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Tim FerrissCasey Neistat Interview (Full Episode) | The Tim Ferriss Show (Podcast)
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CHAPTERS
- 0:00 – 8:55
Intro and New York City Noise Pollution
Tim Ferriss introduces Casey Neistat and the themes of the conversation. They start with the sirens outside Casey's window and how the noise of downtown Manhattan affects his filmmaking and his wish to leave the city.
- •Tim introduces Casey as a filmmaker and YouTuber who left traditional media for self-publishing
- •Casey works in an office on Broadway facing loud bus exhausts with single-pane windows
- •Noise is a constant problem for recording audio in New York
- •Casey says the noise is one of the biggest reasons he wants to leave the city after 15 years
- 8:55 – 12:39
Growing Up Poor, Welfare, and Discovering Filmmaking
Casey describes his childhood in the poor part of Connecticut, running away at 15 and becoming a father at 17. He explains how editing video on an iMac gave him a voice.
- •Raised in southeastern Connecticut, one of four kids, parents divorced when he was a freshman
- •Left home at 15 and had a son two weeks after his 17th birthday
- •The family was on welfare, receiving things like free milk
- •His brother Van showed him video editing on the first iMac
- •Filmmaking gave him a loudspeaker after feeling he had no voice
- 12:39 – 18:31
Bike Lanes and the On-Air Prank
Casey explains how a bike-lane summons led him to make a viral film that reached Mayor Bloomberg. He also reflects on an earlier on-air prank he regrets as mean-spirited.
- •Bike Lanes was made after a police summons for riding outside the bike lane, which turned out not to be an actual infraction
- •He crashes into obstacles in the bike lanes, ending with a parked police car
- •The film was seen about 5 million times in its first day
- •He looks back uneasily on a morning-news prank with ketchup packets
- •He says he doesn't like laughs at someone else's expense
- 18:31 – 24:53
Identity as a YouTuber and the Make It Count Story
Casey says he identifies as a YouTuber even though most of his time goes to his tech company. He then tells how he left the ad production system and used a Nike budget to travel the world for Make It Count.
- •He prefers YouTuber over tech entrepreneur, which he finds pretentious
- •Advertising he describes as creativity by committee
- •His production company told him his approach would never work, so he went on his own
- •He proposed spending Nike's whole production budget on travel instead of making an ad
- •The film opens by telling viewers he blew the budget traveling the world, and it became Nike's most-watched video for years
- 24:53 – 31:29
Travel Hacks and Gear
Casey describes the brutal Make It Count trip and explains how heavy flyers can exploit airline loyalty. He then lists his travel setup, cameras, and Final Cut editing workflow.
- •The trip involved sleeping upright for six nights and swollen feet
- •Airline tricks only work if you fly around 200,000 miles a year and build status
- •He travels with one carry-on suitcase and a backpack of camera gear
- •He uses a Canon 70D for vlogs and a Sony RX100 point-and-shoot
- •He edits in Final Cut 10 and prioritizes speed over color grading
- 31:29 – 39:20
How to Succeed on YouTube
Casey says the biggest waste on YouTube is copying others, citing YouTube's failed $200 million investment in big production channels. Asked how Tim should start, he advises action, quantity, honesty, and passion rather than overthinking.
- •Originality wins on YouTube, while copying wastes energy
- •YouTube's $200 million spent on established production entities failed while original creators thrived
- •Audiences look for relationships rather than polished films
- •Quantity matters as well as quality, and consideration alone won't yield success
- •Start from honesty, since YouTube viewers have refined bullshit detectors
- 39:20 – 45:14
Daily Vlogging and Engaging the Audience
Casey explains that he started daily vlogging to rebuild his social reach for his tech company. He says his idea of what a vlog is changed in practice, and he describes how little time he spends interacting with fans.
- •He began daily vlogging on his 34th birthday to support his company
- •He used to reject vlogging out of fear of living for the camera
- •His vlog turned out to be a daily show rather than a diary
- •He spends under an hour a day interacting with viewers, since time is fungible
- 45:14 – 49:27
First Paid Gig: The Clinton Teleprompter Story
Casey recalls his first paid job, a $5,000 birthday video for Fred Hochberg featuring powerful politicians. He tells how he deleted the teleprompter text during the interview with President Clinton.
- •He and his brother Van shared videos via Apple iDisk while he earned $10 an hour as an artist assistant
- •They asked $5,000 though they'd have done it for $100
- •The video included interviews with President Clinton and Hillary Clinton
- •He erased the teleprompter and pitched his own joke to the president
- •The joke brought down the house at the 500-person birthday event
- 49:27 – 53:15
Defining Success: His Grandmother and Daily Routine
Casey names his tap-dancing grandmother as his model of success, defined by how little time you spend doing what you hate. He then walks through his 4:30 AM routine and how he handles days he doesn't want to make the video.
- •His grandmother tap danced from age 6 until the day before she died at 92
- •She gave her recital proceeds to the American Cancer Society
- •He measures success by how little time is spent doing what you hate
- •He wakes at 4:30, uploads at 8:00 AM, runs, works at the office, and edits at night
- •He compares the pain of editing to climbing a mountain, forgotten the moment he uploads
- 53:15 – 59:22
Eating Habits, Starstruck, and Seeing People as Equals
Casey discusses sleep, eating when hungry, and the Honey Nut Cheerios coincidence. He explains why he rarely feels starstruck and sees everyone as an equal.
- •He dislikes sleeping and eating and eats only when very hungry
- •Tim mentions Larry King also eats Honey Nut Cheerios for breakfast
- •He was starstruck only by Jack Welch
- •He finds it hard to relate to fans waiting outside his office or to being starstruck
- •He sees celebrities and suffering refugees alike as equals
- 59:22 – 1:07:45
Self-Education, Reading, and Favorite Books
Casey explains how he became well-spoken through experiments in a restaurant kitchen and a habit of reading. He discusses The Second World War by John Keegan, The Autobiography of Malcolm X, and the book he gifts most.
- •As a 16-year-old kitchen worker he learned that silence stopped the teasing
- •Not knowing when World War II started embarrassed him and sent him to buy a book on it
- •He read John Keegan's The Second World War about three times
- •The Autobiography of Malcolm X deeply resonated with him
- •He gifts Paul Arden's It's Not How Good You Are, It's How Good You Want to Be
- 1:07:45 – 1:12:09
Gear Doesn't Matter and Vloggers to Watch
Casey says his $150 Walmart camera made Bike Lanes, so resources don't determine success. He recommends beginner equipment and points to vloggers Ben Brown and FunForLouis.
- •Bike Lanes was shot on a $150 camera and edited in free iMovie
- •Phones or a cheap Canon point-and-shoot are enough to tell a great story
- •Ben Brown is an honest daily vlogger who becomes a friend by proxy
- •FunForLouis is a long-time vlogger who travels year-round and funds it through YouTube
- 1:12:09 – 1:19:25
Misconceptions, Saying No, and Hard Work
Casey says people wrongly assume he's rich because he has turned down large paychecks that conflicted with his values. He explains his one filter for saying no and his belief in the religion of work.
- •He turned down a $100,000 YouTube job that day because of what they wanted him to say
- •He now filters every request by whether it's good for him and his tech company
- •He believes anything can be achieved through hard work
- •Hard work is the one egalitarian way to compete
- •Tim relates the story from the movie Miracle about outworking opponents
- 1:19:25 – 1:25:37
Why He Started Beme
Casey explains why he shut down a lucrative production company to start a tech company after his MIT Media Lab fellowship, and how Beme records video by covering the phone's proximity sensor.
- •He shut down his six- and seven-figure branded content business to start the company
- •A fellowship at MIT's Media Lab taught him that with technology almost anything is achievable
- •He wanted to separate creation from sharing
- •Beme records a four-second clip when the proximity sensor is covered and posts it automatically
- 1:25:37 – 1:34:17
Favorite Films, Billboard, and Advice to His Younger Self
Casey shares his favorite film and documentary, what he'd put on a billboard, and his advice about trusting instinct and making decisions. He also gives his ask for listeners, which is to be nice.
- •His favorite film is The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp, and his favorite documentary is Little Dieter Needs to Fly
- •His billboard would remind people to be nice
- •He advises listening to everyone and rejecting what you don't like
- •He prefers making decisions and trusting instinct over being crippled by choice
- •He asks listeners to be positive, which he compares to exercise
- 1:34:17 – 1:39:51
Running Music and Where to Find Casey
Casey says he listens to Johnny Famous's Spotify playlists when running. He points listeners to YouTube, Make It Count, Draw My Life, and the Beme app, and Tim closes the show.
- •He follows DJ friend Johnny Famous's playlists on Spotify
- •Everything he's done is on YouTube
- •He suggests starting with Make It Count and Draw My Life
- •Beme is on the App Store, with Android planned for November
