Over the course of 4 weeks, students will learn how to take their podcast from concept to reality. With weeks focusing on development, recording (gear, tricks, tips), editing, and branding your finished podcast, students will leave with enough information to apply to new or already existing podcasts they have.

4 weeks…

This class meets online via Zoom at the day & time you’re signing up for. All you need is a sturdy internet connection and a device that has a camera and microphone (computer, tablet, or even your phone can work.

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Level 1 – Looking to build your Actor/Improviser Tool Box? Want to bring your Irish Bartender into more crisp view? Got that Brooklyn Cab Driver you’ve been dying to perfect? This is the place to do it! Learn fun ways to expand your arsenal of character voices and regional dialects….

Students living away from one of the Second City Training Centers can still study comedy sketch writing! In Sketch Writing 1 students receive individual instruction through online correspondence, exploring the fundamentals of character development and theatrical scene structure. Exercises include a variety of comedic genres, from “Simple Yet Impossible Goal”…

Building on Online Sketch Writing 1, students will continue to learn the universal comedy techniques used in mainstream media as well as focusing on satire, character development and rewriting.

Major Concepts: Short history of sketch comedy, relationship, game and blackout sketches.

Class Work Examples: 2-Person relationship sketches aren’t…

In Online Sketch Writing 3 you will continue building the blocks of a sketch revue! Explore sketch structures that “break the rules”, including blackouts and clothesline scenes. Expand your ability to collaborate with other writers as you learn the structure of a Second City sketch revue.

Major Concepts: Specialty…

The culmination of the Online Writing Program allows you to strengthen your own voice as a writer as you explore concepts of satire founded in historical and personal events. Gain new tools for rewriting your sketches to strengthen the point of view. This term includes special workshops in songwriting and…

This class teaches a solid, fundamental approach to acting that can be applied to any style or genre of material. After establishing a core process, put it immediately into practice by tackling different styles of scripts each week. Students learn and discuss key elements in scripts, as well as submit…

In Online Intro to Comedic Songwriting you will learn to turn a strong point of view into a great comedic song. Work with classic song structures to strengthen your lyrics, and discover how melody and musical style can influence your songwriting. In this four-week online course, you will receive specific,…

Develop yourself as a solo comedic performer by writing and workshopping your own material. By understanding how earlier stand-up comics evolved, students experiment outside their comfort zone and experiment in a variety of styles until discovering their own unique style. Students will be encouraged to perform in local open mics…

A online, go at your own pace Personal Storytelling course

Understanding the basics of a good, compelling story is essential to life, essential to connection, essential to whether you want to write a memoir, give a Ted Talk or share a story piece for The Moth. Understand your story and you’ll…

A sellable screenplay = quit your day job. This class will help you create characters, understand structure & learn to pitch. You’ll end this course with an outline of your [awesome] screenplay idea as well as the start of your script.

This workshop is not offered every term. If you would…

In Online Writing for TV & Film students familiar with the Second City model of comedy writing will explore visual writing, story structure and character in preparation for creating longer works for TV and film. The class will read existing scripts, view film and television selections, and write and workshop…

You’ve been talking about your sitcom idea forever already. Make it happen! Learn what the market is looking for (seriously, what are they looking for?), how to present your idea, and make them laugh in the room. You’ll end this course with an original pitch packet – from log lines…

Write monologue jokes, desk bits, remote segments, sketch and more for shows like Fallon, Conan, Kimmel, Seth Myers, Colbert, Corden, Oliver, and Ellen. Pitch monologue jokes, brainstorm, explore and heighten material in this collaborative Writer’s Room environment. Create original material to strengthen your writing samples, and produce the elements to…

Building on Online Writing for Late Night TV and Talk Shows 1, this class will consist of joke maximizers for monologue jokes, finding the angle for your joke, monologue jokes with visual punch lines, bits or mini sketches within a monologue, rants on a topic like John Oliver/Seth Meyers, coming…

Students of this class do not need to log in at a certain time or day for streaming sessions, as content, exercises and assignments are on-demand.

According to agents and managers, in order to break into Hollywood, it’s useful to have a spec script, an original pilot, a screenplay (if you’re…

In this four-week online writing satire course, you will learn how to form a strong comedic point of view on topical news and pop culture events. You will brainstorm, draft and rewrite short pieces in the style of McSweeney’s, Shouts and Murmurs and The Second City Network. Internet presence, pitching,…

This second four-week satire writing intensive builds on the concepts learned in Satire 1 and puts an increased emphasis on writing at a professional level. Students will keep a running pitch document, have access to exclusive interviews with top editors and satire writers working today, and create a website for…

Portfolio, Pitching and Submitting Bootcamp

In this two-month class, the final in the Online Satire series, students will complete a writing portfolio that showcases their voice and POV, work to create a professional network, and focus on pitching and submitting finished pieces throughout the course. Topics covered…

Join Kathleen Puls Andrade for an intensive look at the Voiceover industry and learn the skills needed to make it in this competitive field. You’ll be getting behind the mic (or phone, or laptop) to read scripts and get coaching either live with the class or one on one over…