Back in 2012, I had seen his video, Make it count, courtesy of my brother [Angus – the tech one who has started versofy]. I was going to a wedding in Baltimore, and was making a bit of a trip of it, going to San Diego and New York, so I e-mailed Casey, and he replied, with a 'Sure, pull in' response, so casual as if I was wanting to see if he was free for a game of tennis. Never mind the fact that he is a contributor to the New York Times and a mild YouTube sensation.
So when I was in New York I did pull in on one Thursday morning, his studio is very non-descript and I walked past it a few times before finally nailing it and coming face to face with a red door that said by 'appointment only' and 'KEEP OUT'. More welcoming signs I have seen.
This is the outside of his studio where he works in Soho, kinda average.
Anyway, I pushed through, knocked or rang the bell, (I can't remember) and entered the studio thanks to Thurman, Casey's assistant (who had no idea who I was or why I was there, but was very welcoming none the less). He walked me through the studio and answered any questions I had.
Thurman, Casey's assistant, lines up everything on his desk, so it is ready for action at any point in time.
A kind of workshop area thing, where he builds a lot of what he does in his videos.
It was truly amazing to see the space. It was like Casey's head had exploded and the remnants of his mind were on the walls. I had a visceral experience of how his mind worked just by being in the studio and seeing how everything was laid out, organized, disorganized, made, constructed etc. You know that saying, 'wearing you heart on your sleeve', well try this one: 'show your mind on your walls'.
They took a picture of everyone who visited the studio and put it up on the wall.
So that was awesome. Just being in the space and talking to Thurman and getting a picture for what they do and how they do it, all viewable on Casey's YouTube channel. And then Casey arrived (from some cool project I am sure), and I was possibly starstruck, but obviously trying to play it very cool, as if I come in to contact with people who have had over 80 million hits on their YouTube video on a daily basis. I don't. So I didn't get a picture of him and me, which I now regret, and I didn't get a signature, but I did get his series he did for HBO with his brother and a $2 bill sticker, and I got to chat to him, for a moment before he went in to his office to work.
Casey's desk.
So to recap;
How to meet Casey Neistat :
- Plan trip to New York.
- Casually e-mail him about this fact and say it would be cool to meet up.
- Pray for a reply
- Receive reply
- Calm down, and reply a few days later to seem casual.
- Make a chart to mark off the hours till you reply.
- Receive instructions for meet up.
- Fly to New York
- Find studio
- Enter studio
- Have your mind blown
- Shake his hand.
- Chat
- Try to resume normal life.
His very cool letterhead. He repurposes hotel notepads by embossing his identity over them. I thought that was very cool.
Thurman at his desk.
Manicured cables.