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How Just for Laughs Montreal Festival Has Boosted Comedic Careers

In days of yore, the best opportunity for a stand-up comedian to break out was to be tapped by Johnny Carson’s team for a “Tonight Show” slot. Getting invited to the couch afterward was a whole other level. By the 1990s, Carson was done and while there were other coveted late-night slots (David Letterman, Conan O’Brien), another star-maker had emerged: the Just for Laughs Montréal Festival.

The comedy fest — which takes place July 14-29 and features solo shows by Ali Wong, Ronny Chieng and Anthony Jeselnik — was born 40 years ago and for decades it has been the place to be seen, with its New Faces showcase attracting a swarm of industry executives and acting as a launching pad for up-and-coming talent. 

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“Immediately after I walked off the stage, the booker from ‘The Tonight Show’ said, ‘Save that set, we want it on the show,’” recalls Jo Koy. “I was still a shoe salesman at that point, so it felt like a scene from a movie.”

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Chieng had a similar experience years later. “When I was in Australia, we would hear about Just for Laughs and all our comedy heroes going there,” he says. “When I got invited for the first time in 2012 it was a huge deal for me, and it essentially launched my career — I met Trevor Noah and my U.S. agents there.”

The comedy landscape has changed rapidly and dramatically in recent years. There are plenty of rival festivals in New York, Los Angeles, Austin and beyond, and many comedians can create their own exposure and move their own product on social media. They can book their own tours and create podcasts and produce their own comedy specials. 

Still, managers and comedians alike argue that Just for Laughs remains more than just relevant, it remains vital: it attracts comedians at every stage of their career, club owners and tour promoters, managers and agents, directors and showrunners. Kevin Hart’s “LOL” launched at JFL, using it as a platform to find the industry’s next screenwriters. Meta shot its first fully immersive VR comedy special here last year (“Surrounded”). 

“All the change doesn’t alter the need for networking, conversations and community,” says Robyn Kaszor, VP of festivals, who has been with JFL for 18 years. “This is the meeting place mecca.”

While JFL has often been called a “summer camp for comedians,” Chieng says it’s more than just a fun party. “It’s like a comedy convention. It remains relevant because it’s the only chance for people to gather in that kind of setting in North America.” 

Margaret Cho agrees that the social aspect is huge, but says there are additional benefits of the event as “an industry-wide check-in, to seeing what’s happening and who’s happening and what trends you want to pay attention to.”

Just for Laughs president Bruce Hills, who has been with the company for 35 years, says the key to remaining relevant is “discoverability.”  

New Faces of Comedy remains an important measuring stick for comics, Chieng says. “It’s hard to know where you’re going and how you’re doing but JFL gives comics something to aspire to,” he says. “If you do this, it’s a step forward and an indication you’re on the right path.” 

To maintain that foundation has meant expanding it, Hills says, pointing out that while New Faces of Comedy used to be just one stand-up showcase, it has expanded into an entire franchise. “It’s important for our relationship with the industry to bring the widest range of talent,” Hills says. 

The rising star showcases include New Faces Characters (“the chance for future ‘SNL’ cast members to be seen,” says Hills) and New Faces Creators (a panel discussion that “gives people without a stand-up set another avenue to  let them shine in front of the industry,” per Kaszor) plus New Faces Unrepped, New Faces Canada and New Faces International.

“We want to be sure Canada gets covered properly,” Hills says, “and we want comedians from all corners of the world to get the exposure they deserve.”

Even beyond New Faces, JFL has expanded its repertoire, booking more solo shows and bringing in stand-ups, sketch performers, podcasters and others from all over the globe. “It’s not just people from the States and not just from comedy clubs — they could be Off Broadway or they could be at the comedy festival in Australia or they could be online stars when we find them,” he says, adding that he even looks to invite people who run festivals they compete with to the event.

“This is why the industry knows they should be here—we have executives from Netflix, Apple, Amazon, HBO Max, looking for stars that speak to the world.”

Tim Sarkes, co-head of comedy for Brillstein Entertainment Partners, says all that expansion pays off. “As representatives, we try to stay in front of up-and-coming talent wherever they are, but the festival does a great job of curating the best of them, making it a real draw to go up and scout,” he says.

The secret sauce in this festival is the city itself, everyone agrees. “It’s an opportunity for comedians to hang together but also to meet with the industry on a kind of neutral ground that’s not Los Angeles or New York,” says Cho.

Kaszor says it’s easy for everyone to connect because the festival is kept to one main area. 

“There are 27 venues within five blocks, plus five-star hotels and great restaurants,” Hills adds. “Fans get to see comics walking to their shows. You might see Jason Reitman or Judd Apatow wandering around looking for talent. That communal sense is the most important part of what we do.”

Sarkes says that while other festivals may have as many or more shows and comedians, they are by nature more diffuse. 

“The New York Comedy Festival is great and exciting but it’s for fans, it’s a direct-to-consumer festival without a hub,” he says. “Some of the best times here are breakfast with comedians or others in the industry. And they treat the industry like kings and queens here.”

The comedians get treated “like royalty” too, says Koy. “No town embraces stand-up comedy like Montréal with Just for Laughs. The whole town goes crazy.”

The exuberant Koy says the ultimate coronation is getting picked for one of the Just for Laughs honors at the annual awards ceremony. “It was really special when they gave me comedian of the year,” he says. “It’s like the Oscars for comedy.”

Chieng, this year’s breakout comedy star of the year honoree, maintains that the awards are “not the be-all and end-all,” for a group of performers who by their very nature are skeptical of
the establishment. 

Still, he says, he is excited to have reached this plateau. 

“I’m not saying people need to respect me more because I got an award at Just for Laughs,” he says, “but it’s a huge honor for me because of what the festival has meant to me.” 

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