With ‘Corporate,’ Matt Ingebretson & Jake Weisman Reflect “Total Nightmare” Of Life In America Right Now — SXSW

One of the hottest comedies of the new season, Comedy Central’s Corporate was one of a number of prominent television series to hit Austin this week for South by Southwest. This series from Matt Ingebretson, Jake Weisman and Pat Bishop follows the lives of two disenfranchised employees (played by Ingebretson and Weisman) experiencing the miseries of life inside of a soulless multi-national corporation.

“We wanted to make a corporate satire that reflects what it feels like to live in American right now, which is a total nightmare,” Ingebretson told Deadline at SXSW, sitting down with Weisman and Bishop, along with co-stars Adam Lustick and Aparna Nancherla. “It feels awful every day, and we wanted to see if we could mine comedy out of depression and hell.”

While Corporate is certainly a comedy, its creators found themselves more inspired by dramas in making the series, preferring to think of their show as a “really silly drama.” To execute this tone, the creators juxtaposed comedic personalities like Lustick and Nancherla with thesps like Lance Reddick, more well known for their work in the dramatic arena. “I think that a lot of office comedies portray the workplace as this really fun place that has maybe a bad boss, but you have your friends,” Weisman offered. “Our perspective is, even if you have your friends, you want to die, and that’s what we think is funny about the world.”

To hear more from the talents behind Corporate—which was quickly picked up for a second season—click above.

The Deadline Studio at SXSW 2018 is presented by MoviePass.