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CEDAR HILLS — The success of "Studio C" is serious business. This month marks three years since the comedy show filmed its pilot, back in April 2012.
Today, "Studio C" gets an average of 300,000 views per sketch.
“It’s been very surprising. When we approached BYUtv, we thought let’s do this for fun — maybe they’ll let us do one season,” said Mallory Everton, an actress on "Studio C." “The fact that we’re doing season six now is really exciting.”
The cast consists of 10 actors and actresses, all former BYU students and co-writers of the show.
Behind the faces of the show lie at least 100 other crew members. They put in countless hours into the success of each show.
“People would probably be surprised by how long it takes to edit a sketch,” said Spencer Coakwell, an editor for "Studio C." “I’d say it takes about 20 hours to edit a 3-5 minute sketch.”
"Studio C" producer Jared Shores says the sketches are in smaller segments similar to the format style of "Saturday Night Live."
“One sketch (is) easily a 12-hour day,” said Shores.
"Studio C" actor Matt Meese says people might be surprised how much time it takes for a production to get set.
“Sometimes it takes hours,” said Meese. “There’s a lot that goes into it. For every shot you see, it probably took 30 minutes to light it. Maybe even longer.”
Everton says production can even take up to a year.
“All the sketches we are writing for season six will air in September,” said Everton. “But we started writing last September, so it’s a ton of work.”
Everton, Meese and the rest of the "Studio C" cast originally came from a BYU comedy club called Divine Comedy.
Meese says he believed Divine Comedy was ready for a bigger stage.
“We heard BYUtv was looking for new content, so I said, ‘here’s our chance,’ ” said Meese.
Photo credit: Jen Jacobson/KSL.com
Meese approached Shores, a BYUtv director. Meese says their comedy was easy to sell because Shores could easily come watch one of Divine Comedy’s shows.
"Studio C" is currently working on a sketch about proms. Everton says she wrote it to poke fun at the pressure women have to wear the perfect dress.
“I thought it would be fun to do a piece about woman feeling glamorous in really hideous (outfits),” said Everton.
“In this sketch, it’s the quintessential prom moment: the reveal of the girl coming down the stairwell and the first time the guys see their date,” said Shores. “Each reveal is very surprising because (the outfits) are crazy.”
Shores says fans can expect this particular sketch to be shared via YouTube sometime in June.
In addition to their 12-hour days on location, the cast of "Studio C" constantly brainstorm ideas for their next production.
“They kind of come from everywhere,” said Everton. “We get ideas from joking around. We (also) watch a lot of TV and movies together. We also love good drama. Sometimes I get my best ideas from watching things that take themselves really seriously. It’s fun to take something comedic very seriously.”
While the team is small, it's full of talent.
“We’re grateful for all the outside help we get but we’re functioning with a really small team,” said Everton.
After years of working together, "Studio C" members consider themselves as family.
“To be able to work with people that I really love and care about, to be creative and share the same standards … (it’s) a dream come true,” said Meese.
“We’re like family now. It’s been really incredible to work with people you love,” said Everton.
Everton says the crew would love to do a movie, a TV show or a sitcom someday and thanks her fans for allowing everyone of the cast members to dream big.
“Our goal is to keep growing and get the word out that we’re providing family friendly comedy for everyone,” said Shores. “Our hope is that we gain more fans and followers.”
In addition to new experiments this season, Shores says fans can expect old characters from previous shows and new collaborations with friends from YouTube.
“We’re really thankful for our fans,” said Shores. “We couldn’t be happier with what we’re able to do.” Email: jjacobson@ksl.com Web: Jen-Jacobson.com
