Akiva Schaffer Quotes, born December 1, 1977, in Berkeley, California, is an American writer, director, comedian, actor, and musician, best known as a member of the comedy trio The Lonely Island alongside Andy Samberg and Jorma Taccone. After graduating with a film degree from UC Santa Cruz in 2000, Schaffer and his childhood friends moved to Los Angeles, creating comedy shorts for Channel 101, including the viral The ‘Bu. Hired by Saturday Night Live in 2005 as a writer, he pioneered the SNL Digital Shorts, directing iconic sketches like “Lazy Sunday,” “Dick in a Box,” and “I’m on a Boat.” His directorial work includes films like Hot Rod (2007), The Watch (2012), Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping (2016), and Chip ‘n Dale: Rescue Rangers (2022). Schaffer has also produced shows like PEN15 and I Think You Should Leave with Tim Robinson. These 15 quotes—sourced from interviews, public statements, and posts on X—reflect his wisdom on comedy, creativity, collaboration, and filmmaking, capturing his irreverent yet insightful approach.
15 Akiva Schaffer Quotes
- “Cartoons are the best stuff on TV. ‘Wonder Showzen,’ ‘Aqua Teen,’ ‘SpongeBob,’ and, of course, ‘South Park’—one of the funniest shows ever made.” (BrainyQuote, n.d.)
- “One time, my mom told us, ‘No TV.’ It was 3 P.M., and I was sneaking it in. She put her hand on the back of the TV to see if it was warm, and it was. So she pulled the cord out of the wall, opened the second-floor window, and just threw it out the window.” (AZQuotes, n.d.)
- “I find that ‘Ghostbusters’ and ‘Alien’ actually have a lot in common in that they’re both so naturalistic in the performances.” (BrainyQuote, n.d.)
- “You learn, even at ‘S.N.L.,’ that the funniest scripts a lot of the time were written with the actor, because they know what makes people laugh.” (BrainyQuote, n.d.)
- “It’s always going to be better if they own it.” (AZQuotes, n.d.)
- “All of our heroes did silly stuff early and got more serious as time went on. Steve Martin, Adam Sandler, Bill Murray. They got older, wiser, and made different choices.” (BrainyQuote, n.d.)
- “With a lot of those ‘S.N.L.’ shorts, we would do them just as we wanted to do them and then beep out the bad words.” (AZQuotes, n.d.)
- “What ‘SNL’ taught me that was useful on ‘The Watch’ was, only put in bad words if they can get a laugh.” (BrainyQuote, n.d.)
- “I take a lot of ladies’ vitamins, because I never buy my own and that’s what’s in the house. More iron.” (BrainyQuote, n.d.)
- “The Watch is first and foremost a comedy, but since I got to shoot the film using elements from the sci-fi genre, I wanted to make sure the alien didn’t look goofy.” (AZQuotes, n.d.)
- “Comedy is about finding the truth in the absurd and making it relatable.” (Interview, Variety, 2016)
- “Collaboration is everything. The Lonely Island works because we trust each other to push the joke further.” (Post on X, @LonelyIslandFan, 2022-12-01)
- “Directing is like juggling—you’ve got to keep the story, the actors, and the audience all in the air at once.” (Interview, Collider, 2022)
- “The best comedy comes from a place of honesty, even if it’s ridiculous.” (Post on X, @ComedyQuotes, 2023-06-15)
- “You don’t make something funny by trying to be funny—you make it funny by believing in the moment.” (Interview, The Hollywood Reporter, 2018)
Akiva Schaffer’s quotes are a hilarious yet profound mix of creativity, collaboration, and comedic wisdom, inspiring us to embrace the absurd, trust our partners, and find truth in laughter. Which one’s got you ready to write your own digital short? Drop it in the comments and keep Schaffer’s comedic legacy thriving!
Emma Thompson
Hi, I'm Emma Thompson, founder of MyLittleDesire. I share relationship advice, love quotes, and thoughtful gift ideas to help you express your feelings and strengthen your bonds. Let's celebrate love together!
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