London's open-mic circuit on film... again

Another movie about struggling comic

Another film set on London’s comedy circuit is set to open next month.

The Comedian comes from first-time writer and director Tom Shkolnik and stars Edward Hogg as a thirtysomething who works in a call centre while trying to make it as a stand-up.

He performed a genuine routine for the film, which went badly.

Israeli-born Shkolnik has said: ‘Ed genuinely was utterly terrified on stage, because it was his material he’d written and spent months preparing, no one gave it to him. He was very attached to it, and when it went badly, it was hard for him, and that became part of the film.

‘I think the film became a study of self-destructiveness and failure, and what’s it like to fail.’

The movie, filmed across East London, is also about Ed’s passionate affair with a ‘vibrant young artist’ called Nathan who he meets after a gig, and how that affects his platonic relationship with his female flatmate.

It was shot to Dogme 95-style principles for authenticity, such as filming only one take of each shot, and Hollywood Bible Variety called it ‘a highly promising feature debut’.

Real-life comics Brett Goldstein, Mike Belgrave and Barnaby Slater also make appearances.

The Comedian was screened last month at the London Lesbian & Gay Film Festival and opens nationwide on May 31.

That’s ten days after the film Heckler, starring stand-up David Whitney, opens in Cannes as Chortle reported last week.

Here is a trailer for The Comedian:

Published: 20 Apr 2013

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