Comedy Series of the Year: The Bitter End

As it turns out, the future of Canadian comedy resides in Montreal. Improv troupe The Bitter End proved it this year with their hilarious and dark six episode web series, made entirely D.I.Y. and on the cheap. All actors who contributed to 2008’s Quebecois cult hit Who Is KK Downey?, The Bitter End follows the Mille End-situated exploits of brothers Bernard (Daniel Beirne) and Les (Brent Skagford) with an Odd Couple chemistry matched by Peep Show’s brutal intimacy.

While Les tries to get back on his feet after a stint in rehab, Bernard lusts after unattainable café worker Eden (Vanessa Matsui), an actress who’s only break is a tampon commercial. Punctuated by humiliating defeat, one embarrassing attempt at slam poetry and an underage romance, The Bitter End is a successful foray into a new market necessary for upcoming comics: the internet, resulting in thousands of hits, in addition to viewership from Russia, the Middle East and Asia. Curious about the phenomenon, EYE WEEKLY spoke to actor, editor and Said The Gramophone blogger Daniel Beirne about how the show got started, Canadian comic sensibilities and why living in Montreal delays adulthood.

So how did The Bitter End come about?
It started in the summer of 2008. We did an episodic improv show for eight months at Theatre Ste. Catherine and eventually decided to turn the improv show into a real show. We got a bit of money from the Quebec government and shot it all last spring.

Where did these characters come from?
They came from Brent (Skagford, who plays Les) and I doing improv scenes together, where we would always play similar types of characters - two guys who pretended to like each other but didn’t, really. To give the improv show some structure, we decided that being brothers would be a good decision. That gave us eight months to basically start work shopping the characters.

How much do you improv during the filmed episodes? The dialogue feels pretty loose.
Most of it is scripted. There’s probably some improv, but not as much as our actual live shows.

I feel a real sense of dread for these characters that reminds me of Peep Show.
We definitely model our show on Peep Show, but without the “hint hint” gimmick of looking through the camera all the time. There’s definitely the same harrowing treatment of our characters. I’ve heard people compare our show to Arrested Development, in the sense that there’s a lot of recurring themes, ideas that come up again in multiple storylines.

What ideas are those?
Well for instance, in the second episode, when Bernard goes to the slam poetry reading, that’s all about trying to be someone you’re not. You’ll see that idea again and again both in Bernard’s story and his brother’s. They’re also always trying to screw each other over in episode five - mimicked by their repeated dialogue and repeated action.

Do you think that the idea of trying to be someone you’re not, relates to where the show is situated in Mille End? What does The Bitter End say about the Montreal Plateau experience?
Well I suppose that experience is, at it’s core, a bit universal, but there’s elements in the show that you would only find here. All the Montreal stuff came up a lot more in the live show. In the episodes, I don’t think we say a word of French.

The thing is… I think especially English people live in Montreal as a way of starving off adulthood. I’ve lived here for the past eight years, and everyone is so transient. They don’t want to have to do the things that adults do - and there’s many aspects to the French culture that kind of shirk the feelings of guilt that come with responsibility. I sometimes crave the Toronto attitude of feeling so bad that you’re not making something of yourself that you go out and make something of yourself. Living in Montreal is like living in a different world. Les’ lifestyle is all about fucking off - and (because he lives in Montreal), he can continue to do so.

What I like about The Bitter End is how darkly comic you portray that lifestyle. Like, in episode four, “Action”, Eden’s perfect hipster birthday party actually has like five people there, all watching videos on YouTube.
Well, that was something we wanted, which is what you see more in British television, a very stark look at socializing. There’s actually an episode of Peepshow this season that aired after our season was over, where the party is done so perfectly - just shitty decorations on the walls, no one’s there, you know, the way it actually is.

People say that Canada’s comic sensibility is similar to the British.
I think that’s why Canadian comedy works so well, because when you sell it to Americans, you can put a more positive spin on bleak British comedy. I think our show has more heart than a lot of British comedy, but only in the way that The Office and Extras had a lot more heart.

The acting is also really terrific and natural.
 Well it’s really inspiring how good people are here. The scene in Montreal is big enough with a high enough quality that there’s never a moment of doubt. We can do it better than Toronto because everyone we need is here.

How did you get funding?
We had one grant through Employment Quebec (for $3,000). It’s part of initiative to raise the employability of artists. Basically the grant funds an artistic venture, based on the idea that this project will make you better at whatever the thing is that you want to be hired for. The rest was our personal investment - we edit and film everything ourselves.

Are you going to make a second season?
Well, we’re in the process of shopping around the idea. Given the budget that we had on the first season, there’s no way that we could do it again without getting some help. We’re currently seeking those opportunities.

Based on the dreary conclusion of episode six, what’s going to happen to Eden and Bernard’s relationship?
Oh my goodness, well that remains to be seen. We don’t even know yet. Just in the process of making it, we had to watch that final episode 10 or 20 times - and every time, Brent would say “oh they’re broken up - that’s it.” But I don’t know.

Do you think Bernard and Les have learned from their mistakes over their six-episode arc?
I think Les is definitely learning. I don’t know if Bernard is - and if he is, he’s certainly not learning the right lessons. I’m not sure if he’s identifying the problem as him. Every approach he has is so wrong.

How much of the characters are based on the actors?
Well our personalities are definitely the starting points, but we totally exaggerate from there. Certain events that happened are drawn from our real lives - but you could never chart Bernard’s life and my life in any way. We seem to get that a lot from people. Some guys came up to Brent once and said “Les and Bernard are totally us, right?” No. We don’t just graph people’s lives onto what we’re doing.

Given the tight purse strings of Canadian comedy networks right now, do you think producing a six episode web series is necessary? How can upcoming comics prove that they can do it?
Well, I think first they should absolutely demonstrate that they are capable of doing something. Truthfully, six episodes might have been a bit ambitious for us, but it’s certainly proof that we can write a series and doing well, and that’s what investors need to see. Sadly, it’s about showing people with money that you can use their money well. I think you still need cred of some kind, which only comes from someone vouching for you or showing someone what you can do. That’s the only process that I understand.

The Lorne Michaels of 2009 probably doesn’t have the resources of the Lorne Michaels of the 70s. It’s of course, less likely that opportunities are going to fall into people’s laps. But that will change, I think.

You choose all the music yourself, right? There’s tons of great Montreal music in the show — like Think About Life and Aaron Saloman.
I am the music editor on the show. So that’s all my favourite music.

What’s a song that Bernard would put on a mixtape for Eden?
Daniel Beirne: Hmm…what is Bernard’s taste in music? I think he would be trying to impress her with old, Motown-y kind of stuff… Let’s say something like, John Ellison’s “Lost The Will To Live.”

What’s your favourite moment of any of the six episodes?
My favourite moment? I hope this doesn’t sound selfish, but there’s a scene when I put on Eden’s lipstick at the end of episode five. I was anticipating shooting that scene for so long because I was so sure that I wasn’t going to keep a straight face. It turns out that I ended up getting it in the first take. That was a fond, fond memory.