It all started in the open space of Improper City, one of Denver's bustling taprooms. In early 2024, a group of Denver comedians gathered for their bi-weekly writers' meeting. The week's agenda? The same as usual: a mix of standup material testing, shooting the shit about the local comedy scene and, of course, laughing at life’s absurdities.
Jay Donaldson recalls the moment when inspiration struck. “Dayton O’Donnell was telling a story about his parents passing when he was young," he says. "I asked him, ‘Was it an accident? Were they murdered?’ We all cracked up, but I noticed a stranger at the next table looking horrified. We were all cracking jokes about this dark subject, and that combination of tragedy and humor stuck with me."
Donaldson went home that night, intending to write a three-minute sketch. Instead, he emerged a week and a half later with three full-length scripts for what would become the first three episodes of The Denverites.
"I just thought that conversation was interesting, but I never expected it to lead to a whole series about characters dealing with various traumas in Denver," Donaldson says. "In that initial talk, we came up with the idea for the picture of a character mounting a photo of their dad on an object that he could play catch with, since he never had a chance as a kid. And I just built from there. We started filming this maybe two months or three months after that initial writing session."
The series — a chaotic comedy filmed entirely in Denver — premiered on YouTube in November. It features a cast of 28 local comedians and boasts a production team as eclectic as its plot lines. Donaldson plays the lead character, Dîck Donaldson, a hilariously inept private investigator navigating a city full of oddballs.
The series begins with "There’s Been a Murder," in which federal agents recruit Dîck to solve a convoluted case involving a celebrity drug-baby-homicide. From there, the chaos escalates. In the second episode, "Fireball," Dîck clashes with a no-nonsense police chief played by Sami Beason while his partner, Steve (Steve Weaver), dives into an ill-advised series of trade-ups.
By the third episode of the show, "Empty Shell Game," house arrests, parkour mishaps and clashes with Elon Musk spark a full-fledged comedic frenzy. The absurdity is grounded by the series’ unique brand of humor — part slapstick, part dark comedy, and always unapologetically weird.
“We’re adults having childlike fun,” says Donaldson. “My three favorite television comedies are Arrested Development, Community and the original British Office, but this was also definitely influenced by Airplane, Police Squad, Angie Tribeca and Tim Robinson’s I Think You Should Leave."
The heart of The Denverites lies in its collaborative process. The series’ creative team is a patchwork of talents, many of whom juggle multiple roles. Donaldson is quick to praise his team: "It is a very community-oriented production process."
“Jay opened this up to be a truly collaborative project,” adds Weaver, who plays Dîck’s old friend and handles much of the technical side. “Everyone contributes to every scene. It’s like being in a writers' room, where ideas are constantly flying.”
"We have freedom to improvise as much as we want — as long as we don't change the plot significantly," notes Georgia Dukes, who plays a fanatical follower of Musk and helps with writing and editing. "That is really freeing as a performer. My character’s blind loyalty was inspired by The Office’s Dwight Schrute and Severance’s Ms. Cobel. Growing up as a person of faith, it is just really fun to make fun of how crazy hyper-religious people sound about certain things."
With a budget of less than $500 for the first three episodes, The Denverites embodies guerrilla filmmaking. The series is shot on a Samsung Galaxy phone, with props and costumes thrifted from local shops. Lighting equipment was borrowed, and the cast worked around their day jobs to shoot scenes.
“We filmed almost every weekend for months, and it felt like when we weren't shooting, we were editing,” recalls Donaldson. “One of the best parts was shooting on location in Denver. We’ve got the Big Blue Bear, Triangle Park and the city skyline. Since it’s made in Denver, we wanted people to see it."
While the team takes pride in this resourceful approach, the members are also looking to expand. Donaldson envisions shorter episodes — around ten minutes each — for the next batch, which will begin filming in January.
“We’ve got big plans,” he says. “Future episodes will dive deeper into the characters’ lives. Georgia and Julia’s vendetta against Elon Musk is going to take center stage, and we’ll have a reality-TV-meets-prison subplot with Larisa and Dayton under house arrest.”
Funding, however, remains a challenge. “I’d love to have a real camera and better sound equipment,” admits Donaldson. “We’ve been talking about Kickstarter or other fundraising options. Denver is trying to promote filmmaking, and we’re one great example of what local creatives can do.”
Watch the series at youtube.com/@thedenverites.
Jay Donaldson recalls the moment when inspiration struck. “Dayton O’Donnell was telling a story about his parents passing when he was young," he says. "I asked him, ‘Was it an accident? Were they murdered?’ We all cracked up, but I noticed a stranger at the next table looking horrified. We were all cracking jokes about this dark subject, and that combination of tragedy and humor stuck with me."
Donaldson went home that night, intending to write a three-minute sketch. Instead, he emerged a week and a half later with three full-length scripts for what would become the first three episodes of The Denverites.
"I just thought that conversation was interesting, but I never expected it to lead to a whole series about characters dealing with various traumas in Denver," Donaldson says. "In that initial talk, we came up with the idea for the picture of a character mounting a photo of their dad on an object that he could play catch with, since he never had a chance as a kid. And I just built from there. We started filming this maybe two months or three months after that initial writing session."
The series — a chaotic comedy filmed entirely in Denver — premiered on YouTube in November. It features a cast of 28 local comedians and boasts a production team as eclectic as its plot lines. Donaldson plays the lead character, Dîck Donaldson, a hilariously inept private investigator navigating a city full of oddballs.
The series begins with "There’s Been a Murder," in which federal agents recruit Dîck to solve a convoluted case involving a celebrity drug-baby-homicide. From there, the chaos escalates. In the second episode, "Fireball," Dîck clashes with a no-nonsense police chief played by Sami Beason while his partner, Steve (Steve Weaver), dives into an ill-advised series of trade-ups.
By the third episode of the show, "Empty Shell Game," house arrests, parkour mishaps and clashes with Elon Musk spark a full-fledged comedic frenzy. The absurdity is grounded by the series’ unique brand of humor — part slapstick, part dark comedy, and always unapologetically weird.
“We’re adults having childlike fun,” says Donaldson. “My three favorite television comedies are Arrested Development, Community and the original British Office, but this was also definitely influenced by Airplane, Police Squad, Angie Tribeca and Tim Robinson’s I Think You Should Leave."
The heart of The Denverites lies in its collaborative process. The series’ creative team is a patchwork of talents, many of whom juggle multiple roles. Donaldson is quick to praise his team: "It is a very community-oriented production process."
“Jay opened this up to be a truly collaborative project,” adds Weaver, who plays Dîck’s old friend and handles much of the technical side. “Everyone contributes to every scene. It’s like being in a writers' room, where ideas are constantly flying.”
"We have freedom to improvise as much as we want — as long as we don't change the plot significantly," notes Georgia Dukes, who plays a fanatical follower of Musk and helps with writing and editing. "That is really freeing as a performer. My character’s blind loyalty was inspired by The Office’s Dwight Schrute and Severance’s Ms. Cobel. Growing up as a person of faith, it is just really fun to make fun of how crazy hyper-religious people sound about certain things."
With a budget of less than $500 for the first three episodes, The Denverites embodies guerrilla filmmaking. The series is shot on a Samsung Galaxy phone, with props and costumes thrifted from local shops. Lighting equipment was borrowed, and the cast worked around their day jobs to shoot scenes.
“We filmed almost every weekend for months, and it felt like when we weren't shooting, we were editing,” recalls Donaldson. “One of the best parts was shooting on location in Denver. We’ve got the Big Blue Bear, Triangle Park and the city skyline. Since it’s made in Denver, we wanted people to see it."
While the team takes pride in this resourceful approach, the members are also looking to expand. Donaldson envisions shorter episodes — around ten minutes each — for the next batch, which will begin filming in January.
“We’ve got big plans,” he says. “Future episodes will dive deeper into the characters’ lives. Georgia and Julia’s vendetta against Elon Musk is going to take center stage, and we’ll have a reality-TV-meets-prison subplot with Larisa and Dayton under house arrest.”
Funding, however, remains a challenge. “I’d love to have a real camera and better sound equipment,” admits Donaldson. “We’ve been talking about Kickstarter or other fundraising options. Denver is trying to promote filmmaking, and we’re one great example of what local creatives can do.”
Watch the series at youtube.com/@thedenverites.
