Back to 4Talent STRAITJACKET
The 4Laughs team have been aware of Straitjacket's presence on the comedy scene since they joined our humble website back in November 2006. From here, the North East comedy duo, both 24, launched themselves head first into our video competition - and won.
Having already garnered plaudits from the 4Laughs community and Channel 4 commissioners, we were not surprised to find out that Sunderland-based Straitjacket - aka Tom Bennett and Ian Todd - had previously contributed to the late BBC Radio One show The Milk Run (2004-2006). So when we saw the name pop up in the 4Talent Awards shortlist we knew we'd be in for a treat, and by jove, we were.
What helped project the northern boys away from the rest of the pack was the variety of the three video sketches they submitted. Parentline had a particularly palpable eerie and sinister edge to it. The shaky camera work, complete with some quite disturbing heavy breathing, gave the whole sketch a Chris Morris feel. Whereas the second sketch, Font Perv, rejected the intense atmosphere in favour of a happy-go-lucky air that's outlined from the outset by a bed of upbeat ambient music - a trick that Chris Morris constantly employs in his comedy.
Bearing this in mind, it's no surprise to hear that they are indeed fans of the controversial comic, as well as Big Train, and it's the surrealist nature of the latter that springs to mind when watching Font Perv. It's got an everyday set-up (man's called into the office) and a captivating pay-off (the man is, as the title of the sketch suggests, a font pervert). Contained within this gem of sketch was one of the best lines we've heard in a while, a line that Big Train writer Graham Linehan would be proud of: "You did it in Wingdings, John, Wingdings! No one can understand Wingdings!"
It's lines like these that have attracted American interest: "We have a pilot for a sketch-show in development with Bob Odenkirk [Saturday Night Live writer and The Larry Sanders Show actor] and are in the process of negotiating a deal with a manager, who is based in America, like Bob. "Bob's wife saw our stuff on YouTube and liked it a lot. She showed it to Bob and he started screening it at various American festivals, including a showing at Montreal's renowned Just For Laughs festival.
"The idea now is that the show will be produced by a TV company and pitched to various networks in America. There seems to be a thirst for British eccentric comedy in America, which is something we've been trying to exploit. I think over here we've been saturated by the likes of Little Britain."
Unfortunately in this cruel world we live in, viewers tend to give new comedians less of a chance than they do their more established counterparts, which ultimately means attention spans tend to waiver. So how have Straitjacket combated this? With very short, unique sketches like Pregnant, where a heated argument between two men comes to an abrupt halt when one of them announces that he's expecting.
In the early stages of a comic's career it's imperative to find a distinct way to get your material across, and Straitjacket seem to have found their USP. Production is of big importance to the boys.
"A large part of the style is our production values. The filmic style is inherent, and we like to use local unsigned music from the North East. We like to help them get their music on the map. It's very important to get the overall style right to stand out." By the sounds of it they're standing out in the best way possible: by writing and producing great comedy.
CONTACTS
www.straitjacketcomedy.com
info@straitjacketcomedy.com
Judge: Davina Earl, editor, channel4.com/4laughs
Text: Chris Norman
Photography: Courtesy of Straitjacket
Straitjacket were 4Talent Award winners in 2007, our hotly tipped young creatives to watch, to hire and to collaborate with. To meet the other 19 click here
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