Jacob Jackman launches his hybrid absurdist sketch comedy/stand-up show Inner Pieces as part of Gluttony’s Adelaide Fringe programme next week. The show, pitched as a sardonic look at self-improvement in the post-modern age, sees Jacob sitting down with the world’s first AI therapist. We wanted to dive into what led him to AI Therapy, and his process in creating absurdist comedy.

So we caught up with Jacob for a pixelated pint to find out more. Join us here in the Binge Fringe Virtual Pub.

You can catch Jacob Jackman – Inner Pieces at The Squeaker (open-air) at Gluttony – Rymill Park next week from March 4th to 10th at 7:20pm (50mins). Tickets are available through the Adelaide Fringe Online Box Office.

Jake: Hi Jacob! Your upcoming Adelaide Fringe show sees you sit down with the world’s first AI therapist, who has rather dubious origins. Tell us about what inspired this high-concept set.

Jacob: I used to tell a joke about how if they ever make a biopic about my life, the only condition is that the lead actor be completely CGI – really, really bad CGI. Like ‘Lawnmower Man’ bad. That image has always struck me as really funny, and it’s something I’ve brought to life in the form of J-I Jackman, the AI Therapist. My friend Dylan Cooper (who I co-host the hit podcast ‘Ape Mania’ with) did all the animation, while comedian/rapper Nick Gooch provided the voiceover. Displayed on-stage on an old rear-projection TV, the effect is comically unnerving.

Jake: The piece blends absurdist comedy and stand-up together – tell us about your creative process and how you mesh those two into one show.

Jacob: I like to keep the bones of stand-up in my show to ground the more absurd stuff. People are more willing to watch me yell at a television set with my face on it if I can also ask them what they do for a living. I just tend to focus on what comes naturally. Some of the anecdotes I tell are absurd enough that oftentimes people have to ask me if it’s true. But that’s part of the fun. Sprinkle in some other weirdness with the pre-existing weirdness, and you get some new kind of weirdness that scientists have yet to name.

Jake: What are you hoping the audience might take away from the experience, if anything?

Jacob: AI is already impacting the world in a very real way. Smarter people than me can break down precisely why this is bad in a very nuanced and cautionary manner. I choose to focus on the most apparent consequence currently; it’s making everything dumb and lame. There is a social commentary on the role of AI in things like mental health support and the arts, but it’s told through the lens of my own experiences, working in an animal crematorium or trying to find buried treasure on the family farm. People are flawed and messy and weird, and sometimes that is really funny. Artificial intelligence is no substitute for human stupidity. 

Jake: Now we’re in the throes of Adelaide Fringe, what are you most excited for?

Jacob: Finding and capturing the elusive ‘Red Hughsey’. He’s just like the regular Hughsey, but red. I saw him once with my own two eyes. He was eating a whole ibis. He looked up at me, feathers hanging out his mouth, flashed me a menacing grin, then fled into the night. If I can finally capture him, maybe then the Fringe will give me some kind of medal.

Jake: Given the themes of Binge Fringe, if your show was a beverage of any kind (alcoholic, non-alcoholic – be as creative as you like!), what would it be and why?

Jacob: Does ooze count as a beverage? I love when you see a vial of glowing green ooze in a movie. I bet that stuff tastes awesome.

You can catch Jacob Jackman – Inner Pieces at The Squeaker (open-air) at Gluttony – Rymill Park next week from March 4th to 10th at 7:20pm (50mins). Tickets are available through the Adelaide Fringe Online Box Office.