Big laughs, Small comedy

Comedy is a fickle thing. One man’s ‘My Family’ is another man’s ‘Brass Eye’, one man’s ‘Keenan and Kel’ is another man’s ‘Hale and Pace’, one man’s Barry Chuckle is another’s Paul. So pity the poor judges of this year’s Paramount Comedy Shorts, who, after sifting through the copious entries for this years awards, had to choose the single short film which redefined the word ‘funny’. The results were in, The Reel was there, the shortlisted entrants were nervous, the results were mirthful.


To give a bit of background, The Comedy Smalls brings emerging comedy writers, directors and performers together with industry executives, providing a unique opportunity for the winner to get an original idea commissioned by Paramount Comedy. Entrants for this year’s competition had to make pieces reflecting the theme of work, and the shortlisted pieces were certainly varied! Speaking of the entrant, Creative Review Senior Writer and judge Eliza Williams had this to say - “Entries this year’s Comedy Smalls were as varied as ever, and showed that you don’t need to have a big budget to make a funny short film.”


Big winner on the night was ‘Matt, Ben and Buscemi’ by Dundee directors Liam Johnston and Stuart Hamilton. Presented the award by top-notch funnyman Stephen K Amos (who entertained the crowds with a lovely bit of Geordie baiting towards The Reel’s own Chris Wall), the pair are now offered a chance to have original content commissioned by Paramount Comedy.

Of the other shortlisted pieces, The Reel’s personal fave was the text-tacular ‘Speechless’ from James Cooper. Concerning the lovelife of a couple of mobile-heads, the piece certainly got some big laughs from the receptive audience. To check out this film, alongside the other shortlisted entries, head on over to the official website – www.thesmalls.com.

Oh, and in case you were wondering, comedy may be fickle but there’s one thing all can agree on, this is the best joke in the world:

Q – What kind of bees make milk?
A – Boo-bees!!