Fairbairn brothers remain country lads as their comedy career skips ahead

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The global success of Murray Bridge comedy YouTubers Lachlan and Jaxon Fairbairn continues to explode, but they’ve stayed true to their country roots.

The Fairbairn Films YouTube channel has 1.7 million subscribers and their videos have been viewed more than 400 million times.

But in a Sydney Morning Herald interview in 2020, Lachlan said his and his brother’s goal was to “increase the production values” of their stupidly successful home-made YouTube videos.

That goal will now become a reality, as the brothers have been named among six YouTube video-makers to win funding from Screen Australia and YouTube’s Skip Ahead initiative.

Skip Ahead aims to help online storytellers with an existing audience on YouTube to expand their production values and “skip ahead” their careers.

In the most recent round of Skip Ahead funding, the winners get to share in $900,000.

The Fairbairn brothers will use the money to fund a new six-part comedy series, Fairbairn in the City, which will have high-production values.

The executive producer of the upcoming series is Georgia Mappin, an executive producer of Aunty Donna’s Coffee Café, and Haven’t You Done Well Productions will produce the series.

Lachlan was thrilled to have received the Skip Ahead funding.

“It’s been amazing – a lot of my mentors and future peers have gone through this funding,” he said.

“I’m excited to have some money to make something look legit.”

While Fairbairn in the City will take advantage of more sophisticated production, Lachlan wasn’t worried that this would work against their low-production but viral videos.

“The heart of our comedy is our country humour, our boyishness and the dynamics between me and Jaxon, and we’re going to stick that in a high-production setting,” he said.

“By country humour, I mean humour based in the country, using paddocks and sheep and tractors for gags.

“I’ve never done actual farming jokes – more using the animals and the landscape as a backdrop.”

Although the brothers had no plans to film in Murray Bridge in the near future, Lachlan said that Murray Bridge was indirectly part of Fairbairn in the City, as it was where the brothers had grown up.

“The story is about two hapless farm blokes, Lachlan and Jaxon, who leave the country for the city, and a girl helps them along the way,” he said.

There shouldn’t be too long to wait for the new series – fair dinkum.

“We’re trying to shoot in May and then do post-production,” Lachlan said.

“I’d love to have it out in August.”

Screen Australia’s head of online, Lee Naimo, said the Skip Ahead funding would take the YouTubers’ careers to another level.

“Past Skip Ahead projects continue to accumulate millions of views and lead to some alumni … directing feature films,” he said.

• Watch the Fairbairn brothers’ previous films: www.youtube.com/@FairbairnFilms.