CTRL ALT DELETE, the first web comedy series to depict the normalcy of abortion, is poised for a full season release on January 31, 2018. Written, produced and directed by Roni Geva and Margaret Katch, the 7-episode season has been released episodically via their Facebook feed, accruing almost 100,000 views organically over the last month and receiving awards at 3 of the 8 film festivals in which it was screened. The series was produced by an all-female crew.
Using comedy to depict the reality and normalcy of the procedure of abortion, the show is a comedic anthology based on real women’s abortion stories. They interviewed 7 women, including themselves, mined the comedy from each tale, and then set the now fictionalized stories at the same abortion clinic. Though controversial to some, Geva and Katch insist on using as much comedy as they can in order to relay this very human and otherwise difficult to discuss topic.
When Roni Geva and Margaret Katch had their abortions (separately, not together), they looked to the media to find stories to relate to and were shocked to find that the narrative was not represented. Most stories that even slightly grazed the subject of abortion depicted a woman that wasn’t them at all; most times it was a teenager who was really conflicted about the procedure and ended up having the baby. Emboldened, the creators have presented a more lifelike and realistic narrative in this heartwarming and hilarious anthology.
The first two episodes of ctrl alt delete were self-funded before the creators ran a crowdfunding campaign which paid for the remaining five episodes. It was important to the creators to work with an all-female crew, because women are not often given the first shot behind the camera.
Releasing the show on Facebook, a platform known for creating social discussions, Roni and Margaret have been surprised at how quickly the episodes accumulated nearly 100K views. They are also delighted at how many film festivals have taken a chance on their little abortion comedy (eight) and how many awards they've garnered (three). The series has won Best Comedy at Chicago International REEL Shorts Film Festival, the Audience Award at the Broad Humor Film Festival, and the Femme Forward Award at the Flicks by Chicks Fest. They've also screened at Moondance, DTLA Film Festival, Near Nazareth Festival, Imagine This Women's International Film Festival and The Valley Film Festival.
But when it comes down to it, their favorite part about creating ctrl alt delete has been receiving a huge number of messages from people recounting their own abortion stories, and the engagement of civil discussions and thoughtful disagreements in the comments of their posts. They are passionately motivated by how much more work needs to be done.
More about Roni Geva and Margaret Katch
Roni Geva and Margaret Katch met in Chicago at their survival job. Once in Los Angeles, they decided to collaborate. They are passionate workaholics with a love for female driven stories. Their first collaboration resulted in a short film that premiered at the Martha’s Vineyard International Film Festival called To Fall in Love with Anyone, Play This Game. Delighted by their immediate success, they embarked on creating an abortion show, ctrl alt delete, which has to date screened at eight film festivals, winning awards at three. They’re also working on an unscripted travel show, with more projects up their sleeves.
Roni Geva (writer/producer/actor) is an actor, comedian and writer, born and raised in Tel Aviv, Israel. Since coming to America in middle school, she has been a professional stage actor, recently transitioning to film and television work. Before moving to Los Angeles from Chicago, Geva was nominated for a Joseph Jefferson Award for best supporting actress in a musical. Her sketch comedy show The Arab Israeli Comedy Hour garnered great acclaim and led her to work as a writer on the CBS Diversity Showcase. Since then she has worked on television (Jane the Virgin, Casual, Shaded, This Is Us), films (+, Very Grave Robbers, The 98, To Fall in Love with Anyone, Play this Game, Lookin’ Up, This Afternoon, One Small Hitch), and two webseries (Girl Prank Show, Co Habits). One time, Nora Ephron called her a comedic genius. 5 seconds later, Roni died*
*Roni is not actually dead.
Margaret Katch (director/writer/producer/actor) is a Chicago-born performer who wanted to be an actor ever since she was knee-high to a parking meter. She wrote and directed many stories starting at the age of 4, mostly about princesses picking blueberries in the woods. Upon graduating from Emerson College with a BFA in acting, Margaret Katch returned to her native Chicago where she worked as professional actor and sometime director on stage and film. She was nominated for a Joseph Jefferson Award, which was cool. Upon moving out to Los Angeles, Margaret quickly discovered that creating her own work was completely attainable, and utterly satisfying… and now she must do it forever. She has appeared on television (Gilmore Girls, 69th Annual Emmy Awards, Rake, and a pilot for Lifetime that didn’t air), films (Bastard Son of a Thousand Fathers, To Fall in Love with Anyone, Play This Game), and several webseries (Quick and Dirty, Crystal’s Balls, Wanted: Best Friend) and was nominated for two Ovation Awards for her work in Failure: A Love Story with the Center Theatre Group and Coeurage Theatre Company).