Joel Church-Cooper | Home Runs & Dutch Treats
On this episode of The Story & Craft Podcast, Marc Preston goes behind the curtain with producer/writer Joel Church-Cooper (“Going Dutch”, “Brockmire”, “Future Man”, “Undateable”) to talk about how TV comedy really gets made and how the business has changed. Joel shares his Northern California upbringing, film-nerd roots in the video store era, and the comedy influences that shaped him (“Kids in the Hall”, “Mr. Show”). They dig into big studio comedies, as well as how algorithms and “second-screen” viewing are reshaping storytelling. Joel breaks down the origins of “Going Dutch” (including the real Army base that inspired it), the evolution of “Brockmire”, working with Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg. It’s an engaging chat about what it takes to create great TV!
03:29 Film Nerd Origins
04:56 Video Store Era Stories
13:21 Comedy Influences and Sketch Classics
17:24 Public Access and Media Power
26:02 Going Dutch and Algorithm Notes
28:54 What He Watches Now
33:15 Kids Movies and YouTube Brain Rot
41:57 Chasing Authenticity
42:33 Brockmeyer Origins
49:05 Baseball as Existential Comedy
51:07 Future Man Writers Room
57:39 Why “Going Dutch” was set in The Netherlands
01:01:36 Culture Clash Comedy
01:03:13 The Seven Questions
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