2015

Programme
Report
Partners
Delegates
Thanks

Programme 2015

Panel 1 – Comparing the Market – Never ending touring opportunities
A never ending discovery of new markets and opportunities, this panel has become the start of many exciting connections and tours. Receiving feedback from several people in the industry sharing their great experiences of the shows in all these relatively new places to perform has helped consolidated this panel’s position as the opener of the day.
Not only are UK based acts penetrating countries and audiences previously thought unable to be entertained by English language shows, local Comedy scenes are developing and this multilingual talent is finding their way to audiences worldwide. The discussion is open; we welcome success stories and bold plans from the panel as well as from the creative entrepreneurs in the room.

Tom Bertels (Chair), livecomedy.be (Belgium)
Gil Uliamperl, Sabres Group Ltd (Israel)
Bjorn Wentlandt, Avalon Promotions Ltd
Geoff Whiting, Mirth Control
Rizal Kamal, LOL Events Sdn Bhd (Malaysia)

Panel 2 – Production values in Comedy – Do’s, Don’ts and musts
It’s essential at every level of show, part of every budget, yet sometimes the execution is better than others. How to produce the perfect Comedy show? From backdrop, via comfortable seating to the perfect sound for everyone in the room, pub or arena – the show must go on and it must be safe. A good experience will encourage the act and the audience to come back.
Between them our panellists have seen or worked in a vast range of venues and events worldwide. We expect lively tales, tips and top secrets and of course contributions from everyone in the room.

Alex Rochford (Chair), The Producers UK
Nick Handford, Mick Perrin Worldwide
Niall Forde, Islington Council
Gavin Arnold,  Chambers Management
Alex Petty, Laughing Horse

Panel 3 – The Brand, The Artist, The Venue, The Festival – Identity, value and endorsements
In the old days it was relatively simple – TV exposure was a great way of getting regional venues to book comedians, venues were called by their name and a website review would stay up for years and dominated a web search. Maybe not all ideal, but it was pretty transparent. Now things are a bit more complicated. YouTube has transformed into almost mainstream and worldwide distribution, venues/festivals/awards/ competitions are called by their sponsor name and everybody can tweet their opinion into an instant review.
How difficult is it now to develop a brand and control it? If you look at the Comedian as the core brand, with the right management a marketing strategy can be planned. Who is responsible for and involved in the execution of these plans? What is the value of a brand, how to measure this and how to protect it when things go wrong or bad press in generated? How can endorsements and partnerships help lift all parties to a commercial success? We have a panel of experts and a room full of experiences to debate all this. Will 90 minutes be enough?

Dr Kirsty Fairclough-Isaacs (Chair), University of Salford (UK)
Caroline Taylor, Sparkle Productions Ltd
Rollo Goldstaub, Google Ltd / YouTube
James West, WestCreative.co
Christopher Hogg, Institute of Creative and Cultural Entrepreneurial Studies

Panel 4 – The Comedy genre at large – Stand up and so much more
At the Comedy International Conference the focus has mainly been on Live Stand Up Comedy, dipping in and out of related genres. In this final panel of the day we would like to discuss the broader market, including genres such as Sketch, Character Comedy, Stage Plays, Improv, Variety / Cabaret, Ventriloquism or Silent Comedy. In the UK Variety is currently going strong, with shows often including a stand up act on the bill. In parts of continental Europe there is still and strong Klein Kunst tradition alongside the relatively new Stand up scene and despite the rapid spread of English as a second language non-spoken Comedy is sometimes easier to break in a market. We would like exchange our knowledge in how these genres interact with Stand up, discuss how audiences developing an interest in the wider Comedy genre, how this works worldwide.

Julian Hall (Chair), Textual Healing
Adam Dahrouge, London Sketch Comedy Festival
Eric Looge, [PIAS] Comedy
Jules Munns, The Nursery Theatre Ltd
Alexander Parsonage, Finger in the Pie

Report 2015

At request of the delegates we continued to keep the doors closed for media. Media were welcome to attend and participate in the discussions, but we asked them not to report on what was said in order to enable attendees to speak freely. Though we would like to share information, we feel a lot of the content discussed is more valuable within the context of the day and we would encourage Comedy professionals to attend and participate in person. The photo gallery can viewed here.

Partners 2015

Associate Partner
eps holding gmbh

Ticketing Partner
AXS

Sponsor Drinks Reception
Brewdog

Supporters
Pleasance Theatre
The Tour Company
Storganise
Waa

Delegates 2015

Please find the delegates’ lists for 2015 below.

First Name Last Name Company Country Category
Isabelle Adam Comedy Club 4 Kids UK Producer
Krissie Akrill Plug UK Venue
Mehdi Aoustin-Sellami Royal Albert Hall UK Venue
Gavin Arnold Gavin Arnold/Chambers Mgt UK Other
Charlotte Austin CatFace Talent UK Agent
Pedja Bajovic Komedija s nogu (AETAS) HR Other
Tom Bertels Live Comedy Belgium BE Promoter
Mark Boosey British Comedy Guide UK Media
Charlie Briggs SSE Arena, Wembley UK Venue
Daniel Brown AXS UK Other
Anne-Marie Callaghan Ticketmaster UK Ltd UK Other
Joe Calnan AXS UK Other
Victoria Calvert Really Useful Theatre Group UK Venue
Phil Chippendale Big Phil UK Manager
Michael Clapham Perfect Strangers Comedy UK Promoter
Pete Coppola Billabong Comedy Club UK Promoter
Adam Dahrouge London Sketch Comedy Festival UK Festival
Wouter de Wilde Greenhouse Talent Netherlands NL Promoter
Emma Donaghy Mick Perrin Worldwide UK Promoter
Jill Edwards Jill Edwards Comedy Workshops & Comic Boom comedy club UK Promoter
Kirsty Fairclough-Isaacs University of Salford UK Other
Ben Ferris Madcap Comedy UK Promoter
Niall Forde Islington Council UK Other
Flavia Fraser-Cannon Finger in the Pie / The Nursery UK Producer
Rollo Goldstaub Google / YouTube UK Media / PR
Emily Gough EMX Mangement UK Agent
Sean Goulding United Talent Agency UK Agent
Joe Grant Bear Funny UK Venue
Martyne Green PBJ Management UK Agent
Ed Grossman Brackman Chopra LLP UK Other
Julian Hall Textual Healing UK Media / PR
Nick Handford Mick Perrin Worldwide UK Promoter
James Harrison Really Useful Theatre Group UK Venue
Kerry Herbert Stand-Up Marketing, Charity Chuckle UK Promoter
Sarah Higgins Mirth Control UK Agent
Christopher Hogg Institute of Creative and Cultural and Entrepreneurial Studies UK Other
Tom Hopewell Route37 UK Manager
Gaby Jerrard Gaby Jerrard PR UK Media / PR
Sarah Johnson Mick Perrin Worldwide UK Promoter
Rizal Kamal LOL Events Sdn Bhd MY Promoter
Sytske Kamstra BySytske Ltd UK Producer
Daniel Katanchian Avalon UK Agent
James Kelly Storganise Ltd UK Service / Support
Geoff Knight SOS Global Express UK Service / Support
Ryan Lane Warrener Stewart UK Other
Nathalie Laurent-Marke Mick Perrin Worldwide UK Agent
Janette Linden PBJ Management UK Agent
Sharon Lockyer Centre for Comedy Studies Research (CCSR) UK Other
Eric Looge [PIAS] Comedy NL Other
Carl A H Martin cahm.uk UK Consultancy
Mike McCarthy Lakin McCarthy Entertainment Ltd UK Producer
Mamie McKie The Leadmill Ltd UK Venue
Debbie McWilliams Scottish Exhibition + Conference Centre UK Venue
Elspeth Millar British Stand-Up Comedy Archive UK Other
Mai Irini Mior Anwar Mazhar LOL Events MY Promoter
Anna Modéer Wiking Anagram SE Festival
Aishah Mohammed Said Malaysia Major Events MY Other
Christopher Molineux LaughLearnLead UK Other
Vicky Morris Sue Terry Voices UK Media
Jules Munns The Nursery UK Other
Tony Nagamaiah Malaysia Convention & Exhibition Bureau MY Other
Andrew Netto LOL Events Sdn Bhd MY Promoter
Paul Newman AXS UK Other
Samuel Nunn RBM UK Agent
Beth Okogba The Leadmill Ltd UK Venue
Hannah Oldman Old Man Management Ltd UK Agent
Richard Ormond ticketscript UK Other
Alexander Parsonage Finger in the Pie UK Other
Ali Peek Plug UK Venue
Mary Pelling Luton Culture UK Venue
Alex Petty Laughing Horse UK Promoter
Jake Pickford Jake Pickford UK Other
Sara-Jane Power Royal Albert Hall UK Venue
Chris Quaile GetComedy UK Agent
Alex Rochford The Producers UK UK Producer
Kenneth Rock British Society of Comedy Writers UK Service / Support
Gary Roden Ticketmaster UK Ltd UK Other
Tim Rudland Integro Doodson UK Service / Support
Julia Safe Larmer Tree Festival UK Festival
Jeps Salfischberger MOJO concerts NL Promoter
Joe Splain Academy Music Group UK Promoter
Guy Stevens Jackanapes GmbH CH Promoter
Jurgen Strack Giving World UK Manager
Adele Taylor Ents24.com UK Media
Caroline Taylor Sparkle Productions Ltd. UK Other
Rob Taylor Plug UK Venue
Ryan Taylor The Pleasance UK Venue
Okan Tombulca eps gmbh DE Service / Support
Andy Townsend UTA UK Agent
Gil Uliamperl Sabres Group LTD IL Promoter
Susan Verlaque Scottish Exhibition + Conference Centre UK Venue
Stephen Watson Entertainment Agent UK Agent
Rachael Welsh The Lowry Theatre UK Venue
Bjorn Wentlandt Avalon Promotions, Ltd. UK Promoter
James West West Creative Ltd UK Service / Support
Ruth Weston Barclaycard Arena and Genting Arena UK Venue
Geoff Whiting Mirth Control UK Agent
Joshua Wildenberg Caustic Comedy Events NL Producer
Alice Winckle Plug UK Venue
Steve Zapp ITB UK Agent

Thanks 2015

We would like to thank everybody who made this sixth edition possible:

All comics, delegates, speakers, sponsors and volunteers, plus Sarah Aitken, Anthony Alderson, Ally Andrews, Gavin Arnold, Ashley Beckman-Whelan, Tom Bertels, Joshua Boland-Burrell, Charlie Briggs, Adam Dahrouge, Annie Day, Kirsty Fairclough- Isaacs, Ben Ferris, Jim Frayling, Raya Gancheva, Rollo Goldstaub, Emily Gough, Julian Hall, Patrick Hallett-Morley, Nick Handford, Julian Hall, Julia Heyne, Sarah Higgins, Christopher Hogg, Martin Hopewell, Erin & Dan Hull, Gaby Jerrard, Eric Looge, Carl A H Martin, Kay Martin, Rizal Kamal, Christine McKinnon, Jules Munns, Paul Newman, Lynne Parker, Alexander Parsonage, Mick Perrin, Alex Petty, Jean Paul van de Plasse, Alex Rochford, Avisar Savir, Jacob Schuhle-Lewis, Imogen Sebba, Becky Singh, Dan Smiles, Martin Steffen, Caroline Taylor, Ryan Taylor, Okan Tombulca, Josephine Tremelling, Gil Uliamperl, Brett Vincent, Marijn van der Waa, Tina Waters, Bjorn Wentlandt, James West, Hayley White, Geoff Whiting, Steve Zapp, friends, family, all staff at the Pleasance and the many others that helped to realize this event in many different ways.
Thank you all!
We look forward to seeing you all again in October 2016.

The Comedy International Conference & Showcase is produced by Sytske Kamstra BySytske Ltd