Recording a Gameshow Pilot

Two weeks ago I was called into the offices of a well-regarded tv and film production company on Warsaw's east side. I entered the building and rode the elevator to the top. I was soon greeted by a man that I had seen a year ago (2010) when I was attending my call-back audition for a new season of a tv show they had been working on for some time. I was asked if I'd be interested in this new project. I said, "yes."

Two weeks later I take a bus across town and arrive in a strange part of southern Warsaw. It's a cold desolate place that reminds me more of Cudahy,WI than the capital of a European nation. There's no sidewalk, so I walk in the dirt and mud to the studio. I enter and discover to my surprise a former member of my comedy group.

We greet each other at a distance. As I look at him I think to myself, "What kind of a small town is this?" As I turn around I see a giant green screen. It will be in front of this that I will stand. It will be here that I will create a tv show pilot. This is my first tv show pilot.

The filming took about 5 hours, and a crew member was kind enough to give me a lift home, all the way across town. Everyone on the crew was really nice, and aside from a moment where everyone lost their mind laughing for no good reason (there was a pun in the script) the recording went smoothly.

Comedy in Warsaw: An Update

Today in Warsaw you can attend the Stand-up comedy shows of two groups of comedians, Stand-up Polska and Standup.pl. Beyond that you can check out shows by one of the two Improv troupes in Warsaw Klancyk and Ab Ovo.

Beyond that there is little choice. We know from evolution that having a small initial set can lead to a degradation in quality, is this the same for entertainment? Perhaps it would be healthy for more people to participate in the live comedy entertainment industry in Warsaw.

I have been calling for months to start a Warsaw-based Improv troupe, but the response has been rather minimal. Some people can keep watching the same comedian on stage night after night. I on the other hand like variety. Warsaw, at least today, seems to lack any genuine variety in Comedy.

Perhaps the EU can grant some money to an organization that will generate interest in Stand-up comedy, and Improv comedy, and sketch.

Poland, a life in a country I'm from, but not really.

Moving to Poland did one major thing, it nearly-totally destroyed my Social Life as 80% of my friends (even today) live in the USA. The most difficult thing about being an Immigrant in your own country is that you can't really fall back on the things "normal" immigrants fall back on including the feeling of finding people like you. I am Polish and in Poland, but grew up in the USA, so I always feel left out here, and everyone expects me to speak Polish without an accent. It's hard to take living in a country seriously when you have to go 1,2, or 3 steps back in communication skills (Polish grammar sucks) in order to function in Polish society. Now, many people I know don't know a word of Polish (at least not anything besides swear-words) but I don't want to live like that. I actually think Poland is a very interesting place with terrible marketing. There are many opportunities here, but it's a very competetive market in the creative industry (as it must be globally) and it's been difficult for me to get any semblance of normalcy here, as I am employed as an English teacher, and it's just not a perfect fit for me. I wish I'd have time to finish Tato Jones (which I regard as unfinished) and send it out. I really should be working harder on getting a "real" job instead of just "hunkering down." When the economic crisis ends, no one knows, but one thing is clear the longer we continue down this path the sooner were all going to be miserable. (PS: I think this is by-far the longest response ever to a facebook post of mine).

Anti-Comedy Anyone?

http://www.livestream.com/nslf/video?clipId=pla_f3f9f093-b6ad-4bd0-ba5a-dbfb82316eaf&utm_source=lslibrary&utm_medium=ui-thumb
This evening I served up a raw dose of good ole Anti-Comedy. A blend of absurd randomness and behavior, seldom paid for but often observed in everything from art films to rain storms. It was all about the moment and misunderstood by many. It takes a few views to make it really matter. Once you get over the fact that it's not what you'd expect at a comedy show, or any show for that matter you realize that self-expression is always pretty. It's not about making you feel good, it's about giving you an experience you'll never have again. It's not about entertainment, but about creating a moment in time that can only exist for those people present. This is not a performance I created for the joy, or for the fame, but for a deep desire within me to express myself against all odds. When faced with a force of haters and thugs I am destined to come up with something pungeant and frothy. I don't serve up hot-cross bunds to everyone. You all get a special treat. This evening, I created a special event for my least admirable fellow-humans. Go forth, and live your lives, for the live in the past is a sad mistake. Worry not about me, but about yourself, for after all that is all you really have, and can count on. I will not stop performing, and even then their is video. But video doesn't do justice, like live performance. Never give up, never give in. Thank you to all my friends who attended tonight, and no thanks to all the rest.

Does anyone listen to National Polish Radio?

When I got up this morning I was excited. It was going to be the second time in as many weeks that I would be speaking on the radio. I was notified of my appearance just 24 hours prior. I had no idea who it was that had invited me and why I was going to be interviewed, aside from the fact that the show would be about Stand-up comedy. I arrived at the Polish National Radio Station early in the morning and notified the station that I was in the lobby. I purchased the worst cup of tea I have ever half-consumed in my life, and waited. A woman at the front desk called, "Anyone here for Channel 4?" I answered and was told to wait some more. After some time a woman finally came downstairs and asked the front desk about me. "Look for the guy with the best smile," was how the woman was supposed to recognize me among the 3 people waiting to get onto the air. She approached me and took me upstairs to the recording studio. I walked in and I was immediately introduced to the dj. After a brief moment in the engineers side I walked into the soundproof (most likely) recording booth and within a few minutes I was on the air. "Ok, welcome back everybody, we've got a guest this morning, and he's doing a one-man show in Warsaw. What is stand-up comedy anyhow?" As the dj asked me these questions I began to think too much. Instead of being in the moment I was somehow just beyond it. Within what seemed like seconds our conversation ended. I was told that the dj, "might check out one of my shows someday," and escorted out of the studio. As I left the building I anticipatedthat the interest in Laugh.pl would skyrocket. Upon checking my online stat system I was surprised to discover that only 24 people visited my main web site (laugh.pl) and as I read these numbers I came to realize that the support and interest of the media is not enough. In order to compete in the cut-throat world of entertainment you have to offer an innovative, interesting, captivating product that keeps people on the edge of their seats. In retrospect I wish I would have had more fun with the interview, and I would have garnered a bit more interest. So that makes 2 radio appearances and 1 television appearance. What does the future hold for Rich Greenfield? Only time will tell, and if I can ever get back into creating multimedia that's entertaining I'll have won half of the battle.

Friends and Comedy Don't Often Mix

In March I met a man from Belfast. He seemed like quite the violent and aggresive sort of person I needed to move my idea of a virtual comedy club along. I teamed up with him in September of 2010. At the start we had a simple idea, "to provide local comedians with a regular evening where they would be able to hone their skills in stand-up comedy." Eventually, the idea turned into something like, "let's run over everybody in town getting to our next gig." Quality went totally down the tubes and everyone was in a dog-eat-dog mood. An organization cannot survive long after the founders are less than friends. All it takes to end an inspiring project (or at least a partnership) is a drunken late-night rant directed at you by your "partner" in the organization. After our little "chat" I decided that it was time to take Laugh.pl back to it's roots. I plan on starting 2011 with a well-defined concept for Laugh.pl with only one rule in mind, my way or the highway. No more partnerships, no more boards of directors. They cliche goes that to get something done you have to do it yourself. Well it seems, that instead of looking for a "partner" I should've just gotten off my ass and talked to some venue owners on my own. However I guess I needed to be convinved by someone else first.

Happy New Year to everyone, and wish me luck as I carry Laugh.pl into a new era in 2011.

Polish Stand-Up Comics Get Demolished in Local Press

In local periodical,Poland's young and ambitious (and sometimes madly self-centered) stand-up comedians were torn a new one by Warsaw based Rzeczpospolita TV in a recent article titled, "Zacięta Walka" (fierce battle). In the article writer Julia Rzemek and Krzysztof Materna cast doubt on the current state of stand-up comedy and write that, "Among the talented [Stand-Up Comics] of Poland's young scene, there are no masters." A painful thing to hear when channels like Comedy Central and Polsat have created shows centered on showcasing the same 10 or so "top-comics" currently active in Poland. When you see the same comic on two tv shows in the USA it means he's got something special, in Poland it means he bothered to go to the audition.