The Practical Process: Approaching a Project

This blog will address my methods in approaching the beginning of a creative process and the elements I aim to establish within the first steps of birthing a project.

When I first began approaching this practical research project in May 2019, I had a number of topics I considered addressing. These included -

- The 'Women aren't funny' movement

- The difficulty of breaking into the theatre/musical theatre industry as an unconventional woman

- A research project focusing on the decreasing percentage of successful creators that come from working-lower class backgrounds

I first began research into the first concept, as this was the issue I felt most inspired by and drawn to as it was relevant in the creative sphere that I am most engaged in. The following notes were made as a first response, prose 'mindmap' I created in mind of the possibility of going further with this concept.

"I would mainly look at how the conventions of comedy lend themselves towards a male, which has led to a spectator expecting to be more entertained and enjoy comedy more delivered by a male."

"The difficulty of the female comic figure breaking away from the stereotyped characters of the unattractive, funny, sidekick-like female"

"Look at the modern breakthrough of plots circulating around women in comedy films and television series e.g. 'Derry Girls', 'The Marvellous Ms Maisel', 'Miranda'"

"Recent revolutionising of women in comedy roles being perceived as attractive, loved and sexual, compared to the fat, bubbly woman who would always be found in platonic relationships and as an accessory to a leading female"

"In films, 'funny' women or characters are usually given a makeover before being seen as able to find love, insinuating that a change is necessary in order to make these women loveable and deemed attractive. This is the concept of the comedic qualities of a female never being enough or seen as more appealing over someone possessing more traditional, attractive attributes"

"Assumptions that women in comedy resent / hate men and use that as a tool for generating material as that is all they can talk about"

"If female comedians don't take this stance then their comedy material is usually based around the theme of sex"

"This shows that females struggle to create comedic content that doesn't revolve around men"

"New era of comedy where females optimise both of these attitudes without relying on male presence in order to produce material"