MY COMEDY WRITING STYLE Re Aussie American

MY COMEDY WRITING STYLE

FILM  & TV
I love writing Australian characters , but the comedy writing process which has been developed by Americans for one hundred years is the format in which I write.

As much as I think the world and Australia misses out on seeing Aussies being Aussies in film, it's the American style of writing which is funniest and I have adopted. They set up a joke properly. Well in TV sitcoms they do.

American's could never make a Don's Party, so we have to, but we are incapable of making a TV series like Frasier, and some of Frasier is 10/10 comedy.

One of things which amused and puzzled me during the shooting of  IT'S BRISBANE TONIGHT WOW was people said "it's so Australian" and I'm thinking 'No it's very American". As long as I'm thinking it's American and every one else thinks it's Australian , it's not an issue.


Here's a fact both sides of my family going back two or three generations are Jews and I relate to Jews. So I guess I relate to Jewish humour/comedy.

SKETCH COMEDY

My sketch comedy is based on the British style. Alas Smith & Jones , The Two Ronnies, Not the Nine O'clock News, Not Only But Also, Benny Hill and Monty Python. The Poms do it better than the yanks and they do (did) a maximum of six shows per year. (I don't know or even care as to why) but Saturday Night Live (to me) just isn't funny.However dean Martin did some funny "guest star' based sketches and The Sonny and Cher show was funny.

The influence Australian sketch comedy has on me is that the Paul Hogan show was a stand out because he only did 4 shows a year. The other shows with a cast of a dozen 30 plus writers and 30 plus episodes a year is about how "Not" to do as sketch show.

AUSTRALIAN FILMS and Australians in film

Australiam Films and Australians in Films 

I want an opportunity to make films about Australians. There are not enough films about Australians and we are a dying race. The Anglo Saxon Australian is mixing with other cultures and races and the iconic Aussie will not be here in one hundred years. 

I myself have a Fijian Indian wife so I'm not coming from the angle of racism. 

But what I'm saying is  the "Good on ya mate Aussie" is dying.and these characters have a great sense of humour and  way of talking and it is would be great to get my scripts  made into films, because these are my characters.

The humour from younger generation Australians is dislikeable at best. It's seems to be put down humour with no self deprecation.

And I'm not talking about the real broad Aussie which is perpetuated in shithuse films like DIMBOOLA. .
I am talking the likes of early Bruce Beresford films.  Bruce Beresford made four films, DON'S PARTY, THE CLUB , THE MONEYMOVERS  and BREAKER MORANT which showed  a realistic portrayal of the Australian, warts and all. I also liked ALL MEN ARE LIARS and SPOTSWOOD.

My script LAST NIGHT OF THE HOODOO'S is very Australian and I intend to rewrite AFTER DEATH and MAN OF THE PEOPLE to be more this way.

 And just for the record i do think CROCODILE DUNDEE is a great feel good film.

IT"S BRISBANE TONIGHT WOW- RE EDIT

It's back on the drawing board. 3 years in the making , at a cost of thousands.We've had our problems but after a discussion which last about 30 seconds a decision was made to re-edit the movie and add a music score.
Tall Poppy Productions Gareth David ( is he related to Larry)  is doing the work and the first part of the editing is done. Some scenes have been chopped, others trimmed, and one character has been  severely cut, but the prodct is now looking much better.
Also sound problems are being dealt with and some scenes were deleted just because of the sound issue.

THE ISSUES
When the film was first completed there were many issues. I'll be totally honest about this.
I'll look at the film from 6 major points'

SCRIPT
DIRECTION
ACTING
EDITING
MUSIC SCORE
SOUND
PRODUCING

SCRIPT
I wrote the script and it has two  major flaws
The first is I started the story from Rick Stinger arriving at The Community TV station without any background of who he is. It was my intention to write the script this way but it doesn't work. We need to know more about him and we also need to know more about Lee Travers.


Second Flaw
I didn't make Rick a klutz. I had him talking as if a klutz but there's no sight gags with him falling , tripping over breaking  or spilling something which is necessary. The audience needed to see that he was clumsy.

In the edited version Scot deleted many "laugh lines' and although he had reasons, none of the reasons were suitable, and the lines should have stayed. The cast members who delivered the lines were extremely disappointed.


DIRECTION
I had no issues with Scot's directing. Afterwards I said to him that I would have done one scene in a certain way and he said I should have suggested it at the time. However, I made a point of not interfering on that level. To repeat myself., I had no issues with his directing. Not brilliant  but responsible.


ACTING
I felt all the actors Scot used did a great job. On the other hand I wasn't happy with myself as an actor but I did improve throughout the production. I wasn't good enough to carry the film, that may take time.



EDITING
The original edit was rushed and sub standard.
The editing ,or in this case "tightening" of scenes has made it funny. It's an amazing process. Seriously, when a scene which wasn't funny suddenly becomes funny, because of a cut it makes you realise how important editing is in a comedy sense. When you take out out an entry to the scene and an exit is shaved by two seconds on either side and it can totally make a scene,

The biggest surprise was cutting out genuine laugh lines, even though funny and finding out that it's much better without them.I say surprise, but I chose to do it and there are many good lines cut. ( That still doesn't make up for the lines which should have been kept in)

I guess that's why they have deleted scenes on dvd's now. The scene is worth watching, but not in the context of the film, and those involved in the "deleted scene" can go "how good was that"?, but the reality it is, it was better out than in.

Scot has been generous enough to allow me to re edit.

MUSIC

Scot didn't have a music score in his first two versions. This was of great concern to me. Although Scot pointed out that FAWLTY TOWERS doesn't have a music score the reality is that show basically gets 10/10 for writing acting editing and direction. And "YES" it would  have been even more funnier  with a music score.

I've got Gareth investigating if we can use a forgotten Aussie pop song from the sixties as a title track. We'll see. He's already added some sound effects which are very good. They just sharpen up the whole process. Id like a punchy score to pump it up a bit.


SOUND
The major issue with the film is sound. If the film is not audible it's not watchable. We shot the majority of the film in a makeshift studio which was not fully sound proofed. Maybe not sound proofed at all. The scenes in the pub which was a nightclub were shot when work with a pneumatic drill was being used outside. You can't help bad luck but it was extremely unfortunate.


PRODUCING
Scot was easy to work with and was proficient and planned. His decision to build a set was his major mistake.If he got a price at BRIZ 31 he may have been able to shoot 95% of the film on a sound stage without the issues which have made the film unwatchable.

October 2014
The reality is the film could be and should be remade. It's a good script  a good story and has the potential for a big audience.

P.S I finally did re-edit this script but that was as far as I got. ( A strange thing happened Having told Scot I would re edit the film he decided he would also do it.  However after telling  Gareth from Tall Poppy Productions  that info both of us  lost total interest.

F TROOP REVISITED

F TROOP is being shown on Gem at 8am -9am in the mornings now. As a kid I considered this to be the best show on ABC TV. No, the only show worth watching on ABC TV.
 

The history of F TROOP ( and by the way, how did they agree on that as the title) is that it ran for two years and was cancelled whilst being America's number 2 show, say some sources.
Why?  Warner Brothers were in financial difficulty and the F TROOP set was expensive to upkeep.
Basically, it was a very expensive show.
And hey, that's what I'm looking at in the mornings, right now.
 

Great sets,  great cast, great costumes and incredible music score and sound effects.
I would say that the musical  score and nuances is only equalled by that of I DREAM OF JEANNIE.
 

This may well have been the most expensive comedy show per episode ever made. The scripts were funny but not in the satirical vein of GET SMART, but they were well structured and each character had "stock lines" and a strong personality.

GREAT FUN.


Trivia: Melody Patterson was only 16 when she began on the show which means she was 17 when it ended.
OMG.

NED KELLY & THE BUSHRANGERS ELITE ( film script)

Ned Kelly and the Bushrangers Elite (film script)
 

This is a film script based on the writing style of the two great Monty Python comedies, The Holy Grail and the Life of Brian.

There's been a few attempts at a comedy based on the life of Ned Kelly and they all stink for a variety of reasons. Mine may stink for other reasons.

So my script features Ned Kelly but I've chosen to make it a story about all the great Australian bushrangers., Ben Hall and Captain Starlight, Captain Thunderbolt and others. The segments are all ridiculous and senseless.

However it's dangerous territory going the "Python " route as "Python" sketch comedy is out of date and cannot is hard to replicate. My thoughts are that "Python" film comedy is not so out of date and can be replicated. It's not about copying anything , it's just about getting into that zone of nonsense-ness and hoping it works.

 The script is still a work in progress.

NEIL SIMON ( I'm not a big fan)

NEIL SIMON

Neil Simon started out writing the The Sid Caesar Show with greatest comedy writing team of all time which included Mel Brooks,Carl Reiner,  Larry Gelbart  and later on Woody Allen and these were the ones who went on to become household names. The show had a dozen or so other great comedy writers as well.

So Neil went on to write plays which became movies and the biggest one of the 60's was THE ODD COUPLE.  I can't sit through it, it's just two guys screaming at each other for 90 minutes. ( The Tv series is far more watchable)

In the 60's he also wrote BAREFOOT IN THE PARK. The film starred Robert Redford and Jane Fonda and was much better and had less screaming. But most of his other stuff was just unfunny screaming but he got accolades for it.

Finally around 1981 he wrote a film called MAX DUGAN RETURNS which was very good and he he followed it up with a few other good films like BRIGHTON BEACH MEMOIRS and BILOXI BLUES which were more subtle than his earlier work.

I read or heard him say once that he couldn't understand all the fuss about Woody Allen and that was just as successful. There was a big difference.

When he passed away Brooks, Reiner and Allen had very little to say about him or condolences which made me think he wasn't all that likeable.

TED by Seth McFarlane 2012

TED

 I went to see this film with big  hopes and Seth McFarlane almost delivered.
Before I say anything else it would have been great to have two lots of dialogue and some scenes altered so that there was a kids version as well. I was a bit horrified when an acquaintance of mine had taken his 10 year old son and the kid was quoting "Fuck" lines from the film.

But here's what I liked.
The humour- because he's original daring and very wrong.
I've never been in to topical references because they can become dated, so we'll see how this dates. As for now it's box office gold and if it's pop culture based and not political it's less likely to date. We still know the Brady Bunch but not the politics of 1970.

The story -    there were two strong storylines and he didn't go off track.