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On The Scene: ‘At Home With Amy Sedaris’ NY Premiere

by Asad Jung
written by Asad Jung

Amy Sedaris’ new show “At Home With Amy Sedaris” received a warm welcome at its premiere this past Diwali Thursday in NYC, as cast and crew walked a multi-colored carpet, quite appropriate for the occasion.

Sedaris entered The Bowery Hotel in a puffy blue dress, complete with blue frills and sparkles. Though Sedaris is a huge fan of comedy, she appreciates the mundane too, and thinks that the “boring” has redeeming qualities, often looked over in American television. Her new show “At Home With Amy Sedaris” centers around crafts and cooking, two of Amy’s favorite hobbies. Though she had originally intended for the show to be dry and focused, she realized that laughs were necessary to break the ice for a home-show such as this.

This led to the creation of a show that mixes the slow with the fast, the witty with the humorless. A perfect example of what I mean by this juxtaposition is the way Amy describes fish in the beginning of her first episode. “Fish a strange cold-blooded and limbless creature that thrives in the stuff we drown in…but when battered and pan-fried, scrumptious!” Amy goes into a historical, nature-documentary sort of drawl, but then makes sure not to bore the audience for too long as she jumps into delicious and oily possibilities.

The show is corny and awkward, but employs both traits to strengthen its niche. It bathes in idiosyncracy in an endearing way rather than an annoying one. The sexual tension between Amy and her guest chef is the perfect energy for a home-cooking show, and it gives the episode a laid back, homey feel. “You handle those so well,” Amy says seductively to her guest as he straddles raw fish with his gloved hands. The mundane is funny, and the funny is mundane with Amy’s style. Her characters tell the audience unnecessary information about their lives, sort of like when one of your relatives drones on and on about pointless occurrences.

I had the pleasure of speaking briefly with Amy about her show:

Q: So what kind of comedy can we expect to see on the show, is it going to be more physical, more verbal?

A: There’ a lot of physical comedy, a lot of verbal comedy, a lot of visual comedy, so yeah!

Q: From what I’ve read the show wasn’t originally intended to be a comedy, so if you take away the comedy from the show – how does it function?

A: It’s “bring a book”… that’s why you need comedy you realize “oh this is just killing us, so boring.” But I mean I like boring shows, but we just naturally like to laugh, so we tried not to be so serious.

Q: You like boring shows?

A: Like PBS type shows, how-to shows, shows you can zone out too.

Q: Are there any elements of that kind of mundane-ness in the show?

A: Yeah, not for too long, because then you want to laugh.

The show also screened at the inaugural Tribeca TV Festival last month. Below are two clips from the post – screening panel courtesy of the festival:

The show premieres October 24th on TruTV at 8pm, perfect to relax to after a long day.

 

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EntertainmentThe LatestTV

On The Scene: ‘Gilmore Girls’ Fan Fest

by Hilary Weissman
written by Hilary Weissman

The Knockturnal got to Gilmore Girls Fan Fest, a 3-day fan-created and town-sponsored convention in Kent, Conn., just in time to sing along with Louise Goffin, Carole King’s daughter and duet partner on the show’s theme song “Where You Lead,” and witness the weekend’s final Q&A panel with select cast members from the original run and the revival, plus a spontaneous video chat with Lauren Graham (Lorelai Gilmore) between pilot meetings.

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EntertainmentThe LatestTV

How Tru TV Shaped There Future Using Creativity

by Staff
written by Staff

In a world where information and knowledge is just a Google search away, how do you stay competitive or better yet relevant? Clearly, the media landscape is ever changing and disruption seems to be constant. Television viewership is down, but streaming is up. Both once staples of our industry are now out of date. Creativity is the new currency with ability to think outside the box as the only way to be relevant. 

We caught up with Tru TV’s EVP of Marketing & Digital, Puja Zohra, at NAB Show New York, where she was talking on their panel on “Creativity: Shaping The Future of Business.” She opened up about Tru TV’s willingness to reach and engage their audience using social media during March Madness even if that involves being a little harsh. See, every year Tru TV launches an unconventional social media campaign around March Madness challenging their viewers to troll them. Yes, they let their viewers twitter troll Tru TV. “We created over 1,200 pieces of custom content,” says Zohra about this year’s campaign. She explains, “we have what is called a “war room,” so for two days you got 30 people stuck in a room… analysts, writers, designers, looking at what’s coming in [and] sending it back.” She adds, “it’s kind of fun. It’s the time of the year that we are able to show our voice… and have a lot of fun.”

Now for most traditional cable companies the thought of engaging in twitter beefs, battles and flat out trolling might not seem like a good idea, especially with the legal department. However, according to Zohra they try to sidestep clashes and not to have any of those issues.  She clarifies, “What we try to do is match the tone of the person who is talking to us. So when we are creating a response, we will try to give it back to them as good as they are giving it to us, because they struck us first.” She adds, “We have a head of editorial and a writer, and they’re the ones who are doing all the stuff.” She explains it not easy though, “because of the speed at which this happens there is no approval process….[but] I think it also helps to have people at the company who have your back. My boss who’s the president of the network will stand by us.”

 

Zohra acknowledges that the benefits do outweigh the risk. She emphasizes, “I think that I really love and live for this [especially] when you get positive feedback from the internet [about the campaign].” She does express that she hopes it can keep going, but each year is different. She notes, “Every year we think is it going to happen this year? Will they come after us? [So], we are ready.” She goes on to say that traditional media’s biggest challenge, other that disruption from “technology companies you know Netflix or Hulu,” is the “status quo.” She affirms that “it’s hard to completely reinvent yourself,” but acknowledges the necessity for media companies to do so.

-Melissa Unger

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Woody McClain Talks New Series ‘Stories with Kev,’ Project with Kevin Hart

by Kadeem Lundy
written by Kadeem Lundy

After moving to Los Angeles in 2012 to pursue professional dancing, Woody McClain began to branch out and test his comedic skills ultimately creating social media videos that went viral with with videos such as “Permission to Cuss,” and in late 2015 McClain caught the attention of Kevin Hart who asked the young rising star to join his production company, HartBeat Digital. Two years later, McClain’s star status gained a boost following his breakout critically acclaimed performance as Bobby Brown in this year’s New Edition biopic mini series which aired on BET. Kevin Hart and Woody have collaborated on a project for Kevin’s Laugh Out Loud Network called Stories With Kev, in which Woody will be playing Kevin. Stories With Kev premiered exclusively on LaughOutLoud.com and it’s app on September 29th. Woody chatted with us about meeting Kevin, working on the project and more.

What made you create “Permission to Cuss”?

Woody McClain: I remember just sitting there watching Martin at first. It started with me watching Martin and he was doing one of his stand-ups and I was like ‘Yo I think this would be super funny if I could make this real’. But I was like at the time Instagram only let you post 15 second videos and my thing was I was trying to bring a bigger audience. So I was like that’s too much that’s too long, maybe if I take somebody that’s online that does storytelling, maybe I could bring one of their 15 second videos to life. So I did that with Plies. It started doing really good, the rapper Plies I started doing his videos and it just kept going viral. Now I was like I have to do something bigger and better and when I played Kevin Hart ‘Permission to Cuss’ I seen the whole story in my head and I was like this is the story I want to tell I have to do it. And that’s how that all came about.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yEvNDetA-eg&w=560&h=315]

How did your meeting with Kevin Hart come about? What was your initial reaction when meeting Kevin Hart?

Woody McClain: Man his guy Wayne reached out to me and said they wanted to meet and we met. This meeting with Kev was like one of the best feelings you can have as a young up and coming person that wants to be in comedy. But just to see Kevin be about the business and so like smart and knows what he wants just motivated me to want to go even harder.

In working with Kevin [Hart] what was one thing you learned about him that you didn’t know before?

Woody McClain: Man Kevin’s about the business. I mean looking online it’s all fun silly Kevin Hart haha, but in person he really knows his stuff.

What was one of the funniest moments on set while filming Stories with Kev?

Woody McClain: One of the funniest moments for me.. well I don’t even know if this is considered funny but I remember the day Kevin was coming in to film the intro of the show and I could just remember everybody panicking running around making sure everything was just right and I’m like ‘Yo you guys have to relax it’s great trust me.’ And just everybody was just panicking and Kevin came in he killed it and like I said it was great no need to panic. And that was just the funniest day ever because I never seen people panic before. That was the first time me seeing the crew and cast out of their element in panic.

If you could give us your favorite Kevin Hart quote what would that be?

Woody McClain: I think it has to be “Live, Love, Laugh” that’s like one of his best quotes for me.

Besides being an leading actor on Stories with Kev, you were also executive producer. What was it like being both executive producer and an actor and having to balance both responsibilities/roles at the same time?

Woody McClain: That’s my first time executive producing something. I have so much more respect for producers and what they have to do because not only was I executive producer but I was also casting. I had to worry about locations, I had to do everything you could think of and come in and act at the same time. It just helped me prepare for the future.

With the project being exclusive to Kevin’s Laugh Out Loud, what do you feel Laugh Out Loud represents for black comedy culture?

Woody McClain: I think it’s just right now with social media it’s so much craziness, seeing some of the stupid stuff people post and I feel like younger kids are looking at that and saying this is what is funny. But Kevin is actually giving us a platform where we show kids the positive ways of life and how you can be funny and respectful. You don’t have to break stuff to be funny, you don’t have to be loud in public to be funny, you can do it a different way if that makes sense.

What’s next for you?

Woody McClain: We have Canal Street that’s a feature film I did coming out in theaters next year. I am now on Unsolved director Anthony Hemingway. That’s all I can think of right now.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gbTTSNfez9E&w=560&h=315]
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On the Scene: ‘Entre Nos’ Part 2 Premiere

by Angelina Fay
written by Angelina Fay

HBO Latino presented Entre Nos: Part 2, a special featuring three Latino comedians, at Cinepolis on October 12 as part of the New York Latino Film Festival (NYLFF).

The special is the first original comedic content aired on HBO Latino, and features three comedians who were ecstatic about the project from its conception.

Caamaño, Rivera, and Quiñones at the red carpet before the premiere.

Shayla Rivera, Puerto Rican comedian, mother, and ex-rocket scientist, prides her comedic style as “the truth.” On the red carpet, Rivera spoke about the conception of her philosophy: “My biggest inspiration when I first started in comedy was George Carlin. I would sit there with my dad and we would laugh, and I would see how, honestly, the funniest thing out there is what we all do but we don’t talk about. That’s the truth. If you shined a light on the thing that we do behind closed doors, people will just laugh with you.”

Vladimir Caamaño, one of Variety’s Top 10 Comics to Watch, is a “true New Yorker,” he says. He has performed at almost every comedy club in the city, and has been for years. His comedy sketch in Entre Nos centers around making fun of the rich. At the panel after the premiere, Caamaño claimed that since poverty is not a choice, neither is being rich, and that coming from the “other side” gave him a good perspective with which to create a comedy sketch.

Rivera and Caamaño at the panel discussion.

Frankie Quiñones has been dubbed a “one-man variety show.” He has introduced and perfected multiple personas in his routines throughout his comedy career, and has performed overseas for troops in Japan, Europe, and the Middle East.

Rivera, Caamaño, and Quiñones shared similar opinions on the importance in displaying multi-faceted Latino comedians.

“There is so much Latino talent out there, completely untapped,” Rivera said.

When asked about the underrepresentation and misrepresentation of Latinos both in Hollywood and in comedy, she said, “They think I can only play a maid, or only play a nanny, or the hot, sassy, whatever…which is not true. I can play a scientist, I can play a judge. What I found is that it is not as much our problem as it is their perception. And they still haven’t really understood that we’re all different, we all have different tendencies – like they are.”

The special, hosted by comedian Ben Gonzalez, will premiere on all HBO platforms on October 13 at 9:30 p.m.

 

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