Yesterday, 20 comedians from a competition pool consisting of 56 countries from around the world performed live at the Teatteri Forum in Helsinki, Finland at the semi-finals of the Laugh Factory’s biennial “Funniest Person in the World” competition. Five finalists were chosen by a panel of expert judges and a global online fan vote of over 40 million to perform in the finals this Thursday, December 8th at Hullu Poro Areena in Levi. One talented comedian will win the Grand Prize of $100,000 USD and continue the competition’s mission to bring peace to the world through the healing power of laughter.
“This year, with the election, everyone wants to use aggression but no one talks about bringing peace to the world. My hope is that these comedians can be a solution to worldwide aggression and bring peace through laughter and smiles,” says Laugh Factory founder and CEO Jamie Masada.
The finalists and the countries they are representing are:
Harith Iskander (Malaysia)
Alex Calleja (Philippines)
Mino Van Nassau (India)
David Kilimnick (Israel)
Katerina Vrana (Greece)
The two runners-up will receive awards of $10,000 USD and $5,000 USD respectively, and the remaining finalists and all semi-finalists will receive $1,000USD. Laugh Factory’s portion of any profits will be donated to the International Peace Institute and to Feed the Children. Below are details on the finals and the live broadcast on the Laugh Factory’s YouTube channel.
WHAT:
“Laugh Factory Funniest Person in the World” competition finals.
WHEN:
Thursday, December 8th at 9pm EET, 2pm EST, 11am PST.
WHERE:
Hullu Poro Areena in Levi, Finland AND a LIVE broadcast on the Laugh Factory YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/laughfactory
The online fan vote which will determine the Grand Prize Winner will continue for 24 hours at www.laughfactory.com/fpiw following the completion of the finals. The competition’s Closing Gala will then be held on December 10th in Levi, where 2014 Grand Prize Winner Ismo Leikola will perform live and then announce the 2016 “Laugh Factory Funniest Person in the World” winner.
“We Finns like to connect people,” says Mr. Juha P. Markkanen, Finland’s Counsel General in Los Angeles, “building bridges between various countries and nations through smiles and laughter is a very positive way to accomplish something that is unique and great.”
ADVT