CBC Podcasts and Kelly&Kelly’s Webby Award-winning comedy podcast Let’s Make A… returns for a third season, LET’S MAKE A HORROR, with the first episode available now. This time around, hosts Mark Chavez, Maddy Kelly, and Ryan Beil raise the stakes, inviting listeners to follow along as they write a horror script—and then direct, produce, and act in their scary short film. At the end of the nine-episode series, the comedians will release their film to the public and audiences can decide whether the trio have created a cult classic or a hilarious catastrophe. New episodes will be released every Tuesday on CBC Listen and everywhere podcasts are available, including YouTube.
“We were thrilled to push Let’s Make A… unique comedy-docu format to a place it’s never gone before, giving audiences a polished and tangible end project: a complete short film,” said Kelly&Kelly’s Head of Development, Pat Kelly. “And let’s be honest, listening to a group of extremely funny people attempt to be scary…is hilarious!”
“Every season, the Let’s Make A… crew raises the bar as they deconstruct a beloved genre and script their own original story, to hilarious effect,” said Arif Noorani, Director of CBC Podcasts. “Now, as they tackle the horror genre, we’ll get to know them even more personally as they explore their fears, as well as creative struggles and successes. One thing is certain: the talent is coming from inside the house.”
An international success, the podcast’s first two seasons, LET’S MAKE A SCI-FI and LET’S MAKE A ROM-COM have garnered critical acclaim south of the border. The podcast won a 2023 Webby Award, was featured as one of the “Best Podcasts” of 2020 and 2022 by The New Yorker, declared a “Best Podcast” of 2022 by Vulture Magazine, and profiled in The New York Times.
Helmed by comedian Mark Chavez, LET’S MAKE A HORROR continues to provide its beloved mixture of riff comedy, creative collaboration and insider industry advice. The new season features interviews from A-list Hollywood experts, including director Eduardo Sánchez (The Blair Witch Project), writer Gillian Flynn (Gone Girl), actors Doug Jones (Pan’s Labyrinth, The Shape of Water) and Rose McIver (iZombie), and comedians Ronny Chieng (M3GAN) and Matt Gourley (Conan O’Brien Needs A Friend, With Gourley and Rust). Each episode explores the process of making a scary short film, with topics including how to turn personal fears into compelling plots, horror acting, directing, and editing.
The ambitious short film project introduces more excitement and pressure into the podcast as audiences will not only be invited to be a fly on the wall in the writers’ room, but will follow Mark, Maddy, and Ryan as they attempt to produce, direct, and act in their indie film. In one episode, listeners will hear exclusive footage from behind-the-scenes on set—and all of the chaotic hijinks that come with filmmaking. The finale episode and the original short film, which was shot and produced in BC, will debut December 5, 2023.
