Short films are a great place to experiment with an idea. If you can get it to work in a story between 5 and 20 minutes in length, you may have something to expand on. Such is the case with direct/co-writer Gwendolyn Bastien’s Frog Pimp. It’s a humorous short, and the lunatic conceit experimented with in this piece is potentially comedy gold if further explored.
I say potentially because Bastien and writer Samuel B. have presented just a slice of T’oadem’s (Domenic Kim) life. So there he be, the muthafuckin’ Frog Pimp, yo! I dug this. I dug the character they were creating so much. Quite a few jokes are explored here with the pimp and his two Frog hos, Lolli (Madi Collins) and Pixie (Mily Mariena). I especially enjoyed the running gag where T’oadem is about to have ‘”beef” with the boom mic operator, as he hasn’t quite come to terms with what a boom mic does.
“…an up-and-coming ‘playa’…attempts to rise with his ever-present pile of cash money.”
I also like the opening commercial T’oadem films with Lolli. This is the sort of hackneyed third-rate shlock you expect an up-and-coming “playa” to develop as he attempts to rise with his ever-present pile of cash money. Such a rich concept. I also need to mention the narrator. All through this short, Brian T. Shirley provides a wonderfully laconic narration of the pimp’s exploits. It’s the exact right blend of facepalm and just the facts voiceover. I loved it.
Ultimately Gwendolyn Bastien shows a great deal of lunatic, madcap, comedic genius. A real potential to make something gut-bustlingly hilarious if she receives the budget for a feature-length film. So to all you financiers out there, check out Frog Pimp. It’s great. And fund a feature comedy of a deranged nature for Ms. Bastien!
"…comedy gold..."
