CLOYD: A New Buffalo-Produced Comedy Web Series to Release February 2020
Exclusive Preview Screening Friday, Jan. 31 at Hallwalls
CLOYD is a comedic look at the grind of making it as a musical artist in today’s world. The locally-produced show is loosely based on the experiences of musician David Cloyd, who has been a nationally-recognized recording artist for over a decade and is currently working on his third studio album.
We’ve known David Cloyd for a long time now, ever since working together in advertising in 2014. A man of many talents, he even made some tweaks to the original Rise website way back when. An incredibly kind, genuine human, we’re really excited for his series to launch. We wanted to share his background and give credit to the team behind this project briefly, before encouraging you to check out the sneak peak this Friday night.
Let’s celebrate local productions even when John Krasinski isn’t involved. These are Buffalonians writing, acting, shooting, editing, and doing it to entertain all of us. Really proud of them all! Tickets are free! But you can do them the favor of registering and committing so they know how many are coming.
CLOYD showcases some of the best actors in Buffalo and Western New York, including Paul Spitale, David Autovino, Marisa Caruso, and Maria Braun. Alongside Cloyd, the creative team behind the show consists of Bill Paterson, Kathy Kastan, and Jason Yates—WNY marketing professionals who want to mine the artist’s struggle for laughs that anyone can appreciate.
Show Synopsis
Cloyd was born to make music. So why hasn’t he made it big? With the clock ticking, the artist known as Cloyd is ready to make one last push. He looks for help from an oddball agent who might actually be making things worse. And cringeworthy run-ins with fellow creative types are entertaining to everyone else but the guy they’re happening to. It all makes Cloyd wonder if he will ever reach his dream.
David Cloyd (IRL):
“I started as a musician on piano when I was about four years old, and I’ve been a musician ever since. I’ve been a professional recording artist for well over a decade, and like many artists, I’ve had just about every job under the sun to keep the lights on.
“The PizzaDog Studios team had been making short films for the Buffalo 48 Hour Film Project for a few years, and we really wanted to stop waiting until August to get together and have fun making something. All of our short films trended toward more making something more episodic in nature, something that we hadn’t had a chance to do yet. So I pitched this idea to the team for a show about a musician who was still actively struggling to “make it” – I thought it would appeal to our writers as perfect fodder for a bunch of shenanigans. I think it’s very easy for a lot of people to relate to live as a creative on that line between art and commerce, but I really knew it would resonate with everyone on our team.
“A lot of our cast and crew have been a part of PizzaDog from the beginning, and we seem to pick up new people here and there. And luckily for us, all of the best and brightest of those keep coming back.
“I think there is a lot of potential for building and growing the local filmmaking scene here in Buffalo. But it wouldn’t be interesting to me if that future was just the outside industry coming here to make their films and shows here. The key is finding, encouraging, and enabling the creators among us, and then somehow rallying the community here and elsewhere around them in support.”
^^ We could not agree more.
Jason Yates, on the creative team, gave all credit to his cohort,
“I would just add that the creative part of our team, who created, writes and directs the show is Bill Paterson, Kathy Kastan, Myself, and Cloyd. The four of us all crossed paths in advertising. Bill and Kathy are Creative Directors at Gelia, I am a freelance Creative Director / Editor.
“We’re very lucky to have access to some of the best comedic actors in Buffalo and Rochester. We’ve found many of them doing commercial work throughout the years. When we come across someone that enjoys our brand of nonsense, we tend to keep them around. (Because of this, we tend to have one of the bigger casts in the Buffalo 48 Hour Film Fest).”
About the Screening
The preview will be hosted by Jordan Lema of Lemur Studios and the Buffalo 48 Hour Film Project, who is also making his acting debut in the new series. Only eighty-five seats are available for this exclusive one-night-only event, which will include:
- A sneak preview screening of the first three full episodes of CLOYD
- A Q&A panel with the creators, cast, and crew
- A musical performance by David Cloyd, with special guest Miranda Shulman on violin
Episode One of CLOYD launches online on Monday, February 3 on their website, where you can go now to view the trailer for season one of the show and get tickets for the event.
