First sketches shot

On Monday, we had our first filming and completed two sketches. They were only the very short sketches, about a minute each, so it did not take us too terribly long. They came out rather well too. I was pretty impressed of what we created in such a short time. This coming Monday we plan on shooting another sketch. The only thing I really have to work on next is music for the show and opening and closing credits. I also thought, depending on how long the final product is, we might need to add segue shots, such as they do in Kids in the Hall. Just clips of town or random bits.

I have been reading the book "Gasping for Airtime" by Jay Mohr, who of course is a well known stand up and actor, but he also spent a few years behind the scenes at Saturday Night Live. From his stint there, he was not as successful as he wanted to be, but he gives great insight to what it is like there and why he was not as successful.

It appears to be a very fast paced and difficult show to work for. Of course, you have to pitch your sketch ideas and hope that they get picked up for writing, but even if they do there is no chance that they will air, even if they are picked to air on the show. Mohr says that they have a really strange work schedule, which is basically random at times. People making decisions and rewriting scripts that they did not come up with. He also says that they are up at all hours of the night and day writing scripts, since the main writing comes on Wednesday for a Saturday shoot. That does not give the writers or performers a lot of time.

While at times, it does seem like it can be a cutthroat business there, I don't know how I would like to work there. On top of that, I don't know if I would even last there. I think I could come up with some good sketches but whether they make in on the show is a whole other thing. It also appears to be difficult to even make it on the show, as a writer or performer. Many of the staff are stand ups and the producers would go out to see them perform and then ask for them to be on the show. I am not a stand up so I don't know how my chances would be to even be considered.

I'm not too worried about it though, since I haven't found much of SNL in the past few years to be any good. I'd still take a job there though.