Would you watch a sitcom about homeless people?

I'm still a bit fuzzy on the details of where I'd go with it, and I want help so that I can make sure I'm handling the subject tastefully.

The idea grew out of participating in the Midnight Runs at my local Unitarian society and becoming frustrated with the Crazy Homeless People trope.

edited 1st Mar '11 9:13:52 PM by Wackd

If it could maintain an equal measure of empathy and satire, as well as a line in realism and serious Black Comedy, then yes. But don't be a dick with it.

edited 1st Mar '11 9:16:06 PM by JHM

Wow. That was rude. Thumped.

As long as it's done with the intention of showing them as real people rather than stereotypes, I don't see why not.

That is my exact intention. As for JHM's point...well, everyone has a different opinion of where Black Comedy stops and disrespect starts. The idea of straddling it is kind of scary. I think I should hone my craft on other projects first.

But thanks for the input. Nice to know people do think it can be done tastefully.

So, would you base the sitcom around a central area? Like a coffee van where they all meet, or what?

Hm. That's a very good question. I was thinking a soup kitchen when it was necessary to have a Local Hangout-type place, but when it's not a plot necessity I see no issue with them just being out on the street. Maybe in a park or something.

As far as plot goes, I figured it would start with the main character becoming homeless and an older homeless guy taking him under his wing and showing him the ropes and how to survive. I don't know how natural that is, but I do feel like it's necessary to have that sort of entry point to these people's lives.

edited 1st Mar '11 11:01:41 PM by Wackd

If you're doing it tastefully, it probably won't be a good sitcom. Those things are built around acceptable targets.

Not really. A lot of comedies of every stripe have well-rounded protagonists.

^^ You could have some hilarious Black Humor about the beaurocracy of social programs. For example, my Dad knew a guy who was homeless and asked welfare if they could give him some money so he could get a place to stay. They told him they needed an address to mail the check to. In desperation, he decided to go mug someone, but as he was sneaking up behind this one likely target, the guy turned around and asked him if he knew of anyone who'd be willing to take care of his house for several months while he was on vacation! The homeless guy offered to do it himself, got welfare to mail the check there, and got the money to get his own place by the time the homeowner returned.

Failure Is the Only Option for the protagonist. Busy trying to get a home and such and the series ends on him getting that home? That's at least how I'd write it. All sorts of fun with government programs and charity people who don't have a clue as to what they're doing.

Wheezy: Protagonists can be well-rounded, yes, but they still need to be acceptable targets regardless. They can be both.

A couple of my friends are homeless.

They moved into an abandoned brewery and made it their fortress. Now they have couches, beds, supplies, improvised doors and more.

Being homeless doesn't necessarily equate to living on the street in squalor. So be imaginative.

Maybe if they were the Canting Crew. :hmm

This could be Flame Bait if done poorly, but there are stories that portray homeless people realistically and sympathetically and work. (Tokyo Godfathers, anyone?) I agree that it would have to be a pretty dark, intellectual comedy to avoid stereotypes or kitsch, but it's not un-doable.

@ Ettina: That's pretty funny. Bureaucracy is always a great source of humor, I'll definitely be making plenty of references to the insanity that is this country's welfare system.

@ Usht: Most definitely. The show wouldn't last long if failure wasn't the only option.

@ Madass Alex: That's cool, but I'm afraid it might slip into Reality Is Unrealistic territory—or, worse yet, defeat the point of our protagonists being homeless.

@ Takwin: Thanks for the recommendation, I'll definitely try to find it that, and thanks for the encouragement.

Anyone have ideas for characters or plot bunnies? Like I said, this is all very conceptual right now, and I'd really value some input.

As for plotbunnies, I'm pretty sure it would be a Slice of Life with a lot of Black Comedy.

And as for characters, I'm guessing this will be about the kind of homeless people who live on the street and interact regularly with the "homeless community," as opposed to the ones who live in cars or cheap hotels.

So think about the kind of people you meet at your Unitarian church gig, observe how they interact with each other, and Write Who You Know. Not directly, of course. Most of my characters are composites of several people I know and are based around patterns I notice in certain types of people.

The majority of the homeless I see in my city are 40-70 year-old blue collar types who lost their jobs and and got foreclosed on, with the occasional 20-something who can't find a place to live. Teenage runaways usually find someone to stay with, so I don't see many of them sleeping on bus benches.

Also, be sure to include the "normals" your protagonists run into. Charity workers like yourself (you could sneak an Author Avatar into a side role), bus drivers, well-wishers, pastors and church people (poor folks in general are much more religious then rich folks, I find), restaurant workers, etc.

I'm guessing most of the comedy would be observational: You could probably make one of the characters a panhandler, and write jokes about the shitty comments he gets from people in luxury cars, you could have the main characters stop at a cheap restaurant with the money he's earned and play the reactions of the other diners for laughs, use the awful conditions and overcrowding in many homeless shelters as Black Comedy, etc.

And finally, this project will take A LOT of research: The more realistic you can make this while still keeping it a comedy, the better.

Also, please take the piss out of people who tell the homeless to "just get a job" - as if there are tens of places just desperate to hire people with no cars or access to hygiene facilities - at least once.

One thing worth mentioning is that there's a lot of different types of homeless people, who end up homeless for very different reasons. Everything from run aways, drug addicts, the jobless, families camping out in their car, squatters, the mentally ill, and those that don't want to live a normal life, can all fall under the header of homeless. Its pretty reasonable to assume that people in for one reason will find people in for another disgusting or disturbing.

edited 2nd Mar '11 2:20:53 PM by Dec

Dark comedy soounds about right. A good homeless character I can think of is Bubbs from The Wire.

@ Wheezy: Research has begun. In addition to my work with the Run I've also been looking up statistics and whatnot to see what "types" of homeless people are the most common. There is a specific few people who I plan to make side characters—a trio of surprisingly good-humored eighty-somethings, a racist man who lost his job when a dog bit off two fingers and is planning on storming the CNN building and demanding airtime, and a religious guy who regained his faith during homelessness with a sick wife for whom he's built a cardboard barrier to keep her out of the cold.

Me and a close friend of mine (he brought me into the fold, as I'm not actually a member of the 1st Unitarian Society) play a Those Two Guys kind of role. As for taking the piss out on those who tell the homeless to "get a job", well, I do that anyway, slipping a few insults into my work couldn't hurt.

@ Dec: I honestly hadn't considered the volunteer homeless, so thanks for bringing that up.

I would look into Opie and Anthony.

It's a radio show.

Every once in a while, they have a segment where they round up a bunch of hobos (I don't know exact numbers, but a lot) give them $500 or so, (but many will get more, from the radio fans, dubbed "the pests") and they drop them off at a high end mall, and let them shop. It's pretty hilarious, but what's really fascinating is what people will buy. One person spent money on 1k shades, someone else spent it all on a bar, someone else bought only chocolate, others will buy coats, and some will try on the clothes right in the store, and they have to be discarded afterwards.

The idea sounds very interesting. It would work very well with black humor and social satire.

Also,it'd be great if you could insert a Take That against those "IF YER HOMELESS THEN IT'S YER FAULT HURR HURR NOBODY HAS EVER SUFFERED FINANCIAL PROBLEMS HURRRRRR" because they really fucking need it.

I see acceptable targets all the way around. As long as you bitch-slap all sides equally hard, no one can claim that you're targeting any one group.

And what you said, sir. Those who profess that narrow-minded and idiotic belief can go fuck off.

& Exactly what I was trying to say, but apparently failed to do. Kudos.

Well, lots of the homeless aren't just suffering financial problems, but as well as mental problems and spending problems. You can't strawman that side, just as you shouldn't be strawmanning the homeless side, it's just rude.

edited 3rd Mar '11 2:46:05 AM by MrAHR