The Karens
Welcome to the support group for people named Karen. Believe it or not, there are some people out there who are named Karen. That’s their actual name. People who must walk through their days knowing the very name their parents gave them is now an insult. This film is for them. We’ve all seen angry and entitled ‘Karens’— throwing tantrums on the internet, threatening to call the police on bird-watchers of color, yelling at fast-food workers, making a scene in a Walmart. Many have wondered if, in a time of frustration, we were being too much of a Karen. Join us at your local community center where women named Karen come together to support each other through this cruel twist of fate. A riotous short film from comedian Katie Goodman and the women of the internationally-touring, award-winning, satirical comedy show Broad Comedy. Take a seat, Karen. We’re here for you.
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Katie GoodmanDirectorAbortion Road Trip
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Katie GoodmanWriterAbortion Road Trip
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Soren KisielWriterAbortion Road Trip
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Katie GoodmanProducerAbortion Road Trip
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Soren KisielProducerAbortion Road Trip
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Katie GoodmanKey Cast"Administrator Karen"Don't Come Knocking' (with Sam Shepard)
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Danielle CohnKey Cast"Not-Karen Karen"
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Aubrey Lace TaylorKey Cast"Counselor Karen"
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Tana SiroisKey Cast"Crying Karen"
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Molly KelleherKey Cast"Phone Filming Karen"
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Sam HenriquesDIrector of Photography
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Project Type:Short
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Runtime:8 minutes
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Completion Date:November 1, 2022
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Production Budget:2,000 USD
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Country of Origin:United States
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Country of Filming:United States
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Language:English
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Shooting Format:Digital
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Aspect Ratio:16:9
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Film Color:Color
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First-time Filmmaker:No
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Student Project:No
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One-Reeler Short Film CompetitionLos Angeles
United States
December 31, 2022
Best Short Film -
Hollywood Just4Shorts Film and Screenplay CompetitionLos Angeles
United States
January 31, 2023
Best Comedy Short, Best Direction -
Best Shorts CompetitionLa Jolla
United States
December 18, 2022
Best Short Film, Best Direction -
Los Angeles Short Film FestivalLos Angeles
April 15, 2023
Official Selection -
Accolade Global Film CompetitionLa Jolla
United States
February 21, 2023
Best Direction, Best Short Film -
New York International Women FestivalNew York
March 30, 2023
Semi-Finalist -
Toronto International Women Film FestivalToronto
February 28, 2023
Nominee -
Los Angeles Women in Film FestivalLos Angeles
April 27, 2023
Official Selection -
Austin Comedy Film FestivalAustin
March 26, 2023
Finalist -
Los Angeles Comedy Film & Screenplay FestivalLos Angeles
January 30, 2023
Award: Best Performances -
Southern ShortsGeorgia
United States
March 19, 2023
Official Selection, Excellence in Acting Danielle Cohn, Excellence in Acting Aubrey Lace Taylor, Excellence in Acting Tana Sirois -
Los Angeles Short Film FestivalLos Angeles
April 15, 2023
Nominee -
Los Angeles Comedy FestivalLos Angeles
April 13, 2023
Official Selection -
Coney Island Film FestivalBrooklyn
United States
May 5, 2023
NY Premiere
Official Selection -
Filmocracy Film MarketLos Angeles
United States
March 29, 2023
Official Selection -
Hollywood Comedy Shorts Film FestivalLos Angeles
United States
April 21, 2023
Best Micro Film Award Finalist -
Houston Comedy Film FestivalHouston
United States
June 10, 2023
Official Selection, Best Micro Film -
Toronto International Women Film FestivalToronto
Canada
February 28, 2023
Best Narrative Short Nomination -
Filmocracy Film MarketLos Angeles
United States
March 29, 2023
Official Selection -
Rochester International Film FestivalRochester
United States
June 8, 2023
Official Selection -
Nominee: Golden Pen Script Awards
April 15, 2023
Best Short Screenplay -
Coney Island Film FestivalBrooklyn
United States
May 5, 2023
Official Selection -
Big Apple Film Festival and Screenplay CompetitionNew York City
United States
May 19, 2023
Finalist: Women Filmmakers, Short Films and TV/Episodic -
Big Apple AGENTS AND MANAGERS Networking LabNew York City
United States
May 26, 2023
Nomination: Best Short Film -
Brooklyn International Short AwardsBrooklyn
United States
May 30, 2023
Semi-Finalist: Best Comedy, Best Screenplay, Best Director Best Actress -
Montreal Independent Film Festival
May 12, 2023
Official Selection: Best Narrative Short, Best Direction -
DC Shorts Film FestivalWashington DC
United States
September 20, 2023
Official Selection -
MOM FIlm FestNYC
United States
August 28, 2023
Best Ensemble Nomination -
Santa Fe International Film FestivalSanta Fe
United States
October 18, 2023
Official Selection
Distribution Information
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Katie Goodman
Katie Goodman, along with her husband Soren Kisiel (author of The Karens), are the co-writers and co-directors of Broad Comedy, an internationally touring, award-winning, all-women sketch comedy and political satire troupe headlined by Katie, which has garnered millions of views online, had an Off-Broadway run, been showcased at Caroline’s Comedy Club in Times Square, won the Pick-of-the-Fringe Award at the Vancouver Fringe Festival, and was listed as one of the top ten sketch troupes at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in Scotland. Broad Comedy has been touring the USA for the last 20 years and has raised over $2,000,000 for progressive feminist causes through their comedy shows. Katie has been seen on Showtime’s The Green Room With Paul Provenza, and Impractical Jokers (and yes, she was in on the joke). Katie and Soren were nominated for the White House Project’s Emerging Artists Award, and for the MacArthur Foundation's Fellowship for their unique work in theater.
The concept of a ‘Karen’ has come to carry so much cultural complexity. The idea of a ‘Karen,’ of course, began as an important label for recognizing a very specific brand of weaponized entitlement and racial bullying. It made sense that it was a woman’s name, as it was specifically the “You’re threatening me” imagined-victimhood that was being called out: a white woman calls the police on a Black man, saying she’s being threatened and knowing that authorities will ‘protect’ her.
But over time, and many, many memes later, this idea morphed into a more general calling out of the “Let me speak to your manager” tantrums—and so, as an ordinary woman’s name has become a generalized insult for obnoxious privilege, it’s also evolved into being uncomfortably anti-woman. Do white men not also need to examine their wielding of entitlement, racial or otherwise? Are we really going to call them Male-Karens?
But through it all… I can’t help but feel sorry for my friend Karen. That's her name. She’s a very nice person. You’d like her.
—Katie Goodman, Brooklyn, NYC