Single by 30
Single by 30 is an original romantic comedy web television series created by Wong Fu Productions. The series was launched on YouTube Red August 24, 2016. The focal point of the show follows the intertwining stories of two young adults Peter (Harry Shum Jr.) and Joanna (Kina Grannis), who once made a promise to get married if they were still single by the age of 30. On April 10, 2017, actor Harry Shum Jr confirmed on his Twitter account that the series would not return for a second season.[1]
Single by 30 | |
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Genre | Romantic comedy |
Directed by |
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Starring |
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Country of origin | United States |
Original language(s) | English |
No. of seasons | 1 |
No. of episodes | 8 (list of episodes) |
Production | |
Production company(s) | Wong Fu Productions |
Release | |
Original network | YouTube Red |
Original release | August 24 – October 4, 2016 |
Plot
In their senior year of high school, Peter and Joanna make a pact to go to their senior dance together if they fail to invite their desired dates. As this provides a back-up plan, this encourages them to invite a date despite the risk of being rejected. Joanna succeeds in wooing her date while Peter fails. They meet up after the dance, and they make another pact: to get married if they are both still single at the age of 30. This will encourage them to take more chances and put themselves out in the world.
After high school the two lose touch. But after 12 years, the two coincidentally reconnect just before turning 30. They have both recently broken up with their separate partners. Disillusioned with life, they decide to reinstate their pact to ease the process of re-entering the dating game. Their friends Mark and Chloe fall for one another and add a new dynamic to Peter's and Joanna's love lives. However, Peter and Joanna fight mixed feelings as they traverse their relationships both with new partners and with one another.
Cast
- Harry Shum Jr. as Peter Ma
- Kina Grannis as Joanna Taylor
- Hillary Anne Matthews as Chloe
- Eric Ochoa as Mark
- Manon Mathews as Lisa
- Alexandra Metz as Sarah
- Anna Akana as Grace
- Barry Rothbart as Ryan
- Ryan Higa as Trevor
The series features an ethnically "diverse group of actors to reflect the culture of Los Angeles, where the story is set."[2] NPR writes that it's a "solidly refreshing confection... when you throw in how rare it's been for diverse casts and Asian-American leading men in particular to find spots in widely released romantic comedies."[3]
Production
The series began with a pilot episode as a part of New Form Digital's Incubator Series 2.[4][5] However, the pilot episode became so popular that YouTube adopted it as an original YouTube Red series and green-lit an entire 8 episode season. Enabled by its budget from YouTube Red, Single by 30 marked the first time a Wong Fu Production has been written by anyone other than its founders.[6] Released as an official YouTube Red series (Now YouTube Premium) on August 24, 2016, the first episode was free while the remaining episodes were only available with a YouTube Red subscription. On April 22, 2020, WongFu Productions announced via their YouTube channel that all episodes of the series were available for everyone to stream for free.
Episodes
Episode | Title | Length | Release date |
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1 | Too Fast, Too Thirteous | 25:02 | August 24, 2016 |
2 | Dot Dot Dot | 24:57 | August 24, 2016 |
3 | Hold the Phone! | 25:09 | August 31, 2016 |
4 | Never Have I Ever | 24:38 | September 6, 2016 |
5 | All My Life | 25:21 | September 14, 2016 |
6 | First, First Date | 22:06 | September 21, 2016 |
7 | Moving In and Moving On | 24:38 | September 28, 2016 |
8 | Single at 30 | 24:49 | October 4, 2016 |
References
- Shum Jr, Harry [@HarryShumJr] (April 10, 2017). "Negative. Wish there was going to be one but @youtube RED decided not to renew. Had the best time making it tho" (Tweet). Retrieved July 17, 2018 – via Twitter.
- "YouTube Red Wraps Production On 'Single By 30' Series Starring Harry Shum Jr., Kina Grannis". Tubefilter. 2016-04-28. Retrieved 2016-12-21.
- "The Old-Fashioned Romantic Comedy Pops Up On YouTube With 'Single By 30'". NPR.org. Retrieved 2016-12-28.
- Hamedy, Saba. "'Single By 30': A YouTube Red series for millennials, by millennials". Mashable. Retrieved 2016-12-21.
- "New Form's Second Round Of Short Films Includes Wong Fu, Lisa Schwartz". Tubefilter. 2015-02-11. Retrieved 2016-12-21.
- "Behind 'Single by 30,' YouTube Red's relatable new rom-com". The Daily Dot. 2016-08-23. Retrieved 2016-12-21.
External links
- Single by 30. YouTube playlist