I only saw a fraction of the shows available during the 2017 MICF but hope to see many more in 2018. For the shows I did get to see, and that did not win the Barry or any of those “official” awards, below are the inaugural Hugging Comedians Awards for the 2017 MICF.
‘The Best Hug’: the most prestigious (and aptly named) Hugging Comedians award, given to the best hug of the MICF.
Awarded to: Jess Perkins
‘The Thinker’: given to the most insightful interview of the festival.
Awarded to: Alice Fraser
‘The Stopwatch’: given to the longest interview of the festival.
Awarded to: Eve Ellenbogen (1 hour and 56 minutes)
‘The Projector’: given to the best use of multimedia in a show.
Awarded to: Ben Knight - ‘The Parent/Teacher Interview’
‘The Alter Ego’: given to the comedian who performed the most outstanding character-based comedy.
Awarded to: Zoe Coombs Marr as ‘Dave’ - ‘Trigger Warning’
‘The House’: given to the show with the venue that suited it best.
Awarded to: Soothplayers – ‘Completely Improvised Shakespeare’ at Trades Hall, Old Council Chambers
‘The Next Level’: given to the stand-up comedian who is ready to take their comedy to the next level.
Awarded to: Sam Taunton - ‘Taunts Down For What’; Jess Perkins and Naomi Higgins – ‘Twins’
‘The Hidden Gem’: given to the comedian who put on a unique or memorable show.
Awarded to: Claire Sullivan – ‘I Wish I Owned A Hotel For Dogs’
‘The Showstopper’ award: given my favourite show of the festival.
Awarded to: ‘Ali McGregor’s Late-Nite Variety-Nite Night’
Special mentions: Barnie Duncan’s left arm in ‘Weekend at Barnie’s’; and, Melissa Tracina’s performance in ‘An Evening of Total BS’.
Thanks again and congratulations to everyone who made it through the 2017 MICF! Hugging Comedians is Melbourne-based so I will hopefully see you round the stand-up circuit! If you want to promote a particular project or just want to sit down and talk about comedy, contact Hugging Comedians on Facebook, Twitter or through the website.