You Should Do Stand-Up
At an open-mic night in Toronto, an amateur stand-up comedian seeks to find their voice while discussing the struggles of being a young comic.
You Should Do Stand Up paints a picture the struggle of finding your voice as a young comic. It follows amateur stand-up comic Conan Mighton through one open-mic night in Toronto. Tracking his preparation, performance, and post-show reflection, he discusses struggles with weight stigma, mental health, and breaking into the comedy industry. Professor Marc Hallworth supplements Conan’s experience with his own, revealing how the stand-up profession has changed in the last 20 years.
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Yuk Yuk's Comedy Club Toronto
Behind The Scenes
Meet The Team
DirectorSylvia Felice DockerAs a life-long stand-up comedy fan and lover of performance documentaries, I’m excited to bring Conan’s amateur perspective to a genre overwhelmed with big-name celebrities. Directing this documentary has been an incredible pleasure, made so by the hard work and talent of the whole crew!
A joke I love is: “In a brilliant move, Simpson attorney Johnny Cochran put on the knit cap prosecutors say OJ wore the night of the murders, although OJ might've hurt his case when he blurted out, 'Hey, Hey easy with that! That's my lucky stabbing hat’!” - Norm MacDonald |
ProducerLena DarabihaI'm so excited to be able to produce this documentary because not only is it so fun to work with our wonderful crew, it's also unique to explore a new comic such as Conan because we usually only see the experienced ones on screen. I can't wait to support Conan on his journey as a stand-up comic!
My favourite joke is "My doctor says 'you are fat!' I said 'how fat am I?' he said 'you're so fat that if you don't stop within a month you could have a heart attack or stroke.'... he's not a comedian" - Norm MacDonald |
Director Of PhotographyAlicia FoleyI have always loved comedy, whether it be comedy films, parody videos, improvisational, and most importantly, stand-up comedy. All forms of comedy are enjoyable for me. Laugher truly is the best medicine, as comedy has helped me through many tough times in my life, when either I was in a difficult mental state or going through grief. Comedy and humour has always been a tool to help me through stressful life moments. As the Director of Photography for this documentary, it has been an honour to bring the director's vision to life, and to show the reality of what it is like to be an amateur stand-up comedian in today’s society.
"I'll never understand why they cook on TV. I can't smell it. Can't eat it. Can't taste it. The end of the show they hold it up to the camera. "Well, here it is. You can't have any. Thanks for watching. Goodbye." - Jerry Seinfeld |
Picture EditorSasha OustinovaI am elated to be the Picture Editor of this project. When I heard, it was going to show a side to standup comedy that most people don’t get a glimpse of, I knew I had to accept this position. The big scale of the standup world is so enamouring that it is often easy to forget the people who are just starting out! I hope this doc brings that perspective to the world and give people a way to find interest in this art form!
My favourite joke is “My life is nothing I thought it should be and everything I was worried it would become because for 50 seconds, I thought there were monsters on the world.” -Tim Robinson, I Think You Should Leave |
ComposerRias Carbone
Hey I'm Rias, and I've always been an agent of laughter (maybe even when I shouldn't be) and I'm excited to work on the music for this project. Comedy is such a weird thing to try and capture in any form, and I'm excited to see the form this project takes. I truly appreciate the chance I've been given here.
My favourite joke would probably be: "I remember my teacher asked me, "Brian, what's the 'i' before 'e' rule?" 'i' before 'e'... ALWAYS." "What are you, an idiot, Brian?" "Apparently." So, she explains that "No, Brian, it's 'i' before 'e'. except after c and when sounding like 'a' as in neighbor and weigh, and on weekends and holidays and all throughout May, and you'll always be wrong no matter what you say!" "That's a hard rule. That's a— that's a rough rule." - Brian Regan |
Production Sound MixerSam Arnold
I’ve always been an admirer of stand-up comedy and I am very excited to be able to capture the sounds of laughter from Conan’s set.
"If you only hear facts, you have to form your own opinion and, after I form an opinion, I form an opinion of my own opinion and then I have another opinion about my own opinion and by midnight, I hate myself and I want to shove my head in a toaster oven, but first I’m going to have a roast beef sandwich." – Lewis Black |
Supervising Sound EditorRenee Jasinskas
I’m Renée and I’m half of the post sound team for this doc! I’m excited to work on this documentary to learn more about stand up comedy as a whole and work with the entire team to bring Conan's story to life!
A joke that I think of often is “What’s a DJ’s favourite sauce? Marinara.” it’s bad but it’s stuck in my head. |
Supervising Sound EditorParker Zapp
My experience with comedy growing up was mostly watching amateur or up and coming comedians on America’s Got Talent. Because of this I have always really enjoyed up and coming comics, so when Sylvia asked me to join the team as half of post sound I was very excited to get to work on this doc!
My favourite joke is probably the classic “why is 6 afraid of 7? Because 7 ate 9!” |
Production Sound MixerJonathan Castro Miller
I’m Jonathan, and I’m production sound mixer in this project. I have never been a fan of comedy; in fact, I hate it. I’m an incredibly serious man with a dark and twisted mind. Therefore, I don’t have a favourite joke to amuse the reader of this crew bio. But I’m excited to bring everyone into the sonic world of this up-and-coming comedian!
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Transmedia ProducerJessie He
Hi, I'm Jessie! As someone who loves to have a good laugh, I thoroughly enjoy being a part of the project as a transmedia producer. I love dad jokes, one liners, and most of all, puns. Who doesn't like comedy?
"The difference between a numerator and a denominator is a short line. Only a fraction of people will understand this." |
First Assistant CameraIan Willcock
My name is Ian and I’m excited to be first AC on this project! I really like seeing up and coming artists hone their craft, whether it’s musicians, actors or comedians and am excited to document Conan’s journey to success!
My favourite joke is: “What do you call Batman when he skips church? Christian Bale!” |