Bella Rossa: Adventures in Comedy

Ever Mainard - "Here's Your Rape" at Chicago Underground Comedy last night

2012-02-01T18:31:00.002-06:00

Last night's ChUC was an incredible show, maybe one of the best we've ever had. Our beloved castmember Ever Mainard got up there, full of jangly nerves and jittery brilliance, and blew all of our minds. If you ever wondered if talented comedians can make any topic funny (even rape), the answer is yes. If they're @evermainard. And in general, I was extra proud of my show last night. The lineup was Ever, Jeff Hansen, Mike Stanley, Nate Simmons, and special guests Chaya Carey, Rhea Butcher. Truly an unrepeatable evening with a hugely supportive crowd and killer performances. BRILLIANT. This is the reward for all the anxiety and stress. This is why we do it.

Dana Scully headshot tests

2012-01-31T12:54:00.001-06:00

Headshot technique tests. As usual, Special Agent Dana Scully is my most patient model. And Bryan (middle pic) is my favorite backdrop.

New ChUC promo video clip

2012-01-30T21:54:00.000-06:00

Today I made a new video promo header for Chicago Underground Comedy. I'm particularly proud of how the purple goo flows OVER the "$5" at the end. Layers, baby, layers!

My first rap video: "Simpleton" by Seth Williams and Andy Metz

2012-01-25T08:38:00.002-06:00

Directed and edited by me! Shot in my neighborhood, on my old camera (I hate to think how good this would look shot on my new Canon). Love this song, love these boys.

Adam Burke Unlimited: 2-28-12 at Chicago Underground Comedy

2012-01-22T09:37:00.009-06:00

Hey there, what's up? Well, among other things, I've been teaching myself graphic design, using my archive of comedy performance photography as a handy background for stuff like this promo poster I just put together for Chicago Underground Comedy's special Adam Burke Unlimited show, February 28 at the Beat Kitchen.

The show will be free, and incredible (as the Unlimited shows tend to be), so if you're in Chicago, you should make plans to join us. It's sure to be a hell of a lot of fun.

My new video: University of Illinois at Chicago East Campus architecture

2011-12-30T14:14:00.003-06:00

Ever wanted to know how architect Walter Netsch employed the hallmarks of Brutalism to shape the East Campus of the University of Illinois Chicago? This video will enlighten you.

My new video: "Hammer" by Gypsy Modeling School for Second City's 7 Day Shorts

2011-12-24T07:22:00.004-06:00

My friends and I in the group Gypsy Modeling School (Thea Lux, Keith Ecker, Kristen Studard and Bryan Bowden) made this two minute comedy short for Second City's 7 Day Shorts program. Our suggestion was "hammer" and we decided to go with the concept of competing personal injury attorneys who have some, shall we say, unresolved romantic issues between them. This one stars Thea and Keith (with a little bit of Bryan at the very end). We wrote it together, shot this on a green screen in my apartment and I did the editing and music in about two days. I think it's pretty funny. Look for our next video in about a month!

Finished the New Chicago Underground Comedy Highlight Reel!

2011-10-10T08:56:00.002-05:00

Featuring the fabtabulous Cameron Esposito, Joe Fernandez, Puterbaugh Sisterz, Ever Mainard, Nathan Simmons, Candy Lawrence, Chad Briggs, Dan Telfer, Paul Thomas, Adam Burke, Sean Flannery, James Fritz, C.j. Sullivan, Dan Polydoris, Mike Ferbrache, Duane Freeman, Jeff Hansen, and Mike Stanley!

Video, music, and editing wizardry by me. (Yeah, so if you're in the market for a funky, Motown-y personal theme song, I'm the girl who can write it for you.)

Chicago Underground Comedy is only $5, produced by Dan Telfer and Elizabeth McQuern every Tuesday at the Beat Kitchen, 2100 W. Belmont.

Come see us!

My Favorite Headshots

2011-10-08T17:52:00.002-05:00

Not a long post, just wanted to share this slideshow I just edited together of some of my favorite headshots I've done. I've been trying new locations and new techniques and have been having a lot of fun creating people's favorite pictures of themselves.

Featuring Mike Wiley, Seth Williams, Jenni Prokopy, Lane Pieschel, Mikey Manker, Andy Metz, Meaghan Strickland, Elena Rubin, Bryan Bowden, and Mike Leibovitz. All shot here in Chicago, all with my decidedly un-fancy $100 Canon camera.

(Live in Chicago? Want some pics of your own? Email me. I'm not expensive and I'm fun to work with.)

My new short comedy film - Beth Stelling: Urban Bicycling While Female

2011-02-28T11:06:00.001-06:00

Ah, the vagaries of urban bicycling while female! At least the horror stories are good for a laugh later. Beth Stelling and Chad Briggs are hilarious. Special thanks to Kristy Mangel, Andrea Wallace and Whack Publications (Michelle Peterson) for shooting yesterday. Video, music, and editing by me for Chicago Underground Comedy.

P.S. Come to our free Just For Laughs audition showcase tomorrow night at 9:30 at the Beat Kitchen, 2100 W. Belmont. Didja hear me, cheapskates? FREE!

How to Make Music Videos - My Adventures with Camp Jam

2011-02-10T11:47:00.003-06:00

Last summer, thanks to an introduction by my friend Mike Tutaj, I was a traveling music video director and camp counselor for Camp Jam, rock and roll camp for kids aged 7-17. (Yes, it's every bit as awesome as it sounds.) I was flown between both coasts all over the country one week at a time, videocamera and MacBook in tow.

By the end of the summer I ended up making somewhere around 30 music videos, a brief highlight reel of which is below. The kids were put into groups, chose an existing song they liked, then were responsible for storyboarding and coming up with ideas for b-roll shots stuff to splice in with performance footage.

We told them the only major song requirement was that they all really like the song, and the singer needed to have at least some of the lyrics memorized. (In the few instances where the group hadn't mutually agreed on a song, and say, the bass player hated it, it was painfully obvious when it came to shoot time.)

In the best cases, the first music video meeting was early enough in the week that everyone was able to get a copy of their song on their iPod and give it multiple listens it before shooting. For the most part, the instrumentalists did a pretty good job of syncing along with the track, and in the parts where they didn't, I used slow-mo or other effects to mask that. And for the few groups who didn't totally follow directions and presented me with singers who didn't know all the lyrics, I either shot them in shadow, showed them the ol' "hand obscuring the mouth" trick, or otherwise shot and edited around that.

Then each group had about 10 minutes to lip-sync (and drum-sync, guitar-sync, bass-sync, and keyboard-sync) to each song onstage as I circled the performers, filming their best rock star poses and yelling encouragement from behind the camera. Their only instructions for the performance shoot were "Go bananas, move a lot, and have fun!" I told them the move over-the-top their performances were, the better.

The only thing we wouldn't let them do was stand in one place, stay still, and look bored. Sometimes it was tough to keep the energy up, because we were shooting late into the night, in sweltering Atlanta or San Francisco heat, but Camp Jam has a knack for hiring awesome counselors, all of whom deserve a high-five for helping with the music video process.

The kids' song choices were varied - everything from Lady Gaga to vintage Janis Joplin to heavy metal to the Pokemon theme song (seriously...and it was one of the best!).

Ever wonder what it takes to shoot and edit a music video? Here are a few tricks I learned this summer. First, when we shot the live lip-syncing performance stuff, I started the video camera a few seconds before the guy in the sound booth started the mp3. (Ideally, you'd shoot performance stuff as many times as you can, to give you more footage to work with. We usually only had enough time to go through each song twice.)

After you download your footage and drop it into whatever editing program you use (I'm a Final Cut Pro devotee, myself), put each clip on its own track, then one by one, sync up the footage with the mp3 that will serve as audio. I would usually pick a particular beat or lyric on the original mp3 to create a point for splitting the track, then I'd find the exact same spot on the video track and do the same thing.

With some of the videos I was so pinched, schedule-wise, there wasn't a lot of time to slowly review all the footage and digest, so, in the trickiest cases, I would simply start at the beginning of the sequence, literally close my eyes, listen to the song, and cut on the beat, all the way down all the performance tracks. (My boyfriend would watch me doing this and say I looked like Stevie Wonder, feeling the music and tapping on the keyboard like I was in a creative trance.)

Then I'd go back and delete (in each tiny section) all but one clip, so the visuals would cut back and forth between different takes, in time with the music. I'd double check each clip to make sure I didn't leave in the occasionally unusable clip (where I was walking between musicians and just got shots of wires on the ground, or, sometimes, I'd trip on something because I was so tuned into the kids I couldn't really watch where I was going). Then, each track would get its own filter, so each shot had a slightly different visual style. I used a lot of cool coloring tricks, filters that made little stars appear in areas of condensed light - basically anything I thought would look cool rock star-like.

Then on top of that I'd layer whatever b-roll we'd shot. In some cases, the b-roll was the kids acting out some of the lyrics, or complex storylines, so it required careful, tight editing, and other times we were short on time or short on ideas, and I just had the kids run around outside playing frisbee or otherwise goofing off.

The most important thing to me was making the kids happy with the final product, so I adhered to their vision as much as possible. In the end they were all pretty pleased with the results. I got tons of positive response via Facebook and email, and my fridge is the proud display of some really sweet thank-you notes I received in the mail.

I think what helped me most was the fact that I love music as much as the kids, and that I made a point to really listen to them and help them develop their ideas. I'm pretty sensitive to kids' self-image, and was acutely aware when anyone had a particular concern or something they were self-conscious about. "I will make you look awesome," is what I told them, and it was funny reviewing some of the raw footage and hearing the stuff I was yelling to the kids from behind the camera. "You are such a rock star right now! Gimme more attitude! Go crazy!" (Then I'd trip on something, and everyone would laugh.)

So while I still feel like I'm catching up on my sleep, I had a really wonderful experience with Camp Jam. I got to travel all over the country, make new friends, be creative, and meet some really lovely kids. Among them were some truly talented musicians, and a handful of genuine prodigies. I expect to see some of them make their mark on the music world in a few years, and when they do, I'll be very proud to say I directed them in their very first music video.

My short comedy films screened at Chicago Underground Comedy

2010-11-06T11:47:00.002-05:00

Last Tuesday, for the first time in three years, I took my slot at Chicago Underground Comedy and showed four of my (very) short comedy films, about ten minutes total. The audience laughed all the way through and it was really gratifying. Lo and behold and local comedy blogger was there and put up this nice recap of the show. Apparently my stuff is "crack up funny," which makes me very happy.

Come see me again next time (probably the first Tuesday of each month is when I'll go up) when I'll screen four new ones! Which means, oh yeah, gotta get off my lazy butt and make some new art.

In the meantime, here's what I showed the ChUC crowd last week, in the order I played them in. Comments and feedback are very welcome.

Why I put 18 songs into Creative Commons, and why you should also share

2010-10-28T21:30:00.005-05:00

I started writing music about three years ago, mostly so I'd have cool music to use with video projects without having any copyright hassles. Before long I fell madly, obsessively in love with it, and when my old Mac recently died and I got my new one, I thought I'd take that externally-imposed milestone (and major bummer) and use it as an opportunity to review my compositions from the last three years, and choose some to retire/share with the world at large.

As of this blog post, I am endowing the following 18 songs (also found here) with a Creative Commons license, which means anyone can use my music in their own creative project, as long as they properly attribute the music to me (more info here). If you wanted to use one of my songs in a video clip of yours, you would put a credit reading "music by Elizabeth McQuern" somewhere in the clip itself, as well as in the video info/credits for anywhere the video might go online (YouTube, Vimeo, etc.). I'd also appreciate an email whenever someone uses my music - naturally, I'd be interested in seeing how others used my stuff.

Why? Why would I give away my music to just anyone at no charge?

Well, why not? I believe in sharing. I have grown up, creatively speaking, online, and have benefited tremendously from shared creative resources, from public domain video clips to free music loops to instructional YouTube clips and - yes - even old-fashioned human beings online who have helped me learn more about Final Cut Pro, Photoshop, songwriting, audio editing, you name it. Why not give back?

Think of these songs as my senior portfolio or something, my preliminary exercises while still learning. Some songs were too personal to share, some were for specific occasions, and lots of what I'd created was just initial phrases and half-finished bits. But these 18 are interesting and cool and at least usable snippets, if not complete songs (no vocals, just instruments), and I just thought it would be cool to see what happened if I put them out there, online, for anyone to use.

Some of the titles are a little weird - with the composition program I use, you name the song before you write it, and although you can easily rename the final file once the song is complete, with these I just never went back and changed them. While I started writing some of these songs with a specific use in mind, some just started out as audio doodles, so I picked random/meaningless titles without knowing exactly what these songs would turn out to be. Anyway, here they are, listed in chronological order. Download away!

#1. You'll Never See it Coming - 4/25/08 - Used in lots of Chicago Underground Comedy clips, as intro/outro music.

#2. Bright Lights Little Bitty - 4/25/08 - Used in lots of Chicago Underground Comedy clips, as intro/outro music.

#3. It's About Blue and Green - 4/30/08 - Used in lots of Chicago Underground Comedy clips, as intro/outro music.

#4. A Piffle and a Bit - 5/15/08 - Used in lots of Chicago Underground Comedy clips, as intro/outro music.

#5. Nibbles and Things - 5/22/08 - Used in lots of Chicago Underground Comedy clips, as intro/outro music.

#6. I Can Do Anything I Want - 5/28/08 - Used in lots of Chicago Underground Comedy clips, as intro/outro music. (Are we seeing a pattern here?)

#7. My Song - 8/8/08 This song title, I admit, is lame. "My Song" is literally the default title for any new song you create on GarageBand. But I like this little snippet (except for the German techno girl saying "blackout" at the end - I think it's annoying but I lost the original file so I can't easily go back in and cut that out). I like that it sounds like Batman taking K-Rock for a spin on Lower Wacker Drive, and she's giggling as they're listening to comedy podcasts and sipping Slurpees. I used this mostly for a series of clips that are no longer online, of stand-up sets of Dan Telfer, Bryan Bowden, and Andrew DeWitt at the Apollo Studio Theater.

#8. Glamorama Music - 8/28/08 - This was for a video project for the Chicago 2016 Olympic Committee, which never got used, but is still a charming clip I'm proud of. I took Chicago Underground Comedy stand-up Robert Buscemi to Glamorama, and, wow, did we have a blast.

#9. A Rainy Chicago Day in September 2008 - 9/13/08 I used this on a Chicago Metblog video post. (Wow. I really did used to blog a lot, and now I hardly do it at all.)

#10. Calpurnia and Flora - 9/20/08 - I totally forget what I wrote this for. Some video that's no longer online.

#11. Quasi-Bonded Metaphor - 9/26/08 - I wrote this for a fast-paced Chicago Underground Comedy highlight reel.

#12. Lesbian Prometheus - 10/30/08 This was written specifically for this short comedy film I did with Cameron Esposito, in which she played a gay (ex-) bride of Frankenstein. The song's title is unwieldy but it reminds me of Englebert Humperdinck's "Lesbian Seagull," which makes me think of Beavis and Butthead, which makes me laugh.

#13. Clear Claire - 4/5/09 I don't think I've used this yet for anything in particular but I used a lot of unexpected textures in it and it makes me think of white witches and sparkly magical things. I was watching a lot of Six Feet Under at the time, and I love the character Claire Fisher. I was also thinking a lot about two friends of mine as I wrote this, Allison Leber and Nellie Huggins, and they're also very sparkly and magical.

#14. Receptive - 4/8/09 - Also written for a Chicago Underground Comedy highlight reel. I purposely titled this one, because at the time I was reading about how important it is to be receptive when writing music, and worry less about "making" something. Danny Elfman said composing music is like "letting yourself fall apart and come together in whatever form you need to be in" (or something like that) and it really made sense to me, even though I can't remember (or successfully Google) the exact quote.

#15. Robot Mating Dance - 6/27/09 - I think this one has only been used for some clips of Robbie Telfer's Encyclopedia Show. (I just noticed one of my photos is on their website! Cool.) It's probably the first time I wrote a complete, fully-structured song. At least, that's what I usually think when I listen to it now. I really liked the plaintive quality of the folk instrument being used in the song, a Russian stringed instrument called a balalaika. And the "Robot" part of the title is because I was watching Futurama at the time, and I love that gag about "primitive robots" (working on a 20th century automobile assembly line, dressed like cavemen and hitting metal with sticks).

#16. Chipper - 6/27/09 - This was written for this two-minute birthday bike ride clip of Chicago I made last year. That makes it sound boring, but I think both the song and the video are really pretty. I shot the bikes-eye view stuff with a mini-Gorilla pod, which is easy to wrap around my handlebars.

#17. Glitterbabies - 7/4/09 Used in these clips of the Sarcastic Squad at Berlin in Chicago, on Outworld. Some of my favorite people ever are in these videos, and naturally it's always easier to write music for people you feel strongly about. It's funny how just thinking about people as I write brings their characteristics out in the music.

#18. Kennedy - 4/17/10 I wrote this music for a very short video I did of woodturner Tim Kennedy at the Kellar Mahaney Gallery in Zionsville, Indiana. I edited the video while writing the music, so they both developed side-by-side. I liked the slight dissonance in the melody of the triangle, and how it invokes a sort of innocent enthusiasm.

So there are my songs. Help yourselves, spread the word, and think about sharing your creative resources online, too.

How to shoot great low light performance photos (with a $100 camera)

2010-10-18T12:18:00.005-05:00

Well, it looks like my new blogging pattern is to pop in here every 3-4 months, when I feel like I have a unique insight or bit of information to share, because, hey, I've contributed enough to the noise of the internet, and I'd like to kick in with some signal here and there when I can.

Today I want to jot down a few thoughts about photography, to share a few tips I've learned, and maybe demystify the process a little for others who are thinking about doing similar things.

Over the last few years I've shot roughly a bajillion photos, mostly of people performing at comedy shows, literary readings, storytelling events, and other similar events. To date, dozens of my photos have been used in newspapers and magazines, promotional materials, and even movies. (Yeah, really!)

None of this is because I'm some brilliant photographer with a $2,000 camera and inside-out knowledge of technical things. I asked my friend Jenny, who does photography for a living, for some tips once, and she explained that good photography is a mix of three important factors, and I can never remember what they are. (Okay, I just Googled it, and those three things are ISO, aperture, and shutter speed.) Point is, I've managed to take lots of nice, useful photos because of the prudent use of two of my camera's features: the burst setting and the TV setting.

The burst setting simply means shooting lots of photos in rapid succession - one each few seconds. On my camera, the TV setting controls shutter speed, which is helpful when shooting in low-light situations. I bring the TV setting down as low as I can (to let in as much light as possible) without it being so low that the images are blurry.

Of course, shooting hundreds (or thousands) of photos of a single event means a much greater chance of taking lots of nice photos, but also a lot of editing. Again, I use the simplest thing most easily available to me - iPhoto. I use it to review and pare down the photos, and perform very basic lightness/darkness and/or color correction.

You need to get really instinctive and make quick decisions as you pore over your photos. I tend to work like this: round one of editing photos is clicking quickly through every single photo, one at a time, and deleting the ones that are fuzzy or blank or otherwise bad. Then the next round I pare it down further, deleting lesser-quality shots and redundant shots, with an eye toward ending up with 4-5 really good shots of each scene/frame. More than that is unnecessary, unless you're shooting something like headshots, when you'd like to give your subject as many nice shots to choose from as possible.

My camera is not brand-new, super fancy or expensive. It's a Canon PowerShot A590IS - 3+ years old, about $100. When I bought it, I immediately got such great results with both photos and video that three of my friends bought the same camera, and they all love it as much as I do.

The big theme I'd like to touch on here is that all you need to know about a particular tool (camera, editing software, box of paints, whatever you need to use to create your final product, whether it be a set of photos or a video or a vase) is whatever you need to do the specific thing you want to do.

I used to feel overwhelmed examining all the things my camera could do; all the settings, modes, levels, blah blah freaked me out, not to mention all the fancy things trained people can do with Photoshop. All I have on my Mac at the moment is iPhoto, but you know what? That's all I need. I'm not trying to become a formal portrait photographer, or a commercial photographer. I just want to take nice pictures at comedy shows in Chicago, so I figured out just enough to do exactly that.

Above all, don't let your inhibitions about learning a new skill stop you from proceeding. Do what you want to do, and have fun.

Five things I wish I'd known before I started comedy and filmmaking

2010-06-20T13:25:00.013-05:00

The very awesome Nate Baumgart invited me to be on the comedy filmmaking panel at his first annual Inside Joke: Chicago Comedy Symposium a few weeks back, and he prompted me to think about five things I wish I'd known before I started comedy and filmmaking. Here's what I came up with.

#1. The quality of your equipment matters very little. Don't wait until you can afford the perfect camera, the best editing software, classes or workshops. You probably already have what you need to get started and the most important thing is simply DOING this thing you want to do. If you have a computer, you have editing software. If you have a digital camera made in the last ten years, you (almost certainly) have video-shooting capability. Writing is writing and editing is editing, no matter how elaborate or simple your technical setup. (I shot the following short with a $100 digital camera, and I still think it's still one of the funniest things I've done so far.)

#2. It doesn't matter how much schooling\training\experience you have or don't have. Of all the filmmakers I know, two went to school to study filmmaking. The (many, many) others, who are also dazzlingly skilled and talented, are self-taught. There are a million tutorials on YouTube that can teach you anything you can't figure out on your own about iMovie, Final Cut, Photoshop, you name it. Libraries are bursting with books about film theory and editing, and a surprisingly large percentage of creative people on Twitter and elsewhere online are willing to help newbies with questions.

#3. Creativity is a group thing (even in the "solo arts" like stand-up comedy). Find (or make) your group and forge strong bonds. You need each other. The more you can keep yourself open to people and ideas and experiences, the better an artist you'll be, and - bonus - the happier a human being you'll be. Find each other, and stick together.

This can be tough for some people, but the rewards are rich for those willing to push themselves out of their comfort zones. I'm a lifelong introvert\quiet person who is most comfortable behind the camera and more than happy to shine the spotlight on those who bask in it. Making friends and being social was a little tough for me when I first moved to Chicago, after ten very quiet years as a dog-walker and housesitter, a job that had me interacting with animals more than people. I accommodated my social difficulties by entering the comedy world gradually in different capacities I felt comfortable in - as a writing student at Second City, then a blogger covering the Chicago comedy scene with The Bastion, briefly as a stand-up comic, and eventually a stand-up producer (at Chicago Underground Comedy, see clip below) and filmmaker.

#4. Stabilize yourself financially so you can be creative. It's hard to transcend daily existence enough to create art when you're scrambling to pay rent and feed yourself. Panic and stress do not soothe the muses. Hang on to that dull but bill-paying day job as long as you can. Definitely explore avenues of getting paid for what you love to do but be ready for some overlap.

If you live in Chicago, sell your car and ride your bike everywhere - you'll save money and be fitter and more energetic too. Shop at thrift stores and neighborhood grocery stores, cook for yourself, have roommates to help cut down on expenses, whatever it takes.

If you can keep your expenses low, you can probably get by with almost any kind of job, and, minding that, try to find something enjoyable and low stress. Work at a fun coffee shop. Be a nanny. (Seriously, parents, stand-ups are the best nannies ever. Imaginative, loving, and very playful. Hire them!) Find a day job that is minimally draining and doesn't hurt your soul every time you punch in.

#5. Do it. Do it, do it, do it. Don't talk about it, think about it, dream about it, and keep it locked up in your head. You don't know what it's really like until you DO IT. Are you scared? Do it anyway. Are you insecure? Join the club, buddy! If you weren't nervous about getting onstage/putting yourself out there, something would be wrong.

Don't sit in your hometown for ten years after college, wishing and hoping and dreaming (oops, was that a little too specific?). Get yourself together, boldly proclaim your desire to be a filmmaker\actor\musician\whatever, and DO IT.

You can stifle a desire like that for as long as you like, but #1 it's not going to go away, #2 the suppression of that desire will cause you a lot of pain and turmoil and #3 the world needs what you have to offer.

That last bit is very important but somewhat difficult for self-critical brainy types to absorb. It's key, so work on it. Realize that it's not selfish for you to want to develop and share your creativity, you actually have a contribution to make to the world with your gift, and your talents are needed. Truly, the selfish thing would be not sharing your gifts with the world.

At whatever level you can start, start doing the thing you want to do, and keep doing it. Volunteer to help with other people's projects, reach out for advice and support, watch people who are further along in your art do their thing. It takes time and just plain hard work, but don't be afraid. Plop yourself on an exercise ball and bounce around while you write/edit/whatever on your computer, make writing/creative dates with friends to work together, read a book about ADD management strategies - whatever it takes for you to develop the habits of a productive creative. DO IT. And keep doing it. You have no idea what opportunities might open up to you, but one thing is for sure - if you do nothing, nothing will happen.

Dan Telfer's dinosaurs and the rewards of a stand-up road warrior

2010-05-23T21:00:00.000-05:00

My Chicago Underground Comedy co-producer Dan Telfer has made a lot of headway in stand-up lately. Dan and I started out doing open mics together with our little posse of supportive pals a few short years ago, then we started producing ChUC together, and he's made incredible progress creatively and professionally since then.

Dan was recently featured in this cool feature story in The Onion, which explains how he's struggling with the "the eternal dilemma of Chicago comedians," which is "how far can I go in my comedy career before actually having to leave Chicago?" He's spent a lot of time on the road lately, doing stand-up gigs at clubs in Indiana, Minnesota, Iowa, Michigan, and elsewhere, as well as doing stuff like making appearances on the Bob and Tom Show.

(Even more impressively, he does all of this while being responsible for serious grownup things like a mortgage, a lovely wife, and a painfully cute kid - seriously, I've babysat for the kid. She'll crush you with her cuteness.)

Conventional wisdom - and road warrior comics like our castmember Mike Stanley - says that road work teaches you to adapt to audiences that may or may not be terribly familiar with you, and who likely have very different tastes and cultural leanings than hometown crowds. It's where you learn to play to different kinds of audiences, really sweat it out, and earn your chops.

Dan came back to ChUC from the road a few weeks ago, and he and I and our awesome sound engineer Evan Hydzik (from Big Audio, hire them!) sat on the side steps of the Beat Kitchen enjoying a nice cool breeze before we opened the house and the madness began.

Evan and I were reading The Onion article on Dan and embarrassing him with praise.

"I'm trying to decide what to do with my set tonight," he said, "either a straight set or more crowd work."

"I like it when you go bananas," I said, and Evan agreed. "Cut loose. What do we always tell our castmembers? 'This is your home base, the supportive place where you can try new stuff and experiment a little.' This is the payoff for all those road gigs where the audience wasn't giving it up and you had to work like hell."

So here's the clip. You can hear me and Evan laughing in anticipation, before the audience (and sometimes before the joke) because we know what's coming, and we know what an unusually electrified mood Dan is in. (I still need to find out a way to dampen my laugh behind the mic. I try to lean back but I'm in constant motion and I have to keep the camera pretty close - but then again, come on, when stuff's funny, I'm gonna laugh.)

We've watched Dan polish and refine the awesomely dense and nerdtastic joke "The Best Dinosaur" for quite awhile and I honestly think with this iteration he reached mastery. I couldn't help but think back to some of those early lonely open-mics where Dan banged out early versions of this joke. As you can hear, our audience was wild with appreciation. It was kind of amazing.

Cameron Esposito 4-27-10 at Chicago Underground Comedy

2010-05-12T09:55:00.005-05:00

Cameron Esposito 4-27-10 at Chicago Underground Comedy!

This was two weeks ago, when Cameron hosted a show that began with very few audience members actually settled in to our cozy back room at the Beat Kitchen. (Sometimes our audience tends to linger in the front, sipping drinks, chatting with friends, and keeping an eye on whatever hockey or baseball game is drawing attention that night, before gradually drifting back into the show.) You can see Cameron greeting the stragglers as they file in, and generally do a great job engaging the crowd and amping up the energy level for what ended up being a powerful show.

Hosting is not everyone's favorite thing. You sort of sacrifice a regular set and take on the responsibility of punctuating the show, setting the tone, and preparing the stage for your fellow comics. Some people are better suited for it than others. Cameron is always a marvelous host.

Much to her credit, I once saw her hosting (at a non-ChUC show) where one particular performer was a major mood and energy killer. The audience was not digging them, sort of bristled, and quickly stopped paying attention to them altogether. The second that set ended, Cameron bounced back up on the stage, and got the energy to its previous high point within about three sentences. It made quite an impression.

My favorite part of the above set, which friends and I keep repeating to each other:

"Dad, have you met Claudia yet?"

"I'M NOT UPSET ABOUT IT!"

(Here is Cameron's Chilarious blog, on the Tribune's ChicagoNow network, should you feel inclined to learn more about her.)

Chicago Underground Comedy is $5, every Tuesday at the Beat Kitchen, 2100 W. Belmont. Produced by Dan Telfer and Elizabeth McQuern. Video, music, and editing by Elizabeth McQuern.

Beth Stelling 4-27-10 at Chicago Underground Comedy

2010-05-01T18:04:00.001-05:00

Chicago Underground Comedy is $5, every Tuesday at the Beat Kitchen, 2100 W. Belmont. Produced by Dan Telfer and Elizabeth McQuern. Video, music, and editing by Elizabeth McQuern.

My pix from The Education Show, 4-29-10, at Fizz in Chicago

2010-05-01T14:16:00.002-05:00

Full Flickr set here.

Joe Avella:

Tim Racine:

Jason Economus:

Lisa Burton (with audience member Adam Wolf):

Larissa Zagaris and Dyan Flores:

Bryan Bowden:

Ruby Weapon:

Custom-made hat and scarf from Christine of Adventures in Crocheting

2010-05-01T13:15:00.002-05:00

(With a tip of the hat to the dearly departed Fametracker forums, RIP.)

My very awesome friend-I-haven't-met-yet Christine (aptly, her blog is called Adventures in Crocheting) created this beautiful hat and scarf set for me with her own two talented hands!

She offered to knit me something, had no more info to go on than "I have sensitive skin so I like really soft fabrics," yet she managed to choose colors and a style that I just love!

And yes, when I'm all bundled up on my bike, blazing through cold Chicago streets, it kinda makes me feel like a superhero, hence the cheesy pose. Thank you, Christine!

Woodturner Tim Kennedy at Kellar Mahaney Gallery, Zionsville, IN

2010-04-19T14:23:00.004-05:00

Another new video project! This one has nothing to do with comedy, although it's definitely about creativity. Featuring Kellar Mahaney's Lolly Schoonover and talented woodturner Tim Kennedy. Video, music & editing by yours truly. Lolly and Tim are both family friends and Lolly's gallery is in my hometown of Zionsville, Indiana, so I put some extra TLC into this one. It's pretty short (2:40) but I think it tells you a lot about Tim, Lolly, and the art they love so much.

The Job Interview - by Bryan Bowden and Elizabeth McQuern

2010-04-12T18:05:00.006-05:00

Rev. Jim Fundy has come up with a humdinger of an idea - sexless porn! Written & produced Bryan Bowden, directing, music and editing by Elizabeth McQuern. Featuring Kristen Studard and Bryan Bowden.

Made especially for Second City's 7 Day Shorts. I'm happy to report my parents think this is hilarious, and they watched it five times when I emailed it to them.

Fallout! A Second City 7 Day Short

2010-03-17T02:10:00.005-05:00

We just had an awesome ChUC and I'm exhausted but here's our latest 2-minute funny, via Second City's 7 Day Shorts. This shortie was based on the audience suggestion "fallout," featuring Bryan Bowden, Keith Ecker, John Bohan and Chad Briggs. Written and produced by Bryan Bowden. Video, music and editing by stupid old me. Very proud of this one.

Invention - a Second City 7 Day Shorts project

2010-03-10T16:06:00.005-06:00

Here's a one-minute short Bryan and I shot last week with Chelsea Devantez, as part of Second City's 7 Day Shorts program. To keep things nice and meta, here's the blog post Bryan wrote about it.

Invention was screened last night at the DeMaat Theater but none of us were there to see if people laughed at it, a situation we may try to remedy. (One problem - the shorts are screened at 10:30 on Tuesdays, and my show Chicago Underground Comedy is at 9:30 on Tuesdays. Boo.)

Before you ask, the sound effect used for the "invention" is my bikini shaver. Believe it or not, it's almost impossible to find a good vibrator sound effect anywhere online. And yes, casting actresses to play my boyfriend's wife or girlfriend is meta and very fun.

Bonus: here's a photo I took of Chelsea during last season's Impress These Apes. Perhaps in homage to Marge Simpson, she pulled that ray gun out of her hair in the middle of her song. It was pretty great.

Hey Dancin'!

2010-03-10T10:54:00.004-06:00

Another new thing I did! I was the director on this video. I wish I could say I did the editing on this short-but-awesome promo, but in fact the shooting and editing wizardry is compliments of Mike Tutaj, who is marvelously creative in countless art forms.

A few weeks ago Sarah Rose Graber and the Factory Theater folks had Mike and me come hang out with the cast of Hey Dancin', a new play about a 1986 Chicago cable access dance show, and shoot this promo. So fun.

What? I'm blogging again?

2010-03-02T09:37:00.006-06:00

I know, it's been a million years. Or 3-4 months. Especially sad because I missed the fifth anniversary of my very first blog post, way back in February 2005. Anyway, how are you? I've been really busy with a ton of new creative projects, but I hope to start poking my face into blogworld to share info about new plans, new projects, new skills.

Recently I went through about 3 months of Chicago Underground Comedy sets and pulled out little bits for some snappy new 1-2 minute highlight clips, 8 in total. I'll post them below, but if you want to soak in about ten minutes of uninterrupted ChUC awesomeness, enjoy this playlist of all 8 clips, which features every current ChUC castmember (oops, except for Mike Stanley) and a few favorite guests.

Chad Briggs, James Fritz, and Brendan McGowan:

Paul Thomas, Beth Stelling, and Ricky Carmona:

Nate Craig, Cameron Esposito, and Ken Barnard:

James Fritz, Hannibal Buress (currently writing for Saturday Night Live!), and Drew Michael:

Mort Burke, Jim Fath, and Jeff Hansen. Fath gets the award for best Hitler joke.

Prescott Tolk, Adam Burke, and Brendan McGowan:

Ricky Carmona, Chad Briggs, and Dan Telfer:

Prescott Tolk, CJ Sullivan, Mike and Duane:

Chicago Underground Comedy - Halloween 2009 Show Highlights!

2009-11-12T15:52:00.001-06:00

Why yes, Chicago Underground Comedy's Halloween show was très formidable, and yes, I did just edit a zippy highlight reel, and skip to my lou, here it is! Six minutes of Chicago comedy brilliance.

Video, music, and editing by me! Featuring Adam Burke, Ricky Carmona, Beth Stelling, Cameron Esposito, Ken Barnard, Nick Vatterott, Dan Polydoris, C.J. Sullivan, Paul Thomas, and Chad Briggs.

Chad Briggs at Chicago Underground Comedy Halloween 2009

2009-11-06T18:32:00.003-06:00

It only takes a second to be safe! Chad Briggs' Impress These Apes-winning character, "professional safety expert and accidentalist" D.K. Ediger - at Chicago Underground Comedy's Halloween show last week. Honestly, funnier than any character on SNL right now. Video, music, and editing by me.

Happy Halloween!

2009-10-29T14:03:00.001-05:00

Music video shoot with Seth Williams and Andy Metz

2009-10-14T09:18:00.003-05:00

Photos by me, full Flickr set here. So my comedy pal Seth Williams and I have been talking about doing a music video for quite awhile, and a few weekends ago he brought his musical partner-in-crime Andy Metz to my neighborhood and we ran around with my cameras, shooting them performing their song "Simpleton" in several locations. We had a great time playing around and being creative, and I'm really happy with the video and photos we ended up with. Of course, this being my first music video edit, it will still take me awhile to refine the final product, but when it's done I will be sharing it here, so stay tuned! Here are a few photos from the video shoot.

My pix from Impress These Apes Season 4 Show 4: Horror Films

2009-10-08T17:40:00.005-05:00

(Full Flickr set here.) Last night was the mid-point of the fourth year of Impress These Apes, show #4, and the talent was Horror Movie. The puny human slaves, aka contestants, were partnered up and challenged to complete a 10 minute horror movie. Between crafting their ideas and still doing things like going to 9-5 jobs, most of them were editing up until the wee hours of the morning yesterday, so after the show the crowd dispersed earlier than usual, but their efforts were clearly worth it. The Apes treated us puny human audience members to popcorn and milk duds, and it was an awesome night as usual.

Ken Barnard as Beauty Pageant Host and Jim Fath as Future Human:

Steve Gadlin as Barry Shirley, Paul Luikart as Captain Apehab, and Bryan Bowden as Bushmeat:

Michelle Renee Thompson and Chelsea Devantes:

And their video:

Thomas Wittington and Kelly Beeman:

And their video:

Scott Whitehair and Chad Briggs:

And their video:

Christina Boucher and Daniel Kibblesmith:

And their video:

Bryan as Bushmeat. (Is it weird that I still find him cute when he's being a redneck ape? That's not usually my type.)

And the final moment of terror for the contestants, the announcement of next week's challenge: their biggest performance fear, which they were unfortunate enough to tell the apes during their videotaped auditions. I say it every week: these contestants have major huevos. I wouldn't even be able to handle the audition process, let alone being an Apes contestant and coming up with something awesome every time with 7 days' notice.

Chris Condren at Chicago Underground Comedy October 6, 2009

2009-10-08T12:42:00.000-05:00

The adorable, barely 21-years old and already hilarious Chris Condren, last Tuesday night at Chicago Underground Comedy.

My pix from Peek-a-Boo: An Ooky Spooky Halloween Burlesque Revue

2009-10-05T22:36:00.002-05:00

The show is at the Greenhouse Theater in Chicago, all this month! Full Flickr set here:

Mr. Bones, AKA Chris Biddle:

Naughty Natanya:

Siren Jinx:

Natasha Minsk:

Dr. Acula:

Very Bond girl-y!

The Onion editor Joe Randazzo at Chicago Underground Comedy Sept. 8, 2009

2009-09-22T17:01:00.001-05:00

We were thrilled when The Onion editor Joe Randazzo performed stand-up at Chicago Underground Comedy two weeks ago. Surprise, his comedy was extremely well-written, conceptual, and hilarious. Nnnnjoy.

Chicago Underground Comedy Highlight Reel May-Sept 2009

2009-09-22T16:59:00.001-05:00

Woot! Here's a recent video project. Two minutes of hilarity from the last few months' shows.

Featuring Cameron Esposito, Sean Flannery, James Asmus, Mike Stanley, Beth Stelling, James Fritz, John Roy, Ricky Carmona, Chad Briggs, Allison Leber, Prescott Tolk, Joe Zimmerman, and Lola Balatro (Paul Thomas, Jeff Madden, Cork Kangas).

Ten seconds that took up my whole day: Beth Stelling title

2009-09-08T16:41:00.002-05:00

Today I taught myself to layer multiple video tracks with Final Cut Pro (and how to cool my MacBook down with a frozen bag of edamame). Check out this cool little ditty:

Entertaining Julia last Sunday night

2009-09-08T08:26:00.003-05:00

Bryan and I went to Entertaining Julia on Sunday, because I had some DVDs to give to Beth Stelling, and I just wanted to soak up some EJ love from Beth and the Puterbaugh Sisters. I got there early to grab front row seats for photo purposes, but by the time the show started, the room was packed. It was fun from start to finish. Here are some of my favorite photos from that night. (Full Flickr set here.)

The ladies host:

Musical act Ruby Weapon:

Prescott Tolk, excellent as always:

Danielle and Beth:

EJ Caillouet:

Brendan McGowan at the "angry dad" part of the frozen Christmas steak story:

Beth telling her "longest drink order in the world/drunk LA girl" story:

The adorable, still-in-college Ethan Peldo:

Danielle Puterbaugh as her suburban female comic character, Dan Foley and Beth cheering her on:

Drew Frees, telling the drunk and/or crazy guy in the front row that he sounds like if a banjo could talk:

Chad Briggs as safety-crazy school lecturer DK Ediger:

Miss Bea Haven, primping before she did a burlesque routine that climaxed with her making martinis from spigots in her bra:

Beth Stelling at Chicago Underground Comedy Aug. 25, 2009

2009-08-31T17:55:00.002-05:00

MegaBeth (the nickname I have now given both her and myself) is our newest ChUC cast member and is simply wonderful. Incredibly naturally funny - not that she doesn't write great jokes and constantly work things out on stage - and warm and sweet to boot. And she's only 25 (I think...maybe even 24?). Anyway, she's awesome, check out this clip from last week's show.

Tomorrow night I will arrive at ChUC with fresh 9-volt batteries, which means I can actually use the amazing new mic I bought, and not rely on the internal mic, which is a little blarey and fuzzy (as in this clip). So forthcoming ChUC clips will just get better and better, folks.

My friend Michael Sanchez...

2009-08-17T10:39:00.002-05:00

...is incredibly talented. Check out this "How To Serenade Someone" video he made for HowCast. It's maybe the most charming thing I've seen in months. If you really like it, you can go vote for him, and help him win $2,000. And even if you don't want to vote, you should still watch it. It's lovely.

How To Serenade Someone on Howcast

Chicago Underground Comedy past and present! 40 hours of editing - 4 years of photos, video, and audio in 4 minutes

2009-08-13T21:45:00.004-05:00

My wrists are throbbing and my eyeballs are dry. I've officially been editing for 16 hours straight and I might have forgotten how to talk. BUT! Check out this frigging kick ass video, featuring all of our past and current Chicago Underground Comedy cast members, plus several favorite guests.

I'd add more commentary but I'm seriously, seriously brain dead right now, plus, if I've done my job, the video will speak for itself. This represents four years of awesome comedy in four minutes. And, hopefully, the beginning of my real filmmaking career! (No, I'm not going to say "reel." That's just stupid.) But yes, I'm going to use this clip to shop myself around for more paid editing work. I love, love, obsessively love Final Cut Pro. Obviously.

Oh, and P.S., though I've been on hiatus from performing stand-up for over a year, one of my old jokes is included here - the ever-so-classy "Cheetos or dick" joke at the one minute mark. I really had very little audio of female comics that as usable for this project (I've learned a lot about mics and better sound in the last few months) so I threw that snippet in. Ennnnnnjoy.

Chicago Underground Comedy is produced by Dan Telfer and Elizabeth McQuern every Tuesday at the Beat Kitchen, 2100 W. Belmont. Our producer emeritus is Tony Sam.

Editing and original music by Elizabeth McQuern.

Photography by Elizabeth McQuern (color photos) and Kristy Mangel (black and white) except as noted (additional photos kindly shared by Katie Moore, Krystle Gemnich, Abbi Crutchfield and m. berru).

Chicago Underground is produced by Dan Telfer and Elizabeth McQuern every Tuesday at the Beat Kitchen, 2100 W. Belmont. Our producer emeritus is Tony Sam.

Featuring Pat Brice, Aaron Foster, Adam Burke, Allison Leber, Andrew Rollins DeWitt, Becky Garcia, Beth Stelling, Bill Cruz, Brendan McGowan, Brooke Van Poppelen, Bryan Bowden, C.J. Sullivan, Cameron Esposito, Chad Briggs, Dan Telfer, David Angelo, Duane Freeman, Elizabeth McQuern, Hannah Gansen, Hannibal Buress, James Fritz, Jared Logan, John Roy, Joe Fernandez, Kara Buller, Ken Barnard, Kumail Nanjiani, Kyle Kinane, Lauren Ashley Bishop, Matt Braunger, Matt Ruby, Michael Lebovitz, Mike Bridenstine, Mike Ferbrache, Mike Holmes, Mike Olson, Mike Wiley, Nate Craig, Nate Fernald, Paul Thomas, Prescott Tolk, Puterbaugh Sisterz, Ranjit Souri, Renee Gauthier, Ricky Carmona, Robert Buscemi, Sean Flannery, Steve O'Brien, Tony Sam, Faye Canale, Mike Holmes, and Josh Cheney.

My latest Outworld.TV clip: Sarcastic Squad reunion at Berlin

2009-08-12T18:18:00.001-05:00

My latest Sarcastic Squad clip for Outworld.TV! Featuring Adam Guerino, Beth Stelling, The Puterbaugh Sisters, Candy Lawrence, Matt Drufke, Eric Lutz, and Cameron Esposito! I put in a little something special in my credit at the end this time. Take a peep.

My magnum opus (so far): 2 minute commercial for Chicago Underground Comedy

2009-08-04T11:47:00.002-05:00

Video, editing and music by moi, featuring all of our current cast, some alum, plus a couple of guests!

Chicago Underground Comedy is every Tuesday at 9:30 at the Beat Kitchen, produced by me and Dan Telfer.

Video featuring Beth Stelling, Nick Vatterott, Cameron Esposito, Allison Leber, Ken Barnard, Michael Stanley, Chad Briggs, Prescott Tolk, James Fritz, Dan Telfer, Lauren Ashley Bishop, Carrie Callahan, Mike Bridenstine, Renee Gauthier, Jeff Hansen, Adam Burke, Sean Flannery, Paul Thomas, Ricky Carmona, Dan Polydoris, Brendan McGowan, Steve O'Brien, Duane Freeman, and Mike Ferbrache.

My second video project for Outworld.tv!

2009-07-27T20:39:00.000-05:00

Second verse, same as the first!

Elena Rubin Headshots

2009-07-27T15:09:00.004-05:00

Elena is just incredibly beautiful. A record one third of all the photos I shot of her were nice. She's now faced with the task of sorting through about 500 to choose her favorites (full Flickr set here). I'm very proud of this set, and happy to give another headshot client exactly what they were looking for.

Split Screen Magic!

2009-07-24T18:36:00.001-05:00

Using some new tricks on some current projects:

Summer in Chicago!

2009-07-19T19:16:00.001-05:00

This is what I did yesterday. Featuring some new piano music I wrote! Hope you also had a lovely weekend.

Bryan Bowden at Chicago Underground Comedy July 7, 2009

2009-07-17T21:29:00.001-05:00

So proud of my boyfriend, for this and many other reasons. :) Fancy editing by me.

Birthday press!

2009-07-07T17:13:00.002-05:00

Apparently I'm a pillar of Chicago comedy! Who knew? Thanks to Chicago Tribune Chilarious blogger (and my pal) Cameron Esposito for the nice tribute!

My first video and editing gig for Outworld.tv!

2009-07-06T20:19:00.001-05:00

Don't Spit the Water at the Just For Laughs fest, show #2

2009-06-29T19:53:00.002-05:00

Bryan and his Blewt pals resurrected Don't Spit the Water for two Just For Laughs festival shows at the Playground Theater, and I was front and center dutifully manning my camera. Yes, that meant my feet got spit on several times. Ew! Some of our friends who have split for LA and New York came back to reprise some of their best (most ridiculous) characters, and the night was SO FUN. These are my favorite pics from the 10:30 show.

Fuzzy Gerdes as a giant scary banana:

Kristen Studard and Chip Aucoin of the Chicago Sashay Dancers (boy, those kids have moxie!):

Sasha (Steve Gadlin) and the Noob (Paul Luikhart):

Bryan Bowden's grand entrance as Timekeeper Willis - he does a mean sprinkler, no?:

Erica Reid (as Cutie Bumblesnatch) will poke you with a toothbrush, if that's what it takes:

Jared Logan, as Kelly Paynes, knows not where the boundaries of propriety are:

The awesomely nutbar (and equally lovable) Puterbaugh Sisterz:

Jared Logan, as Kelly Paynes, doesn't know when to stop:

Nick Vatterott, as The Interrogator, will get the information he needs from you!:

Chuckle, chuckle, chuckle:

Special guest comedian, back from Los Angeles, Robert Buscemi:

Dancing at the end of the show, to celebrate the winner (yeah, that's Cutie Bumblesnatch's idea of "exhuberant":

Don't Spit the Water at the Just For Laughs fest, show #1

2009-06-29T19:33:00.002-05:00

Bryan and his Blewt pals resurrected Don't Spit the Water for two Just For Laughs festival shows at the Playground Theater, and I was front and center dutifully manning my camera. Yes, that meant my feet got spit on several times. Ew! Some of our friends who have split for LA and New York came back to reprise some of their best (most ridiculous) characters, and the night was SO FUN. These are my favorite pics from the 8:00 show.

A contestant tries to resist the comedic powers of Choco Loco (aka T.J. Miller, in from LA):

The absurd and pathetic-but-endearing Chicago Sashay Dancers:

Sasha and the Noob (Steve Gadlin and Paul Luikart) try out their razor sharp knock-knock jokes:

Ken Barnard, as Krystle Strawbury, tries to charm a contestant into spitting:

...then he takes a more aggressive approach as Krystle turns into a mermaid:

Potty-mouthed cowboy Scot Goodheart (with Bryan keeping time in the background) whips out some power ballads to coax some soggy chuckles:

Bryan Bowden, as Timekeeper Willis, explains that one of that night's prizes is an autographed picture of himself, which he thinks is the greatest thing ever:

The end: darn you, Mr. Pickles!

Sarah Haskins, David Cross at the Late Night Late Show Just For Laughs reunion show

2009-06-29T18:41:00.005-05:00

Chicago comedy is still recovering a bit from the week of awesome that was the Just For Laughs festival. Big names came in, and lots of our local pals (including 4-5 of my show's cast) got some stage time at some fantastic showcases. After the two super fun Don't Spit the Water shows Saturday night (pics to come, see 'em on Flickr sans commentary if you want), a bunch of us rode up the street to iO, where they were having a special reunion show for the Late Night Late Show.

The Del Close theater was packed full of more people I've ever seen in there before, with extra rows of chairs in front of the stage and bar. Everyone was excited about the show's special guest, Bob Odenkirk - except he didn't show up, but David Cross was there instead! He was really cool and (of course) funny. He did a recurring bit where the host would ask him to tell the audience what his upcoming book was about (or whatever), and he'd go up and down the rows, briefly explaining it to every individual person. He did it several times and the audience was nerding out at the concept of David Cross interacting with them. When he got to me, he described Arrested Development by saying "It was a show, with people, and comedy..." then he moved on.

Another special guest, for whom the audience woo'd and cheered like mad, was Sarah Haskins, Chicago native and writer/star of the excellent, excellent "Target Women" videos on Current tv. So smart and funny, and so nice. I interviewed her for the Bastion awhile back, and said a quick hello to her right before the show started. After three comedy shows in one night, and knowing I'd need to spend all of the following Sunday writing, I started to wind down at 1:30 am and left the show before it was over, heading home on my bike. Bryan stuck around and ended up joining Sarah and a bunch of our mutual friends for a spontaneous party until the wee hours of the morning. Of course! I always miss all the fun. Anyway, some of my pics:

Sarah Haskins and Steve Waltien:

Seth Weitberg and David Cross:

Seth Weitberg, David Cross, and Jordan Klepper:

And, just for fun, one of my favorite Target Women videos:

What I've been up to...

2009-06-08T14:24:00.002-05:00

Spending many hours learning Final Cut Pro. MANY hours. So far, I have 17 cool seconds to show for it. Whaddya think? For once I'm editing something that actually has me in it, although it's only a still photo. Also, I needed a cool, fuzzed out clip of someone performing stand-up to put under the early part, so I snuck in some boyfriend footage. Sweet.

Wherefore art thou, bloggirl?

2009-05-27T10:50:00.004-05:00

So I've been doing a lot of not-blogging lately. It's a hip, new, transgressive form of blogging. Ha, just kidding. Yeah, my habits around here have changed, and I thought I'd take a few minutes to address that, if only for my own sake. Why am I not blogging much these days? Maybe some of the same reasons you're blogging less.

For one thing, technology has changed. These newfangled things called Facebook and Twitter began to surpass some of the socially connecting qualities of blogging, and if the point of blogging is to share ideas and media with like-minded people, Facebook and Twitter are actually better, in some ways, although I don't think that obviates the need for a longer-form outlet like blogs. Lord knows I will probably keep this damn thing up and running for years and years, through countless masthead redesigns, and, morbid a thought though it may be, it will probably outlive me. But in the meantime, I'm having a lot of fun with these new communications toys like TwitPic, which lets me liveblog or tweet right from my cell phone, using my fun new camera phone to document life's little moments.

What else? Things have been getting busier. Comedy stuff has been snowballing, and opportunities for creative collaboration and more sophisticated video work have been popping up all over the place. I've been reinventing myself and thinking even harder about what I'm doing, what I want to do, where I fit in best, how I can best use my talents to create art and make a life for myself, blah blah. It feels a little weird to be publicly musing about stuff I haven't totally figured out yet.

Also, I've been dealing with some personal changes, good and bad, mostly good. For one thing, I am now the proud owner of a chronic illness, which has taken me most of the winter and spring to adjust to. I'd rather not get into too many details, but I'll say that that while it's not a health-threatening condition, per se, but it has been incredibly uncomfortable and psychologically straining at times. Since seeing a specialist and getting treatment, I am much, much, much better, and, gratefully, feeling mostly normal most of the time, but it's taken what seems like a long time. Also, there's the usual family/friends/significant other stuff happening, which is great, but personal changes like this require a lot of quiet reflection, and, again, largely of the kind that I don't want to make public.

And, my final excuse, I am kinda bored hearing myself yammer on about things! One thing I like about the writing that I do for a living is being able to thoroughly investigate something or someone, tell an amazing story, and leave myself completely out of it. That's what I'm finding myself doing more and more with comedy, and that's the way I like it. For now, at least.

Blah blah blah, now on with the brief picture posts and other sorry excuses for blogging. See ya around!

Every moment is a lesson

2009-05-22T18:53:00.000-05:00

-Elizabeth McQuern

Imma get big these...

2009-05-18T11:37:00.000-05:00

To balance out my big everything elses. KnowwhatImean?

Isn't everyone's desk a hopeless tangle of wires?

2009-05-17T18:28:00.000-05:00

I'm beginning to see the light

2009-05-17T17:24:00.000-05:00

Having a goodbye veggie burger with Allison Leber and assorted comedy girlfriends. Alli is leaving us for the golden shores of California. We are discussing the vagaries of big life changes and how much of it you really need to have mapped out ahead of time. Hopefully not too much, as we decided. In the meantime, what a beautiful day...

All the plastic Chinese food you could ever want to eat! Furama, in Uptown.

2009-05-17T16:34:00.000-05:00

Pretty summer dresses are in windows all over Chicago.

2009-05-16T18:45:00.000-05:00

Yeah, yeah, I get it: ashes to ashes, etc. You don't have to make it so personal! #fb

2009-05-16T18:34:00.000-05:00

She talks to angels.

2009-05-16T17:25:00.000-05:00

It comes in convenient compressed metal form now!

2009-05-16T15:38:00.000-05:00

A Chicago comedy prodigal son, MADtv's Matt Braunger returns to the Lincoln Lodge! #fb

2009-05-15T22:45:00.000-05:00

"Prove that, using science, in this room right now!" -Eliot Rahal and Dan Polydoris. #fb

2009-05-15T21:14:00.000-05:00

Man versus meat. Make mine well done, please! The meat, that is.

2009-05-14T19:04:00.000-05:00

It's been a beautiful, beautiful day in Chicago. Sunny and about seventy-two all day long. Birds sing outside my window and church bells vibrate through the air every hour. I got a lot of editing stuff done, did some writing for new projects, organized my office and bit more, and rode my bike. Oh, and also, I watched the first episode of Real Housewives of New Jersey. Trashily delicious! Now, a fine outdoor-cooked meal!

Fancypants post-workout drink. Dinner on its way.

2009-05-13T21:37:00.000-05:00

Michael Lehrer is brilliant. Period.

2009-05-12T22:15:00.001-05:00

Bryan performing at my show, with, as he called it, 1996 villain hair.

2009-05-12T22:13:00.001-05:00

Bloodiest, who play baroque metal, having burgers before their set at the Beat Kitchen.

2009-05-12T19:52:00.000-05:00

Note they are all dressed in black. Because they are very serious about their music. And their hamburgers.

Dude getting a tattoo in the front window of a place on Clark St.

2009-05-12T19:32:00.000-05:00

You know it's a recession when...

2009-05-12T10:12:00.000-05:00

...the sight of your neatly organized canned goods gives you a feeling of security.

It was a long winter...

2009-05-12T10:09:00.000-05:00

...but now my plants are thriving in the Chicago sunshine. Thank goodness for back porches!

Duh

2009-05-11T23:11:00.000-05:00

You'd think it would go without saying...but maybe not?

Test

2009-05-11T23:06:00.000-05:00

My photos of 500 Clown Macbeth at the Galaxie in Chicago May 7, 2009

2009-05-08T00:20:00.003-05:00

Bryan took me to see this incredibly original adaptation of Macbeth, and they were nice enough to let me take photos as well. The show was first staged by these guys in 2000, and they're moving to the Steppenwolf in June. Tomorrow night, STAR TREK!! Now...must...sleep.

My photos of Jenni Prokopy

2009-05-05T12:54:00.002-05:00

Maybe some of the cutest photos I've taken so far, especially the first one - you can just feel her positive energy with that smile! Jenni Prokopy, for those who don't know her, is the mastermind behind Chronic Babe, Orange Grove Media, and ideaXchange, which is how I met her. She wanted some new headshots, so she came over for a few hours on Sunday and we wandered around my new neighborhood, finding some sunny and colorful spots to shoot some pics.

My pix of Factory Theater's "Mop Top Festival," April 12, 2009

2009-04-29T13:46:00.003-05:00

My pix from Ben Lerman's show at Mary's Attic, April 10, 2009

2009-04-29T13:42:00.004-05:00

Matt Johnston from OutWorld.tv gets set up to film:

Your host, Cameron Esposito:

The divine and delicious Aunt Joanna:

And the star of the show, Mr. Ben Lerman:

My pix of Sylvie Sadarnac

2009-04-29T13:40:00.001-05:00

Heavy Metal Baby

2009-04-21T18:21:00.001-05:00

heavy metal drummer
Originally uploaded by brantastic

I'm super busy, settling into my new place and all. Please enjoy more Brandi Ediss cute baby photography. This is Cloelle, who got drums for her birthday. Also, she got a cupcake, the remnants of which are slathered on her mouth and chin. Rock it, Cloelle!

Chicago Underground Comedy Promo Video!

2009-04-09T22:24:00.003-05:00

Less than two minutes, and this represents the most complicated editing project I've done so far. Starring ALL of our current cast members. It took me untold hours, searching through hours and hours of footage.

Featuring Jeff Hansen, Carrie Callahan, Prescott Tolk, Dan Telfer, Brendan McGowan, Robert Buscemi, Bryan Bowden, Beth Stelling, Nick Vatterott, Adam Burke, Allison Leber, Dan Polydoris, Paul Thomas, Ricky Carmona, James Fritz, Chad Briggs, Steve O'Brien, Sean Flannery, and Mike & Duane.

Might as well jump

2009-04-07T18:45:00.001-05:00

might as well jump
Originally uploaded by brantastic

Brandi Ediss strikes again! Her photos are just pure magic. This is how I felt today, with the sunshine on my face for the first time in weeks, and a day warm enough for a little jaunt down Clark Street.

ChUC Promo Experiment

2009-04-07T01:17:00.001-05:00

Goin' crazy experimenting with the Final Cutzz. Also, I wrote new, unnecessarily dramatic music! Featuring some of your favorite Chicago Underground Comedy stars! Version 2.0 to come. I LOVE editing and music but they are turning me into a zombie. Must sleep now.

Connor del Rio at a teen stand up show at Pressure April 3, 2009

2009-04-05T10:22:00.003-05:00

Another one of Bryan's students, Connor del Rio, performing at Pressure night before last. The rest of the kids' videos from that night are here.

Drew Landry at Second City Training Center Teen Stand-up Student Show April 2009

2009-04-04T20:02:00.000-05:00

Last video for tonight! 16 year old Drew Landry already runs an open mic, and liked Bryan's class so much he took it twice!

Tony Grayson at the Second City Training Center's teen stand up student show April 2, 2009

2009-04-04T20:01:00.001-05:00

Two more videos ...Tony Grayson, who is only 17 but already published jokes in Time Out Chicago!

Lou Engleman at Second City Training Center Teen Stand-up Student Show April 2009

2009-04-04T20:00:00.000-05:00

Bryan's student Lou Engleman, who is all over the kids' classes at Second City, from improv to stand-up. Pretty great.

Sydney Davis at Second City Training Center Teen Stand-up Student Show April 2009

2009-04-04T19:59:00.000-05:00

Another new vid I just finished for Bryan - 16 year old Sydney Davis' sassy and sharp stand-up at Second City.

Kristan Williams at Second City Training Center Teen Stand-up Student Show April 2009

2009-04-04T19:58:00.000-05:00

One of Bryan's stand-up students tells a true tale of sneaking into the alligator cage at the zoo. So cute!

Second City Training Center Teen Stand-up Student Show April 2, 2009

2009-04-03T18:51:00.002-05:00

All pix by me, full set here. SO CUTE.

Teacher Bryan Bowden:

Tim Holland:

Kristan Williams:

Lou Engleman:

Sydney Davis:

Tony Grayson:

Drew Landry:

Chicago Underground Comedy March 31, 2009

2009-04-01T14:00:00.001-05:00

Pix by me, full set here:

Carrie Callahan:

Sean Flannery:

Dan Telfer:

Jeff Hansen:

Robert Buscemi:

Allison Leber:

Fourth Fridays at Town Hall Pub - March 27, 2009 - by Elizabeth McQuern

2009-03-28T16:22:00.003-05:00

All pix by me, full set here.

Danielle Puterbaugh:

Ricky Carmona:

Drew Michael:

Mike Wiley:

John Markham:

Mop Top Festival Video Promo

2009-03-26T15:19:00.003-05:00

I can claim camerawork on this brief promo for the Factory Theater's Mop Top Festival, a Beatles-themed comedic play on stage now at 3504 N. Elston. (It was supposed to be more complex, but there were technical issues - let's just say we all learned something in the process.) I used pro-quality mics with my camera for the first time, did green screen for the first time, and worked with multiple actors and a real director for the first time. The Factory Theater people are awesome, and the shooting day was so fun.

The Mop Top video was edited by the tremendously gifted Mike Tutaj, my new filmmaking guru, who has been generous with my barrage of techie questions. To get a better idea of the scope of his abilities, check out this gorgeous video he did for a previous Factory Theater production Siskel and Ebert save Chicago:

Siskel and Ebert Save Chicago - Opening Titles from Mikey on Vimeo.

Chicago Underground Comedy March 24, 2009 by Elizabeth McQuern

2009-03-25T11:24:00.002-05:00

All pix by me, full set here.

Steve O'Brien:

Aaron Foster:

CJ Sullivan:

Prescott Tolk:

Paul Thomas:

Mike Lebovitz:

Twittering With Creative Friends Can Lead To This...

2009-03-24T10:34:00.005-05:00

I Twittered this photo last night at dinner, with the caption "I like my dinner like I like my men - stabbed all the way through with frilly toothpicks.":

And then my friend Noah (who I know through Bryan) drew this:

Just For Laughs Audition Showcase at ChUC This Saturday!

2009-03-23T09:16:00.003-05:00

Hey, comedy pals, looking for a fun, free night of kickass Chicago stand-up? Well, my awesome Chicago Underground Comedy co-producer Dan Telfer and I are putting up a free audition showcase for the much-anticipated Chicago branch of the Just For Laughs festival this Saturday night at 8:00 the Beat Kitchen (2100 W. Belmont).

I put up a press release if you want more details. Rest assured, the JFL scouts hand-picked a great lineup - Adam Burke, Sean Flannery, Prescott Tolk, Dan Telfer, Allison Leber, Ricky Carmona, Jeff Hansen, Aaron Foster, and CJ Sullivan. It's going to be a super fun night!

New Photo Poster for Chicago Underground Comedy

2009-03-21T13:40:00.000-05:00

The Early Weekend Show, March 20, 2009

2009-03-21T12:16:00.000-05:00

Pix by me, full set here.

Lauren Vino:

Kevin Hogan:

Joe Fernandez:

Haji Outlaw:

Mike Lebovitz:

Ryan Budds:

Mike Sheehan:

My Vid of Sean Flannery at Chicago Underground Comedy March 17, 2009

2009-03-18T17:56:00.001-05:00

...and it all came to an Irish Catholic peak with our Sean Flannery, who unintentionally provided me with the best visual gag I've seen in months: right before the show started, a car pulled up out front, and six Chicago Irish comedians (including Adam Burke, CJ Sullivan, and Joe Kilgallon) poured out of the doors and the hatchback, too. They'd been celebrating since...well, who knows when?