb
Great thoughts! I think being honest about your "why" is probably the most important. A lot of the hard things melt away if your reason for doing it is clear. Thanks for sharing your thoughts 👍
Thanks for the video. I have been toying with the idea of a board gaming RU-vid or cooking or video game channel. I am a public figure and video and camera doesn’t scare me. The edit process and other items that go into it do not interest me at all. Very insightful ! I consume RU-vid like it’s a candy. I watch crazy things. I would love to hear about board game channels that might fall under the radar. I also run out of content to watch. Yard cleanup, hoof trimming, cave exploring, cave diving, board games, video games, crafts, hobbies, rc cars, history, archeology, kites, cooking. Just most of what I watch but there are many others. Just thought I would suggest a few.
Great video Jamie! The reason I keep coming back to your channel is that you and Jeff are so sincere amd genuine. You obviously are passionate about doing what you are doing and it transpires in all your videos. Keep caring and sharimg and we'll keep on following. From a fellow Canadian from Quebec.
Hey Jamie, great vid. Do you have any advice for how to keep schedule when you get ill or in my case, kids get ill?... ps kindergarten is a hive of disease, haha 😅
Thanks for all that you both do! As someone who is fairly new to getting into the deeper board games (stuff beyond Monopoly, Clue, etc) I've been listening to you guys and I feel lost when I keep hearing terms like deck building, Conbony, and other ones that keep getting thrown out. Have you ever done a video on terminology definitions? And if not could you either make a video or have it in the description area of each video?
I have absolutely no interest in starting my own RU-vid channel, and yet this was still such a fun and engaging video because you guys are always so genuine! PS. Nothing wrong with a Jeff Rants video!
This video is chock full of helpful information. We’ve been spending our Sunday mornings with FTM for the past year and is one of the highlights of our week. We love you guys. ❤
Most of what you've said can be true for any creative endeavor. Musicians, artists, writers, movie producers, etc. If you want to be happy, do it because you enjoy the creative process no matter what. You enjoy expressing yourself. You enjoy learning the craft. If you want to get attention, that usually requires dedication and hard work. In any case, you might be an awesome XYZ, but there's way more factors than just that going in to be a success (ie. Big Star was an awesome band, but nobody knew). Be prepared for not getting the attention. Be prepared for people to not like what you do. It can be rewarding, just keep your expectations in check.
Another great video, I have been watching your guys videos for a long time now and I really agree that you guys being authentic and reminding me of people I play games with made me really connect with your channel. Keep killing it!
I love that your channel always has different and interesting content. I don't plan on starting a RU-vid channel, but found this an interesting insight into the process. Your's and Jeff's authenticity always shows through, which is why I keep coming back. Thanks again for sharing your passion. 😊
I’ve had a channel for about 5 months now? I started it as a way to journal my weight loss journey, I would play a solo game and do voice overs. It wasn’t really helping my weight loss journey but I enjoy making the videos. They started out really bad and they are still not good but they are better (one of them didn’t have sound! lol). I’m switching focus to more about my art and my game design and yeah, my videos are a bit boring I think. It’s hard learning how to be your authentic self on camera. I didn’t show my face at all at first but now I show an old picture of myself, eventually I’ll start showing my current fat face😊. You guys are great, when I launch my 1st game I’ll approach you guys to do a preview, thanks for your content.
Such a great video, even if Jeff didn't get to be included! I appreciate y'alls honesty in the space; I believe it's great to see this side of the process and to hear refreshing words of tough love, as well as useful advice to those who are ready to take the next step in their own journey.
Love the video Jamie! I’ve had light plans to start my own channel at some point because I’d love to talk about the strategy of some of my favourite games and there’s not much of that besides for specific popular games. I hope these tips will be useful for me someday!
Thank you for giving us insight into the world of youtube. Your advice is not only helpful but just flat-out kind. There's so much negativity in this world, and we really need to try to bring ppl up. Thanks for being supportive of others.
Appreciate this one a lot, Jaime. Maybe this is the year I’m finally brave enough to post some of the stuff I made. Thanks for the class (and class) and inspiration!!!
I have no intentions on creating a RU-vid channel, but I wanted to watch the video anyway because you are always entertaining 😄 Seeing your side of things was really interesting! I never would have guessed that audio was so important to people, I mostly watch RU-vid in bed while everyone is sleeping soooo… mute + subtitles it is.
Great advice video Jaime. People definitely need to hear the hard truths. I don’t comment very often on videos but I really appreciated this one. I have been following your channel for a while and appreciate your passion and authenticity. If you and Jeff ever find yourself in Victoria BC please reach out. I wish you continued success with the channel.
This is great, Jamie, thank you! I love what you said about authenticity. One thing that frustrates me is how there are so many content creators who only review their sponsored games and don’t tell us they’re sponsored. They’ll glow about all these games as if they’re the most amazing things ever, but when you listen to the descriptions, they sound exactly like other games and you’re wondering why they’re so overly positive. Perhaps these people genuinely do like these games, but I keep thinking they are just saying all the positive things so they can collect their paycheque, which makes me trust them less. I’m not saying people need to have as many negative reviews as positive ones, but I’d prefer that people not do reviews of games they don’t like than to be dishonest and say the game is great when they themselves don’t like it. Like you said, you can tell whether or not people are being authentic! I love what you’re saying about the algorithm, and also your motivations for creating content. For four years I consistently made board game reviews on Instagram, but I realised that it was starting to feel more like work than fun. It’s so strange, because teaching games and giving my opinions are two of the things I love the most in this world. But I realised I was paying too much attention to likes and subscriptions, which is only tangentially related to what I actually wanted, which was connecting with other people about this hobby that I love. So this past year, I haven’t made any posts on Instagram, just Stories, memories, group chats, individual chats … and commenting on other people’s material. That’s how I’ve discovered like-minded people and made friends, and that’s what I truly value. You are correct that you can simply just ask people and sometimes they will say yes! There’s a friend of mine that I met on Instagram at first, but later in real life at a convention. I had in mind to ask him to do a Top 100 with me, but I wasn’t sure if he’d say no, so I posted it in a group chat and opened it to everyone, and he was the first to reply saying he thought it’d be fun! 😀 Thanks for all your advice, and I hope your channel continues to be fun and life-giving to you and Jeff!
Excellent advice, and sometimes the raw truth of being a content producer is refreshing to hear. Keep up the amazing work, love to see our beautiful country being represented in this space by an amazing couple. :)
Fantastic Info! Thanks for sharing this... kinda pulls back the curtain on what Content Creators go through to learn (and improve) their Craft! Great Content... Keep it Up! 🙂
I found your channel looking for content. Subscribed and stayed because of both of your personalities. The way you are smart, silly, fun. Love the extra bits so we can get to know you both.
As a fellow Nova Scotian and board game enthusiast, I appreciate you both, how you approach the channel, and your authenticity is the top thing that draws me in. So even if we never meet, I am glad to know you are out there in the province and the board game-o-sphere.
Love this video so much, you guys are such an inspiration! I always feel so much more motivated after seeing the joy you have for what you do. I'm so glad you decided to start your channel and share a piece of your lives with all of us here on youtube. You two are absolutely amazing!
Stick around was around in Australia! Lol such a nostalgia hit! Congrats to both of you! Thank you for all your content, you deserve all your success and more.
@FostertheMeeple we shudder at the amount of hilarious technical faux pas we have done ! Once filmed a video three times as forgot to turn on the sound, and then on second attempt didn't realise the camera storage had run out 2 minutes in! So great to hear what you said about editing!
My wife and I assume when we first started watching that your last name was Foster or something. Then we had a some come up on Spotify by Foster the People... and we were like, Oooh! That's where that comes from! 😂
