The Greater Good (comedy group)
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The Greater Good is a sketch comedy trio from Los Angeles consisting of Matt Watkins, Tom Flynn and Will Prescott. The group formed in the summer of 2006 and began developing, writing and shooting video sketches that would not be released online until January 2009. Their comedic style is a unique blend of mainstream, observational and surrealist humor often conveyed in a deadpan or overly serious manner. Utilizing both improvisation and tightly written scripts, they often create awkward and uncomfortable experiences for the viewer. In their short existence, The Greater Good has garnered a small but extremely dedicated fanbase.[1][2]
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[edit] Beginnings
Matt Watkins, Tom Flynn and Will Prescott met in 2005 while attending school at Chapman University. All three were pursuing their graduate degrees at the Lawrence and Kristina Dodge College of Film and Media Arts. At the time they were working on numerous film projects in all capacities, from editing to directing to writing. Watkins was part of Grapes of Laugh, a sketch group that earned prominence with the short film Me Room Matey (a Showdown winner on Atom.com).[3] The three decided to form a sketch group with the purpose of creating high-quality comedy for online distribution. Their shared interest in writing, directing and acting made for a balanced, tight-knit unit.
[edit] Influences
Influence from many comedians and sketch groups is visible in The Greater Good's work, but they typically cite The State, Stella, Upright Citizens Brigade, Tim Heidecker, Eric Wareheim, Patton Oswalt and Zach Galifianakis as their primary inspirations. Additional comedic entities that have influenced their work include Snuff Box, Spaced, The Kids in the Hall and the online comic strip Achewood.[4]
[edit] Online Presence
In their relatively short existence, The Greater Good has obtained a wide following that spans over many popular video sharing websites. Most prominently, Funny or Die, CollegeHumor, YouTube, Dailymotion and Metacafe. Additionally, they're active on a number of social networking sites such as Facebook, Myspace and Twitter.[5]
Their aggressive viral campaign strategy was a major reason for not releasing their work until January 2009. According to Prescott's blog, they were committed to launching as if they were a TV show. He writes, "We didn't want to release our stuff until we had at least 10 sketches ready and all of our marketing and distribution channels in place."[6]
In March 2009, The Greater Good released The Pool, a video sketch designed around the NCAA Men's Basketball Championship, commonly known as March Madness. In the sketch, Matt Watkins plays a man who misunderstands the concept of a betting pool. Due to the popularity of the tournament and the comedic social relevance, The Pool garnered a feature spot on the home page of Funny or Die.[7]
In August 2009, The Greater Good released "Vibrator", a video sketch about roommates who question their friend's controversial purchase. The video was discovered by the staff at CollegeHumor and featured on their national video site. The editors of CollegeHumor changed the title to "Roommate's New Toy", the video garnered numerous plays and comments.[8]
In May 2010, "Vibrator" was selected to screen at the Shorts N' Spirits Showcase produced by Luminave Films and Mental Eclectic.[9][10] It received the Audience Award.[11]
In July 2010, "Dick Stick" premiered at the RAW: natural born artists showcase at Cinespace in Hollywood.[12] It played before a live audience and then released online the next morning quickly garnering a feature spot on the home page of Funny or Die.[13]
[edit] Video Sketches
Captive (2009)
Coffee (2009)
Mom (2009)
Parts (2009)
Parallel Parking (2009)
Miscommunication (2009)
The Pool (2009)
The Toast (2009)
One Life to Give, parts 1-3 (2009)
Stage Fright (2009)
iPhone vs Telepathy (2009)
Vibrator (2009)
Imaginary Breakup (2009)
Easy Lover (2009)
Poker Face (2010)
Mail Order Bride (2010)
Buffalo Bill (2010)
Dick Stick (2010)
Iron Man 2 DVD Extra (2010)
October Showers (2010)
Mother F*ckers (2011)
Upgrading Sarah Silverman (2011)
Friend Replacement (2011)
Christmas Dinner with Dad (2011)
[edit] Related Work
The members of The Greater Good are active in other film, video and new media projects. Most recently, all three had small roles in the feature film, Herpes Boy (2009).[14] The film, which stars Byron Lane, Beth Grant and Ahna O'Reilly, held its world premiere at the 2009 Austin Film Festival and won the Comedy Vanguard Audience Award.[15][16][17][18]
In the summer of 2009, The Greater Good teamed up with writer/producer, Chris Wiltz, to assist with a comedic zombie web series, Semi-Dead. The six episode series premiered on October 28, 2009[19] and ran until March 2010. Flynn directed episodes 3 and 4 while also contributing digital effects work and appearing in episode 5. Prescott directed episodes 5 and 6 and also appears as a zombie in episode 1.[20][21]
In 2010, the Greater Good was hired to do the English adaptation and lend their voices to the English version of a CG animated ONA called Cat Shit One. Developed by IDA Entertainment, Cat Shit One is based on the popular Japanese magma series Apocalypse Meow. So far, only one episode has been released on Japan's YouTube channel on July 17, 2010, with plans for a 12 episode series currently in production. The English dub was released on YouTube on February 5, 2011, and was independently distributed on DVD and Blu-ray Disc via Amazon in North America.[22] Will Prescott voiced the character of Packy, Tom Flynn voiced the character of Botasky, and Matt Watkins served as voice director. Cat Shit One was nominated for Outstanding Achievement in an Animated Short category in the 9th Annual VES Awards.[23]
Tom Flynn works as a freelance director, editor, visual effects artist, and assistant director on many films and new media projects including the popular web series The Guild.[24][25]
Matt Watkins works as a freelance producer and camera operator, most recently for American Idol.[26]
Will Prescott is in pre-production on an untitled feature film that he is writing. From 2007-2008 he served as a Managing Editor and Producer of the KCET website for the PBS television program, Wired Science.[27]
[edit] References
- ^ The Greater Good home page, Retrieved on 2009-10-04
- ^ The Greater Good Facebook Fan Page, Retrieved on 2009-10-04
- ^ Me Room Matey at Atom.com, Retrieved on 2009-04-06
- ^ Bio from The Greater Good Myspace page, Retrieved on 2009-04-06
- ^ Contact page from The Greater Good official site, Retrieved on 2009-04-06
- ^ "For The Greater Good" blog post from Will Prescott's website, Retrieved on 2009-04-06
- ^ Funny or Die Featured Archives from March 25, 2009, Retrieved on 2009-04-06.
- ^ Roommate's New Toy on CollegeHumor, Retrieved on 2009-12-04.
- ^ Media Network Group, Entertainment Events in Los Angeles, Retrieved on 2010-10-05.
- ^ Los Angeles.com Event Listings, Retrieved on 2010-11-05.
- ^ Announcement on the Shorts N' Spirits Facebook page, Retrieved on 2010-12-05.
- ^ The Greater Good screens at RAW, Retrieved on 2010-07-06
- ^ Funny or Die Featured Archives from July 5, 2010, Retrieved on 2010-07-06.
- ^ Herpes Boy full credit list on the Internet Movie Database, Retrieved on 2009-04-06.
- ^ Hollywood Reporter, Retrieved on 2009-12-04.
- ^ 2009 Austin Film Festival Audience Award Winners Announced, Retrieved on 2009-12-04.
- ^ Slackerwood, Retrieved on 2009-12-04.
- ^ Austin Chronicle, Retrieved on 2009-12-04.
- ^ Semi-Dead on The Horror Geek October 20, 2009, Retrieved on 2009-12-04.
- ^ Official Semi-Dead Website, Retrieved on 2009-12-04.
- ^ Semi-Dead on IMDB, Retrieved on 2010-12-05.
- ^ http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2010-10-26/cat-sh-t-one-u.s-dvd/bd-planned-for-december
- ^ "News: Cat Sh*t One Nominated by Visual Effects Society". Anime News Network. 2010-01-10. http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2011-01-10/cat-sh-t-one-nominated-by-visual-effects-society. Retrieved 2010-01-12.
- ^ Cast & Crew page from The Guild official site, Retrieved on 2009-04-06.
- ^ Interview with Tom Flynn on the Eerie Digest. Retrieved on 2010-05-05.
- ^ American Idol: The Search for a Superstar full credit list on the Internet Movie Database, Retrieved on 2009-04-06.
- ^ Wired Science: About the Series, Retrieved on 2009-10-04.
