VAN NEISTAT: The Spirited Man

About This Video

The Spirited Man is the channel trailer, 2 minutes and 28 seconds, and Van Neistat never defines the term. He defines it by enumeration instead, stacking one specific act of fixing and making on top of another until the category becomes clear.

The catalogue is the argument. He can fix a dishwasher, sort of. He spent dozens of hours converting a toy to play his Super 8 films. He was insulted enough that a magnesium supplement company shipped a tiny measuring spoon with a giant tub of powder that he screwed the spoon to a chopstick to make it right. He wears prescription shop-teacher glasses. He painted a book report on an enormous sheet of paper, and once spent three months typing out someone else's novel and mounting it. None of these is impressive on its own. Together they draw a person.

The thread is repair, and the tool that organizes it is a mobile repair station he built so he can fix anything, anywhere, for anyone. A tape dispenser. A broken bracelet. A tripped breaker. He notes, flatly, that he cannot fix computers. He hasn't used drugs or alcohol since 2012, because when he did it was horrible. He mounted 65-pound magnets to a mini hoop for his son. The register never rises. The hard facts and the basketball-hoop facts get the same even delivery, which is the channel's whole tone in half a minute.

The trailer also names the woman who shadows the series, a spirited woman who sailed twice around the world and fell overboard once in the middle of the Pacific while pregnant. It promises episodes one through six, with more after that depending, in Van's words, on your enthusiasm slash subscriptions. It is, per the manifesto, an unlimited series about the spirited man or woman who lives inside all of us, and fixing things.

What Van Uses: a Super 8 film camera, the format he loves enough to engineer his own viewer for, and a mobile repair station stocked to fix a tape dispenser or a tripped breaker on the spot. The magnesium tub and its inadequate spoon are the kind of small wrong thing he can't leave alone.

Related: Van Neistat's Tool Kits, I Built a Homemade Super 8 Movie Viewer, Van Neistat: Fantasy Fixing

FAQ

What is a spirited man?
In Van Neistat's definition, a spirited man or woman is someone who takes matters into their own hands and fixes things rather than replacing them. He never states it directly in the trailer. He builds the meaning through examples: converting a toy to play Super 8 film, rebuilding a measuring spoon, repairing whatever lands in front of him.

What is The Spirited Man series?
An unlimited YouTube series Van Neistat launched in 2021 about the spirited man or woman who lives inside all of us, and about fixing things. The trailer promised episodes one through six rolling out that spring, with more to follow depending on audience subscriptions.

Why does Van Neistat say he can't fix computers?
It's a running line across the channel. Van fixes mechanical and physical things, dishwashers, tape dispensers, breakers, but treats computers as his one blind spot, the thing he can't repair. The trailer states it plainly, dropped between two things he can fix.

Transcript

the spirited man knows he is a spirited man this particular spirited man knows he is a spirited spirited man takes matters into his own hand this particular spirited man can fix a dishwasher sort of this particular spirited man spent dozens of hours figuring out how to convert a toy to play his super 8 films this particular spirited man is astonished that this magnesium supplement company actually thinks this measuring spoon is adequate for this giant tub of magnesium powder this particular spirited man screwed the spoon to a chopstick to make it right this particular spirited man wears shop teacher glasses prescription shop teacher glasses this particular spirited man loves books painted a book report on an enormous sheet of paper spent three months typing out someone else's novel and mounting it to an enormous sheet of paper the spirited man knows he is a spirited man this particular spirited man made himself a mobile repair station for everybody can fix a tape dispenser a broken bracelet a broken breaker thinks there's a lot of things neat fixing around here this particular spirited man cannot fix computers

this particular spirited man has an irrational relationship with his 35 year old truck this particular spirited man has not used drugs or drinks since 2012 because when he used them it was horrible the spirited man knows he is a spirited man this particular spirited man mounted 65 pound magnets to a mini hoop for his son all children are spirited all dogs are spirited the spirited woman knows she is a spirited woman this particular spirited woman sailed twice around the world fell overboard once in the middle of the pacific pregnant the spirited woman knows she is a spirited woman this particular spirited man bugged out and drove to southern mexico for months sought counsel from this particular spirited woman but they're just friends and always happen the spirited man knows he is a spirited man this particular spirited man is named van neistadt the spirited man well you know who you are

the spirited man an unlimited series about the spirited man or woman who lives inside all of us and fixing things episodes one through six rolling out this spring summer more episodes after that and more after that depending upon your enthusiasm slash subscriptions

Products & Tools Mentioned

• Super 8 camera uses — film format shown
• magnesium supplement uses — health item briefly shown