Video Thu Mar 28 2013

The Recession may be Over, but Funemployed is Coming Back

By Mike Ewing

Coming of age during the Great Recession presents all kinds of problems for Millennials/Gen Y-ers/twentysomethings. A lack of full-time employment. Useless college degrees. Growing a beard.

"Funemployed," an independent web series returning for its third season on March 31, is both a product of and a funny take on the "new normal" facing new adults today.

Set and filmed in Chicago, the series follows a group of friends as they graduate from college and begin their search for fame, love and glory. What they find is a series of temp jobs and complications.

Ted Evans, who plays "Ted" and is one of the show's co-creators, revealed that "Funemployed" is largely autobiographical.

"The show is not like 'Girls' -- it's not a hyper-realistic show. It's an exaggeration of things that we as a group experienced after moving to Chicago," Evans said.

The majority of the "Funemployed" team made their way to Chicago from the Savannah College of Art and Design to pursue various artistic endeavors.

Evans eventually found himself spending more time working as a massage therapist -- and less time acting -- than he expected. The others had similar experiences as well.

"You're out of college and you think you know a lot about the world and you're owed something, and you're wondering 'why isn't this happening right now?" he said. "But at least in Chicago even when shit's not going great you're still having a great time."

Wanting to channel their collective frustration into something creative, the group created "Funemployed" back in 2008.

By turning their own personalities and experiences up to 11, and making professional-quality videos (thanks to friends with skills and great equipment), they produced a show that resonated with their friends and a small group of loyal viewers.

"All of us that came together came to do it as a passion project -- this thing that we think is kind of funny and that we would like to see made into something we're all proud of," Evans said.

The show clearly tapped into the zeitgeist of the times, predating the aforementioned "Girls" and the similarly named "Underemployed" on MTV.

"Funemployed's" greatest success came from a viral comedy short that they created to promote the series, Arcade Fire Hipster Attack, which gained rapid popularity online and was eventually featured on "Attack of the Show."

Preoccupied by more "grown-up" responsibilities, the "Funemployed" crew has been relatively quiet lately. The last episode of the series was released back in June of 2011. But the newest season of "Funemployed" is going to be the "most epic," Evans said.

Just as their creators are entering their late-20s and 30s, the characters of "Funemployed" are turning their attention beyond partying until 4am and on to more serious business.

"When you're just out of college the world is huge -- you can do anything, you could do any internship you want to. When you get to be 28 you want to be somebody," Evans said via Skype from LA.

He recently moved there to pursue acting, but is currently working as a massage therapist during the day, employed by an actress who played a cheerleader in Fast Times at Ridgemont High and starred in obscure sci-fi movies.

His funemployment continues.

Catch new episodes of "Funemployed" starting March 31 on their website.