Now available in the iTunes Store: Wild Girls Gone, an Upright Citizen Brigade feature movie starring Amy Poehler, Matt Walsh, Ian Roberts and Matt Besser. It’s $9.99 to buy; $2.99 to rent.
Here’s a plot summary:
Watch the Wild Girls Gone trailer! In the Spring Break capital of White Sands, Florida, Sheriff Terry Moran (Matt Walsh) outlaws the town’s world famous Ass Contests in a bid to win the elderly votes in his campaign for mayor – even though he is married to the town’s former Ass Contest Queen, Doreen (Amy Poehler). Unhappy with how her husband and her town is changing Doreen breaks out of her bored drunk housewife existence to recapture her youth and sabotage her husband’s campaign. Meanwhile Stevie (Ian Roberts) a video store clerk and aspiring documentary filmmaker gets goaded into making a movie about Spring Break by his scheming stoner friend Ray (Matt Besser). But Stevie’s loft ambitions for a documentary about human behavior are constantly derailed by Ray’s offensive behavior, shady connections and criminal acts.
When we first met Arnold in “The Camel‘, Tom Haverford accused him of making a piece of art that looked “like a lizard puking up Skittles.” Some time later, Tom actually analyzed it and found there was a lot to like about it. (So many shapes!).
Below is a Q&A I conducted with Doug Jones, who played Arnold in last week’s Parks and Recreation episode. Enjoy!
All of your screen time in “The Camel” was spent working alongside the hilarious Aziz Ansari. Explain what that was like.
It was great, Aziz is hilarious. I loved watching him on MTV’s Human Giant but he really won me over when I saw him headline a stand-up show at the Punchline in San Francisco earlier this year. It’s inspiring to me because he’s so new to acting yet he’s funnier than some comedians who have been in the business for several decades. So watching him rehearse, and try things different ways with various takes… it was all a very good learning experience for me.
Did either you or Aziz improv anything in your scenes together?
Totally, once they got what they needed as far as shooting what was in the script they let us take it wherever we wanted. That was my favorite part of the day for me because that’s when I relaxed and started having fun. At one point Aziz was serenading me with a Jamie Foxx impersonation. That being said, what you saw on the show is pretty much exactly what was written in the script, except for “It looks like a lizard puking up Skittles!” which was something Aziz came up with.
What were your experiences like on set when the cameras weren’t rolling?
The entire experience of working on a TV show like this was very new and exciting as I’ve only done commercials up until this point. Everyone behind-the-scenes seemed to care about what they were doing and the director Millicent Shelton was incredibly friendly and really put me at ease. When we wrapped at the end of the day everyone said goodbye and patted me on the back, even though it was a small role they made me feel like I was part of the team.
Who would you say you were most thrilled in meeting/working with during your time on Parks and Recreation?
Unfortunately the scenes with Aziz and I were shot at the very end of the day so by the time I got to the set everybody had pretty much gone home. I didn’t get to meet any of the other cast members except for Aubrey Plaza who was still lingering around shooting the scenes where she was digging through the dumpster putting her “Multimedia piece” together. Aubrey was really nice and so was everyone else I got a chance to meet.
I see you do work for Upright Citizens Brigade. How did you get involved with the sketch comedy group, and what do you do for it?
About five years ago I read an interview with Will Arnett and he talked about going to see Amy Poehler perform ASSSSCAT at UCB New York. I didn’t know exactly what ASSSSCAT was, but I bought tickets to see them perform at an improv festival in L.A out of curiosity and my life was forever changed. When the UCB theatre opened in Hollywood in summer of 2005 I decided to give it a shot and signed up for one of the first rounds of classes. It has been said by many others but it’s worth repeating, anybody who is interested in acting or comedy must take improv classes and learn how to write their own material and the best place to do that is Upright Citizens Brigade.
Do you have any upcoming projects we should be aware of?
Last week I worked on a short film called “The Big Dog” directed by Eric Appel. It’s being produced by Funny Or Die (the comedy video Web site founded by Will Ferrell and Adam McKay) and it’s going to be 20 minutes long so it’s one of the biggest project they’ve done to date. My part is very small but I got to work with Bob Odenkirk, one of my comedy heroes, so I can’t complain!
Thanks, Doug! To keep tabs on Doug, feel free to follow him on Twitter @hey_doug.
On November 3, Aziz Ansari will align with Todd Glass, Moshe Kasher, Sara Benincasa and more for Comedy Death-Ray at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre in Hollywood. Tickets for the event are just $5.
Here’s the official description:
“The world’s best comedy night!” Comedy Death-Ray originated in 2002 and is the brainchild of performers / creators Scott Aukerman & BJ Porter (Mr. Show). It’s a unique mix of stand-up comedy, characters & sketch that brought a sense of fun back to Los Angeles’ alternative comedy scene. CDR is the place to see today’s comedy greats (Bob Odenkirk, Patton Oswalt, David Cross, Louis CK, etc.) and tomorrow’s innovators play in an ever-changing “anything can happen” environment!
Here’s the basics: What: Comedy Death-Ray When: Tuesday, November 3 @ 8:30 p.m. Where: Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre Los Angeles Address: 5919 Franklin Ave., Hollywood, CA 90028 Phone: (323) 908-8702 Cost: $5 | Get tickets
On November 7, Aziz Ansari and Paul Scheer will co-host an event at Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre in Hollywood that’s specifically designed to analyze R. Kelly’s “Trapped in the Closet” music video.
Aziz and Paul will be joined by a guest panel. Previous panelists for the event have included David Cross, Rob Riggle, Stephanie Weir and others.
Here’s the official description:
Join Rolling Stone’s “Hot Stand-Up” Aziz Ansari, Best Week Ever’s Paul Scheer and a special guest panel as they view and discuss R. Kelly’s un-ironic hip-hopera, TRAPPED IN THE CLOSET, also known as “the most unintentionally hilarious music video of all time.”
Here’s the basics: What: Trapped in the Closet When: Saturday, November 7 @ 10 p.m. Where: Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre Los Angeles Address: 5919 Franklin Ave., Hollywood, CA 90028 Phone: (323) 908-8702 Cost: $8 | Get tickets
Aziz Ansari will be dropping by Whiplash at Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre in New York on Monday, October 26. The show, hosted by Leo Allen, starts at 11 p.m.
Here’s the basics: What: Whiplash (hosted by Leo Allen) When: Monday, October 26 @ 11 p.m. Where: Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre New York Address: 307 W. 26th St., New York, NY 10001 Phone: (212) 366-9176 Cost: FREE! | Make a Reservation
Harris Wittels, writer of “The Practice Date“, presents a night of comedy with Armen Weitzman on October 25 at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theater in Los Angeles.
According to the UCB Theater Web site:
Armen Weitzman and Harris Wittels present an evening of live humor and in-depth interviews with their comedy friends. This is a night of epic feelings. We are always laughing at the UCB, but what if we were life-ing? I’d say it would be pretty different than the other nights. Come experience life.
Special guests include Ron Perlman (Sons of Anarchy), Steven Weber (Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip), Ron Lynch and Jarrett Grode.
Tickets are just $5!
Here’s the basics: What: The Badger’s Promise When: Sunday, October 25 @ 9:30 p.m. Where: Upright Citizens Brigade Theater Address: 5919 Franklin St., Hollywood, CA Cost: $5 | Get Tickets
Jason Woliner, who directed last week’s Parks and Recreation episode, “Beauty Pageant“, is hosting a night of secret videos and TV shows — called Please Someone Murder Me! — on October 26 at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theater. The videos feature Patton Oswalt, Rob Huebel, Rob Riggle, Paul Scheer and other comedians.
Jason Woliner (director of “Human Giant”, “Parks and Recreation”, other things) presents a night of secret videos and TV shows that have not yet been released and/or maybe never will be. I am not supposed to elaborate on exactly what this stuff is but trust me you will probably enjoy it!!
Tickets are just $5 and Jason promises special guests!
Here’s the basics: What: Please Someone Murder Me! When: Monday, October 26 @ 11 p.m. Where: Upright Citizens Brigade Theater Address: 5919 Franklin St., Hollywood, CA Cost: $5 | Get Tickets
This VIP card gives you exclusive access to the investment opportunity of a lifetime. Where? Multipurpose room F. When? 3 p.m. Dress code? Black tie optional. Just like life.
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