Howdy!
I’m Kelly Shaw, a writer and comedian from Austin.
I started with writing and performing sketch comedy with Destination Imagination (DI). I wrote and appeared in hundreds of sketches, touring the country and performing with my team from the ages of twelve to eighteen. I was recognized by the DI board with the Da Vinci Award for Outstanding Creativity and the Renaissance Award for Outstanding Performance, as well as appearing in their global level long-form improv competitions three times before I graduated high school.
I became a professional actor at sixteen and have appeared in many different film and television productions since. Most notably, I play a lead role in an upcoming limited series on Amazon Prime, called “Hall Investigations”. I also toured the festival circuit with features and short films. In addition, I’ve acted in a lot of sketch comedy in my time.
After acquiring a manager and moving to Los Angeles after high school, I began my work as a writer. I worked as a script consultant for shows on major television networks. I joined writer’s rooms for Comedy Central, CBS, ABC, and Freeform, helping to craft the episodic scripts and provide the best LGBT representation I could, knowing personally how important it was to viewers. I also provided coverage for feature scripts for production studios, including Detour Films for a time, Richard Linklater’s production house.
During my time in LA, I continued to perform live comedy, through improv at the Groundlings School and through my own stand up sets. Since splitting my time between Austin and Los Angeles in late 2019, I continue to do stand-up weekly, writing and performing my own material. My first hour was filmed in early 2021, which I called Good For Now.
My ability to combine a unique comedic voice with a genuine heart and kindness, as well as my experiences as a Gen-Z bisexual woman, have helped to bring a fresh perspective to both my writing and performance.