Found Footage Festival returns to Athens following creators' prank-related lawsuit

A lot has happened to Joe Pickett and Nick Prueher in the decade since they last visited Athens. As the founders of the Found Footage Festival, the duo have made a career out of collecting oddball VHS tapes from thrift stores and estate sales and bringing their most out-there finds to sold-out crowds nationally and abroad.

Pickett and Prueher will host a program of their latest videos at Ciné on Wednesday, Oct. 11.

For the Ciné show, Pickett and Prueher will present their 10th volume of all-new found footage, including a retrospective of the "Magical Rainbow Sponge" crafting videos (and a tribute to its star, Dee Gruenig), a new montage of exercise videos complete with clips from a Christian workout called “Believercise” and a tongue aerobics tape called “Oral Aerobics,” and mysterious New Age video called "Elimination: The First Step."

Bored with the grind of promoting their festival, the comedians began using radio and TV appearances as an opportunity to pull off pranks that went from sending an imposter who pretended to be Joe to creating a fake chef character played by Nick. But in 2017, a morning news show was unamused with Pickett and Prueher's antics enough to sue them in federal court.

The story behind the case, which Pickett and Prueher were able to settle without going to trial, is the subject of a documentary feature called "Chop & Steele," available now via streaming rental and on Blu-ray disc. For longtime fans, the film gives a behind-the-scenes look at how the Found Footage Festival started, and how the prank lead to the duo appearing on an episode of "America's Got Talent."

Prueher said that he and Pickett paid $700 for the interview footage of their depositions, so don't be surprised if some of that ends up in their show as well. Pickett told the Banner-Herald that Athens audiences "get" their show in a way that not all audiences do, and that he and Prueher have made friends in the Classic City over the years of stopping in town with their Found Footage tours.

"I have fond memories of finishing a performance, going to Manhattan Café, chatting with Mike Mills in the bathroom and then playing foosball until 2 a.m. at some other nearby bar," said Pickett. "At Wuxtry, our pal Nate always scores us weird/dumb CDs that we listen to in the car while on tour. I can't wait to see what he has for us this time."

Ciné is located at 234 W. Hancock Ave. For tickets and schedule, visit athenscine.com.

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This article originally appeared on Athens Banner-Herald: Found Footage Festival tour brings 10th volume to Athens