Not one, but two comedy festivals are headed to Iowa City in the near future. In addition to Green Gravel at the end of this month, the first Floodwater Comedy Festival is set to take place in downtown Iowa City April 16-19. The festival will feature comedy performances, screenings of video shorts and workshops.
On the heels of a successful crowdfunding campaign that raised more than $3,000 this winter, the festival is currently holding open submissions for stand-up comedy, improv comedy, comedic video shorts and creative writing. Submissions close on March 9, and the festival’s website provides the full details of the submission process.
“What sets us apart from other festivals is that we want to include different forms of comedy, not just performance,” said Kristine Moffitt, who along with fellow University of Iowa student Annie Levitz, are organizing the festival.
In May 2014, Spencer Griffin — a UI alum and the current executive producer of College Humor — approached the university’s theatre department with the idea of putting on a comedy festival. Subsequently, Moffitt and Levetiz co-founded Floodwater with Griffin.
Moffitt hopes the festival will help put a spotlight on Iowa City’s local comedy scene and help facilitate its growth.
“We wanted to celebrate these artists,” said Moffitt. “We set out to give them opportunities to perform, but we also wanted to give them opportunities to improve their talents through workshops, and connect them with established artists from Chicago and LA.”
The lineup for the festival has not yet been disclosed, but will be available in the coming weeks through the festival’s website, Facebook page and Twitter account.
