Fish Out Of Water: A Sketch Writing Podcast

In this episode, Catherine Donnelly, joined us to talk about getting web series into festivals and what goes into writing and producing internet content. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode Jere and Tweedy are joined by Jake Michels (June's Cleaver, Geek and Sundry) to talk about the frustrations of being a writer or performer. I'm sure this conversation will link up to many types of writing and comedy. Of course they also read some sketches and do some pitching. Tweedy opens up like these two are his therapists. If you want to hear a man cry in his coffee about sketch comedy - then THIS is the episode for you. Check us out on Twitter: @foowpod See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

iO west is dead. Jeremiah and Ryan were both performers there for years and we will miss it dearly. We decided to scream into the black void that is the internet on this week's episode. We both loved the opportunities that iO gave us, we loved the community and we loved our teams. We gained many, many things from the theatre and we owe it a lot. We get into all positives and negatives on the podcast and if gossiping like high school kids is your thing then this is the episode for you. #RIPIOWEST Check out our archives on Boardwalk Audio And Follow us on Twitter @foowpod See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Our dear, dear friend, Eddie Rowley, jumps on Fish Out Of Water with us this week to talk about Shakespeare, being an actual actor and what he thinks is funny. Eddie is a California Native that has been writing and performing for over a decade. In wit is only matched by his musical genius and he brings a new energy to the show. Plus he beat boxes so he's way cooler than us. Get more info on Dad Jeans HERE Get more info on June's Cleaver HERE Check FOOW on Funny or Die HERE Like us on Facebook Follow us on Twitter: @FOOWpod Send your sketches to foowpod@gmail.com and we'll try to help fix them! See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Boy Howdy is it good to be back! Jeremiah and Ryan took a 4 month hiatus to make some videos, work some jobs and kick some ass and we're all out of video ideas. So here we are, ready to do season 2 of the Fish Out Of Water podcast! We got really lucky to have our first guest of the new season be Henry Kaiser. This is actually the lost episode from season 1 but we wanted to start here because it was such a good episode. Moving forward we are switching up the format to feel like more of writers room where we have our favorite writers and best friends come on and share sketch notes, stories, and all the crazy bullshit we do in the real world. We are going to still be accepting user submitted sketches to get notes from our esteemed colleagues and we will also be pitching ideas just like we always have. If you have ever wondered what a sketch team meeting feels like or want to get some quick tips to make all your sketches better then stay tuned because it's about to get real. Stupid. It's about to get real stupid. But also with notes. It's about to get stupid AND WITH NOTES. Whatever just subscribe to us HERE Follow us on Twitter and don't miss a beat*: @FOOWPod *That was a sketch joke. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Nate is a performer on The New Deal at the Upright Citizens Brigade and has been a writer/performer all over Los Angeles. He started performing comedy in college and has never stopped. You may recognize from TV shows and movies and all sorts of cool things. You can follow Nate on Twitter HERE You can follow Fish Out Of Water on Twitter HERE Send us your scripts to critique at foowpod@gmail.com See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Eric Owusu (Wuwu) joins Ryan and Jeremiah to talk about how he got his literary agent. He also has written sketch shows and pilots and pitched them all over Los Angeles. After joining a sketch team in college and going to Washington D.C., he was accepted into the CBS diversity showcase and moved to Hollywood. Now he writes for Raven's Home on The Disney Channel and also for Dad Jean's at iO West. We also want to thank Hayley Ellman for sending in a sketch to read this week. Find Eric on Twitter HERE Find us on Twitter HERE Send us your sketches to read on the show at foowpod@gmail.com See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We are lucky to have Jesse Klein, writer for the Pack house team Haymaker, with us today. Jesse talks with us about idea generation and always being prepared with several pitches and sketch packets for every occasion. Another thing that Jesse shows us is a way in generate an infinite number of sketch premises and honestly it's pretty great. On the show we came up with over half of a dozen sketch premises in less than 5 minutes. The episode is worth the listen for that part alone. Jesse has written on house teams DJ Faucet, Mr. Worm and others at iO West and is also a contributing writer for Prairie Home Companion. He has studied at The Upright Citizens Brigade, Groundlings, Second City, iO West and the Pack Theatre. He also on every podcast that has ever been made. We also want to thank Josh Puterbaugh for letting us read their sketch this week. Check out Haymaker HERE Follow Jesse on Twitter HERE Snd us your sketches to critique to foowpod@gmail.com Follow us on Twitter HERE See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Zora Bikangaga may possibly be our most interesting guest to date. This man has been on "This American life" because he pretended to be an Ugandan international student for an entire semester. After committing to the bit for so long he followed his new found love of acting and writing down to Los Angeles. I say down because he's from Northern California. Mr. B was a middle school teacher and a social issues theatre performer and talks about using some those real situations to create characters as well as write premises. Which just goes to prove that living a real life is just as important to comedy as being a comedian. Zora wrote, created and starred in HOA alongside the likes of Horatio Sanz and Cheri Oteri, he freelances for Cracked, he has worked on Drunk History, Adam Ruins Everything and he is a writer for the Upright Citizens Brigade maude team "New Deal". Listen to the this American life episode HERE Check out the trailer for HOA HERE Get tickets to see his maude team HERE See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Connie Shin joined us on FOOW this week to talk about writing for her Maude team Karate Karate, her process of formulating beats before she writes her sketches and the task of trying to identifying legitimate news stories vs ads. Connie Shin currently writes for the team Karate Karate at UCB's Maude night and sometimes Sketch Cram. She also performs improv with group "KanYay! West" and sketch with "Basic Bitches". Follow Connie on Twitter HERE See the trailer for "I do...Until I don't" HERE Tickets to see Karate Karate perform HERE Follow us on Twitter: @FOOWpod or click HERE Follow Ryan on Twitter: @imtweedy or click HERE Follow Jeremiah on Twitter: @whatisjeremiah or click HERE Send us your sketches to critique at foowpod@gmail.com Check out our 1st Fish Out Of Water Digital Sketch HERE See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Billy Merritt graced FOOW this week to talk about scientology, not writing for the Denny's Twitter feed and finding the deeper meaning in your sketches. We discussed writing material that appeals to all ages (and the fact that all kids across the world laugh at fart jokes) and using your "where" to help find the deeper meaning in your sketches if you're stuck while writing. Billy has been a performer, teacher and director with the UCB Theatre since it first opened in New York. He is a founding member of improv groups The Swarm, The Stepfathers and The Smokes. You can find Billy's improv workshop HERE Follow Billy on Twitter HERE Follow Billy on Instagram HERE Tickets to see Billy perform with The Smokes HERE Follow us on Twitter: @FOOWpod or click HERE Send us your sketches to critique at foowpod@gmail.com Check out our 1st Fish Out Of Water Digital Sketch HERE See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Brian James O'Connell (better known as BOC) stopped by to talk to us about digital comedy and screenwriting. He broke down the process that his comedy team "Dr. God" goes through as they create films and digital sketch. They started as an improv team and then decided to take it to the next level. BOC is also a co-founder of the Pack Theatre and the head of their digital program. He wants to make sure that everyone understands that if you can write and you look for the resources to create - you will be able to. You can find Blood Sucking Bastards HERE Check out The Pack Digital Program HERE Follow us on Twitter: @FOOWpod Send us your sketches to critique at foowpod@gmail.com Check out our 1st Fish Out Of Water Digital Sketch HERE See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Joe Hartzler, the master of comedic suspense, joins us to talk about taking the audience on a laugh voyage, not just a laugh bus ride. Mr. Hartzler wants comedians to start using every part of the bit, not just the funny part. He helped us explore the nature of our comedy by showing us the many paint brushes that we have artists - not just the obvious ones. Joe has been a performer at UCB since 2007 and taught improv there for several years. He was a member of one of the first maude teams - Up Up Up. You may have also seen him helping sell xbox's on your television, as well as all over youtube.com. Joe is a comedy genius and I don't use that term lightly. Watch acting Tips with Joe Hartzler here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q6i57qG1DGY Trophy Case can be seen here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ikBNRBTcU9A Follow Joe on Twitter: @joehartzler Follow us on Twitter: @FOOWpod See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Joan Ford is super smart and thoughtful. That's what I liked the most about this conversation. We talked about the trap that many writers fall in to - especially when writing about something that bothers them or makes them angry. Joan spoke to the idea of writing characters that you don't like in real life and broke down a challenge she gave herself which was to find the humanity in them and make them relatable and more accessible.Ultimately, she was trying to find a way to make assholes funny. Joan is the coach of Bombardier at UCB and was the coach of Sugar. She was also a writer for nephew.Now she writes for Nerdist and is likes the challenge of remaining positive. Apparently all the positive video commenters only go to Nerdist. This week we read a sketch by Calder Holbrook (@CalderHolbrook) You can send in your sketches to foowpod@gmail.com and have our guests critique them on the air. You can get tickets to Bombardier here: https://sunset.ucbtheatre.com/performance/54087 You can buy Joan's book here: https://www.amazon.com/Killing-Action-Girls-Saving-Looking/dp/194209910X Follow her on Twitter - @JoanHaleyFord You can follow us on Twitter - @Foowpod @JeremiahBurton1 @imtweedy See you next week. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

David Baldy, who has had many writers jobs and various production jobs in Hollywood, was kind enough to stop in and talk to us for damn near 2 hours. This episode is loaded with tips on how to get that staff writer job you've always wanted. Mr. Baldy, took calculated risks but also made sure he was prepared for the job he wanted. He started as a writers assistant and worked through the ranks until he reached the level of Co-Executive Producer. He shared with us how he got started and also how he navigated through the maze of the writing industry. Most of the stuff he talks about is actionable and replicable. Give this episode a listen with a pencil near by because you might just need it, Also, he's into Crossfit, so of course we talked about that. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Charlie is a writer for the team "The Truce" and a host of the popular indie improv show "Purgatory" at the Clubhouse. He also hosts Catharsis: Dramatic Improv at UCB Sunset. We delve into a deep conversation in this episode and It pops up fairly organically. Charlie brings up an interesting point that it's easier for Straight White Males to find everything funny because of our place of privilege in society. It makes for an interesting discussion. We'd love to hear what everyone thinks. So chime in on twitter: @FoowPod We also talk about Cartoons, what are some things that we feel might turn an audience off and how we can earn those balls. You can also find tickets to see Chuck at iO West here: http://ioimprov.com/west/show/the-truce-da-vinci-3/ Follow him on Twitter here: @charlesmihelich You can send your sketches for us to read and critique with our guests to foowpod@gmail.com See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Anna is a phenomenal writer and one of the funniest people we've had on our podcast BUT that pales in comparison to how hard of a worker she is by all accounts. So, obviously we were very appreciative that she made time in her busy schedule to come on and talk with us. And talk she did, we spoke about the best practices for getting to be a part of the CBS diversity showcase. She explained how she puts a packet together, what should and should not go into it, how long it should be and also some of the lesser known requirements. Madam Cecilia also gave us a brief tutorial on taking notes when they are given to you. Spoiler Alert: You're argument against taking them is almost always wrong. Anna was also a staff writer for Awesome TV, a writer on the teams Sugar and Bombardier at UCB, a writer/performer on the team Jet Jaguar at iO West, and she now coaches iO West house team, Wilton. Get tickets to Maude Night: https://sunset.ucbtheatre.com/performance/50635 Follow Anna on Twitter: https://twitter.com/theannacecilia Visit her website: http://annacecilia.net/Anna_Cecilia/Home.html You can follow Fish Out Of Water on Twitter: https://twitter.com/foowpod You can send us your scripts to read and critique: foowpod@gmail.com See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Bob Wiltfong has had many successes in life. He was a writer and correspondent for "The daily Show With Jon Stewart", he was in the pilot episode of "The Chapelle Show" and had a very lucrative run with a one man show at the fringe festival. He talks about how he accomplished all of that and he also gives pointers so that we can actively pursue the same goals if we so choose. Follow Bob on Twitter: twitter.com/bobwiltfong Follow us on Twitter: twitter.com/foowpod Send us sketches to read: foowpod@gmail.com We'd also like to thank Brad Layden for sending in a sketch this week: twitter.com/wunderbrad Here's that video, "Toast", that Bob was talking about: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oaYtFLGELB8 See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Our old friend, Hal Rudnick, joins us this week and talks about his process in creating characters and writing sketches. You may know Hal from "The Midnight Show", "Screen Junkies", and "Tournament of Nerds" plus he's been all over your TV and internet. BUT THAT'S NOT ALL, Hal is in the next season of "America's Got Talent" doing an original character he calls Eric Jennifer. Mr Rudnick is a character expert. He would have a PHD from Harvard in character creation - if that was a thing. Hal teaches Character 101 and 201 at the Upright Citizens Brigade in Los Angeles. he also teaches sketch and improv and holds the record with most Harold teams. I believe it's 6. Anywhoo, get to know Hal by: Following him on Twitter @HalRudnick Watch him on Screen Junkies - https://www.youtube.com/user/screenjunkies And Most importantly, follow Eric Jennifer on twitter @EricJennifer007 Also follow us: @FOOWpod And send us your sketches to go through on the podcast with our guest at foowpod@gmail.com See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Will Hine is an improv legend,. He's also an author, a sketch writer, a maude director, a teacher, a podcaster and an honest, genuine guy. Not to mention he's insightful and thoughtful when finding the comedy nuggets in the mundane details. This is a great episode in finding the truth in comedy, the grounded reality that we can all relate to and laugh at together. You may want to grab a notebook and jot down some of Will's brilliance - or don't - I'm not here to tell you what to do. We also break down a FAN'S Sketch with Will Hines. Thanks to MATT NEWCOMB for sharing his sketch!!! If you want to submit a sketch for one of our guests to go over submit it too: foowpod@gmail.com Check out Will's podcast, "Don't Get Me Started": https://headgum.com/dont-get-me-started Buy Will's Book "How To Be the Greatest Improviser On Earth": http://willhines.net/ Follow Will On Twitter: @WillHines Follow US On twitter: @FOOWpod See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices