TELL YOUR FRIENDS! THE CONCERT FILM! {MOTION PICTURE}
Summary
This documentary film explores New York’s “alternative comedy” scene. The program begins in a bar in Gowanus, Brooklyn with a performance of “Wish I Was in Heaven Sitting Down” by Ann Enzminger and Nick Nace, known as A Brief View of the Hudson. Liam McEneaney then explains that he has created a weekly show called “Tell Your Friends” in which comedians can workshop new material and try new things in front of one another. He takes the stage and welcomes the audience, and then does a brief routine focusing on such topics as his unexciting love life and his complicated relationship with alcohol, specifically whiskey, highlight the ways in which each drink impacts his evening. Comedians including Jim Gaffigan and Wyatt Cenac of “The Daily Show” comment on the venue, saying that it is the “safest” place for a comedian to play with new material and trust in the audience’s helpful response. Leo Allen then takes the stage and riffs on Microsoft Word’s surprising take on religious groups and the all-too-common NYC experience of witnessing public arguments between couples. He then opens a PowerPoint presentation and gives the audience a “quiz” on their perception of what is funny, rewarding the sole winner with flowers. Janeane Garofalo and Marc Maron discuss performing “small” shows in non-traditional venues and enjoying the experience, and Christian Finnegan comments that one improves one’s performance in mainstream clubs, but strengthens one’s writing in alternative spaces.
Finnegan then takes the stage and talks about New York City’s infamous weather as well as the current “neo-beard phase” occurring in the city. He also discusses his surprisingly romantic history in drama club in high school, his favorite aspects of the female breast, and his attempts to purchase an “argument-friendly” home for himself and his wife. Other comedians discuss the pressure and competitive nature of mainstream comedy clubs, not present in alternative places. McEneaney reappears and jokes about an oddly persuasive school lesson on drugs, and Colin Quinn and others talk about the trouble of performing in front of audiences who are unfamiliar with stand-up comedy and who simply prefer dirty jokes to subtler material. Musical comedian Rob Pavaronian then performs, explaining that Civil War-esque music can make any voiceover seem “way poignant.” He then discusses his visits to Texas and his poor public school upbringing, and then performs an upbeat rap-style song about his prowess at selling candy to raise money for the band program.
Other comedians comment on the downsides of alternative comedy, including too much focus on “weird existential bitterness” as material, and point out the “fine line” between taking risks and thinking that it is “cool to bomb” and not improving one’s set. Kurt Braunohler and Kristen Schaal then perform their dual routine, explaining that performing stand-up is far more enjoyable than their days jobs and educating the audience on the first-ever telephone, actually invented by the legendary Pocahontas. They don costumes and recreate the very first phone conversation between Pocahontas and John Smith, which rapidly devolves into bizarre phone sex. Reggie Watts and others discuss the usefulness of the “peer group” in learning from one another and strengthening one’s material. Watts then takes the stage and, after a complex technical set-up, performs a synthesized song and then chats with the audience on a faulty mic, displaying his unusual celebrity impressions before segueing into another song in which he thanks the audience and his friends for coming out. The interviewees close the program by exploring the term “alternative,” saying that it is a passé term that was thrust upon them by others, and explaining what their style really means. Commercials deleted.
Details
- NETWORK: N/A
- DATE: 2011
- RUNNING TIME: 1:21:31
- COLOR/B&W: Color
- CATALOG ID: 106422
- GENRE: Documentary
- SUBJECT HEADING: Documentary; Stand-up comedy
- SERIES RUN: N/A
- COMMERCIALS: N/A
CREDITS
- Michael Palitz … Executive Producer
- Liam McEneaney … Executive Producer, Based on the live show created by
- Victor Varnado … Executive Producer, Director
- Corine Michel … Associate Producer
- Jessica Flores … Associate Producer
- Leo Allen
- Kurt Braunohler
- Wyatt Cenac
- Ann Enzminger
- Christian Finnegan
- Jim Gaffigan
- Janeane Garofalo
- Marc Maron
- Liam McEnaney
- Nick Nace
- Rob Pavaronian
- Colin Quinn
- Kristen Schaal
- Reggie Watts