The biggest complaint I get from comics is trying to navigate the Los Angeles comedy scene. They feel that they keep running in circles, while accomplishing nothing. And they aren't wrong. The LA comedy scene is a showcase format that encourages sleazy bringer producers, ego heavy bookers, and gatekeeping strategies that make you feel hopeless. You are not crazy - the entire scene feels and is a pyramid scheme. I would know, as I lived it on both sides of the coin. I once was a bringer of guests, and then I worked behind the scenes for 4 years at Flappers in Burbank. So let me tell you, it's a jungle out there. Here is a breakdown of each LA Club and what their audition system looks like. The Comedy Store The Comedy Store is one of the longest running clubs in the world. Before stand up comedy was a thing, there was The Store. The greats started there and became stars because founder Mitzi Shore would showcase them in front of TV's biggest producers. Jay Leno, David Letterman, and Joe Rogan all started there. The Store also is known for their Roast Battles and three rooms: The Main Room, The Original Room, and The Belly Room. The auditioning process is pretty simple. On Friday between 12pm and 1pm you email potluck@comedystore.com your name (NO tape, website, etc.) and then on Monday you find out if you made the 16 person lineup. You do 3 minutes in the Original Room, and you hope someone important saw you. Newsflash, no one does. If you want to get into the mix faster, participating in Roast Battle is the real trick. By showcasing your ability to make fun of your peers, you will find a potential way in. The only problem with The Comedy Store is that it's filled with awful bringer shows ran by scum. These NON PASSED wannabe comics convince newer comics to convince their friends to give them money, all while being abusive to new comics through threatening texts. These producers are scum. Rats. Pieces of trash who prey on the dreams of artists. So why does The Store let them use their room? Because Money. And newer comics don't realize the scam until it is too late. Stay away. I have heard too many comics tell me it hurts thinking how they thought being a bringer would help. It doesn't. The Laugh Factory With the owner of the Laugh Factory getting up in age, the club has gone through more bookers than The Store has gone through bringer producers. While the brand has lost it's luster, it still provides the most ridiculous audition process in Los Angeles. On Tuesdays you wait in line from 1pm until 5pm, hoping to be one of the first 10-15 comics. You will do 2 minutes in front of someone, who might tell you to come back for a 5 minute spot at the same open mic down the road. There are comics still waiting to hear they got passed who started a decade ago, but because the rotating door of bookers is such a nightmare, unless you get on the approved list during the right window of opportunity, you might find yourself still waiting. Your best chance of getting booked there is reaching out to Chocolate Sundaes, their Sunday show that showcases 3 comics, with a 15-18 month waiting list. Yes. I wrote that correctly. Over a year. It's a great show though. I did it in 2018. But it leads nowhere. It's just a feather in your cap. The Laugh Factory has less bringers, as comics have to be approved to perform, but don't feel crazy if communication seems impossible to understand. The club has so many passed comics, they don't need anymore. The Improv Easily, the classiest and most accessible of the three big clubs, The Hollywood Improv was started by Bud Friedman at the same time as The Store. The club has so many paid regulars with amazing credits, it's almost impossible to get stage time. There are around 14 "development" spots a week for young comics passed by the booker, all while there being hundreds of young up and coming comics eligible for those spots. The Improv does have open mic bucket list auditions called Lab Work on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, when the booker will stop by to watch. If she likes you, you might get a 5 minute spot to showcase your best set. This is easily the best opportunity for any comic at any stage. If all that work sounds too hard, your best bet is to produce a comedy show there. Start the show somewhere else and make it a success and eventually try to run it monthly in the Lab (the little room) to get a monthly spot. Besides that, The Improv just doesn't need you. The place is friendly to comics, due to the large bar lobby and open mic opportunities with Lab Work. The staff is always cool too. But it's just so busy and oversaturated there that becoming a regular is hard. You could try getting a door security job or bartender job there, but even then, you have to be really good at comedy to move into the development spots. The HaHa Comedy Club No one knows how to get booked here. You shouldn't worry about it. It's just a dump requiring comics to bring 5 people to every show, with random drop-ins you can't advertise because they show up after the show starts. These are the shows that wear down your friends and burn you out from worrying more about your friends finding parking than you getting your set ready. The Comedy Chateau The newest club on the market, this North Hollywood club has a main and small room and is the only bringer club offering it's main stage to newbies. Auditions are every Sunday at 4pm, and by 4:05pm you will feel your soul leaving your body. The club is ran by Felix who puts himself on every show with his guitar to sing about his dick and other bodily fluids. If you drag friends here, they'll have to sit through that every time. The Chateau runs 20 person showcases, where each comic has to bring a certain number of guests, using a comp code to track, or they get knocked off the show, and the owner takes up their unused time. If you noticed, they never have "headliner weekends" where a big name does 3-4 shows over a weekend. Some celebrity comics use the bringer crowds to test upcoming Netflix material, but generally, the shows are populated by newbies. Traditionally, shows start 45 minutes late and your friends will have to buy more food and drink to get through the evening. No one is getting discovered there. You don't need them. The Ice House The legendary Ice House in Pasadena is currently under new ownership and are still trying to figure out their business model. There are no auditions as of yet, and the only shows are independent producer shows. If you know someone on a show there, ask them what the producer needs to be on their show. Flappers Comedy Club & Restaurant Flappers is a cross between all the clubs above. You get the big names like Kevin Hart and Jay Leno. You also get the showcase shows with the newbies asked to bring. And there are independent producer shows. There are comedy contests with cash prizes. And open mics daily. While the open mics are either $8 for 5 minutes, or $5 PLUS a one item minimum, Flappers is still the only comedy club with regular mics. You might have to mortgage your house or skip a car payment to go often, but you can get up. Auditions are every Wednesday. You do 2 minutes in front of the booker who then gives unsolicited feedback on your set. If you are really new, he'll ask you to bring people. You'll say yes, and then show up to a maybe half filled crowd and do 5 minutes, then you'll be asked if you want to buy a tape for $35. When I ran the school I worked hard to help students fill the room with lower ticket prices and tape discounts. The booker and owner were always upset by my "comic first" mentality. If you are a comic 3-5 years in, the booker will tell you that he can't use you because you don't bring anyone, and he might even say cruel things about your act. He's told comics I know: "With your act, you might make it to the middle." "I don't remember anything about you, you might as well talk about strawberries and cream." "You're annoying. Don't hang out here." A regular Ted Lasso. You might even cry after when you realize all that bringing you did in your first few years meant nothing to them, and you built up no goodwill at all. So if you like feeling like crap and crying, Flappers audition is the perfect club for you! The booker also gives a terrible speech before auditions about how you shouldn't be an asshole, and then treats you like an asshole. It's a meta experience. I used to sit in on auditions and talk about how the club works, but the booker asked me to stop because I was "too positive." If you are an established headliner with access to the club, you can maybe email avails, but the booker won't email you back. Oh, if you do get a YooHoo room spot, the booker will give himself 5-10 minutes on the show, guitar free thankfully, and will talk about his small penis or how he wants to kill himself. So expect your friends to ask if he's okay. He's not. But just say he is so they will come back if you plan to as well. Overall Thoughts on the LA Comedy Scene All of this may sound frustrating, and it is. That's why it is important to remember two things: 1. The Store, Laugh Factory, and Improv won't need you until you're famous. And that's okay. 2. Flappers, HaHa, and The Chateau need you way more than you need them. Always remember that. While club spots are fun in the moment, the build up and aftermath are exhausting. Plus, when you think about how much "ring kissing" you have to do, do you really want your friends giving their money to these places, when you know they'll dump you ASAP? There are plenty of great bar shows, road gigs, open mics, and other venues where you can grow your act, meet great comics to network with, and still feel good about yourself. Too often, comics get discouraged because they view the clubs like high school seniors view college. The clubs will not make you famous. That's why you want to work on your jokes in environments that aren't there to suck you dry. The Fourth Wall, Corbin Bowl, and Third Wheel Comedy all have opportunities you can use and network with the same comics you would have met at the smaller clubs. No reason to get into the pyramid scheme of bringing if you can meet the same people on your terms. Keep your head up and know that no club defines you! You are the captain of your comedy ship. So sail on!
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Too often comedians take a lone wolf approach to their stand up career (or career in general). They think they can make it on their own without having to rely on others. And while being on stage can feel like an isolating experience, the in-between-moments are where your career is truly made. Your network is always going to be your strongest resource in creating and taking advantage of opportunities. When starting out, your network is simply friends, family, and co-workers. But over time you have to create a circle of comics you can engage with. Don't be afraid to reach out and see who is able to connect. Here are a few pointers in building that network - for comics or anyone looking for an edge.
Build a Group at Your Level One big mistake younger comics make is trying to jump into an established comic circle. They want to join a group that already made it, hoping that success can rub off on them. That is the wrong attitude because it doesn't include the primary element of a strong comic circle network: Trust. You have to build your network based on people more or less at the same level as you. Come up together. Build a network of people you can trust. If you join a group that is way ahead of you on the social ladder, they might dump you because there is no foundation. You never went through the battles together. By finding people at your speed and level, you will match energies and be able to support each other. If you are doing open mics, connect with open micers. If you are featuring and headlining B clubs, then find other comics at that level who can recommend you to similar venues. You just don't want to be in a place where your circle isn't able to help you because the gigs they do are too small or too big for where you are in your career. Get a Mentor I write this knowing that a lot of people confuse what a mentor's purpose is. Mentor's are NOT people who just give you access to what they built. They help guide you through the steps. Maybe they keep you accountable. Maybe they suggest a few venues for you to reach out to. But it is NOT their job to book your year of shows. I've talked to a lot of headliners who have comics call them up saying, "When you going to book some shows so we can get back on the road?" That is not the right attitude, by the way. Mentors should be just a little a head of you too. Too often comics try to get mentors who are way ahead of them, and they really cannot help them. The advice becomes too general or impossible to execute correctly. A good comedy mentor should be where you want to be within 5 years. They can take you on the road, but in reality, they should be more of a coffee and dinner pal. And do not ask someone to be your mentor. It might put too much pressure on them. Just see if you can hang out with them. Support their shows. Give some value, even if its just friendship. Then feel free to ask a few questions. But once it looks like you are trying to just copy them, they will see you as a palmer, just trying to get what you can, instead of building a real relationship built on mutual interests and trust. Hang Out After the Show The best way to build a network is to enjoy "the hang" before and after a show. The comics who come late and leave early tend to be the same ones who stay in the same place years later, begging for guest spots on unpaid shows. It's in the hanging out you start to see which comics you vibe with. Sometimes you'll see a comic on stage and you will assume you two will get along well. Then you hang out and its awkward from the start. But had you just hung out at the comic's table, you would have realized that you make great "co-workers" but not exactly great "hang-outers." By the way, I just made up a word. You're Welcome. Engage with Fans I get it. You're an introvert. You don't want to talk to "those people." You don't want them to say "Here' a joke you can use..." or "put that in your little skits." But just know that your best network is your fan base. It is your fan base that will create your financial success as well. If you just have relationships with comics and bookers, you limit earning potential. But when you build a fan base, you can create door deals and not rely on the clubs. You can produce your own shows and do your thing. This also applies to social media. Find time to engage by liking comments and responding to DM's. Once you get too many, you can back off, but I promise you - a little fan engagement can be what builds your brand faster than you expect. Final Thoughts Regardless of where you are in your journey, you need a support system and network. This goes for acting, writing, sports, etc. No man or woman is an island. So maybe in 2024 you take the biggest leap of vulnerability yet, reach out, and build an inner circle. 1. Dream Scenario Nicolas Cage gives the best performance of recent memory as a regular guy who becomes famous for being in people’s dreams until it all goes wrong. A brilliant film is every way. 2. The Holdovers Paul Giamatti, Davine Joy Randolph, and Dominic Sessa are the ensemble of the year in Alexander Payne’s new Christmas classic. 3. Oppenheimer Christopher Nolan’s opus is the Hollywood studio film of the year. A masterpiece political thriller, where the true tension stems from the internal battle to create something so drastic it changes the world and our protagonist. 4. The Iron Claw Sean Durkin’s ode to territory wrestling, the Von Erich wrestling family, and true independent cinema is the surprise of the year. Zac Efron has arrived. 5. Theater Camp The funniest comedy of the year is a mockumentary about a struggling theater camp filled with big laughs and a brilliant satirical musical worth applauding! 6. Poor Things A true visionary feast for the eyes. Emma Stone is a 30 year old woman given the brain of a baby, and forced to deal with the patriarchy from a fresh angle. This is what brave filmmaking is all about. 7. American Fiction Another satire makes my list. This one attacking well meaning white liberals who think they know what being black is all about. Jefferson Cord writes and directs a near perfect film. 8. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 3 James Gunn wraps up one of the best science fiction/comic book trilogies of all time. This is the Star Wars Kathleen Kennedy couldn’t deliver. A funny, exciting, heart breaking, joyous film that will be cherished for years. 9. Freud’s Last Session A rare intellectual film filled with ideas and theories about life, death, free will, God and sex. In this fan fiction about the meeting of Sigmund Freud and CS Lewis, the story is about facing fears and fighting for truth. In the vein of Doubt and The Two Popes, this is the film I hope you’ll seek out. 10. Super Mario Brothers The most pure fun I had all year in the movies. While not inherently deep, this animated rollercoaster of a film digs deep into 40 years of nostalgia and gives us the Mario Brothers film us 80’s kids always wanted. Runners Up: Here are some films that tied for 11th. To be honest, I could have put any of them at number 10 and felt good about my list. All of them were funny, smart, and wildly creative in their styles. The Color Purple Past Lives Godzilla Minus One May December Air TMNT: Mutant Mania Others worth watching: These are the more experimental or niche films that will have both fans and haters, but I really enjoyed. This is a mixture of documentaries, true stories, and classic Hollywood tales of woe and redemption. What I can promise, is none of these films will bore you. Defending My Life Blackberry Saltburn Dumb Money The Burial Next Goal Wins Creed III This gig to Oregon is very special to me because two of Eugene’s most famous former residents literally saved my life without ever meeting me. They are Steve Prefontaine and Bill Bowerman. In 1998 I was a senior varsity wrestler at Simi Valley High. I got injured in pre-season and it looked like I was never going to wrestle. I had a literal nervous break down panic attack. I couldn’t get off the floor. This was about 25 years ago to the day. My grandma had to come over to house, after I called my mom to tell the school I was sick, so I wouldn’t be truant. My grandma told me we should go see a movie. I saw that the film Without Limits had one showing at the United Artists theater in the Thousand Oaks mall. That film stared Billy Crudup as the famous long distance runner Steve Prefontaine and Donald Sutherland as the beloved coach and track coach and co-founder of Nike, Bill Bowerman. The message of the film was not to focus on winning or being the best. The purpose of the damn race was to challenge yourself. To just be better. That film resinated in my soul my entire senior year, as I battle two injuries and only wrestled 9 matches. I lost them all. I only practiced a few times that year. But every time I thought of quitting, I thought of this film. These men. Those warriors. The actual mighty Ducks. Bowerman’s career became an obsession with me. He inspired me to start coaching wrestling, even though I had no business doing it. But after winning 8 league titles with 3 teams, plus having numerous state qualifiers, and being the head coach of 6 all star teams, a few that won 1st or 2nd place medals at state dual tournies, I think I understood what those men preached. Life is a long game. It’s a marathon. Not a sprint. Everyday we have to challenge ourselves and the human heart. People say things like “I loved that movie” or “it was great!” But Without Limits isn’t just great. It literally saved me and then changed my life. Also, for the record. The film had been out of theaters for two weeks by this point. It was a Thursday they had one showing. It was probably a filler from a reel that never got picked up. The next day,, Friday is was out of theaters. It only made $700,000 at the box office. It’s as if the film was made for me. And stayed in the area just for me. And I’d like to believe that too. So I got to visit the University of Oregon today. I got to see the shrines to these two men. I won’t lie. I cried in the museum dedicated to them on Haywood Field. I had to hide from the college kids watching the door. But what a lovely day for me. To think 25 years later, I finally got the chance to see the home of Pre and Bowerman. And in the words of the poet, it has made all the difference.
It’s not the ghosting that hurts. It’s the lack of reason. Whether it’s friendship or dating, just tell people why they aren’t cool enough for you. Who knows, it might help them in their endeavors. Here’s a gender neutral template with fill in the blank options to text or DM to future people you plan to hurt and leave in a state of confusion:
Hey ______, I can no longer (date, hang out with, parent) you. Nothing personal but you and I aren’t clicking. You’re (not good looking enough, not making enough money, not interesting enough to have a conversation with). I understand I led you on by (hanging out with you, texting you, sharing my every thought for like two straight weeks, having dinner with you in romantic settings strictly reserved for people clearly forming a sexual relationship). For that I apologize…that you couldn’t see the future gaslighting. While I hope you enjoy your life without me, I understand we can’t be friends, so I hope we can be like neighbors. We’ll never actually talk, but we can wave at each other at social events. On another note (you should shower more, lose weight, read a book, invest in crypto, join a church or cult) if you’d like to have more friends on my level. But as for me, I’m ghosting you now. I’ve found better (dating options, coworkers, family members). I’ll be blocking you on everything and then unblocking you in 3-6 months to see if you’re cooler or sold a script or got a project I’d be perfect for. Please don’t share this message with our mutual friends. I plan to tell them you just made it weird. Love, Ghosty McCasper |
Paul Douglas Moomjean Blog's About What's on His MindBlogging allows for me to rant when there is no stage in the moment to talk about what's important and/or funny to me. Archives
May 2024
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