May 26, 2012

Montreal Goes Just For Laughs

by Elissa Suh | Published July 20, 2009

Although Montreal may not stir vivid associations with laugh out loud humor or direct connections to comedy’s finest, it is home to Just For Laughs, the city’s very own international comedy festival.

The comedy extravaganza comes complete with stand-up performances, panel discussions and (most importantly to us here at MM) a film festival that screens shorts and features from directors both renowned and unknown. This year’s headliner? None other than Funny People, the latest from comedy mastermind Judd Apatow.

Chief operating officer of the festival Bruce Hills took some time to talk to MM about the 13th edition of the film festival, which runs July 23-26.

Elissa Suh (MM): How has the festival changed from when it started years ago?

Bruce Hills (BH): It’s a very different proposition now. We’ve got a much bigger event than when we started. In the early ‘80s, comedy was not the business it is today. It was just a much smaller industry, from television to live performances to movies. As time has gone on, we’ve just evolved with the industry and obviously grown substantially since our early days of two shows in one theater.

A big part of that is our film component; not only do we do big Hollywood features, but we do the best of the French world. We bring all of the blockbusters from France and Quebec, as well as big Hollywood films like last year’s Pineapple Express and this year’s Funny People. We have a nice little indie block of features as well, and the heart and soul of it is the shorts. Our festival has more comedy shorts than any festival in the world.

Early films of Etan Cohen, Jason Reitman, “South Park,” you name it—they all had films in here before they were household names.

MM: Why do you guys place such an emphasis on short films?

BH: If you’re creative, you don’t have to spend an enormous amount of money to make a short, so it doesn’t restrict. We’ve had [films screened with] budgets that were $500, we’ve had others, Pixar shorts, that cost millions. I don’t think budget dictates how funny a film is, and I think filmmakers are out there making films with everything from their phones to borrowed video equipment. [The short program] gives people from not only North America a chance to showcase their films, but it also gives the world a chance to showcase their films here. I think short films are much more accessible for people’s budgets, so I think it’s crucial.

MM: Has the festival always had a mix of big-budget and independent movies? Do you distinguish between comedies made by independent producers and major companies?

BH: It’s a good question. It’s quality of the work that matters, but we’re also trying to make sure that within the film approach, just like the stand-up portion, there’s an opportunity for people to be discovered. I’d love to have 10 huge releases but if I did, I would like to have 20 independent films. It’s always balance. We need young filmmakers coming up, hopefully getting some exposure that will benefit their careers.

We also want to help the comedians out there that have films. This year, Jim Breuer, who’s been a regular Just for Laughs guy for a very long time, has got a movie out [William Philbin’s More Than Me]; as does Bobcat Goldthwait [with World’s Greatest Dad]. We’re going to be additionally sensitive to their films because we want to support the guys who have been good to us over the years.

MM: What lead to the creation of the film festival portion of Just For Laughs?

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