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The Bit
To show the open mic comedy scene in Portland, Oregon. This includes the comedians, producers, showrunners, and the rest of the people who keep the wheels turning in the PNW comedy scene. It takes a village. I have primarily filmed in Portland, OR and I recorded at Montavilla Station weekly for over a year. It's been a labor of love to the people of this region's comedy scene.
My goal has been to document the scene that I love and show the grit and sacrifice necessary to pursue a career in comedy.
The open mic comedy scene is different in each city. What sets Portland apart is the diversity and the mutual support between comics to lift each other higher. It's a community and a modern day pirate ship that's only comparison is the world of restaurants. Some are fine dining, others fast food, and everything in between exists as well. Any of them done well, is delicious, but different each time its produced. Just like comedy, no two dishes (sets) are the same. It's alive, real, and fleeting. This documentary captures a moment in time and place that can never be recreated.
That's comedy. That's life. That's an open mic.
A place to try the idea, test it, see if it works, tinker with it and do it all over again. It's ready when the idea you had in your mind makes a group of people laugh. If you can do it for everyone in the audience so that different people, from different experiences, can all laugh in unison --together, then you've created a diverse piece of art for all to enjoy in that moment. We become a community. One moment of eye contact and laughter can bring two people closer together than almost anything, it is like breaking bread.
At times it will be hard. It will be uncomfortable. It will make you think. It will make others think. And, if you're working it out, eventually it will be funny.
"Failure is the inspiration you need
to get where you're going."
The Creative Act - Rick Rubin
Portland is "weird" and great because we try new things, we support one another even when we make mistakes, we help our neighbors, and we laugh together.
Comedy, to me, is the name of the motley rose growing from the figurative ashes of Portland, OR as it emerged from the pandemic and tumult of 2020. I wasn't even here then so I only saw the news about the unrest in Portland until moving to Oregon in August 2021. Now it is 2025 and some are saying that Portland is a "war zone" which is absolutely false outside of a comedy open mic, showcase, comedy club, or competition.
Kelly's Olympian hosts a comedy open mic on Sundays named Sunday Comedy at Kelly's Olympian. It was also one of the first mics I started attending because it has a great stage and while I want it to be more than it is, I really enjoy having this mic around. It used to be hosted in part by a comedian named Jaren George who I find really funny and enjoyed conversations with him before he moved to San Francisco, CA.
Kelly's is probably more well known in Portland for the live music and you can check out their shows here.
Photo credit: I snapped with photo of Milo Loza at Kelly's on August 31, 2025. You might recognize him from the Production Team credits on the bottom of the page of this website. Milo has been a great Director of Videography/Camera Person when he has the time to get behind the camera between his studies at Portland State University, working in PR, DJing of the KPSU-canceled "Folkn't Shift It Talk Sucker" formerly known as "Ear Ape" for over 150 episodes where he sat down and talked with PDX comedians about all sorts of things.
Milo is one of my favorite people and comedians currently in the PDX open mic scene. It's been a joy to watch him progress and collaborate with his peers. I love his writing and when he makes an audience feel uncomfortable before killing them. Go check the open mic at Kelly's out and maybe you will have the good fortune to see Milo working on some new material or brushing up a set for an upcoming showcase. You can also check him out at the Cheerful Tortoise comedy open mic where he hosts Mondays starting at 9 PM.
The Story
I am a fortySomething corporate consultant with a Master of Accountancy. I am a Certified Internal Auditor and a Certified Public Accountant and in July 2023 I put my name on a list and went on stage to try and make people laugh. There weren't many there but from that moment I was hooked. A few months in I saw something special happening and I was meeting some of the smartest, funniest people in Portland at some of the diviest bars for something known as an "open mic."
It was amazing and inspirational. The closest thing to a pirate ship in the modern day I've seen outside of a restaurant kitchen. Which is naturally the kind of place you'd end up after a night in the trenches of hospitality.
I asked an acquaintance in the public television broadcasting field if she knew anyone interested in documenting the open mic comedy scene in Portland, Oregon. The short answer was "No." but she encouraged "If you see something, grab a camera and help tell the story."
So, I purchased some equipment second hand and started filming the open mic at Montavilla Station on Stark Street which is hosted by Lucas Copp, Brandon Wayne Little, and DJ Zay.
Then I started doing interviews and tailing comics to open mics around the region. I even started an open mic where I live in McMinnville, Oregon at a 3rd Street bar named the Cabana Club.
This documentary's goal is to capture the open mic comedy scene for an entire year in the Portland, Oregon area. I started thinking that I would film at every open mic. That was daunting. I've filmed at many but what's happened is something I didn't expect. I keep going to the same mic each week because it has evolved into a comedy community. Lucas Copp is the person who got the mic started (the background for this page) back in 2022 along with his good friend Dee aka DJ Zay. Brandon Wayne Little has taken over on audio for since early 2024 and plays folks up to their favorite song. Or a completely different song, it really depends on how he feels and the equipment.
The stage is filmed each week with the help of fellow comic Milo Loza, while I have been capturing behind-the-scenes, interviews, stage material, and man-on-the-street videos throughout. Recently, Joey Wander has been taking some candid behind-the-scenes (BTS) photos for the mic.
In addition, I have provided many comics with their sets at no charge. Donations are always welcomed and appreciated. Especially now that I am low on working capital after a year of funding it out-of-pocket.
We capture and tell the stories of the people that live in that world and are stakeholders in the open mic comedy universe in our vicinity. Like the orbit of Uranus. That means the hosts, comics, audiences, hospitality folks, venue owners, partners/spouses, and friends. You will see what we see every week at the open mic.
We believe in this scene. We believe in this documentary because it is compelling, interesting, and f*cking authentic.
We believe it will help "raise the tide" for PNW comedy, and a rising tide lifts all ships.
