If performing truly “edgy” stand-up comedy is your goal, I can only highly recommend that you carefully study comedian Carlos Mencia — specifically his comedy special called No Strings Attached.

I just reviewed that particular Carlos Mencia performance in its entirety and I have to say that it was not only hilarious, but also one of the best presentations of “edgy” stand-up comedy material that I have ever seen.

So, pay close attention. I’m going to cover what “edgy” or “cutting edge” material really is and specifically what to look for in Carlos Mencia’s No Strings Attached DVD as you study this master of expressing the brutal, non-politically correct truth in a very funny way. Read the rest of this entry

For more information about Steve Roye, author of this blog and the Killer Stand-up Online Course, click here.

After rave reviews at a number of the major film festivals, the stand-up comedy documentary “I Am Comic” directed by Jordan Brady will air for the first time on Friday June 11, 2010 at 11 pm on the Showtime cable network.

One thing I will tell you about this film — it’s funny and highly entertaining, which simply cannot be said about most documentary films. So, don’t let the fact that this film is a documentary keep you from being thoroughly captivated for 90 minutes.

And it doesn’t matter if you are simply a fan of stand-up comedy or you are a professional funny person yourself, you will have a blast watching the film. At the very least, you will have something interesting to talk about around the water cooler at work.

Once I can record “I Am Comic” on my DVR and can review it more than once, I plan to expand upon specific aspects of stand-up that are presented in the film in future blog articles.

I have only seen “I Am Comic” once myself – that was at the world premiere at the Slamdance Film Festival in Jan.

My part in the film continues to polarize audiences — especially comedians. Those who are smart understand that my Comedy Evaluator Pro software objectively measures the laugh time to talk time ratio for any given comedy performance.

Yet, there are still others who, along side those who still believe the Earth is flat and that the moon landing really happened in Arizona, are adamant that my software and evaluation process is not really viable.

The real issue that many comedians have with Comedy Evaluator Pro is that they DON’T want a tool that tells them objectively how poorly they are doing when it comes to generating laughter, cheering or applause on stage. I guess the persistent notion is that you can somehow have a lame stand-up comedy act, yet still be considered a great comedian…

But check it out for yourself on June 11, at 11 pm when “I Am Comic” premieres on the Showtime cable network.

Then come back and leave a comment on this blog. Let me know what you think.

Cheers,
Steve Roye
The Professor of Funny For Money

For more information about Steve Roye, author of this blog and the Killer Stand-up Online Course, click here.

I just got back from the Slamdance Film Festival world premiere of the stand-up comedy documentary called I Am Comic directed by Jordan Brady and narrated by comedian Ritch Shydner.

So, what’s the verdict? I am going to predict right now that I Am Comic is going to be a wildly popular film, not just among stand-up comedians, but among anyone who is a fan of stand-up comedy.

Let me start off by saying this—I Am Comic is certainly NOT your typical documentary. This film is not only interestingly informative, it is seriously funny and entertaining throughout the entire film—even in the more dramatic and serious moments that are captured in the later part of documentary.

You won’t find a more fascinating or revealing look at stand-up comedy, not just as an art form but also as a career and a business as told by comedians from all levels of stand-up comedy than you will in I Am Comic.

I Am Comic is not just an expose of life on the road as comedian. The documentary also covers a number of topics including comedy material development, theft of comedy material by other comedians, and the impact of the Internet among others.

Yes, my Comedy Evaluator Pro software was featured in the film and my scenes initially drew some disapproving groans but ended on a funny note. Did my part and my software have a significant impact on the film? Without a doubt! I know that from the level of questions asked at the end of the film.

And yes, I suspect my software will continue to generate controversy as the popularity of the film expands once it is available for distribution.

I Am Comic is so well done and so damn funny that in a perfect world, I would hope that this hard hitting stand-up comedy documentary would have a shot at movie theater distribution before heading to cable TV and DVD distribution. Why?

Because I already know that movie theater audiences will laugh their rear ends off. The world premiere screening had about 80 people watching the film for the first time and they laughed hard during the entire film.

I was also given permission by Jordan Brady to collect an audio recording of the film and the audience reaction while I was there. So, sometime next week, I will actually have the first PAR Score ever for a comedy movie—a great baseline for other comedy movies to shoot for (which I already know will be difficult—this stand-up comedy documentary is just that funny, from beginning to end).

Needless to say, I will be interested to see the relationship between the film’s popularity and its PAR Score.

My special thanks goes out to Jordan Brady for giving me a role in this film and to Ritch Shynder for asking hard hitting, provocative questions during his interview of me that gave my scenes real impact.

I will keep you posted as the stand-up comedy documentary I Am Comic makes its way from film festival introduction into wider distribution.

Am I excited? Without a doubt.

Cheers,
Steve Roye
The Professor of Funny for Money

For more information about Steve Roye, author of this blog and the Killer Stand-up Online Course, click here.