We live in a time where going viral is key for success. It isn’t just for businesses and brands, but filmmakers, too. In an entertainment business which is increasingly defined by going viral, it bridges the gap between the traditional cinematic world and social media. Nitay Dagan is an Israeli-born writer, director, editor, and content creator, whose work has graced prestigious film festivals like Cannes, Venice, and Tribeca Film Festivals, and is one of the creative forces behind the sensationally popular digital series, “Brooklyn Coffee Shop,” which has amassed over 95 million views and 141,000 followers across various social media platforms.
The series, created by and starring comedian Pooja Tripathi, features deadpan comedy in a Brooklyn coffee shop.
The Brew of Viral Success: “Brooklyn Coffee Shop”
“Brooklyn Coffee Shop” is a testament to Dagan’s ability to identify and convey relatable humor in everyday scenarios. The series, which he directs and edits, has become a prime example of a successful digital-first comedy. “Yes, I direct the episodes, these days mostly via Zoom, edit them, and manage a team of four assistant editors,” Dagan shares, highlighting the collaborative yet streamlined process behind the show. “Each of them brings their own creativity and works within the specific workflow and style we’ve developed for the series.”
A significant part of the series’ allure lies in its dynamic partnership between Dagan and co-creator/actor Pooja Tripathi, a New York City-based Indian American actor, filmmaker, and violinist. Tripathi, known for co-creating the Dutch-American dramedy web series “Amsterdam Ave.” and founding “The Affairs” event series, brings a distinct comedic sensibility.
Dagan applauds their synergy: “Pooja has this whimsical vibe, and I think that’s a big reason why we’re so in sync in terms of the comedy we love. On top of that, she’s honestly one of the sharpest, most precise people I’ve ever worked with. She has this uncanny ability to spot social and cultural quirks that we all usually take for granted, and then turn them into an existential absurdity, which, through her lens, almost always comes out as pure comedy gold.” He adds that Tripathi’s extensive experience creating content for TikTok has always been invaluable, noting her “zero ego about cutting her own jokes or changing the script on the fly while we’re shooting.”
When asked about the secrets behind the series’ escalating success, Dagan pinpoints several crucial elements. “In my opinion, it’s a mix of a few things: the short episode length, which makes it easy to binge while scrolling through socials; Eyal Cohen’s high-quality cinematography, which really stands out in a sea of online content; and Pooja’s satirical-yet-casual writing,” he explains.
Tripathi’s scripts are particularly potent, tackling contemporary social anxiety combined with sharp wit. “On one hand, her scripts hit hard and go straight at topics like late-stage capitalism, virtue signaling, performative identity, post-election anxiety, or over-the-top liberalism, issues that are burning deep inside all of us. But on the other hand, the tone still feels like the simple conversations we all have ten times a day in any coffee shop.” The strategic inclusion of guest stars, that often bring their own loyal followings and unique characters, further extends the show’s reach and comedic resonance.
The series finds its quirky charm within the confines of Larry’s Cafe in East Williamsburg, Brooklyn. “Pooja reached out to the owner before I even joined the project, and since then, he’s been letting us use his place as our location with endless generosity, no questions asked,” Dagan reveals. This unwavering support allows the team to shoot two to three episodes per day, transforming the cozy cafe into their own “insane playground.”
While “Brooklyn Coffee Shop” is available on YouTube as Shorts, its true viral platforms are TikTok and Instagram. Dagan recounts a key moment: “The big test was when we took BK Coffee Shop out of Pooja’s already-successful TikTok and Instagram pages and created a dedicated page for the series itself. When we hit 25k followers within the first month, we realized the series could stand on its own.” That initial surge has since grown rapidly, declaring its status as a digital phenomenon.
Dagan’s visual imprint as a filmmaker is deeply implanted in the series’ DNA. “I love working with actors and getting the most out of them,” he states. The production’s workflow maintains a “safe space to improvise as much as they’re comfortable with,” even within tight schedules. He particularly highlights DJ Daughtry, who plays Kyle alongside Pooja, for his “amazing improv skills.” Dagan’s dual role as director and editor is essential to this creative freedom, allowing him to “cherry-pick my favorite improvised moments and weave them into Pooja’s razor-sharp scripts.” The creative process is spontaneous: “We always know how the episode will start, but usually we let the shoot dictate how far things go and how it will all end.”
Beyond the main series, Dagan and his team have ventured into new visual territories with a surprising seven-episode sci-fi spinoff, co-created with Benton McClintock. “Same café, same characters, but this time set 100 years in the future,” Dagan describes. This offshoot allowed for greater visual experimentation, featuring “more complex shots, new locations like fresh air or water pop-ups, AI boyfriends, a Martian influencer – it let me get a bit more visually expressive.”
In the core series, however, Dagan had built a straightforward framework. “In the main series, we built a simple setup so we could push things to the limit within it: a shot-reverse-shot of two baristas with attitude issues, facing a customer (usually an exaggerated Brooklyn stereotype we all recognize),” he explains. This minimalist visual approach enables maximal comedic absurdity. “Because the visual setup is so basic, it lets us go wild with extreme situations comedically. The deadpan humor and over-the-top situations are things I worked with in music videos in Israel and in my short film ‘Friend Zone,’ which the talented Eyal Cohen also shot.”
Pioneering the Future: AI in Filmmaking
Looking forward, Dagan is diving into uncharted territory with “Failing Forward,” a docu-fiction film that underlines his commitment to pushing creative and technological boundaries. In this project, he served as a script consultant, director on set, and, perhaps most intriguingly, an AI editor. The film, set to premiere in Paris in late August, delves into complex themes. “The creator, Rony Efrat, wrote a script that jumps between events close to her life and the true story of Google’s Sentient AI (LaMDA) and Blake Lemoine, who leaked his interview with the Sentient AI to prove it shouldn’t be shut down, and was fired as a result,” Dagan reveals. His role as a script consultant involved “diving deep into all the gray areas in humanity’s complex relationship with LLMs and artificial intelligence.”
As director on set, Dagan ensured Efrat’s performance was impactful, providing “a wide enough range to play with in the editing room.” The concept of an “AI editor” is where “Failing Forward” truly steps into the future. Dagan explains that Rony and AI artist Ran Bensimon had already been developing the film for 1.5 years using early text-to-image AI, pre-dating tools like OpenAI’s Sora or Google’s Veo3.
“They created models of the main characters using a Stable Diffusion 1.5-trained EPICREALISM model for text-to-video and developed a unique video-to-video workflow with ComfyUI, layering techniques like edge detection, depth perception, and skeletal tracking.”
After shooting, Dagan and Efrat tackled the challenge of seamlessly integrating documentary, narrative, and AI-generated content. “That phase was a little like coding; full of experimentation, trial and error, and a real technological (and emotional) rollercoaster,” he reflects. “We got some very interesting visual results, some made it into the film, some stayed in the editing room. We learned to walk so the film could run.”
Dagan’s innovative spirit extends to other projects, including “Eddie and I,” a Virtual Reality experience co-created with filmmaker Maya Shekel. This immersive film promotes empathy and understanding between different populations by using hand-tracking recognition technology to teach sign language, earning it a selection in the prestigious VR program of the 2025 Venice International Film Festival.
From creating viral social media series that satirize contemporary culture to pioneering the use of AI in feature films and developing immersive VR experiences, Nitay Dagan epitomizes the modern multi-hyphenate artist. His work consistently demonstrates a keen understanding of storytelling, a sharp eye for visual innovation, and a dedicated commitment to exploring new frontiers in entertainment, cementing his reputation as a rising figure in the industry.
