Collaboration
Are you a creative in the comedy industry looking to make long-form comedy projects but not sure where to start or how to meet the requirements of your project?
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This year I'm offering my services as a creative consultant/collaborator/companion for a limited number of long-form comedy projects that fit my sensibilities and experience, and I'm currently taking submissions for these collaborations.
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I have several years' experience of making long-form comedy that was made according to the individual needs of the project rather than automatically following the pre-established rhythms and grooves that the comedy industry tends to require creativity to run along. Each of these projects has achieved breakout success:
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My 2019 show Joz Norris Is Dead. Long Live Mr Fruit Salad. won the Comedians' Choice Award for Best Show, transferred to an extended run at the Soho Theatre and a small national tour, and was nominated for the Malcolm Hardee Award for Comic Originality and the Chortle Award for Best Musical & Variety Act.
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My 2020 film You Build The Thing You Think You Are, adapted from an abandoned live show cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic, became an online event which sold over 500 tickets and was hailed as one of the comedy highlights of the year by the Guardian and the Telegraph.
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My 2021 radio special A Small Talk On Small Talk was rewritten from scratch in response to the pandemic and reconveived as an immersive, surreal sketch show which received acclaim in the Guardian and the Big Issue and was chosen as a Guardian Audio Pick of the Week, as well as inspiring other radio shows which followed its lead in terms of adapting live comedy for the radio without being reliant on live audiences.
I am an experienced collaborator, having been a member of the Weirdos Comedy Collective since 2012, with whom I have taken part in the Chortle Award-winning The Battle For Icetopia (Comedy Event of the Year 2018) and the Leicester Comedy Festival Award-nominated Gary And The Crisp Factory (Best Show 2021); and a Board Member of the Alternative Comedy Memorial Society since 2015. My last two shows were made with the collaboration and creative direction of Funny Women Award-winner Alex Hardy, and my 2019 show was made with the help and support of Edinburgh Comedy Award nominee Ben Target. My sitcom pilot Ed & Joz's Heist Movie, a collaboration with Ed Aczel, was produced and filmed as a non-broadcast pilot by Tiger Aspect, and my short film collaboration with Lucy Pearman, Sam Nicoresti and Lottie Bowater, The Baby, was an Official Selection and award nominee at several major film festivals. I have also contributed ideas and insights to two PhDs on comedy theory.
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I am happy to collaborate on long-form live shows, particularly those exploring the imaginative space between comedy and theatre, as well as on long-form scripts for comedy or comedy-drama, narrative comedy podcasts, radio shows and more besides. I can offer a bespoke package suiting the requirements of each individual project, which can include some or all of:
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In-person or online creative consultations, discussing the aims and themes of the project, offering feedback and suggestions to help give it direction and shape.
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Comprehensive script-reading and notes service, focusing either on individual line tweaks and rewrites, or bigger notes on structure, character, pace etc.
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For live projects, I will watch a pre-determined number of rehearsals or previews and offer a follow-up session of notes and further questions focusing on performance, arrangement of ideas, meaning and tone. For podcasts etc I will offer an equivalent service listening to and making notes on a certain number of edits, as well as offering assistance with recording and editing.
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I will offer advice and suggestions on marketing, PR and positioning your project within the comedy landscape in a way to enable it to cut through and stand out.
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Rates for any creative companionship services are bespoke and worked out according to the individual needs of the project, and the budgets of individual artists - we've all been through a pandemic and that's had its impact, so I'm happy to figure out finances on a case-by-case basis.
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If you'd be interested in working with me to help develop your idea then please fill out the form below, introduce yourself and let me know a bit about the project you're looking for help with. I will be taking on between one and three projects, and will aim to get back to you as soon as possible to let you know if yours is one I can collaborate with you on. I'm looking forward to hearing from you!
