How To Make Any Idea Funny — John Vorhaus

Film Courage: What is the comic filter?

John Vorhaus, Author/Speaker/Artist/Screenwriter: Comic filteris a character’s way of viewing reality different from what reality really is. A strong comic character has an identifiable and consistent comic filter, strong in the sense that it’s completely uncompromising. I think about everything this way, examples abound. Here’s one I teach from He’s a cop, she’s a crook, together they’re law and disorder!

His comic filter is:

-Law and order (He’s a cop).

-He wants to do the right thing in all situations.

-He’s going to do the right thing.

Her comic filter is:

-Break the rules.

-I’m going to do the wrong thing.

-I’m a free spirit.

-I’m an outlaw.

-I’m a rebel.

-I’m an anarchist.

-The world is good when the rules are broken.