We're lazy students sitting on our arses. Maybe we should get off them this week and write that comedy....

[Shoulders?-Stomach!]

http://www.cookdandbombd.co.uk/forums/index.php?topic=10860&start=0

http://www.cookdandbombd.co.uk/forums/index.php?topic=9332&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=220

Following on from conversations in Comedy Chat that all started from TotalNightmare's comments:

Sometimes, i really wish we here at CAB would put our money were our mouth is and put together some kind of comedy product.

Not because i think we would learn a valuable lession and the all feel that it really IS hard to make comedy work successfully, but merely because i think we all know what it lacking in comedy these days and it would be great to put together something that wanks all over the shit like TittyBangBang.

and a while later I suggested:

Do a comedy show about a forum meet

The idea started off as a bit of a knock-around, putting forward funny ideas and scenarios and as you can see, as the pages rolled on it became more and more of a serious suggestion. After todays discussion in the 'Writing comedy for BBC' topic it was clear that we needed to keep the ball rolling because over the past couple of weeks the ideas has been hanging in the air and nothing has been done with it. So this thread is about bringing the ideas and the people we need together to start writing for this comedy:

So far TotalNightmare is keen on doing the script editing. He'll be in charge of honing ideas into workable scripts. I'm very keen to write some material and so far Marv Orange and ffogems have expressed an interest. Bear in mind that it is very early days, and we're welcoming anyone who is impressed by the idea and thinks they can contribute to it. This is a serious project and we're looking to build a team of 5 or 6 writers to develop the majority of the script.

Well what is the show? - Well this is what we have so far:

The idea for the show is to write a conventional 6, 30 minute episodes for Radio. It is set around a fictional internet forum. We know this can provide the setting for hilarity, because we go to one everyday. The humour is not going to come mainly from in-jokes about "l33t sp3@k" or "lol1111" and people talking in text-slang but from the dynamic of the forum members and their interaction. It's essentially not a new style of comedy but it's in a 21st century setting. It's clear from using forums that people feel freer to express themselves and not shy away from the kind of brash comments that would be socially unacceptable in face-to-face conversations and that can provide a great platform for humour. The series is going to culminate with a Forum Meet which will be brilliant as we can see the tranformation of characters from their forum persona to their real-life personalities, and develop friendships they never thought possible from speaking online. Each character will 'speak' their posts, if you know what I mean.

What do we still need to finalise before we can start writing?

There are still options we haven't decided on:

-Whether the show will be based around a main character, and if it is, whether they will do the narration for the show

-Whether each episode should concentrate on one forum topic or whether one episode should be a funny synopsis of the days events being reminisced by the main character

-The title for the show

-We need to develop the main character and also we need to come up with ideas for different characters- some of who will be 'regulars' and other one-off posters who will provide an element of the unexpected.

-The contents of each episode. We will use this thread to develop both the main story and outlines for each episode. This will give the writers a framework to write and focus ideas in.

-We haven't decided on our writing team yet. The people mentioned at the top have expressed an interest but we'll need to make sure everybody is ready to go. We'll have a Script Editor who will be in overall charge of the script, and editing all the ideas and lines into six ready-to-air episodes, and 4 or 5 people who will be developing ideas to use in each episode

-We haven't decided whether each episode will be written one at a time, though I'd imagine that's probable.

______________

This thread will be used to help finalise these ideas so we're in a position to start writing. If you like the sound of this and think you can commit to writing this in the near future then please let us know. Obvious there will be a small team in the end, but part of this is that at this stage ideas from everyone are welcome, and also when we start writing we will use this thread to collate and organise our work. Contributions will be welcome then too, I expect.

Once we're under way we will be writing as a team so the chance to get involved will be slimmer but we'll keep you updated on how things are going, and we'll obviously let you know when we're about to go off and start writing.

Thanks.

[Ja'moke]

I really like the idea and you can definately create up some original and hilarious scenarios with that idea. I'd really like to be involved in some way shape or form. Also about having a main character, I'm not quite sure about that, I think as its a forum they should be a few main characters that always appear and then the odd appearance from other characters, but I suppose you could have the main character as like the forum moderator if you did want a main character.

[ffogems]

Nice summary, Shoulders. I think the 'style', or rather, the injunctions, need to be established first before other details like 'main character' or 'narrator' can be decided.
I'd quite like a narrator, as Ja'moke said, who moderated the forum but never interacted with the others, acting as a sort of Stephen Fry Hitchhikers voice, explaining esoteric terms and conventions. I think that any comedy set in an internet forum is going to have limited appeal unless there is some guidance. Whether or not a Stephen Fry Voice would be neccessary, is, again, dependent on content and whether the inclusion of something like that would be appropriate.

[hansen mork]

Title suggestion - The messagebored. Teeheehhee

[Ja'moke]

When I first started reading about the Forum idea, I thought it would be like looking at different people sat at their computer screens and the way they acted? Is that right

[Shoulders?-Stomach!]

Thanks for that hansen. ;-)

I agree, I do think having a narrator is the right way to go. There are the two options mentioned:

-We could have as you say a narration from an impartial outsider, or a forum moderator presiding over events.

Or

-We could make the narrator a particpant on the forum and write his account of the day on the forum.

I personally tend to swing towards the latter if we're to end the series with a forum meet up because then the narrator would be part of the group. I'm not sure how you could narrate the meet up if the narrator was an outsider.

[ffogems]

He could be have been there the whole time, but was being ignored, or was sat at another table watching them.
I like the idea that he is an enigma, and even when the members have a chance to finally interact with him they don't realise he's there.
Neil for example could be going to all your meets and sitting at the other end of the pub.

This would also make for a nice twist at the end.

[Sexton Brackets Drugbust]

Nice summary, Shoulders. I think the 'style', or rather, the injunctions, need to be established first before other details like 'main character' or 'narrator' can be decided.
I'd quite like a narrator, as Ja'moke said, who moderated the forum but never interacted with the others, acting as a sort of Stephen Fry Hitchhikers voice, explaining esoteric terms and conventions. I think that any comedy set in an internet forum is going to have limited appeal unless there is some guidance. Whether or not a Stephen Fry Voice would be neccessary, is, again, dependent on content and whether the inclusion of something like that would be appropriate.

I think that a strong character to act as an anchorage point is a sensible idea.  Obviously there will be a number of different characters, but a clear "narrator" would help the audience through what might otherwise seem like random voices.

Also, has the type of messageboard been decided on yet?  Is it specific to a particular area, or is it generic?

Cheers!

[Shoulders?-Stomach!]

When I first started reading about the Forum idea, I thought it would be like looking at different people sat at their computer screens and the way they acted? Is that right

It is along those lines.

It's a script for radio so of course you won't see the different members sat in their homes but they will read out their own posts, so you can distinguish between them. As the series goes on the audience will be able to tell which member is speaking just on the sound of their voice, like a radio play.

[Shoulders?-Stomach!]

Ah yes: Thanks for reminding me Sexton:

-We need to decide what type of forum they will be on.

__

I think we should choose a forum that is about something in particular but over time has just become a place for discussion about anything. The forum should have a couple of folders too. We also need a place which accomodates different type of people. Reflecting the male bias on internet forum, and the general age of people and their cultural interests.

I'm not sure what the forums original angle could be- what it was originally created for discussion about but once again- any suggestions welcome.

[Ja'moke]

It's a script for radio so of course you won't see the different members sat in their homes but they will read out their own posts, so you can distinguish between them. As the series goes on the audience will be able to tell which member is speaking just on the sound of their voice, like a radio play.

Ahh yeah my bad mate, I forgot it was for radio.

[Lookalike Mark Chapman]

I would be well up for some involvement in whatever capacity required.

I think it will be hard to make an audio comedy recounting what people have typed. Presumably, the characters would be reading out their posts on the forum. Would we hear their thought processes as well?

What would the forum be there for? How would the index work? - I think the narrator idea seems to be most sensible. Would the format be one person in front of their computer, reading and occassionally posting on the forum, or would the setting change?

PLUS - does enough happen on an internet forum to provide 3 hours of comedy material? I'm just concerned that it might be a bit Sunday Format / Broken News, which would obviously be shit.

But please, put me down for some helping role, even writing if you get really desperate.

[Marv Orange]

First thoughts,

Leave the title until the end, its the least important issue.

Personally I  would concentrate mainly on the first episode as it will be the hardest to do, plus if it is not picked up writing 5 other episodes would be a waste of time. Having said that themes, gags, ideas for other episodes should be noted somewhere.

Maybe the way we can introduce the concept is a noob joins a forum. And maybe we can uses this as a way to introduce the other users of the forum. One problem I can think of is how to asscioate each user name to the voice acting it as we will need to do this if they meet in real life at the end.. Will be <SOANDSO> replied....

Overall I think this is a complicated concept, but it is original, and if we can crack the way of getting the feeling of a forum across, (the casual abuse, the odd agreements and the winding up of people, to name a few) it could be cool.

Feel free to shoot any of these ideas down. These are my first ideas and i can feel my brain getting confused try to think of so many ideas at once

NOTE: I will be steealing any good ideas and using them in my own project, and re-ordering the words so no one can sue me.

[lankinpark]

Personally, I think it sounds more like a one-off (comic Aternoon Play?) than an actual series. The actual narrative drive would mean completely transposing the action to an entirely new setting and transforming all of the characters to varying degrees.

I like the basis of it, that all these people "know" each other via an internet forum. I like the idea of a comedy about people posting to a forum, and I like the idea of a comedy about a forum meet. But I don't think the two would work as one series if the storytelling was linear.

I reckon the best way to combine both would be to start at the meet, and have little flashbacks to forum threads as we go along, to explain the interaction between characters. Each episode could concern a different character going through something of an arc, with everyone else playing support.

Then either have the next one follow chronologically, or have them all take place simultaneously with various points of crossover, and each episode revealing a different angle on each crossover point. Possibly five episodes in that vein building to a crescendo of a sixth, like LoG series 3.

Either that or stick to the forum posting setup, with each week following a  different theme/thread.

Both of those ideas lend themselves to group writing, with plenty of opportunity for cutaways and mini-sketches away from the main action.

[Ja'moke]

It's an obvious idea but somebody getting banned from the forum as got to happen lol.

[Marv Orange]

Going back the to narrator idea, he/she could imagine the posters voices.

[Shoulders?-Stomach!]

Would we hear their thought processes as well?

That is something I really want to incorporate, yes. It will have to be done carefully so it can be distinguished.

-If the narrator is the main character, then you could have his thought processes quite easily, but the thoughts of others not so easily.

-If the narrator is Stephen Fry-style then you could hear the thoughts of everyone, as he could introduce them.

We need to decide whether the episode will be the days events on the forum or just one topic. I prefer the idea of the former because you could have arguments that follow on from each other and jump from topic to topic which sounds really fun.

I'd like to assure everyone that it won't be in te least bit like Broken News. Each episode will be a continuation of events leading to the meet. Certain relationships will develop on the forum, there will be fallings out. It's quite a standard comedy premise despite the internet setting.

Thanks, your contributions are really welcome.

[ffogems]

Quoting myself as it will get lost otherwise.

(about  moderator idea)He could be have been there the whole time, but was being ignored, or was sat at another table watching them.
I like the idea that he is an enigma, and even when the members have a chance to finally interact with him they don't realise he's there.
Neil for example could be going to all your meets and sitting at the other end of the pub.

This would also make for a nice twist at the end.

I think each ep following main characters both on and off the net would work, with a narrator explaining everything, regardless of whether he'd plausibly be able to see them doing it.
There'd be room for sketches with recurring secondary characters. And yes, I agree, Shoulders - covering the day's events and what compels people to post in certain topics is better than just one thread.

I think a lot more could be achieved in a shorter time if a chatroom discussion took place at some point.

[Sexton Brackets Drugbust]

Well essentially, it boils down to a variation on people sat in a room talking, only without the social conduct that applies physical meetings.

I like the idea that the stories can be told out of chronological order, as this will make things even more interesting.

Noob idea could work, but it might be a bit overwhelming for listeners to enter a world full of pre-existing characters with fully formed relationships.

[Marv Orange]

Btw i dont mind discussing ideas here, but actuall skits, jokes i think we should keep out of the public domain.

[Shoulders?-Stomach!]

Leave the title until the end, its the least important issue.

Yep, my thoughts too.

It's an obvious idea but somebody getting banned from the forum as got to happen

Yes, I can pretty much guarantee to everyone that'll happen.

But I don't think the two would work as one series if the storytelling was linear.

Here's where I think the benefits of a main character would come in. He could go to bed at the end of the day, and you could end the program with a line like "He'd out argued me for two-hours solid, so I was quite happy end the day by telling him to 'fuck off.'" *Cue music credits etc*

I do want to focus on a central narrative myself because I think it'll be the most coherent way to do it for radio. Plus ending with a meet when the other episode have been set on a forum is a really bold thing to do and I'm sure it can work, because it's not only the culmination of the story, it's transposing the group dynamic from the internet forum to real life. I can understand your comments though- it would need to be very carefully managed.

Some really encouraging responses so far, I'm glad it's captured some imaginations!

[Shoulders?-Stomach!]

I think a lot more could be achieved in a shorter time if a chatroom discussion took place at some point.

You've pretty much beat me to it. I've already thought about it and I'll be hoping to arrange most of the people who are interested for a chat early next week. I'll keep you all posted, naturally.

[Lookalike Mark Chapman]

There would have to be an ongoing discussion about the meet for a start, maybe a continuing thread that crops up in all episodes.

Maybe the narrator could read out the poster's names before they say anything, and all the quirky internet things, like 'colon dash bracket' and 'italics.'

Maybe that's a shit idea.

[Marv Orange]

Noob idea could work, but it might be a bit overwhelming for listeners to enter a world full of pre-existing characters with fully formed relationships.

The reason for this is that the audience would also be the noob well, people rarely introduce themselves to each other on a forum. But a noob would post a Hiya Thread or something then the other characters would reply with a line or 2, that would immeadatley give the audience an impression what each user is like.

And for some reason i see the main character as a woman.

The nosies in my head about this are somethin like:-

<Sound of Keyboard being used>

<female voice> Hi bla bla bla

<Sound of Keyboard being used>

<male voice> bla bla bla

I know that this will give a chat room feel, but do we really want to wait 4 hours between each line of dialouge?

[Shoulders?-Stomach!]

Noob idea could work, but it might be a bit overwhelming for listeners to enter a world full of pre-existing characters with fully formed relationships

Yes, the introduction of the character has to be carefully done. In episode one you could have the narrator giving an aside to the audience telling us about who he is. There is a lot of time for each episode though, and i think we can establish the characters personalities in that time. I'd really hope so anyway! We'll make sure it's phased in nicely, anyway.

Re- the sinister "does Neil watch us all at meets" idea, that's very DARK!1111, etc. But I do like the idea.

[Shoulders?-Stomach!]

Maybe the narrator could read out the poster's names before they say anything, and all the quirky internet things, like 'colon dash bracket' and 'italics

Probably not but you could easily work that idea into a gag. Either the main guy mis-reading what someone has posted or at the start he pedantically reads out all the dashes and colons and then says "Actually sorry, I'll stop that. that's not working."

[ffogems]

It would be nice to have people experiencing something that they later transcribe to the forum, embellishing or concealing certain details about the event.
And the Stephen Fry narrator should really be a moderating deity, that way he can comment on everything. The members could also jokingly refer to him as a 'god'.
And I don't mean literally make him a god, but have his access to the members' lives dubiously (or even implausibly) extensive, almost as if he is moderating their lives. Sort of. Not really.

[Shoulders?-Stomach!]

I know that this will give a chat room feel, but do we really want to wait 4 hours between each line of dialouge?

That wouldn't be an issue I don't think. A main character could say "I'd just gone to the loo and come back upstairs when he replied.."

[Robot DeNiro]

I'd be interested in helping out with the editing, if TotalNightmare wanted someone to assist with putting it all together.  I have some experience in script writing, and organising the structure of a piece is probably one of my stronger points.  I'm happy to read over any scenes, plot / character outlines etc that you might want to send me.

With regards the main character issue, it seems to me that it would work better if it was more of an ensemble piece.  Perhaps 'The Smoking Room' is a good model - it's a conversation heavy show, with a cast of well rounded characters who are given fairly equal weight.  

I also think that using the conventions of a messageboard - quotes, links to other threads, private messages etc - is the main selling point of the show, and you should not water it down by including a narration or any elements that are not typed onto the board.  

Once the style of the show has been finalised, the next step should be to decide on the characters - their outlook on life, how they relate to each other, and what sort of jokes they provide.  This can be done through character studies and little pieces of dialogue that explore the dynamics between two or more forum members.

Each character should suggest certain stories - the plots should arise naturally from your characters' personalities, relationships and aspirations.  CHaracters first, plots second.

Sorry if I've just patronised you by stating the obvious.  Good luck.

[Shoulders?-Stomach!]

It would be nice to have people experiencing something that they later transcribe to the forum, embellishing or concealing certain details about the event.
And the Stephen Fry narrator should really be a moderating deity, that way he can comment on everything. The members could also jokingly refer to him as a 'god'.
And I don't mean literally make him a god, but have his access to the members' lives dubiously (or even implausibly) extensive, almost as if he is moderating their lives. Sort of. Not really.

How about this? I've just had a great idea!
Each episode is narrated by a different person, all regulars on the forum. That way we could have an episode with the moderator which is a one-off. It won't get boring but it can be a particular highligh, in addition to the meet episode!

That we we could still have the layered narrative but bring it on a whole new level. And then by the end we've got these well rounded characters in our heads.