When I'm not writing, I often try to relax and take my mind off work. Since movies and TV make up most of my life, my evenings are spent watching a lot of sports and stand-up comedy. Los Angeles is a great city for both. But with all the LA teams playing so well and tickets getting expensive, I frequently find myself at the Improv or the store ready to laugh. The more and more I watch stand-up, the more I think every writer should be turning out and doing the same. Not just because it's so relaxing to laugh, but also because it has a lot of lessons for writers. And as a workaholic, it's nice to get both at once. Let's dive in. Stand-Up Comedy is Basically Pitching for An Hour One of the things I love about seeing stand-up is that it's basically just someone pitching to you live for an hour, or however long they have a set going. Last year, I was in Minneapolis and saw Andy Woodhull there, which is one of my favorite comics. I was struck by how, when he gets into his set, it directly mirrors the pitches I give in Hollywood. He starts by aiming stuff at the crowd that's local. He knows where they're from, so he connects with them on a personal level. It starts out about the state fair, and then he builds from there. that sort of personal connection eases everyone in the room. Chances are, they're...
Published By: NoFilmSchool - 4 days ago