California Comedy Conference 2006
Workshops

Attendees will get to pick four workshops after they register
Everyone will attend the "afternoon seminars"

Career Advice: Agents and Managers reveal how to get seen & signed

VIP: Barb North, Talent Manager at Brook Forest Entertainment

The big mystery of how to get an agent or manager to represent you will be revealed straight from the sort of people you want to have on speed dial.  Agents and managers hang up their Armani suits for the weekend and reveal the top 10 career killers and 10 positive actions you can take to achieve your career dream.  Practice your punchlines – you’ll have a chance to showcase your set for them at night. (afternoon seminar)

Standup:  Get away with murder: Create stand-up material that kills
VIP: Steve North, Comedy Coach and Talent Manager at Brook Forest Entertainment

Take this workshop with the man who can find your "funny" and turn it into killer material that rocks the room. Interactive and fun, the exercises and techniques in this session ensure that you leave with new material – and know how to keep writing it when you’re back home. Beginning and advanced workshops.

Marketing Comedy:  No More "Bringer" Shows

VIP: Steve Hofstetter

Are you finding people are enjoying your act, but you are having trouble

converting them into repeat fans? Want a larger reach in markets you've

never played? Need help getting organized? If you'd like to learn how to

use technology to aid your career, this seminar will teach you how to use

technology to advance your marketability and writing. We'll cover topics

from the basics of different types of programs and using them to get organized through MySpace and the ever changing online promotional

landscape.

Marketing Yourself: For Writers and Performers

VIP: Sam Horn

What do you say when people ask, "What do you do?"  Do you have a “Jerry Maguire Elevator Speech" that “has people at hello?” If not, you're losing bookings. Sam Horn, author of POP! Stand Out in Any Crowd (Perigee) doesn't waste time on theories.  She teaches fun, innovative ways to create titles, taglines, one-liners and and "Tell 'n Sell" ntroductions that help you attract interest in the crucial first 60 seconds. 

Her premise is that you're either one-of-a-kind or one-of-many.  The key to breaking out instead of blending in is to develop an identity and approach that pleasantly surprises people so they WANT to know more.  This creates a "tell-a-friend-phenomenon" which turns audience members, readers, and clients into good will ambassadors who build buzz for you and your business through word of mouth and word of mouse marketing.

Marketing:  How to Write Your Bio

VIP: Barb North, Manager

As a comedian or comedy writer, you have to have a bio that is funny. Join manager Barb North as she shows you how to weave comedy and facts into your bio so that your  promotional materials are as good as you are.

How Not to Suck as an Emcee
VIP: Dan Rosenberg, Author of "How Not to Suck as an Emcee"
Join author, comic and club booker Dan Rosenberg for a workshop that is guaranteed to change your comedy career! If you’re a new comic or a seasoned pro, this workshop will help your act! Let's face it, there are more and more comedians vying for less and less stage time. Why not give yourself an advantage? Learning to "work the room" is vital to having a successful career, and honing your hosting skills can help achieve that.

TV Pitching:  Get Your Ideas Out of Your Head and Onto the Network
VIP: Sandra Brown, Network Executive for the Style Network
Discover the secret to selling your sitcom and story ideas in Hollywood.  Every show on TV started with a good "pitch."  In this interactive workshop, learn how to present your ideas in a way that makes network executives say, "yes."

Corporate Comedy: Making the Big Bucks
VIP: Judy Carter, Speaker/Author/Coach

Join Judy Carter and Speaker Agent as they show you how to go from standup comic to corporate comic and start making big bucks.

Sitcom Writing:  If your life is a joke – it could be a sitcom
VIP: TBA
Every TV sitcom started with a pitch.  Join a veteran TV producer who will show you how your life can be turned into a hit TV sitcom. 

Improv: Getting in touch with your funny
VIP: TBA

Handle hecklers and create new material by learning to think on your feet.

College Comedy: Getting on the College Circuit
VIP: TBA

All that time goofing off as the class clown will finally pay off.  In this workshop a college agent will give you the inside scoop on what you need to audition for NACA, prepare your material and get seen by campus bookers who do co-op buying. 

Commercial Auditions : Getting into the Commercial Market
VIP: TBA

Many comics kill at a club and die on auditions.  Let a casting director show you the tricks on how to let your talent shine at auditions.

Optional One-Day Stand-up Workshops with Judy Carter

Friday, December 1 - 9:30am to 4:30pm

“I’ve been standing up for so long and boy are my jokes tired!”

Judy is teaching a one-day workshop in Palm Springs prior to the start of the conference.  This workshop is designed for anyone who wants to better understand how to turn their life experiences into standup material.  Whether you are a speaker who wants to get more laughs, or a comic who wants to punch up your material, be prepared for creative breakthroughs in a safe and supportive environment.  Included:

• creating cutting edge material
• one-on-one coaching
• exploring your comedy creativity
• identifying your persona
• performance techniques
• punching up your showcase set

Limited to the first 20 people who sign up

Optional One-Day Speaker's Workshop
with Judy Carter

Monday, December 4th - 9:30am to 4:30pm

Stay an extra day and take this exciting workshop.  In this interactive-on-your-feet workshop, Judy will show you the ins and outs of corporate comedy. Wheather you are currently a speaker who wants to get more bookings, or just want to learn more about corporate comedy, this is the workshop for you. 

There are 5 common mistakes that people do when they try to add humor to their talks:

• Big Mistake #1 - You start your speech with a joke.
• Big Mistake #2 - You think "Funny Stories" are the way to add humor to your speech.
• Big Mistake #3 - You use jokes you've gotten from joke books, or the Internet
• Big Mistake #4 - You use humor that distract from your message.
• Big Mistake #5 - You use humor that is not relateable or customized to your audience

The Top Five Secrets to making people laugh

Judy shows some very simple techniques that you can apply instantly to make your speech funny and entertaining.

• How to have a snappy opening that will hook your audience within the first minute.
• How to find the funny in your life and bring it to your speech to enhance your content.
• How to create great stories that have your audience laughing and on the edge of their seatsbring out the stories in your life that will draw your audience in
• How to create great titles for your talk that will grab the eye of Meeting Planners.
• How to drive your speech to a closing that will have the audience on their feet and running to buy your merchendise.

Limited to the first 20 people who sign up