Interview With Van Neistat of HBO’s Neistat Brothers

July 02, 2010


The day that we were supposed to visit the studio of HBO's newest homegrown indie series, The Neistat Brothers, was coincidentally the same day that Van (1/2 of the brothers), broke his favorite camera. He accidentally crushed it while moving his car to avoid a steep Manhattan parking ticket. He was so distraught that we suggested we come back on a better day. "No no," he said, "this happened, and this is what I'm going to talk about"—which is, in a nutshell, exactly what distinguishes The Neistat Brothers from anyone and anything else on television. Bizarre things happen all the time in life, but these dudes have taken the time and effort to document such happenings and craft them into stories that are poignant and funny and sometimes a bit sad. It felt absolutely right to sit down and get a glimpse of Van in what seems like his natural state: chaos. After he had somewhat recovered from the shock of his killed camera, the phone rang. It was Josh Safdie of Red Bucket Films and Daddy Longlegs, requesting that Van come over and fix his VCR. We didn't stay to see the repair job, but Van claims he can fix anything—even his camera—and we believe him.Watch The Neistat Brothers TONIGHT and every Friday night for the rest of the summer at midnight on HBO.

Posted: July 02, 2010
Interview With Van Neistat of HBO’s Neistat Brothers