Mark Farrell and Von Decarlo, Patrice O’Neal’s fiancée for 10 years, have launched an Indiegogo campaign to raise money to finish an official documentary on the late, great stand-up comedian, Better Than You.
Farrell is directing the project, with Sansan Fibri and Jason Steinberg joining him and Decarlo as producers.
Here is their Indiegogo campaign and pitch video, which is seeking to raise $125,000 by May 1, 2015.
Comedians already participating in the documentary include Jim Norton, Colin Quinn, Dane Cook, Bill Burr, Rich Vos, Denis Leary, Jay Moore, Greg “Opie” Hughes, Anthony Cumia, in addition to Patrice’s mother, Georgia, to talk about the comedian’s importance in their lives and in the world of comedy as a whole. O’Neal was only 41 when he died in 2011 following complications from a stroke.
Decarlo said: “When Patrice passed away, I committed myself to completing projects for him that he had in the works such as his comedy albums Mr. P and Unreleased. I also committed myself to doing any and every thing that I could do to preserve his legacy. I take my position and responsibility of completing and honoring Patrice’s work and life story very seriously and I feel that I have the right people onboard with me to see it through in this film.”
“When Von asked me to direct this movie, I was honored and humbled at the same time,” Farrell said. “I’ve worked with some of the greatest minds in American comedy including Larry David, Jim Carrey and Howie Mandel. Patrice had a unique voice, and he wasn’t afraid to use it. His relentless pursuit of the bare truth through laughter was a strong beacon in the comedy world. I’m looking forward to telling his story.”
Producers explained their decision to use Indiegogo:
“We want to do this movie the way Patrice led his life and his work, the way he would have wanted us to make it, and that means keeping creative control. Once a studio or network is financing, the very imminent danger is that they would force certain changes just because of financing and internal politics – changes that would not honor Patrice’s relentless pursuit of the truth. We want to preserve his brutal honesty and not sugar coat it in a way that may seem more commercially appealing to executives. In fact, Bill Burr told us (and his words reflect most other top comics) that he would only do an appearance in the movie if it is done ‘the right way, the way Patrice led his life and the way he would condone.’ We have invested our own money, as well as our time and hard work in this movie but we want this to be a movie FROM the fans, FOR the fans. We are excited to get people talking about the movie early, raise awareness, and set into motion the groundswell of support we hope will continue through to the film’s release and beyond.”
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