Funny Name of a Funny Show Created by a Funny Guy

On a recent bitter cold morning in Keene, The Keene Sentinel visited the set of a new sketch television show, created by Keene resident James Michael Farley of Jargon Media Farm, LLC. That day included a 12-hour production shoot at the Savings Bank of Walpole where Pam Wilson, Branch and Business Development Manager said, "The wellbeing of our neighbors is what we do. We just celebrated our 150th anniversary and we did 150 good deeds, so this is a continuation of us doing good deeds within our community; supporting artists and culture. We were glad to donate the space to James for this project. They've been wonderful and such a joy to work with." Approximately 50 cast and crew are involved in this production including the creator, actors, a director, director of photography, an assistant cameraman, writers, gaffers (lighting specialists), social media liaison, hair and make-up, etc. The Sentinel caught up with James Farley, 36, who grew up in Antrim and moved to Keene 17 years ago. We learned more about this Untitled Sketch Show* which is in production now. He goes by James but uses his middle name Michael professionally – which is a nod to his late father. Victoria Chertok: Hello James! What brought you to Keene initially? James Farley: I was working at Circuit City and after they closed, I got a job at AT&T. I worked at that location until 2020 and then I went into corporate sales and marketing, doing training videos. V.C.: Did you do theater in high school or college? J.F.: I did not. I did one theater class in high school but was too focused on computers, the internet and being a class clown. When I was 20, I was planning to go to L.A. and move in with a friend, and we were going to be in Groundlings (a theater company) together. Saturday Night Live (SNL) pulls a lot of their famous people from Groundlings, so that was kind of the trajectory. And I really like making people laugh and be happy, because I know what it's like to be sad. V.C.: Then what happened? J.F.: My father had a brainstem stroke a couple months before I was supposed to move to L.A., so he was paralyzed from the eyes down for the rest of his life. So, I stuck around to help my mom and sister. I wanted to get my dad settled, and make sure he was taken care of. By the time my father passed in 2018, I started getting promoted at AT&T and was like, "Maybe this is the life I'm supposed to live?" Then I got laid off at AT&T in July 2024 and because I was with them for so long, I got severance and a pension. I had the ability to invest in myself. I commuted to New York to start taking comedy classes at a different theater company. V.C.: The Upright Citizens Brigade, right? J.F.: Yeah, that's another theater company that SNL historically pulls from. I was more course correcting at the time. Before I got laid off, I did a short film in 2023 and it reminded me that this is absolutely what I want to do. I had that starter background in movies on top of making training videos; basically I made sketches in their own right. I've done a couple of other short films here and there. I did a role for something called The Item, which was a horror-comedy spoof that filmed in Pennsylvania for eight weekends. V.C.: What was your experience like at Upright Citizens Brigade? J.F.: It was super welcoming and super intimidating. I did a total of six full workshops. I did Improv 101 through 401 and sketch writing 101 and 201 within the span of six months, which is not the norm. V.C.: What exactly is a sketch? J.F.: A sketch is more than a skit; it's more than a bit. Summed up, a sketch is a three- to five-minute contained scene of either character-based comedy, where someone is going over the top, and they're considered the unusual thing, or there's a situation that is the unusual thing. A sketch will take the premise of a joke and, in a formulaic sense, you want it to have three escalations to it. Within the first minute you set up what the joke is, the second and third minute, you play on that joke and you go a little bit bigger, and then on the third or fourth minute, you really close out that joke, and then you just kind of hit it hard home. V.C.: Let's talk about your current project: Untitled Sketch Show*, an eight-episode digital series. How long are the episodes? J.F.: Each episode will be about 24 minutes. The eight-episode format was fairly on brand for what most streaming networks are putting out these days. The goal of it … is to try and sell the entire project to a streaming service. The streamers call it Indie TV. The whole thing with the sketch show is very similar to sketch shows that I grew up with, like "Kids in the Hall" or "Mad TV." SNL is probably the most known sketch show of all time and then below that, there's not really a lot going on. I am just trying to fill that void, because if I can't get on SNL, I'm basically just going to make my own SNL. V.C.: Where did you find your actors and members of your production crew? J.F.: I've met a lot of the actors in short films I've worked on, comedians and writers from improv or writing classes in New York and they have friends who they refer. There are so many hungry young comedians, artists and actors at this level that are waiting for their shot. I've also pulled some people from Improv Asylum in Boston. V.C.: Who are some of your comedic influences? J.F.: Bill Murray, John Candy. I was big into the troupe Kids in the Hall growing up; I used to watch a lot of sketch TV with my dad. Will Forte, Will Ferrell and Robin Williams. V.C.: What are the main ingredients needed in a sketch to make it work? J.F.: First and foremost, you need to talk to your writers. They need to take feedback on a joke or work with others to kind of evolve the joke. I think with the sketch show we had about 20 different writers who have touched at least some part of this in some way or another. Actors will come, in my opinion, a close second to writers. Once you have those two things, then it is going to come down to the crew and the director. And when you have actors who are also doing the writing, something will come up on set, and you have to jump on that and work very hard to capture that moment. Sketches for us are about 95% written, plus 5% improv that comes in and helps really sell it. V.C.: Any closing thoughts? J.F.: I just wanted to thank everyone that has helped me in production so far and for their continued efforts every time we're on set. From amazing writers, talented actors and a bodacious crew, I wouldn't be nearly as far along with this project without their help. Making TV takes a village and, in my opinion, I've assembled the best villagers for it. V.C.: Thanks, James! Where can people go to find out more about your production? J.F.: Thank you! My social media liaison would be upset if I didn't plug our Instagram: @untitledsketchshowtv, and the official production company website that is currently under construction: www.jargonmediafarm.com. Be on the lookout for some advertising when the show gets ready to premiere later this year.