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PROVO — Millions of people around the world have watched "Studio C" actor Matt Meese be repeatedly struck in the face by a soccer ball.
Meese played Scott Sterling, a Yale goalie who is having the best game of his life, whether or not he actually wants to stay on the field, in one of the latest skits by BYUtv’s sketch comedy group. The video was posted to YouTube Nov. 14 and quickly garnered more than 11 million views.
“We of course were hoping one of our videos would get picked up kind of this way, although I don’t think we imagined it on this scale,” Meese said. “When we hit the first million with the soccer video we thought, ‘Alright, we did it!’ Then it really took off after that. So it’s been really unexpected and welcomed.”
In the video, Yale and North Carolina face off in a soccer shootout that will determine the outcome of the game. As Sterling blocks one shot with his face, and then another and another, the absurdity of the situation can’t help but elicit laughs from viewers, regardless of how painful it appears.
Those who are concerned about the condition of Meese’s face don’t need to worry. He said cast members took turns throwing a squishy plastic soccer ball at his face for the close up shots, and then the wide shots were all animated using CGI.
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BYUtv producers were initially skeptical of producing a sketch comedy series that was scripted, but they have found success with "Studio C".“They did an awesome job, obviously, because so many people are asking, ‘Is it real, or is it fake?’ Because they really can’t tell,” he said. “Of course, it’s fake.”
The sketch was filmed late one night until 2 or 3 a.m., according to Meese. Players from the BYU soccer team stayed to help, in addition to about 200 extras.
He credited international fans of “Studio C” with the success of this video, saying that he thought it was first posted somewhere in Europe before being shared by sites like 9GAG and Mashable.
“It just happens to speak to a lot of people, I think,” he said. “Regardless of whether or not you can speak English, I think you can still enjoy the sketch. And if you happen to be a soccer fan to boot, then all the better.”
