'I got an Audi but wanted a BMW': Parody pokes fun at Sydney private school students
A YouTube parody has chronicled the struggles of Sydney’s north shore private school students.
The parody is of a recent Western Sydney University marketing campaign which featured lawyer Deng Adut, who arrived in Australia as a refugee in 1998 after escaping Sudan’s civil war.
Adut taught himself how to read and lived in a car as he struggled through university.
The original video gained more than two million views on YouTube since it was uploaded in September.
The latest parody is a stark contrast showing the life of ‘Luke Williams’ a fictional rugby player who attends Sydney Church of England Grammar School.
Luke’s parents are a yoga instructor and a partner at a prestigious law firm.
Luke faces many challenges such as getting an Audi for his 17th birthday when he really wanted a BMW.
He struggled through his HSC despite having a ‘tired hand’.
He was awarded a scholarship to University of Sydney and gloats that he managed ‘pass grades’ despite his non-stop partying.
Eventually Luke was rewarded for his lazy efforts by getting offered a clerkship and a graduate position at his father’s law firm.
He also managed to earn enough money to replace the Audi with the BMW of his dreams.
The parody was created by a man in his early 20s from Bondi who did not wish to be identified.
His YouTube alias was ‘Old Gregg’ of the Mighty Boosh fame.
Known only as Jay*, he told Fairfax he watched the original video featuring Adut many times and found it moving.
"I thought, wouldn't it be great to make a parody featuring a protagonist who was the very antithesis of Deng," he said.
Over the Christmas break he put the video together using iMovie.
He shared it on YouTube to give his friends a laugh.
The video has managed to attract more than 50,000 views after being shared on social media.
While the reaction has been mostly positive, several viewers complained it made University of Sydney law students seem similar to ‘Luke’.
Jay* maintained the video was purely satirical although there were some elements based on real people and circumstances.
"The fictitious character of 'Luke Williams' certainly does not represent the majority of law students at USYD," he said.
"I don't think he even represents the minority. Ask any law student in Australia, there are a few 'Luke Williams'-eque characters at every law school."
