Part of Out of the Wings Festival

When Oscar invites his old friend, Ernesto, over for the evening, they soon get to reminiscing about the old days, when they hosted a comedy programme on the university radio station, playing pranks on their listeners. Ernesto has gone on to have a successful TV career while Oscar has abandoned his dreams of becoming a foreign correspondent for the more mundane task of earning a living as a newspaper journalist in an industry that is being engulfed by the internet.

When Oscar’s wife, Anna, comes home, the two men decide to play a practical joke on her. But things soon spiral out of control, and we are no longer sure who is playing a joke on whom, what is real and what has been invented, and where the line between humour and cruelty can be drawn.

Bad Joke asks if any subjects are off limits for humour, and takes an uncomfortable look at the way that humour can be used as a foil for psychological abuse. There’s a saying that we hurt the ones we love the most, but if we are so willing to hurt someone, can we really call it love?

Writer
Jordi Casanovas (Catalonia)
Translator
Tim Gutteridge
Director
Dadiow Lin