Poker Writer
The “Chase the Dream” poker documentary will release its second season starting Sept. 25 on YouTube. PokerScout talked to the showrunner and producer, Rob Gardner, for some insight into the upcoming season.
Season 1 of “Chase the Dream,” set in 2022, followed the lives of three poker players as they chased the dream of big poker glory. Season 2 expands on that with a focus on six individuals from the RecPoker team.
The six players featured in Season 2 come from a variety of professional backgrounds: data analyst, video editor, “happily unemployed,” entrepreneur, teacher, and RecPoker podcast host and coach Jim Reid.
Gardner is among that number. The Illinois native can often be found playing mid-stakes poker around the U.S. The content creator gave PokerScout an inside look at the show.
He explained where it came from and what it’s about:
‘Chase The Dream’ started as a passion project three years ago. I wanted to create something that was different from the traditional vlogs out there that was more narrative based. Showing the highs and lows of chasing the poker dream.
We wanted to take viewers on a transparent journey as poker players from different walks of life chased their respective dreams.
Originally, we had a budget for Season 1, but it fell through last minute so I had to self-fund the project and ended up creating all of season 1 on a $200 GoPro camera.
Now, for Season 2, we expand on this concept following several casual poker players on their poker journeys.
Focus on Recreational Player Stories
Creating stories that are more narrative-based differs from many poker vlogs out there that focus on crazy hands and flashy amounts of money.
Poker fans constantly see eye-catching headlines about the size of a certain pot or a player’s massive winning or losing session. The high-stakes heads-up matches featuring Ossi “Monarch” Ketola, a highly controversial figure, provide just the latest example.
Gardner explained that “Chase the Dream” hopes to shift the focus back to recreational players:
We have a couple goals for the show.
1. We want to put the spotlight back on casual recreational poker players. The poker boom started with one accountant, Chris Moneymaker, winning the main event. We grow the game when the heroes we promote in poker are everyday people that the audience can relate to.
2. Because we want the audience to relate, we needed to show people the authentic experience. Sometimes things go well. Sometimes they don’t. The endings of each story arc are unknown and unscripted. There are no guaranteed happy endings. But through each success and failure, you get to see the aftereffects and feel the same emotions as if it was your own journey.
The more high-stakes content gets pushed, the more Gardner reiterates how it is vital o focus some content on recreational players. Poker fans have access to numerous high-stakes cash streams like Hustler Casino Live and games at The Lodge.
In that landscape, the focus on the everyday poker player has faded. This despite the fact that such players are the lifeblood of the game. Without recreational poker players, professional poker can’t exist.
The market is over saturated with high-stakes content, and with good reason, it draws an audience.
Most people though can’t realistically see themselves ever playing a Triton or buying into a cash game for $100,000. So while it’s entertaining, it’s not inspiring.
But seeing a teacher, or a data analyst live their dream and obtain their goals, inspires people that they too can find that path, and/or live through them vicariously. This, we believe, can truly help grow the game. A game that without casual players is no game at all. The recreational poker crowd is what makes poker the game it is today.
New For Season 2
RecPoker Community YouTube released the trailer for Season 2 last week, previewing what’s to come. Gardner also laid out what people can expect for Season 2 that differs from Season 1.
We finally nailed down a budget and a team to help us work on this project. Where Season 1 followed three players, we now have six unique characters we follow. Each with their own story arcs, tensions, and struggles to overcome, and different definitions of what success in poker looks like.
Once character contemplates quitting a 30-year career in teaching to chase the poker dream, while another finds more success in poker with a full-time job.
Family is a common theme in the show. Multiple characters try to find a healthy balance between poker and family, battling unforeseen circumstances that arise at inconvenient times.
The stories go off on their own little rabbit holes but also intertwine in some special ways that only a reality docuseries can pull off. These characters have more in common than they realize.
I would tell you how it ends, but I don’t know. As the stories continue through this year it remains to be seen which characters will accomplish their dreams and which ones will end in heartache.
But whatever happens, we will be there to tell the story.
