Pardis Parker Explained

Pardis Parker
Birth Place:Sri Lanka
Nationality:Canadian
Notable Work:Mideast Minute, Uncivil, Free, Life in Pieces, Little Mosque on the Prairie, Combat Hospital, Single White Spenny, The New Yorker, The New York Times, TED

Pardis Parker is a Canadian director, writer, actor, and comedian. He's the creator and star of Comedy Central's Mideast Minute,[1] the co-creator of Uncivil, a new sitcom in development at NBC,[2] and the creator of Free, a new comedic drama in development at Amazon Prime.[3]

Career

Parker is the creator or co-creator of three series for TV and streaming.

Created by and starring Parker, Mideast Minute is a satirical news show distributed on Comedy Central's digital platform. The series satirizes U.S. propaganda efforts, particularly the Congress-funded Alhurra network, by trying to convince Middle Easterners that everything's OK in the Middle East.

In writing about the show, the Jerusalem Post said Parker had a "sharp, smart tone,"[4] Uproxx said Parker's "timing is impeccable,"[5] and Tubefilter said Parker was "both timely and funny — a combination that works."[6]

Co-created by Parker, Uncivil is a single-cam comedy in development at NBC about a pair of friends – a prosecutor and public defender – who find that their personal squabbles spill into the courtroom and that their professional disputes follow them home. Parker executive produces with Hazy Mills Productions' Sean Hayes and Todd Milliner, as well as with Bradley Gardner and co-creator Rell Battle. Universal Television is the studio.

Free is a half hour comedic drama in development at Amazon Prime. Plan B Entertainment – led by partners Brad Pitt, Dede Gardner, and Jeremy Kleiner – is the production company.

Stand-up Comedy

A six-time Canadian Comedy Award nominee[7] [8] and a finalist for Canada's Next Top Comic[9] and Bite TV's Stand Up and Bite Me,[10] Parker won British star David Baddiel's international stand-up competition[11] and previously became the first Canadian ever to book the CBS Comedy Showcase.[12]

In reviews of his live show, the Kingston Herald said that "the skill with which Pardis Parker weaved the audience through his set was impressive," that Parker was "really relaxed on stage," and that "it felt as though you were just hanging out with a really funny friend,"[13] while Ottawa Life Magazine said that "his self-deprecating manner and friendly stage presence make him highly likeable."[14] The Daily Star listed Parker as one of their "Stand-up Comedians That Need Your Attention," and said they "highly recommend"[15] his act. Vulture, in selecting his stand-up clips as one of their "Best Comedy Videos of the Month" in March 2021[16] and December 2021,[17] said that "it's amazing to see a funny comedian become a great comedian," and that Parker's "a performer who's found his comfort zone."

Parker has had multiple stand-up comedy performances broadcast on TV, radio, and the web, and he's a frequent performer at the Hollywood Improv, Hollywood Laugh Factory, and World Famous Comedy Store.

TED Talks

Parker has performed three times at TED, twice as a speaker and once as a special guest host.

He performed at the global TED Conference in Monterey, California, in August 2021.[18] His TED Talk, "I'm Tired of People Telling Me to Grind", was released in January 2022. Moda Magazine listed it as one of their "Seven TED Talks to Get You Through the Day," and said Parker's performance was both "relatable" and "hilarious."[19]

Parker performed for a second time at the global TED Conference in Vancouver, Canada, in April 2022.[20] His talk, "I'm Terrified of Wanting to be a Billionaire", was released in October 2022. In reviews of the conference, Mats Lederhausen said Parker's performance was "truly funny,"[21] and Chris Duffy said Parker's set was "incredible."[22]

Parker took the stage for a third time at the global TED Conference in Vancouver, Canada, in April 2023.[23]

Acting

Parker has appeared in Life in Pieces on CBS, Combat Hospital on ABC, Little Mosque on the Prairie on CBC, Single White Spenny and Moderation Town on Showcase, Really Me on The Family Channel, and indie drama Snow.

His acting work has received acclaim from the National Screen Institute of Canada, which remarked that his "timing and body language in The Dance was exceptional,"[24] from Indiewire, which complimented his "light comedic touch,"[25] and from Radio Canada, which said that "he's a kind of Seth MacFarlane, someone extremely multi-talented who can write, direct, and act, and who's very convincing in his roles."[26]

Writing

Parker's writing and cartoons have been published by The New Yorker,[27] The New York Times,[28] The New York Review of Books,[29] The Los Angeles Review of Books,[30] the Chicago Sun-Times,[31] Weekly Humorist,[32] Literary Hub,[33] and McSweeney's.[34]

Bibliography

Title Type Originally published in Date Notes
Offer and Counteroffer cartoon The New Yorker June 23, 2020
Illegal Milk short story The New York Review of Books November 4, 2020 Subject of CBC News report.[35]
The Bear Chased Us. Then We Chased the Bear. short story The New York Times May 14, 2021
I Like My Cops Like I Like My Surgeons: Cautious, and Not Looking to Kill Me essay McSweeney's May 15, 2020
That Word Does Not Mean What You Think It Means essayMcSweeney's June 15, 2020
An Open Letter to the T&T Supermarket Clerk Who Was Told to 'Go Back to China' as Part of a Customer’s Racist Tirade in Mississauga, Ontario essay McSweeney's July 31, 2020
An Open Letter to the National Rifle Association essay Chicago Sun-Times July 30, 2020
Expect less. essay Chicago Sun-Times December 7, 2020
Thank God We've Come to Our Senses essay Los Angeles Review of Books November 4, 2020
My Brain is a Snake cartoon Literary Hub February 16, 2021
Mousetrap cartoon Weekly Humorist September 9, 2022

Filmmaking

Parker's films and music videos, including The Dance, Afghan, and Two Men, Two Cows, Two Guns, have screened at over 150 film festivals worldwide and received over 80 awards and nominations.

The Playlist called him an "up and coming talent on the Canadian film scene,"[36] Film School Rejects said his work was "riotously funny, with a narrative flair that makes one hope he has a feature coming soon,"[37] and CinemaSinema lauded his ability to "squeeze more heart from an 11 minute short film than many Hollywood directors can muster from feature length pictures."[38]

Filmography

Year(s)TitleDirectorWriterCast
2008AfghanPardis Parker, Mark Little
2009What Goes Around Comes Around (music video)
2009Don't Turn Around (music video)
2010Two Men, Two Cows, Two GunsJohn Dunsworth, Levi Macdougall
2010ImplantsPardis Parker, Evany Rosen
2011The DancePardis Parker, Evany Rosen
2012The TrainPardis Parker, Colin Mochrie
2013Jash Ugly Sweater ContestSarah Silverman, Michael Cera, Reggie Watts, Tim & Eric

Accolades

YearAwardCategoryTitleResult
2008CBC Short Film Face-OffBest FilmAfghan
2009Just for LaughsBest of Just for LaughsAfghan
2009ViewFinders International Film FestivalBest Short FilmAfghan
2010Films in BloomAudience AwardAfghan
2010Moondance International Film FestivalAtlantis AwardAfghan
2010Twin Rivers Media FestivalAward of ExcellenceAfghan
2010Atlanta Philosophy Film FestivalAudience Choice AwardAfghan
2010Desiderata Film FestivalAudience AwardAfghan
2010Screaming Ant Film FestivalBest Narrative FilmAfghan
2010Screaming Ant Film FestivalFeatured Filmmaker AwardAfghan
2010Canadian Comedy AwardsBest Writing, FilmAfghan
2010Canadian Comedy AwardsBest Performance by a Male, FilmAfghan
2011Buttered Corn on the Cob Film FestivalJuror PickAfghan
2011Big Dam Film FestivalPeople's Choice AwardAfghan
2011Margaret River Shorts Film FestivalBest FilmAfghan
2011Imago Film Festival1–15 MinutesAfghan
2011World Music and Independent Film FestivalBest ActorAfghan
2011World Music and Independent Film FestivalBest ScreenplayAfghan
2011World Music and Independent Film FestivalBest Supporting ActorAfghan
2011Athens International Film FestivalBest Short NarrativeAfghan
2011Creative Arts Film FestivalBest Short FilmAfghan
2011Creative Arts Film FestivalBest EditingAfghan
2011Creative Arts Film FestivalBest Sound DesignAfghan
2011Creative Arts Film FestivalBest Original ScoreAfghan
2011Creative Arts Film FestivalBest DirectorAfghan
2011Creative Arts Film FestivalBest CinematographyAfghan
2012Next Wave Art SalonTime Arts AwardAfghan
2010Twin Rivers Media FestivalBest Short DramaTwo Men, Two Cows, Two Guns
2010JamFest Indie Film FestivalBest Experimental Comedy ShortTwo Men, Two Cows, Two Guns
2010NBC Universal Short Cuts Film FestivalBest FilmTwo Men, Two Cows, Two Guns
2010South Dakota Film FestivalJury AwardTwo Men, Two Cows, Two Guns
2010TriMedia Film FestivalBest of the TriMedia Film FestivalTwo Men, Two Cows, Two Guns
2010Wet Your Pants Comedy Film FestivalBest Short FilmTwo Men, Two Cows, Two Guns
2010Montgomery Film FestivalBest FilmTwo Men, Two Cows, Two Guns
2010Montgomery Film FestivalBest ComedyTwo Men, Two Cows, Two Guns
2010Montgomery Film FestivalAudience AwardTwo Men, Two Cows, Two Guns
2010Canadian Comedy AwardsBest Direction, FilmTwo Men, Two Cows, Two Guns
2011Derby City Film FestivalBest Short FilmTwo Men, Two Cows, Two Guns
2011Griffon International Film FestivalBest ComedyTwo Men, Two Cows, Two Guns
2011Buttered Corn on the Cob Film FestivalJuror PickTwo Men, Two Cows, Two Guns
2011Lakeshorts International Film FestivalBest ComedyTwo Men, Two Cows, Two Guns
2011Tallahassee Film FestivalBest Narrative ShortTwo Men, Two Cows, Two Guns
2011World Music and Independent Film FestivalBest DirectorTwo Men, Two Cows, Two Guns
2011World Music and Independent Film FestivalBest ActorTwo Men, Two Cows, Two Guns
2011World Music and Independent Film FestivalBest Supporting ActorTwo Men, Two Cows, Two Guns
2011Santa Catalina Film FestivalBest ShortTwo Men, Two Cows, Two Guns
2011Detroit Windsor International Film FestivalBest Short ComedyTwo Men, Two Cows, Two Guns
2011Screaming Ant Film FestivalBest Narrative FilmTwo Men, Two Cows, Two Guns
2011Screaming Ant Film FestivalFeatured Filmmaker AwardTwo Men, Two Cows, Two Guns
2012SENE Film FestivalBest of SENETwo Men, Two Cows, Two Guns
2010Twin Rivers Media FestivalAward of ExcellenceDon't Turn Around
2011World Music and Independent Film FestivalBest Hip-Hop Music VideoDon't Turn Around
2011World Music and Independent Film FestivalMost Creative Music VideoDon't Turn Around
2010Twin Rivers Media FestivalAward of ExcellenceWhat Goes Around Comes Around
2011Rincon International Film FestivalBest Music VideoWhat Goes Around Comes Around
2011World Music and Independent Film FestivalBest DirectorWhat Goes Around Comes Around
2011World Music and Independent Film FestivalBest Rock Music VideoWhat Goes Around Comes Around
2011World Music and Independent Film FestivalMost Creative Music VideoWhat Goes Around Comes Around
2011World Music and Independent Film FestivalBest CinematographyWhat Goes Around Comes Around
2012TriMedia Film FestivalBest Music VideoWhat Goes Around Comes Around
2011Margaret River Shorts Film FestivalBest FilmImplants
2011Beloit International Film FestivalBest Short FilmImplants
2011Playboy Imaginative Filmmakers SpotlightGrand PrizeImplants
2011Creative Arts Film FestivalBest Dramatic Short FilmImplants
2011Creative Arts Film FestivalBest ScreenplayImplants
2011Creative Arts Film FestivalBest Sound DesignImplants
2011Creative Arts Film FestivalBest Director of PhotographyImplants
2011JamFest Indie Film FestivalBest Experimental Comedy ShortThe Dance
2011Carmel Art and Film FestivalBest of ShortsThe Dance
2011PEI International Film FestivalBest Maritime ShortThe Dance
2011Film North - Huntsville International Film FestivalBest Short FilmThe Dance
2011SNO Boston Film FestivalBest Foreign FilmmakerThe Dance
2011Dixie Film FestivalBest ComedyThe Dance
2011Urban Mediamakers Film FestivalBest International ShortThe Dance
2012Big Dam Film FestivalBest of ShowThe Dance
2012Imago Film FestivalAudience Choice AwardThe Dance
2012Buttered Corn on the Cob Film FestivalBest of the FestThe Dance
2012Wet Your Pants Comedy Film FestivalBest Short FilmThe Dance
2012World Music and Independent Film FestivalBest DirectorThe Dance
2012World Music and Independent Film FestivalBest ActorThe Dance
2012World Music and Independent Film FestivalBest CinematographyThe Dance
2012Canadian Comedy AwardsBest Performance by a Male, FilmThe Dance
2012Canadian Comedy AwardsBest Writing, FilmThe Dance
2012Humanity International Film FestivalBest Local FilmThe Dance
2012Humanity International Film FestivalBest Canadian FilmThe Dance
2012Humanity International Film FestivalBest ComedyThe Dance
2012SENE Film FestivalBest of SENEThe Dance
2012Boston Comedy FestivalAudience Choice AwardThe Dance
2012Forster Film FestivalCreativity AwardThe Dance
2013National Screen Institute of CanadaBest ComedyThe Dance
2012South Texas Underground Film FestivalThe Right Stuff AwardThe Train
2012Urban Mediamakers Film FestivalBest Short Film Under 2 MinutesThe Train

News articles and interviews

Notes and References

  1. Web site: News Satire Series 'Mideast Minute' Coming To Comedy Central Digital . Deadline Hollywood . November 3, 2016 . November 26, 2016.
  2. Web site: 'Uncivil' Comedy From Rell Battle, Pardis Parker & Hazy Mills In Works At NBC . Deadline Hollywood . November 2, 2020 . January 3, 2021.
  3. Web site: Pardis Parker - About . May 26, 2022.
  4. Web site: Spending a 'Mideast Minute' with Pardis Parker . The Jerusalem Post . February 18, 2017 . January 4, 2021.
  5. Web site: Comedy Central's New 'Mideast Minute' Suggests Immigrating To The U.S. Is Overrated . Uproxx . January 27, 2017 . January 4, 2021.
  6. Web site: Comedy Central's Latest Web Series Satirizes U.S.-Run News Networks In The Middle East . Tubefilter . January 31, 2017 . January 4, 2021.
  7. Web site: The Comedy Network . TheComedyNetwork.ca . October 17, 2010 . October 20, 2011 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20110930123951/http://www.thecomedynetwork.ca/Displayblog.aspx?bpid=b1e9569d-a7ff-4a1d-a947-7e45dc34de74 . September 30, 2011 . mdy-all .
  8. Web site: Canadian Comedy Awards website . canadiancomedy.ca . June 7, 2012.
  9. Web site: Metro – Haligonian could be Next Top Comic . Metronews.ca . October 20, 2011 .
  10. Web site: Johns . Stephanie . Pardis Parker makes finals of Stand Up & Bite Me - Art Attack . Thecoast.ca . June 13, 2011 . October 20, 2011 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20111104111734/http://www.thecoast.ca/ArtAttack/archives/2011/06/13/pardis-parker-makes-finals-of-stand-up-and-bite-me . November 4, 2011 . mdy-all .
  11. News: Culture . Which is the funniest religion? . Telegraph . October 20, 2011 . London . April 5, 2010.
  12. Web site: Next in line – The Whig Standard – Ontario, CA . https://web.archive.org/web/20100206063206/http://thewhig.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=2244150 . dead . February 6, 2010 . Thewhig.com . October 11, 2011 . October 20, 2011 .
  13. Web site: Review: Pardis Parker at Absolute Comedy . The Kingston Herald . August 29, 2019 . January 4, 2021.
  14. Web site: Pardis Parker — a modern-day court jester . Ottawa Life Magazine . December 13, 2021 . December 31, 2021.
  15. Web site: Stand-up Comedians That Need Your Attention . The Kingston Herald . September 6, 2018 . January 4, 2021.
  16. Web site: Chet Hanks, Tampons for Men, and This Month’s Other Must-See Comedy Shorts . Vulture . March 31, 2021 . March 31, 2021.
  17. Web site: Joe Rogan Chats With the Grinch, and This Month’s Other Must-See Comedy Shorts . Vulture . December 30, 2021 . December 31, 2021.
  18. Web site: Netflix CMO Bozoma Saint John, Lizzo To Topline Global TED Conference In Monterey . Deadline Hollywood . June 21, 2021 . February 2, 2022.
  19. Web site: Seven TED Talks to Get You Through the Day . Moda Magazine . May 12, 2022 . May 27, 2022.
  20. Web site: TED Talks return to Vancouver, will feature Elon Musk, Bill Gates, Al Gore and Finnish PM Sanna Marin . Global News . March 4, 2022 . March 4, 2022.
  21. Web site: RE-UNI-TED . In Pursuit of Elevation . April 17, 2022 . April 18, 2022.
  22. Web site: A Weekend of Many Holidays . Bright Spots . April 16, 2022 . May 27, 2022.
  23. Web site: Ideas that are way, way out there: Notes on Session 4 of TED2023 . TED Blog . April 18, 2023 . April 27, 2023.
  24. Web site: NSI announces online short film fest winners . Playback Magazine . March 4, 2013 . January 4, 2021.
  25. Web site: Watch: Office Romance Blooms In Cute, Award-Winning Short Film 'The Dance' . Indiewire . January 7, 2014 . January 4, 2021.
  26. Web site: Mideast Minute seen by Rachad Antonius and Jean-Philippe Cipriani . Radio-Canada . March 27, 2017 . January 4, 2021.
  27. Web site: Pardis Parker . The New Yorker . January 3, 2021.
  28. Web site: The Bear Chased Us. Then We Chased the Bear. . The New York Times . May 14, 2021.
  29. Web site: Pardis Parker . The New York Review of Books . January 3, 2021.
  30. Web site: Pardis Parker . The Los Angeles Review of Books . January 3, 2021.
  31. Web site: Pardis Parker . Chicago Sun-Times . January 3, 2021 . December 21, 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20201221032203/https://chicago.suntimes.com/users/paradis-parker-cst . dead .
  32. Web site: Pardis Parker . Weekly Humorist . September 9, 2022.
  33. Web site: Pardis Parker and Andrew Hamm . Literary Hub . February 17, 2021.
  34. Web site: Pardis Parker . McSweeney's . January 3, 2021.
  35. Web site: "How buying illegal milk on P.E.I. helped author discover cultural revelation" . CBC News . November 24, 2020 . January 3, 2021.
  36. Web site: Watch: Office Romance Blooms In Cute, Award-Winning Short Film 'The Dance' . IndieWire . January 19, 2021.
  37. Web site: 'Two Men, Two Cows, Two Guns' is an Equation for a Darkly Farcical Film . Film School Rejects . January 19, 2021.
  38. Web site: 'Tallahassee Film Festival - Friday . CinemaSinema . January 19, 2021.

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