Interview: Nathaniel Boggess and Arthur Bradford

Arthur Bradford is the author of the story collection Dogwalkers, and creator and director of How’s Your News?, a documentary and traveling news show.  Nathaniel Boggess is a storyteller and performer currently refining a one-man show about his terrifying dating experiences.

This Thursday, 2/25, they’ll both be part of the star-studded cast of Entertainment for People, the live performance event brought to you by the fine folks of Back Fence PDX.  You can grab tickets here, and you’ll get not only fine storytelling, but also a free saintly cupcake and some awesome libations.  What’s not to love?

We caught up with Nathaniel and Arthur on their way to the show…

Nathaniel Boggess

Q: Hi! You’re working on a one-man show about your terrible dating experiences. How much have you performed it, and what kinds of audience reaction have you gotten? Has performing the piece helped develop it? Is it still changing, or do you pretty much have it locked down?

A: Yes, I’m fine-tuning a one-man show called “This Is Not A Date…” It’s based on the true stories of my terrible dating experiences, primarily since I’ve moved here to PDX. I’m working it out and taking it on the road later this year, down through California and over to NYC, DC and someone I know in Richmond just contacted me and said they’d like to put on a show there as well which is very exciting.

So far I’ve performed pieces of it at Back Fence PDX events and at 12 Minutes Max in Seattle. I’ve performed it in full at the Someday Lounge here in town and so far the audience reactions have been great.  Lots of laughing and gasps. It’s still changing a little. I’m still getting comfortable with being uncomfortable and with sharing excruciatingly personal details of my life for others’ enjoyment.

Q: You’ve talked on your blog about studying and learning to write comedy.  How are you tackling this? Have you had any teachers, or anyone who’s recommending performers or writers to you? If you had to bullet-point a technique, tell me: how do you write funny?

A: Jesus. that’s an incredibly difficult subject. I haven’t had any writing teachers for comedy and since my show is made of true stories I just tell the story as truthfully as I can, and let the audience decide if it’s funny or sad or ridiculous. It’s been working out great so far.

But as far as learning to write, I’ve been watching a LOT of stand-up comedy. Learning what I like and don’t like and studying the way that comedians talk about things and think about things. My friends and I are always recommending things to one another. Someone just recommended Asscat by the Upright Citizens Brigade and it was the funniest thing I’ve ever seen. I’ve never ever laughed so hard. I really like Louis CK and I felt that the movie Comedian about Jerry Seinfeld was incredibly truthful.

And while I don’t think I necessarily want to do stand up I’m really excited about learning about and studying it. I’ve been to a couple open mic’s in town and the thing that is the funniest is when people are just themselves. So that’s what I’m learning to do, be myself and talk about what I think and what’s happened to me in front of total strangers.

But if I had to give pointers on what I did, I would say:  Step 1. Be from an incredibly small town in a backwards and dysfunctional state. Step 2. Grow up liking the exact opposite of everything around you. Step 3. Move 2500 miles from every person you’ve ever known to a town full of complete strangers which is socially and culturally the opposite of everything you’ve ever known. Step 4. Spend 7 years getting WASTED and making mistakes that, while crushing at the time, later provide the fodder for a one person show. It’s so easy that anyone could do it!

Q: Your work is (so far) based very much in your own life experiences, and you’ve commented on your interest in memoir as a genre. Are there memoirs that have influenced your work, or opened up new ways of performing? Can you ever see yourself sitting down and writing essay or memoir like (say) David Sedaris or Augusten Burroughs?

A: I haven’t undertaken that yet, but it’s definitely something that I’ve been thinking a ton about. And I’ve read a few for sure. I loved Steve Martin’s Born Standing Up. Dan Kennedy has a couple of amazing books and Kevin Sampsell’s A Common Pornography is amazing.

Again, the movie Comedian was a very honest look at what Jerry Seinfeld did to make it and sort of forced me to be honest with myself about how much work I have to do, but it also gave me a lot of hope. Conan O’Brien’s last show as the host of The Tonight Show was also incredibly inspiring when he talked about his life with NBC and how cynicism works against you.

Mostly I have learned what I didn’t like from the one-person shows that I’ve seen. But yes one day I’ll write a memoir, though it might be more tragedy than comedy.

Q: When you’re on stage, you’re telling stories out loud. What do you think drives the story along, and keeps the audience with you? Have you tried writing fiction, or plays? Any thoughts on what makes writing stand-up or improv or theater pieces different from writing, say, a novel?

A: Well the storytelling itself is really what makes it good. I mean, you could tell people that “you got into a fight your first new years eve here” or you could relay the story that I did at Backfence. The details are important, but keeping the story moving is also important. I just try to tell a story that I would want to hear.

I haven’t yet written a play, but I have written a novel about my grandfather that has yet to be published. He was a robber in 1929 and went to jail for some time before having my dad and his own family. I am turning that into a screenplay and while it’s based on a true story everyone that was there is dead, so I’ve had to fictionalize it to some degree.

I think the biggest thing is length. Pacing is really important and your audience is really important. Someone reading a novel goes in with a different commitment that someone that goes to see improv. The same goes for the writer too. And they’re just really different muscles that you’re using. Describing the room that my grandfather probably would have had in 1929 when he and his brothers were robbing drugstores is really different than creating a character out of suggestions from an improv audience. But both are really exciting and interesting to me.

Q: What are you reading right now? What’s the funniest book on your shelf (or in the library)? Whose stand-up do you dig? What’s the worst book someone could recommend to you on a first date?

A: Oh man, I’m always reading too many things. I have like 5 books on my night stand. The Life and Letters of John Brown, In Cold Blood, the Meisner Technique, A Common Pornography and on and on… Actually I don’t think that I really read funny books that much. I prefer to watch or listen to funny instead of read it. The delivery adds so much.

I absolutely LOVE stand up. Louis CK is my favorite. I love Mitch Hedburg, Jerry Seinfeld, John Cappurallo (probably spelling that wrong), Mitch Fatel, Chris Rock, Patton Oswold, Jenean Garafollo, Bill Cosby, Tracy Morgan… I think that probably Tina Fey and Amy Poehler are two of the funniest people ever. They are the Michael Jordans of Comedy.

I try to watch a couple of movies and some stand up every week. Take notes and learn. My favorite funny things of all time are the movie Bad Boys II (seriously it’s so goddamn funny) and right now Asscat and anything that Louis CK appears in. Also if he’s written any books I would recommend that. The worst book that someone could recommend is probably any book of poetry. I think poetry is dumb.

Arthur Bradford

Q: Hi! At Entertainment for People on Thursday, you’ll be talking about your experience making an indie documentary (and then an MTV series) starring reporters with disabilities doing man-on-the-street interviews. How do audiences react when they see this material for the first time? What range of reactions have you had, and how do you respond?

A: The vast majority of people who take the time to watch the documentaries we’ve made come away with a positive feeling about the material. Many find it funny and uplifting. Occasionally we get media or individuals who find out about the concept, hear that there’s humor involved and that there’s a South Park connection (Matt Stone and Trey Parker are executive producers), and get upset.

I understand completely why some people would have concerns, but I’m very confident that if one takes a thoughtful look at the material you can see that we are coming from a good place here. I’ve known most of the stars of our films for over 15 years now. All of the people with disabilities involved, and their families, are very proud of the work we’ve done. They want it to be seen and enjoyed by as many people as possible. Sometimes I get a little frustrated that anyone would think they were being helpful in trying to deny them such an opportunity.

Q: You’re both a fiction writer and a documentary filmmaker. Can you say a little bit about those two impulses–to create fiction, and to communicate a vision of the real world we live in? What feels different (or the same) about telling stories in these two ways?

A: I feel like I could answer that question in two completely opposite ways. But I always find it annoying when someone answers a question like that, trying to take both sides.

So I’ll say that fiction writing does have a lot of similarities to documentary filmmaking, mainly in that you are trying to create a story out of elements you’ve observed in real life, but in the end you must inject your own flavor. There’s been a lot of blurring of the lines in fiction and non-fiction, both in the literary and the filmmaking world.  I often find it interesting to watch documentaries, or reality tv, and try to figure out what parts are not really genuine. And likewise I enjoy watching narrative films and looking for bits of documentary.

The same goes with fiction and non-fiction writing. Even in fantasy, sci-fi type stuff it’s fun to try to figure out what elements are derived from real life.

Q: Filmmaking seems like an essentially collaborative activity, and writing seems like an essentially solitary one. What’s your experience been of both collaborating and working solo? Advantages, disadvantages? Are there aspects of the work that you wish you could transport from one genre to the other?

A: I think the reason I’ve pursued filmmaking and TV more consistently than writing is this exact thing you are asking about, the collaborative nature. It’s not so much that I love working with other people, although that is fun, it’s mostly that you can’t procrastinate so much once other people are involved.

We worked very hard for an extended period of time on the MTV series. There were many times I would’ve been happy to take a long break or even forget the whole idea. But I couldn’t because there was this whole team of people waiting for me to decide what the plan was. So I got it done.

I’ve only written one book and it was a short story collection. I’ve been trying to finish a novel for some time and while I know I can do it, sometimes it feels a little too difficult and I start looking for something a little less uncomfortable. Meanwhile I’ve published lots more short stories because they time commitment was less and I had deadlines on them which had to be met. I guess I wouldn’t mind a few more enforced deadlines in the book writing process.

Q: What are you reading right now? What’s waiting on your nightstand? What’s your favorite guilty-pleasure novel? If you could magically make movie deals happen, which director would option which book, and what would you most look forward to seeing in it?

A: I’m reading The Wild Things right now, by Dave Eggers. I got the furry version for Christmas. It’s very good. Next I want to re-read Watership Down by Richard Adams. My father read it to us as children and now that I have kids I’ve been especially interested in this kind of literature.

I re-read Stuart Little the other day. What a funny book! There’s humor in that book which most kids would never catch. I’d like to see Harmony Korine option that book and have Tom Cruise play Stuart Little. No animation, just people in animal costumes.