‘People like to gossip’: This is how Greek mythology conquers TikTok | technology

On TikTok there are long videos about Eros and Psyche or Hera and Zeus’ wedding which have got more than 5 million views. It’s so long that its author, actor Pol Gisé, has to split it in two (TikTok doesn’t allow videos longer than 10 minutes). Gisé, 30, has achieved something that seems unattainable on that network: 1.2 million followers with 180 stories from Greek mythology told just by looking into the camera while walking in the woods in Berga (Barcelona).

Its success has two possible reasons: pure vernacular and treating the stories as pure gossip. “People love gossip. Some are interested in mythology as something mystical, but there are those who love it in the form of gossip, ”Gezy summarizes in a conversation with EL PAÍS in Barcelona. His videos always start with “He’s coming” A little gossip Legendary.” It’s a minipodcast created by TikTok, the short-form video app that’s especially popular among younger people. “I knew it could work, but not much,” says Gisé, who created the channel in the summer because he was preparing a novel that just came out. . Hades. The least evil of the gods (Topics of the day).

The method of narration is central to Gisé: “I’ve focused more on engaging content, so that people see there’s a story. I explain it to make it more interesting and take the seriousness away.” Language is one of the clear pillars of his narrative: “In the videos, I use the language of the internet. I explain things the way I like them explained to me. I try to give what I wished for at the time. Also I was very frustrated when I was young and they explained things to me that bored me and then I read And I thought it was very interesting, ”he recalls.

Choosing TikTok was clear from the start “because it’s what I’ve been making the most right now.” The extension of Gisé’s videos is further evidence of TikTok’s resistance to the new formats. The idea that it’s a “little dance” app combats the worst every day: “We’re now with the fact that only short, fast content works. I said no. I started making these Greek mythology videos that were at least 10 minutes long. They pulled a lot”.

The idea of ​​TikTok and other video networks as secondary content will slowly disappear, he believes: “That there are people who think networks are people who do challenges to fill a pool with young girls means they don’t see these networks. There is this content, which is fine, but then I see the theory of relativity explained by someone.” YouTubers. Now there is a lot of diversity, ”he explains.

Jesse’s mythology is a contribution to offering more variety: “The algorithm sucks your life. If I have to work and get into TikTok to entertain myself a bit, that’s it, business done. Big companies are still going to do whatever it takes to be there,” says Jesse. Encouraged by this feeling of helping a user who was lost in the magic of watching video after video, Gisé wanted to add his mythology content: “One of the reasons I made mythology content is because I felt a little bad. If I go on TikTok and find five videos in a row that don’t make me think, I appreciate that The sixth stanza tells me: “You know Isabel la Católica I don’t know what?”. So I don’t feel bad being there. I’m grateful when someone like that shows up,” he explains.

Gisé’s success on TikTok has a deeper foundation: He’s already been successful on two other networks before. He studied to be an actor in Barcelona and, after trying his trade while studying, opened an account on Vine, the six-second video network that Twitter bought (and later shut down). There he draws humorous sketches about everyday things (today Gisé has a smaller “non-mythical” account on TikTok where he maintains that spirit of comedy). In 2017, an important change came: YouTube moved to a new format: explaining stories from the Bible with animoji (emoji character) put his vote on it. He sums up: “I’m reconnecting myself with the actor I love to write.” “I enjoy it most, not only when performing, but also while writing and creating. Don’t think every day about A feeThe most popular videos on this account are about Adam and Eve, the extinction of dinosaurs according to the Bible, and Lucifer.

When he ran out of the best Bible stories, he turned to the legends he called “salsaeos.” From the “Greek Sauce” stems the idea for the TikTok account and the novel. “I’ve taken the content of my Greek sauce, which took a week and a half to make, and simplified it. The script is improvised. It’s like I’m explaining it to a friend. Funny things come out of me.”

The book aims to explore these formats in a traditional mold: “In the book I want to bring those people who follow me in this content to something I sometimes enjoy, which is writing. I’m trying to move the language of the Internet into a more literary field. I’ve never read a book like the one I wrote, In English and this language,” he says. Gisé knows that, like himself, the generation he sees on TikTok have lost some lasting interest. It’s a sign of the times: “I also need to release dopamine all the time. That’s what I do on TikTok, which is I pull and follow, like someone who needs to be entertained. Every video is new. On the other hand, it’s hard to sit down to read a book if you’re not a pre-worker.” What I see a positive about what my book can do is that I write very entertaining and if someone reads me, they can develop a certain interest in the subject,” he explains.

Regarding the future, he doesn’t think legends will ever end. “There are other myths that interest me and I would probably like to write my own. I will not go back to the Bible. They are not as good as Greek myths. The Bible has become more popular, but the Greek letters have become more complex and richer,” he defends. Being an actor, he considered the option of taking these stories to the stage, as some successful podcasts do: “I’ve developed a certain stage phobia, because now I do everything at home, but if someone directs or instructs me, I will.” , explain.

The only future he’s blinking at right now is for ChatGPT to text him: “I haven’t tried it. I’m going to get depressed. It scares me so much. I don’t want you to give me ideas. I don’t know how AI will proceed, but I don’t think I want to know. If something happens What a day, I’ll wake up. I’m sure it can help me, but it scares me now.”

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