It was a year ago that Paul Morris bought a video camera and began making comedy videos with his friends.

The 22 year old NHS clerical officer was studying professional writing at college, but was beginning to get fed up of the course - and realised he wanted to get into acting.

"I did drama but I dropped it earlier in high school because there was a lot of stigma attached to it," he admitted.

He added: "I was working a lot last year too and it was getting dull, and I started thinking of what I like to do in my spare time."

Paul started uploading short videos of himself to Instagram for fun to try out some of his material to followers. which is where his sense of humour struck a chord with followers.

He said: "It comes across a bit forced and melodramatic when I'm acting in more 'serious' scenarios sometimes - whereas with comedy it feels alright."

 

 

After Paul failed to get into the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland last January, he began writing, filming and editing short films with the help of three friends, Jordan Roy, Jonathan Feechan, Jordan Miller, all aged 21 - who lived on the same street as him growing up in Hamilton.

"I just thought about what Ricky Gervais did - film your own stuff and see what happens," he said.

With a variety of short sketches now under his belt, Paul launched the first episode of their sketch comedy on YouTube called Esteem Fiends Arthouse Comedy Show last week - taking inspiration from mundane everyday situations and giving them a surreal, satirical edge for effect.

Aside from working full-time, a lot of time and effort goes into writing the sketches.

Paul said: "I can be in work and it could just be a situation, a punchline, and I just build the rest around it. I write out a basic joke, then we all add bits in and see what feels right at the time. We'll look at it later on and see if it's still funny on film."

He then spends a month or two writing the script, gives his friends a week to learn the lines before spending a month shooting and editing the film.

Paul said that his favourite video was his mockumentary E, in which he plays a narcissistic Vine star whose rise to small fame on social media has given him delusions of grandeur.

One of the latest videos, Scheme Sit In, is becoming a hit with viewers as it breeds familiarity; a cringe-making scenario that most people growing up in the west of Scotland have endured at some point - trying to fit in with new people and going to awkward empties.

 

 

Watch the first episode of Esteem Fiends here.