Showing posts with label humor. Show all posts
Showing posts with label humor. Show all posts

Thursday, March 19, 2009

Ground Charlie - Shampoo


Nicki Toma and Tatyana Zaytseva collaborated on what they often called an acoustic Tenacious D tribute duo. I always thought they beat Jack and Kyle in the clever lyrics department, but that's just my hip, disaffected "Tenacious D is too popular to be cool" side talking.

Get the latest video podcast here: Ground Charlie - Shampoo (live)

Wednesday, January 28, 2009

Attrition


As the cast of Extra Medium dwindled, were replaced, dwindled again, the final throes consisted of guest appearances at other sketch ensemble's showcases and dredging the deepest crevices for funny video. This embarrassing nugget is one of the first I made using analog 8mm tape-to-tape decks.

Get the latest video podcast here: Little Green Men

Tuesday, December 9, 2008

Sex Therapy


Laura Patterson and Scott "Hecktow" Klatt have a counseling session facilitated by Adam Higgins. Performed live at Portland's historic Jasmine Tree tiki lounge, now a level plain of grass upon which cranes erecting a new student recreation center can entertain you.

Get the latest video podcast here: Sex Therapy

Saturday, December 6, 2008

James Bond: Cookiepussy


The final cast of our multimedia sketch show included Adam Higgins, who traveled East to study with Second City in Chicago and teach improv. He was reticent to play a "mentally different" character until it became clear it could be pulled off a a simple goon. Masterfully written by Nathaniel "Hub" Hubbard, who also stars as James Bond a la Connery brogue.

Get the latest video podcast here: Cookiepussy

Thursday, October 9, 2008

Escape from USA


November 2, 2004 was a dark day for liberal-minded Americans anxious for John Kerry to turn the political future around. And he should have, too. Diebold delivered an empty victory as promised, so this short follows a disgruntled ex-pat who immigrates as a mail order husband.

Get the latest video podcast here: Escape from USA

Sunday, September 14, 2008

Plastic Culture


OK. This is probably the strangest film collaboration in my recollection. Portland, OR's Bear Deluxe Magazine and parent environment watch organization ORLO host a yearly film competition. What possessed us to spin the theme "plastic culture" into the story of rock monolith Ted Nugent losing his hunting bow is anyone's guess.
Get the latest video podcast here: Max Gross

Saturday, September 6, 2008

Vader Vacation


Another great Animation Schmanimation short courtesy of Cinema Queso's John C. Meyer, shown at Extra Medium's multimedia comedy showcase near the final installment (we hope) of George Lucas' prequel trilogy, Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith.
Get the latest video podcast here: Vader Vacation

Monday, August 25, 2008

Blind leading the Blind


About all I can say to introduce this short is that my blind roommate pretty much suggested the direction of this storyline, offering to do as many falling and rolling stunts as possible. I couldn't see much in the Scruffers costume either, so it was up to cameraman/director/conspirator Crispin "Credible" Rosenkranz to guide us across busy streets via his voice. So it's about a half-man half-dog/guy in a fuzzy car seat cover who is a terrible assistant animal. Don't get too offended. We had a lot of fun making it.
Get the latest video podcast here: Seeing Eye Scruffers

Sunday, August 3, 2008

Scruffers' Day in the Park


Scruffers was a half-man half-dog creation of Extra Medium's Danny Norton for one live sketch and two short films. Actually, it was just Danny in a furry carseat cover. Featuring Nicki Toma, Phantom Hillbilly and appearances by Scott "Hecktow" Klatt, Dax Jordan and Tatyana Zaytseva. The costume was very uncomfortable. The idea for this short came when Portland was experiencing a rash of animal poisonings in public off-leash dog areas, then shards of metal to cut animals' paws.
Get the latest video podcast here: Scruffers' Day in the Park

Monday, July 28, 2008

Off-Off Broadway


Three-part sketch filmed live at Portland's historic now-defunct Jasmine Tree tiki lounge. Man wants to do "something special" for his girlfriend on Valentine's Day, but can't afford Broadway or even Off-Broadway theatre tickets. An unscrupulous dealer in eclectic knock-offs of Blue Man Group, Cirque du Soliel and Shakespeare tries to recommend a budget alternative. Written by Tom Wolcott and Danny Norton, with Steve Libbey, Scott "Hecktow" Klatt, Adam Higgins and Laura Patterson. Ends in typical sound cue snafu, to awkward effect.
Get the latest video podcast here: Off-Off Broadway

Sunday, July 20, 2008

The Zither Bit


Filmed using a Tyco Kidcam, this grainy, silent B&W short is based on Gilda Agostinone's "Zither Bit," which was originally performed live at a Tulsa, OK Mayfest. Audience response was so positive, I filmed it with a different actress five years later. I always gave Gilda credit, but felt like a bit of a plagiarist. Hopefully, my performance adds a modicum of my own original input.
Get the latest video podcast here: Un Film Sans Sonido

Friday, March 14, 2008

Verizon Masturbation Minutes


Parody ad for vibrating cell phone ringers, put to inappropriate use as sexual stimulant. With Nicki Toma, Dax Jordan, D Emanuel, Lauren Sands and Danny Norton.
Get the latest video podcast here: Verizon Masturbation Minutes

Saturday, March 8, 2008

Improv


Scott "Hecktow" Klatt stuck with Extra Medium as wiriter, sketch and stand-up performer perhaps longer than anyone else. His oddball takes on troubled entertainers with problem material included a Russian Hawaiian singer, his Ken & Barbie "Jack & Diane" puppet theater and this imagination-challenged improvisational comic. Hilarious reactions to his audience's suggestions are a fond alternative to "Who's Line Is It" smug, competent professionals.
Get the latest video podcast here: Improv

Friday, January 18, 2008

Shirt Support


Phantom Hillbilly AKA Nick Wells' befuddled character gets new garment in the mail and must call tech support to figure it out.
Get the lastest video podcast here: Shirt Support

Wednesday, December 26, 2007

Cannes Film Festival Documentary


Extra Medium cofounder Danny Norton once fancied himself quite the aspiring filmmaker, so much so that he jumped at the opportunity to intern at the world's premiere film showcase in 1999. That's him behind Roger Ebert, seated, eating lunch. What a goof. As part of the American Pavilion and Kodak's student program, interns served coffee, delivered newspapers, and in his case, care package courier.
Danny says, "Sure, we saw red carpet and stood next to celebrities at cocktail parties. The stars had nothing much else to do but stand next to the likes of us. If we weren't trying to photograph them or hand them a script, we were practically buddies."
Get the latest video podcast here: The Wrath of Cannes

Saturday, December 22, 2007

Darrel's Gone Wild


Longtime collaborator and gifted solo director Crispin Rosenkranz brought this docu-exploitation gem our way in 2004. Those who identify with Darrel's crude, bacchanalian lifestyle loved it. Others were confused and disgusted. But universally, the scene with his grandmother was hailed as pure genius.
Get the latest video podcast here: Darrel's Gone Wild

Sunday, November 18, 2007

Two Guys and a Drunk Girl


Extra Medium cofounders Nicki Toma and Danny Norton are joined by Portland stand-up comic Dax Jordan for a tale of excess and undress. One-half arty stills-film and the other half performed live on stage at historic, now-defunct Jasmine Tree tiki lounge.
Get the latest video podcast here: Drunk Date

Tuesday, November 6, 2007

Drawing the Figure


Featuring stand-up comic phenomenons Dax Jordan, Richard Bain and Tom Wolcott, Danny Norton embellishes his life drawing class experience at Portland State University by appearing as his professor and coaching the class to draw the ENTIRE body. Weird entendres abound, and Nicki Toma and Tatyana Zaytseva made some really strange drawings.
Get the latest video podcast here: Drawing the Figure

Monday, October 29, 2007

B&W Horror from Ground Charlie's Nicki & Taty


Extra Medium cofounder Nicki Toma and longtime collaborator Tatyana Zaytseva produced this mindboggling parody to play during our monthly multimedia sketch, music and film showcses at historic, now-defunct Jasmine Tree tiki lounge. The Portland Development Commission leveled the 29-year-old business to make a fenced-in grass lot.
Get the latest video podcast here: Bee

Thursday, October 4, 2007

Blog is the New Black


After much contemplation, Extra Medium Sketch Comedy have decided to learn the dark art of podcasting their short film into the worldwide interweb, a series of tubes for the transmission of informative communiques.
We hope you enjoy this, the first, of what we hope to be many Media-Rich cyber-content digital mailings.