The Just For Laughs comedy festival, once Hollywood’s exclusive stand-up comedy showcase, is set to return under new ownership ComediHa. next year.
Following a post-bankruptcy reorganization, an 11-day “Just For Laughs” festival is planned from July 16th to 27th, 2025. With the retirement of JFL Chairman Bruce Hills, the role of top comedy curator for the English version will be filled by newly promoted Programming Director Nick Brazao.
A 15-year veteran of JFL, Brazao has held key positions in program management and talent development, building relationships with American comedians, their agents and managers as the festival expanded its global reach. Built.
The planned 2025 edition of Just For Laughs includes the return of the annual ComedyPRO conference. JFL in summer 2024 has been abolished as ComediHa! completed the purchase of assets from its former parent company Groupe Juste pour Lille in June 2024 as part of its recent court-ordered bankruptcy protection.
The return of the English-language JFL Festival under the reorganized Just for Laughs Entertainment Group has been given a boost by the signing of Loto-Québec as a major sponsor of the 2025 edition. “This invaluable support from Loto-Québec strengthens our position as a leader in the comedy industry and allows us to prepare a monumental edition for 2025,” said Just for Laughs. President and CEO Sylvain Palan Bedard said in a statement Friday.
When Quebec City-based ComediHa! first announced the acquisition of the Just For Laughs assets, Parent-Bedard said his live comedy show production company would “deliver a diverse entertainment experience to audiences in Quebec, Canada, and around the world.” ” he said.
A reversal strategy at ComediHa! This includes taking over in part from Just For Laugh’s former owners as a way for American and other global stand-up comedy artists to perform internationally and leverage revenue from touring concerts. Masu.
Just for Laughs began in the 1980s as an annual festival where talent scouts in Los Angeles and New York discovered the next big Hollywood sitcom and movie roles. However, the rise of the internet and social media as a discovery platform for self-promoting comedians has relegated the JFL Festival to an assembly line for budding comedian talent.
The Montreal Festival, the centerpiece of the city’s summer cultural season, has also lost revenue during the height of the pandemic and has been affected by marketing and programming budget cuts at major U.S. networks and streamers.
