Alone Up There documentary

Remember back in September when we had filmmaker Sean Patrick Shaul on What's So Funny? It was just prior to the big premiere of his stand-up doc Alone Up There. As you heard on the show, the feature-length film is available online for a very reasonable 7 bucks. I watched it and it's really good. And I'm not just saying that because I was in it for probably upwards of 7 seconds. That's right, think of it as paying a buck a second to see me pontificate and all the big names in the movie are free! Names like Marc Maron, Eddie Pepitone, the Sklar Brothers, Iliza Shlesinger, Bobby Slayton, Brody Stevens and Moshe Kasher, along with a healthy sampling of local comics, like Simon King, Toby Hargraves, Darryl Lenox and fellow Canadians Mike MacDonald, Jeremy Hotz and Darren Frost.

There's a nice introductory section on the history of comedy with some great clips, followed by a large chunk on contemporary comics ruminating on what it takes to be a comedian, and a segment on Shaul himself attempting his first (and last) stand-up set. In Los Angeles, yet.

As a way for Sean to get the word out even more (it's already received some positive reviews), he's come up with a cool incentive for everyone interviewed in the film. We each have the potential to earn $1 on a given sale if the buyer includes our name in the coupon section.

I feel guilty even mentioning this for my brief appearance, but what the hell: a buck's a buck. I think the film is worth seeing anyway, even if you don't use my name when purchasing it. But if you want to, here's how you put a dollar in my pocket:

• Go to aloneupthere.thestandupcomedians.com and click on "Buy the show"
• When you get to the checkout screen, click on "I have a coupon".
• Enter "macpherson" (all lower-case letters)

Easy-peasy. Seven bucks for a movie about comedy and watch it from the comfort of your home in your underwear? And you give me a dollar in the process? It's a no-brainer. I'll buy you a coffee next time I see you.

Podcast episode 290ish: Sean Patrick Shaul

In comedy, timing is everything. I sure hope it isn't for podcasts. Here's the deal: We had film maker Sean Patrick Shaul on a week and a half before the premiere of his comedy documentary Alone Up There. The podcast really should have come out last Sunday but whatcha gonna do? The premiere was on Thursday. But fear not, it's also available as a digital download for a mere $7.00. That's 86 minutes worth of entertainment for a lousy seven beans! (You can download it here.) Besides featuring me for a good ten seconds, the film also talks to the likes of Marc Maron, Mark Breslin, Eddie Pepitone, Mike MacDonald, Iliza Shlesinger (next week's guest on What's So Funny?, by the way), Jeremy Hotz and lots, lots more. Plus, there's some great archival footage. (Yes, I already watched it on my very own computer. Easy-peasy).

Anyway, in this episode, Sean talks about documentaries, punk rock, stage fright and reveals the name of one very famous comic who rudely refused to be in the film. I won't spoil it for you but it rhymes with Fatten Laws Fault.

Enjoy the episode here and now or go download it on iTunes or wherever it is you download podcasts from. Ask for us by name.

Sept. 9: Sean Patrick Shaul

Tonight, on our very last show at 102.7 FM (the station moves down the dial to 100.5 tomorrow at 1 pm), we welcome filmmaker Sean Patrick Shaul. Sean just completed a documentary on stand-up comedy called Alone Up There, which will debut at the Rio Theatre as part of the Olio Festival on Thursday, Sept. 20. And it'll also be available as a digital download for $6.99, too.

The film, as I understand it, centres around Sean interviewing comedians about what to expect when he does his first set, considering he has quite the fear of getting up in public and speaking to people (hopefully that doesn't apply to radio). The list of comics he spoke to is quite impressive: Marc Maron, the Sklar Bros., Iliza Shlesinger, Bobby Slayton, Eddie Pepitone, Brody Stevens and lots more. And he included lots of locals, too, including Matt Billon, Roman Danylo, Simon King and Darryl Lenox, among others.

I'm looking forward to seeing it. And tonight we'll get some behind-the-scenes scoops, I'm sure. At least I'll be digging.

So tune in at 11pm PDT to CFRO 102.7 FM or livestream it at coopradio.org. Meanwhile, take a look at the trailer: