Don’t Get Left Out of the Joke in Improv Comedy Clubs’ First Campaign
The commercials show two people approach their friends in fits of laughter, having visited an Improv venue the night before. Gasping for air, they cackle over in-jokes, from ‘meat phone’ and ‘blind dentist’ to ‘the bit about the mermaid’, leaving their friends standing in bewilderment…. they just had to be there.
As the campaign hinges on the performance of the actors, casting was exhaustive. Director Jeremy Nachbar sought not only the ability to laugh on command, but also the skill to play it at a level one or a level 10 with equal believability. Come shoot day, this enabled Jeremy to test the performance at various intensities and find the sweet spot at which it worked best.
With the briefs already funny as written, Jeremy and his team focused on supporting them with subtext behind the laughs. Working closely with the actors, they forged an unspoken understanding of what was being laughed at. This fostered a feeling of familiarity between the actors, and a sense of sharing in their own language - a chemistry that translates to the performance seen on screen.
To keep the performances feeling authentic, Jeremy gave the actors a moment before shooting to find the intensity of their laugh on their own and come across more natural and spontaneous. From there, they were able to tweak the intricacies of it and play with the back-and-forth between characters, honing it until it felt right.
The commercials air from September 20th through December 15th 2023 across streaming TV platforms, digital billboards, audio platforms, digital display, and paid social.
Director Jeremy Nachbar comments, “This was genuinely one of the best shoots I have had in a while. Such a treat to work with the folks at Here Be Dragons to mould this thing on the fly. Nobody was married to one thing in particular going into the shoot. I love that feeling, you work the scene, tighten it up, add a beat here, a look there, until… you “find it”. I’m really proud of this work. I think we found it.”
Oliver Fuselier, managing director and executive producer at Great Guns USA, adds, “This was a fun project and we really appreciated working with the Here Be Dragons creative team and producer. They really became a partner in the process and helped us to a successful outcome.”
Above: Director Jeremy Nachbar
