The British television series Black Mirror is being lauded as Britain’s greatest homegrown entertainment export, and the genius mind behind it, Charlie Brooker, is being celebrated as one of the most creative minds in storytelling. Black Mirror is a series of standalone stories that serve as parables taking place in dystopian universes that appear to be parallel and eerily similar to the one in which we live. Brooker and Annabel Jones created the series back in 2011 and aired that year on Channel 4 in the UK. The show has not been added to the Netflix U.S. lineup. While the name Charlie Brooker has been tossed around a lot lately, most people in the U.S. are unfamiliar with him. Here are a few facts to help you become more acquainted.
1. He Carries an Aura of Humility
Personally, I cannot stand false humility in a world in which people are constantly demanded to stand down to make others who are docile and uncommitted feel comfortable. We have moved so far from who we are naturally to appear refined that we have become soft. However, the humility I sense in Brooker is not from shrinking back from his own greatness, but it is born from his capacity to appreciate the greatness in others.
2. He Has Unbelievable Range in Creating Content
When you view the different episodes in Black Mirror, you immediately find that there is a wide variety of tone and presentation. For instance, Shut Up and Dance is completely different for season two’s White Bear. Where the consistency comes in is in the parables delivered in each episode. Not every episode will reach every person. You kind of have to get in where you fit in, but the genius of Brooker is finding ways to keep people interested even when an episode doesn’t deliver for them.
3. The Lens through Which He View Life is a Unique One
During an interview, Brooker implied that although most people see this past year as a huge for success for him, he sees it as the worst year ever – primarily because the next year is inevitably coming. Because of Brooker’s abstract way of viewing things there are too many ways that can be interpreted by me take it to mean when something is going as good as it has this year, having the year come to an end makes it a bad year. So, the better the year, the worst it is. Like I said, weird.
4. He Has an Affinity to Detective Stories
Because of the genre influence of detective stories, there are certain tropes that will force their way into a story no matter what you do, says Brooker. However, there is something about the mystery associated with detective work. You can experience his passion for detective stories at work in the Hated in the Nation episode – a detective story. Brooker admits that the process for writing detective stories is completely different than writing other types of stories.
5. He Is Excited About the Exposure Netflix Will Create for the Series
In Britain, Black Mirror has gained a cult-like following that has afforded the series a substantial level of popularity and exposure, but Brooker understands that the massive platform that Netflix provides will likely take the show to completely new heights in a relatively short period of time. Brooker admits that he is expected a lot of first-time viewers due to Netflix releasing the show in the U.S. market.
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