Funny Tweets is a 2018 documentary about a cashier manager whose ‘Funny Tweets’ help him connect with the ‘Conan’ star and the writers of ‘Family Guy’ and ‘The Simpsons’.
Woody Allen once sad, “I think being funny is not anyone’s first choice.” Those who are funny probably discover it early on and get a few laughs in school and such, with a few maybe recognizing it’s a path to a career. For most though, and for nearly all of human history, being funny was a thing you did in small places, with a friend, a few co-workers, a club in town if you were any good, and even in the era of television, maybe a five-minute bit that you hoped viewers would remember. In the age of the internet of course, things began to change, and by the time Twitter burst on the scene, being funny meant you could be funny anywhere at any time. And you could reach millions of people instantly. It leveled the playing field.
Director Laurie McGuinness‘s new film Funny Tweets is a brief examination of this growing phenomenon, where people are truly connecting people in ways not possible before. It’s an era where you not only can say something about a famous person, but that person can know about it immediately and respond right back. It’s like nothing before, and for some, has changed their lives. Regular ‘Joe’ Twitter users are suddenly getting noticed and because so, earning new opportunities they might never have had otherwise. This is where Funny Tweets begins.
Basically an hour of talking heads reminiscing on their Twitter experiences and how it shifted them into a community of enthusiasts of like minds – with many rising from there into a lucrative jobs as writers for comedy shows and such – Funny Tweets is, as expected funny, but also a little enlightening. Conan O’Brien‘s Andy Richter is the most familiar face, a very popular tweeter as well, who serves as the sounding board for dozens of newcomers who emerged on the medium as genuinely funny people, including a cashier at a pharmacy in Canada who got discovered for his jokes on Twitter and now lives in LA as a comedy writer.
Tracking the history of the short written gag, the film rightfully recalls the works of Emo Phillips to Jack Handey, being sure to note some earlier masters of the art, including Dorothy Parker and Winston Churchill, all who would have surely made Twitter a home for their humor. It’s a nice little reflective segment that reminds us that being funny and getting recognized has always been there but that now, you could live in the most remotest place on the planet and still be on the world’s stage. All the rules have changed. But it ain’t all good. Theft? Yes. Ever hear of internet outrage?
While Funny Tweets doesn’t really have anything about it that will feel revealing, after all, if you’re good at something and get noticed, you’re going to do well. Duh. However, it’s a little inspiring and perhaps will get some to write more. Mixing in lots of actual tweets that pop up on screen and giving some history to a few that made waves, Funny Tweets is a small film, intimate and personal, its production maybe not so big but its motivations otherwise. If you’re a fan of laughing online, it’s cool to see some faces behind the names tell their stories. Recommended.
Funny Tweets releases on December 4th.