The Comedian’s Guide for Survival is here!

JUST FOR LAUGHS ANNOUNCES SPECIAL PREVIEW OF THE U.K.’S MOST HOTLY ANTICIPATED COMEDY FILM OF 2016: THE COMEDIAN’S GUIDE TO SURVIVAL

 FRIDAY, JULY 29, 7PM, AT CINÉMA DU PARC 

SCREENING TO BE FOLLOWED BY Q&A WITH JAMES MULLINGER, MARK MURPHY AND MIKE WARD

The world’s biggest comedy festival, Just For Laughs, is excited to announce an exclusive preview screening of The Comedian’s Guide to Survival, one of this year’s most highly anticipated comedies starring James Buckley (of The Inbetweeners fame), in the presence of writers James Mullinger and Mark Murphy (who also directed), as well as comedian Mike Ward, who is featured in the film and is already well-known to Montreal audiences as a popular host of Just For Laughs’ infamous Nasty Show. The special presentation and post-screening Q&A with cast and creators will take place at 7 PM on Friday, June 29 at Cinéma du Parc.

The Comedian’s Guide to Survival follows the fictionalized autobiographical journey of real-life comedian James Mullinger, a struggling standup comedian played by actor James Buckley (best known as one of the stars of The Inbetweeners franchise, whose first film grossed over £80 million and whose sequel had the highest ever opening in the UK for a comedy film), who is at a crossroads in his life. Despite dying on stage every night, he encounters a plethora of A-list comedians, including Gilbert Gottfried, Jimmy Carr and Mike Ward, playing themselves, who set him on the path to redemption. Portions of the film, including those featuring these well-known comedians, were shot in Montreal at the Just For Laughs festival last year.

In typical Brit-com fashion, much of the film’s hilarity arises from the pitch-perfect scenes that play up the awkwardness of Mullinger’s defeated on-screen alter ego (brilliantly captured by Buckley’s nuanced performance) against the cringe-inducing awkwardness of the crushing background scenarios he repeatedly finds himself in along his uncertain path towards stand-up success. The result is a unique blend of dark comedy and pathos that is sure to captivate audiences.

The creative team behind the film’s production includes writer/director Mark Murphy (known for his well-received drama/documentary Casanova’s Love Letters (Patrick Bergin, Armand Assante) and Awaiting (Tony Curran, Diana Vickers), an award-winning festival favourite, which received glowing reviews from the critics) and writer/comedian James Mullinger (who performed one of his earliest comedy shows at Montreal’s Comedyworks club during the Just For Laughs festival before going on to be nominated for a Canadian Comedy Award for Best Live Solo Show and hosting his own web series on Comedy Central which saw him interviewing the likes of Jerry Seinfeld, Judd Apatow, Robin Williams and Amy Schumer; in April 2016 he sold out the Saint John Harbour Station Stadium Arena, beating the sales records of both Jerry Seinfeld and Guns N’ Roses.)

Check out the list of featured comedians in The Comedian’s Guide to Survival

• Gilbert Gottfried
• Jimmy Carr
• Brendon Burns
• Mike Ward
• Mike Wilmot
• Omid Djilali
• Kevin Eldon
• James Mullinger
• Richard Sandling
• Brad Williams
• Derek Seguin
• Luenell
• Pete Zedlacher
• Carly Smallman
• Paul Kaye
• Luisa Omielan
• Mark Heap

The exclusive preview of The Comedian’s Guide to Survival will take place on July 29 at 7 PM at Cinéma du Parc, in conjunction with Just For Laughs. James Mullinger, director Mark Murphy and Mike Ward will be on hand for a Q&A following the screening. Tickets are $11.69 and are available at hahaha.com.