In “Portlandia,” Fred Armisen and Carrie Brownstein poke fun at the hipster culture of Portland, Ore. The project originated as a series of Internet videos.
(IFC)
Carrie Brownstein and Fred Armisen star in IFC’s sketch comedy show “Portlandia.” Brownstein was a member of the band Sleater-Kinney and is the guitarist and vocalist of Wild Flag, and Armisen is a longtime actor on “Saturday Night Live.”
(IFC)
“The dream of the ’90s is alive in Portland,” sings comedian Fred Armisen in the opening song to the Independent Film Channel’s television series “Portlandia.”
That dream, or at least the stars of “Portlandia,” Armisen and co-creator Carrie Brownstein, will come to the De Neve Auditorium today at 7:30 p.m. for a screening of an episode of the show, followed by a Q&A session, moderated by Los Angeles Times television critic Robert Lloyd. The event is hosted by the Campus Events Commission and the On-Campus Housing Council.
“Portlandia” is a sketch-comedy series that pokes fun at the city of Portland, Ore. From its hipsterism, fixie bicyclists and feminist bookstore owners to its fascination with birds as art and a pre-Bush era ’90s, the show simultaneously pokes fun at and illuminates the culture of Portland.
“I think what Fred Armisen and Carrie Brownstein created is ingenious. I love the do-it-yourself, nonconformist, nature-loving hippie bicyclist characters that they portray in it,” said Jan Tancinco, a pre-political science and world arts and cultures student and member of the CEC speakers staff.
Tancinco said she expects the discussion to cover topics such as the creation of the show, its various kooky characters and general advice for UCLA comedians, actors and writers.
Armisen is a longtime actor on “Saturday Night Live,” and Brownstein was part of the now-defunct girl rock band Sleater-Kinney and is currently the guitarist and vocalist of the band Wild Flag. The two collaborated on the project originally as the sketch comedy duo Thunderant, producing videos on the Internet that increasingly targeted Portland.
Fourth-year sociology student Makinzie Clark said she’s always been a fan of Portland, and after being introduced to the show by some acquaintances from Portland State University, she checked out the show and found it to be true to the city’s culture.
“I remember a scene where the two main characters went to a restaurant, and they wanted to know about the history of the chicken they ordered and asked the waitress if he was raised on a good farm and what his name was. It’s like the whole Portland style and vibe,” Clark said.
Second-year undeclared student Emily Ho, an intern for the CEC speakers staff, said the event coming to UCLA will be a relief from the midterm season.
“CEC has done a lot of comedy events in the past, and “Portlandia” is still a pretty new show. So to have them come to UCLA, it’s a good way for them to advertise about “˜Portlandia’ and also just for UCLA students to chill and de-stress with midterms,” Ho said.
And while UCLA itself isn’t deemed as the same haven as Portland, “where young people go to retire,” as sung in the show’s first episode, the cultures of hipsterism and nonconformity extend outside of the realms of the Northwest region.
“There are definitely people at UCLA who fit the Portland mold, which is developed in this TV show, and I hope they come to see the show,” Tancinco said. “And for people who haven’t seen “˜Portlandia’ and only know Fred Armisen from “˜SNL,’ I hope that they will still enjoy the humor of it all.”