First showing of Edinburgh festival movie

An ultra-low budget film about comedians at the Edinburgh Fringe has received its first ever public screening.

Peacock Season was shot for just £58 – less than it cost to produce the wristbands that allowed the audience in to last night’s preview.

The film stars James Wren from sketch group Greedy as advertising executive Keith Graham who decides to become a stand-up after being sacked, along a host of comedy names who gave their time for free.

The cast includes the League Of Gentlemen’s Reece Sheersmith, who plays a bored technician; Nina Conti as Graham’s wife and owner of a comedy website called chuckle.com; Richard Glover as an interpretive dancer; and Adam Hills as an aggressive Australian stand-up in the mould of Brendon Burns.

Burns himself has a cameo role as do Rhys Darby, Richard Herring, Lucy Porter, Paul Foot and Glenn Wool as well as dozens of others.

The film, which satirises ‘gag hags’, shallow TV producers, grasping venue owners and insecure egotistical comedians, was shot on location at last year’s festival on a single camera.

Wren, who also runs London venues Lowdown at The Albany and The Hen & Chickens, wrote the script with the directors Alan Freestone and Fergus March

All three received a standing ovation from the audience of comedians and industry figures at the Assembly Hall.

Here is a trailer:

Published: 18 Aug 2009