Story originally printed in the La Crosse Tribune or online at www.lacrossetribune.com
Published - Thursday, September 13, 2007
La Crosse native a producer for Web sensation ‘Chad Vader’
He has the cloak, the masked black helmet and even the deep, wheezing voice.
But that menacing figure roaming the aisles in the grocery store of an online series isn’t the Dark Lord of the Sith.
It’s Chad Vader, younger brother of the fearsome Darth Vader of “Star Wars” fame.
In a make-believe world created by Matt Sloan and Aaron Yonda, Chad Vader fumbles through life as the day-shift manager at a grocery store.
He’s a far cry from the master of the dark side of the Force his older brother portrays in the “Star Wars” movies.
But people love him.
They laugh as he uses “the force” to grab an apple from the bin and relate when he nearly orders another employee to go out on a date.
La Crosse native Courtney Collins, 35, played an important role in the film’s production by contributing music and serving as the producer.
“I basically organize and make everything they (Sloan and Yonda) want to happen, happen,” said Collins, who graduated from Central High School in 1990 and Viterbo University in 1994.
Among her tasks were securing the shoot location at a Madison food co-op and finding a trained dog to appear in the first season’s episodes.
“They send me on missions to find things like that,” she said. “Sometimes it was a lot of work, but I love doing it.”
“Chad Vader: Day Shift Manager,” a comedy series of eight five-minute episodes, has become an online sensation since its debut in 2006.
It has been featured on the home page of YouTube and was shown on ABC’s “Good Morning America.”
“Chad Vader” was selected by and shown on VH1’s “40 Greatest Internet Stars” in February and, most recently, was awarded the George Lucas Selects Award as the favorite fan film by the originator of the “Star Wars” films himself.
Blame Society Productions will start filming the second season of “Chad Vader” this fall.
Collins said outside parties have shown some interest in funding the new season.
“People’s reaction to it has been so much fun,” Collins said. “We were worried at first because George Lucas is notorious for shutting things down like this.”
Check it out
Keep up to date with “Chad Vader: Day Shift Manager” by visiting www.blamesociety.net.
Autumn Grooms can be reached at (608) 791-8424 or agrooms@lacrosse tribune.com.
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