Josh Sharp ( The Opposition , 2 Broke Girls ) and Don were both recently part of cancelled television shows. They try to break down how they feel and what they've learned from the process. Josh talks about how he sees his failures as more like icing on a cake, how he takes comfort in nihilism, and how no one cares about you unless you are Childish Gambino. CONNECT W/ THE NEED TO FAIL & DON FANELLI ON TWITTER: https://twitter.com/theneedtofail https://twitter.com/donfanelli AND PLEASE SUPPORT...
Nov 13, 2018•1 hr 14 min•Season 4Ep. 67
Alice Wetterlund ( People of Earth , Silicon Valley ) went years without booking anything while battling personal demons, and even when she started to book, didn't feel like anyone was in her corner. We chat about how a cat shelter saved her life, how becoming a buddhist gave her a complete perspective shift, and why she believes it is necessary to have bad movies made. CONNECT W/ THE NEED TO FAIL & DON FANELLI ON TWITTER: https://twitter.com/theneedtofail https://twitter.com/donfanelli AND ...
Nov 06, 2018•1 hr 17 min•Season 4Ep. 66
Gary Richardson ( SNL , High Maintenance ) tested three times and was put on hold twice before getting hired as a writer for Saturday Night Live. He talks about how the inability to work on other gigs while on hold sparked him to make his own short film, which eventually got him his first professional writing job. We also chat about his decision to leave Chicago, what he does when he is burned out, and how he does not believe in right or wrong choices. CONNECT W/ THE NEED TO FAIL & DON FANEL...
Oct 29, 2018•58 min•Season 4Ep. 65
Joe Mande ( The Good Place , Parks & Rec ) spent many years flailing around doing open mics in NY, directionless, and getting heckled by other comedians. We chat about his first hour-long set and how he immediately offended a bunch of Canadians, how being on the other side of camera taught him how much of this industry is out of your control, dealing with Imodium, maxi pads, and a sweater change before filming his Comedy Central half-hour, and how he went ahead and shot his special anyway wh...
Oct 23, 2018•1 hr 1 min•Season 4Ep. 64
Wayne Federman ( The History of Standup , The Zen Diaries of Gary Shandling ) talks about why after decades of being a standup comedian and actor, he feels like he still hasn't made it. We chat about what he learned from Jerry Seinfeld and Gary Shandling, his inner drive and resilience, and getting fired from Mad About You after acing the audition for another role. CONNECT W/ THE NEED TO FAIL & DON FANELLI ON TWITTER: https://twitter.com/theneedtofail https://twitter.com/donfanelli AND PLEAS...
Oct 16, 2018•1 hr 8 min•Season 4Ep. 63
Will Hines ( Wrecked , How to Be the Greatest Improviser on Earth ) reveals his failed sketch show that he wrote about New York Mayor, Michael Bloomberg. He dishes out advice on his writing routine that led him to bang out 4 pilots in one year, talks about his unexpected acting career, and gives us a behind the scenes look at the development process for his acclaimed sketch show, Small Men. CONNECT W/ THE NEED TO FAIL & DON FANELLI ON TWITTER: https://twitter.com/theneedtofail https://twitte...
Oct 09, 2018•1 hr 24 min•Season 4Ep. 62
Kevin Avery ( The Jim Jefferies Show , Last Week Tonight ) shares multiple stories of professional rejections and "why am I doing this" moments. He dishes out advice to anyone thinking of moving to Los Angeles and talks about how a rejected piece of writing inspired him to develop short film which ultimately landed him his first agent. We also talk about the pressures of being a head writer and how Hollywood can be summed up by the movie Avatar. CONNECT W/ THE NEED TO FAIL & DON FANELLI ON T...
Oct 02, 2018•1 hr 29 min•Season 4Ep. 61
Kevin McDonald ( Kids in the Hall , Arrested Development ) was devastated when he was kicked out of his college acting program. But this led him to The Second City in Toronto, where he started taking classes and met his future collaborators. We talk about the ups and downs of the Kids in the Hall's journey to television, how he overcame the jealously of his friend's success, and what was on that little piece of paper he kept with him for over 13 years. CONNECT W/ THE NEED TO FAIL & DON FANEL...
Sep 25, 2018•1 hr 7 min•Season 4Ep. 60
Megan Neuringer ( Portlandia , Kroll Show ) was not able to show up for her career the way she wanted to these last couple of years as she dealt with personal losses. She talks about why a lot of her anxieties went away when she switched from improv to standup, how a half committed, wind susceptible vision board still eerily manifested some goals, and what she did the moment her therapist said that she was allowed to walk away from her career. CONNECT W/ THE NEED TO FAIL & DON FANELLI ON TWI...
Sep 18, 2018•1 hr 19 min•Season 4Ep. 59
Frank Garcia-Hejl ( First Impressions , Difficult People ) worked tirelessly for many years, overcoming personal demons and honing his skills only to fall just short of achieving his one dream of performing on Saturday Night Live. In this vulnerable interview, Frank peels back the curtain and helps demystify the SNL audition process, from his first showcases to meeting with Lorne, providing valuable advice to would-be auditioners. CONNECT W/ THE NEED TO FAIL & DON FANELLI ON TWITTER: https:/...
Sep 11, 2018•2 hr 6 min•Season 4Ep. 58
Matt Besser ( improv4humans, Upright Citizens Brigade ) goes through various setbacks at different stages of his career and tries to explore the definition failure within the UCB system. We chat about failing on your own terms, envy vs. inspiration, and why to not compare your improvised television show to Curb Your Enthusiasm when pitching. CONNECT W/ THE NEED TO FAIL & DON FANELLI ON TWITTER: https://twitter.com/theneedtofail https://twitter.com/donfanelli AND PLEASE SUPPORT TN2F ON PATREO...
Sep 04, 2018•1 hr 38 min•Season 4Ep. 57
Aaron Jackson ( The Opposition, Broad City ) talks about not being able to land representation for many years, even while he was performing on a hit show. We chat about his novel mishaps, how a particularly brief open call drove him from musical theater, and the often embarrassing and humiliating world of commercial auditioning. CONNECT W/ THE NEED TO FAIL & DON FANELLI ON TWITTER: https://twitter.com/theneedtofail https://twitter.com/donfanelli AND PLEASE SUPPORT TN2F ON PATREON FOR BONUS E...
Aug 28, 2018•57 min•Season 4Ep. 56
Rob Huebel (Transparent, Do You Want to See a Dead Body) takes us through his many ups and downs in the acting and developing world. He talks about locking himself in a hotel room for five days to rewrite scripts and the necessity for creating your own little mafia. He also dishes out some auditioning and pitching advice and chats about how he deals with the uncertainty of many future projects. CONNECT W/ THE NEED TO FAIL & DON FANELLI ON TWITTER: https://twitter.com/theneedtofail https://tw...
Aug 21, 2018•1 hr 27 min•Season 4Ep. 55
Hallie Cantor ( Arrested Development, Lady Dynamite ) discusses the realities writing on popular TV shows and still experiencing long droughts of employment. She talks about her awkward Emmy's experience, getting a job at a candy store to bide her time, and the importance of asking for deadlines. CONNECT W/ THE NEED TO FAIL & DON FANELLI ON TWITTER: https://twitter.com/theneedtofail https://twitter.com/donfanelli AND PLEASE SUPPORT TN2F ON PATREON FOR BONUS EPS & MORE: https://www.patreo...
Aug 14, 2018•57 min•Season 4Ep. 54
Natasha Rothwell ( Insecure; Love, Simon ) faces some serious imposter syndrome the more successful she gets. She discusses the key take aways auditioning and writing for SNL, the importance of protecting your solitude, and how it is vital for those that feel marginalized and underrepresented to adopt a mindset of abundance. CONNECT W/ THE NEED TO FAIL & DON FANELLI ON TWITTER: https://twitter.com/theneedtofail https://twitter.com/donfanelli AND PLEASE SUPPORT TN2F ON PATREON FOR BONUS EPS &...
Aug 07, 2018•1 hr 11 min•Season 4Ep. 53
It took Gil Ozeri ( Big Mouth, Brooklyn 99 ) six times to get on a UCB house team, before he wound up being on three of the best. Gil talks about how he was motivated to Snapchat after a lot of his projects failed to get made, how sometimes to fix the cause you need to clean the symptoms, and he also flips the script and asks Don some vital questions about failure. CONNECT W/ THE NEED TO FAIL & DON FANELLI ON TWITTER: https://twitter.com/theneedtofail https://twitter.com/donfanelli AND PLEAS...
Jul 31, 2018•1 hr 20 min•Season 4Ep. 52
Kristen Bartlett ( Full Frontal with Samantha Bee, SNL ) lost her husband's father and then her father within a 4 month period while pursuing her dream of working in comedy. After multiple rejections from UCB sketch teams, she decided to form her own team, and eventually turn her grief into a celebrated sketch show, The Dead Dad's Club . We also dive deep into her time writing at SNL and how she dealt with going from a successful first season to being a mid-season casualty. CONNECT W/ THE NEED T...
Jul 24, 2018•1 hr 38 min•Season 4Ep. 51
Special live episode from the UCB Franklin Theatre with Jessica St. Clair ( Playing House, Veep )! Jessica shares hilarious and heartbreaking stories about being fired from two of her first pilots and also as an extra in a soap opera for a poorly timed fart. She takes us on a journey through her writing and acting process for BFF and Playing House, and how she dealt with the aftermath of show cancellations and eventually, cancer. She talks about how motherhood saved her life, how she has Julia L...
Jul 17, 2018•1 hr 18 min•Season 3Ep. 50
Dan Gregor ( How I Met Your Mother, Crazy Ex-Girlfriend ) worked as a development assistant at HBO for two years and shares what he learned and failed at when trying to develop his own shows. We also talk about his first failed pilot (which led to an injury), the differences between writing for television and for movies, and the inevitable ups and downs in a writers room. CONNECT W/ THE NEED TO FAIL & DON FANELLI ON TWITTER: https://twitter.com/theneedtofail https://twitter.com/donfanelli AN...
Jul 10, 2018•1 hr 20 min•Season 3Ep. 49
Betsy Sodaro ( Disjointed, Another Period ) had particularly bad audition - she was hungover and anxious in the waiting room and things only got worse from there. We dive into her audition process, talk about an uncomfortable encounter with some mean girls, and discuss the effects of growing up Catholic as it relates to our fears, self-doubts, and performances. CONNECT W/ THE NEED TO FAIL & DON FANELLI ON TWITTER: https://twitter.com/theneedtofail https://twitter.com/donfanelli AND PLEASE SU...
Jun 26, 2018•1 hr 7 min•Season 3Ep. 48
Johnathan Fernandez ( Lethal Weapon, Girls ) had the unfortunate experience of being replaced on a show... and not being told about it. We chat about how that show caused a shoe-in roll to fall through, the mindset he keeps to push through stagnation and setbacks, and the insane last minute audition process that got the role of Scorsese on Lethal Weapon. CONNECT W/ THE NEED TO FAIL & DON FANELLI ON TWITTER: https://twitter.com/theneedtofail https://twitter.com/donfanelli AND PLEASE SUPPORT T...
Jun 19, 2018•1 hr 26 min•Season 3Ep. 47
Adam Lustick ( Corporate, Adam Ruins Everything ) learned early, by a very sobering acting teacher, that he would most likely fail in this industry. But he returns to this philosophy often to quickly shake off his setbacks. We talk about the early days of his sketch team, Harvard Sailing Team, his insecurities and eventual firing from the show Punk'd, and he shares many jewels of wisdom on acting, auditioning, and being creative. CONNECT W/ THE NEED TO FAIL & DON FANELLI ON TWITTER: https://...
Jun 12, 2018•1 hr 20 min•Season 3Ep. 46
George Kareman ( Search Party, Silicon Valley ) takes us on a spiritual journey of self-improvement and discipline, leading us to rename today's podcast, The Spiritual Bros. George talks about his failed UCB Harold audition, possibly inheriting self-sabotage from his late father, and guides us through his ten day silent retreat experience. Get ready for parables, serendipitous motorcycle accidents, and cold showers. CONNECT W/ THE NEED TO FAIL & DON FANELLI ON TWITTER: https://twitter.com/th...
Jun 05, 2018•1 hr 24 min•Season 3Ep. 45
Jen Bartels ( American Woman, Friends of the People ) gets cut from her Harold Team at UCB and has a series of career ups and downs, until she finds herself running out of money and being confronted about changing careers from her mother. We nerd out about acting, talk about the negative effects of self-talk, and are taken on an insane rollercoaster ride through the multiple auditions for American Woman. CONNECT W/ THE NEED TO FAIL & DON FANELLI ON TWITTER: https://twitter.com/theneedtofail ...
May 29, 2018•58 min•Season 3Ep. 44
Veronica Osorio ( Hail, Caesar!, Treks and the City ), after performing for hundreds of people a night for over four years in Venezuela, struggles to overcome the relentless biases she experiences when immigrating to America. We talk about how having a "winners mentality" helped push her through the dark times, her experience volunteering with the real Patch Adams, and how being recast in TV show led her on a spiritual journey which serendipitously prepared her for her most recent role. CONNECT ...
May 22, 2018•1 hr 34 min•Season 3Ep. 43
Carl Tart ( MadTV, White Women ) opens up about multiple setbacks. We talk candidly about the difficulties performing in Amsterdam with Boom Chicago and the chaos that is Just For Laughs auditions. We also chat about the differences between the NY/LA indie scenes and theater philosophies, the ups and downs working in a writers room, and the realities of being a minority in the comedy scene. CONNECT W/ THE NEED TO FAIL & DON FANELLI ON TWITTER: https://twitter.com/theneedtofail https://twitte...
May 15, 2018•1 hr 20 min•Season 3Ep. 42
Maggie Carey ( Silicon Valley, Last Man on Earth ) gets candid about what it is like being a working mother of three in Hollywood. She opens up about the fears she had of being judged and possibly not having a job to come back to while being a new mom and the powerful tools she used to push through the doubts and hardships. We talk about the advantages of having a sports background, how setting a timer helps maximize her limited availability to work on personal projects, and she kindly dishes ou...
May 08, 2018•1 hr 16 min•Season 3Ep. 41
Neil Casey ( Ghostbusters, Silicon Valley ) was homeless for almost 5 months in 2012 and wrote half of his SNL packet living at the Greenpoint YMCA. We chat about how getting rid of a lot of baggage freed him up and helped him focus on what he really wanted. He also takes us through his SNL screen test and work experience and gives tips on preparing for big auditions. CONNECT W/ THE NEED TO FAIL & DON FANELLI ON TWITTER: https://twitter.com/theneedtofail https://twitter.com/donfanelli AND PL...
May 01, 2018•1 hr 32 min•Season 3Ep. 40
Lauren Adams ( Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, Deadbeat ) was waking up at 5:30am, waiting in line for hours at hopeless equity calls, and after three particularly disturbing weekends as a server she decided to step away from the business. We talk about losing out on a shoo-in role in Sacramento, catching a last minute flight from her vacation in Costa Rica to get to her same day screen test for Kimmy Schmidt, and how one can manufacture a screw it attitude. CONNECT W/ THE NEED TO FAIL & DON FANE...
Apr 24, 2018•1 hr 18 min•Season 3Ep. 39
At 33 years old, after a lifetime of career trial and errors, David Reichelt ( Color Switch ) starts to develop games, and over a two year period, creates forty... which all failed. Overcoming depression, major debt, and myriad jobs, David's 41st game, Color Switch, garnered over 200million downloads and set worldwide records. We chat about the important tools David used to keep moving forward, how his time as a medic in Iraq helped shape his perspective and resilience, and how using specific te...
Apr 17, 2018•56 min•Season 3Ep. 38
