On 26th July, Turtle Canyon Comedy will release “The Debuts,” an hour-long documentary following 5 comedians, Amy Gledhill (pictured), Sikisa, Josh Jones, Lily Phillips & Anthony DeVito, all of whom debuted at the Edinburgh Fringe in 2022. The documentary is a funny, intimate showcase of what it's like for comedians to bring their debut show to the festival.

The documentary is directed, and narrated by comedian Stuart Laws (Prime, BBC), who debuted in 2013. Comedian Paul Williams (Taskmaster NZ) debuted in 2016 and his music features on the soundtrack.

A comic’s debut show can be a launching point…or a low point. As the comedy industry has grown in size, popularity, and diversity, the stakes (and emotional turmoil) of debuting have grown higher: it’s a chance for a new comedian to announce themselves to the world, turn their hobby into their career, and maybe get nominated for Best Newcomer at the Edinburgh Comedy Awards. Comedy-going audiences often don’t know that behind the scenes, comedians are on a rollercoaster of emotions that often brings newcomers to their breaking points.

Stuart explained why he wanted to make the documentary: “I’ve worked with so many comedians over the years and the debut year always feels like make or break for so many acts. I’ve watched many docs about the fringe and I thought that I could get a level of intimate access to brilliant comedians that would showcase what the festival is really like. The 5 I filmed were superb and all had brilliant months on paper, but found different struggles along the way.”

Sikisa explains what it was like to be filmed for a month: “It was a good wave of emotions to be filmed whilst in my debut year of the fringe mostly because Stuart seems to have a 6th sense of popping up out of nowhere when I was in the middle of a breakdown. Honestly the experience was actually helpful especially as all the comedians were on different paths.”

The 62 minute long documentary is available now at Turtle Canyon Comedy’s YouTube channel and will be screened at the fringe as part of Monkey Barrel’s line up. At 12pm on August 7th Stuart Laws will introduce a screening and afterwards answer questions, perhaps joined by some of the stars of the film.

The Debuts

A Turtle Canyon Comedy production

Written & Directed by Stuart Laws

Starring Amy Gledhill, Anthony DeVito, Josh Jones, Lily Phillips & Sikisa

Production support from Alastair Clayton, Alex Watson & Laura Rouxel

Music by Paul Williams & Jess Revell & Alastair Clayton

Watch a trailer below