The Leftovers← Back to the fridge
SHOW BIBLE · CORE FORMULA

The 15-Minute Formula

Every episode runs on the same engine: one main story, four segments that crash into it, Sde Drater on the mic, and a raisin band falling apart in the background.

run time
15:00
run time
scenes
19
scenes
scene changes
18
scene changes
jokes
69
jokes
between jokes
13s
between jokes
sets to build
9
sets to build

Run of Show

  • Cold open
  • Main story
  • Segment
  • Music
  • Raisin runner
  • Close
  1. 0:00
    1:00 long

    Cold Open

    · Top Shelf

    Drop in mid-chaos. Never explain it. Hard laugh at 0:45, smash cut to theme.

    Frank
    1 scene6 jokes
  2. 1:00
    0:20 long

    Theme: The Leftovers Anthem

    · Freezer Stage

    Sde Drater's 20-second hook over Lil Twitch's shaking drum roll. One lyric changes every week.

    Sde DraterThe Dried Out
    1 scene1 jokes
  3. 1:20
    2:00 long

    Act I: The Setup

    · Top Shelf · Crisper Drawer

    Plant this week's A-story problem. Every segment later has to crash into it.

    Big TonyFrankSpud
    2 scenes8 jokes
  4. 3:20
    0:15 long

    Raisin Runner #1: Day One

    · Back of the Fridge

    Folding chairs, a DAY 1 sign, one glass of water everybody is staring at.

    The Dried Out
    1 scene2 jokes
  5. 3:35
    2:00 long

    The Fridge Exchange

    · Butter Compartment Trading Floor

    Stocks, forex and crypto. Guac pumps a coin, Vinnie runs currency in the back. The market crashes because of the A-story.

    GuacVinnie the Vat
    2 scenes10 jokes
  6. 5:35
    1:45 long

    Act II: The Escalation

    · Middle Shelf

    The problem gets worse and somebody's money is now on the line. Act-out on a cliffhanger.

    Big TonyFrank
    2 scenes7 jokes
  7. 7:20
    0:15 long

    Raisin Runner #2: The Shakes

    · Back of the Fridge

    Withdrawals hit. Lil Twitch's shakes become the drum roll into the next segment.

    Lil TwitchWrinkles
    1 scene2 jokes
  8. 7:35
    1:30 long

    Live From The Freezer

    · Freezer Stage

    Backstage bit (30s), then a 60-second track that roasts the A-story. Every bar is a punchline.

    Sde DraterThe Dried Out
    2 scenes5 jokes
  9. 9:05
    1:30 long

    Firmware Update

    · Door Tablet News Desk

    New tech and AI news. The fridge AI glitches into ads, Hacker Ken jailbreaks it, and it learns the wrong lesson from the A-story.

    Glitched Smart Fridge AIHacker Ken
    1 scene7 jokes
  10. 10:35
    1:30 long

    The Crisper Sports Desk

    · Crisper Drawer

    Highlights, hot takes and a betting line on whatever the fridge is fighting about this week.

    Colonel CuthbortStretch
    1 scene7 jokes
  11. 12:05
    0:15 long

    Raisin Runner #3: Rum Raisin

    · Freezer Door

    Relapse. Golden Boy is found face-down in the rum-raisin ice cream: "It's for my career."

    Golden Boy
    1 scene2 jokes
  12. 12:20
    2:00 long

    Act III: The Blowup

    · Top Shelf

    Every segment's mess lands in one room. Biggest laugh of the episode, then The Hand comes for somebody.

    Everybody
    2 scenes8 jokes
  13. 14:20
    0:25 long

    Tag: Rock Bottom

    · Spud's Potato Salad

    The raisins wake up inside Spud's potato salad. Spud screams. Somebody at the cookout screams louder.

    ShrivelSpud
    1 scene3 jokes
  14. 14:45
    0:15 long

    Credits + Outro

    · Freezer Stage

    Sde Drater ad-libs over the credits. Last line teases next week.

    Sde Drater
    1 scene1 jokes

The Rules

RULE 01

A joke every 13 seconds

About 69 jokes per episode. A big laugh at least once a minute, and every act ends on a button or a cliffhanger.

RULE 02

One A-story, five crash sites

Each episode has one fridge problem. The market, the music, the tech desk and the sports desk all have to get dragged into it.

RULE 03

The raisins never get a full scene

Four 15–25 second runner beats that escalate every episode: Day One → The Shakes → Rum Raisin → Rock Bottom.

RULE 04

Music is a weapon

Sde Drater opens, plays mid-show and closes. His lyrics roast whatever just happened, so the music is never a break from the jokes.

RULE 05

Dark, not lazy

Hit expiration, addiction, money, greed, death and The Hand as hard as you want. Cultural jokes come from characters roasting their own food and family. Never mock a race.

RULE 06

Build 9 sets, shoot 19 scenes

Reuse sets so stop-motion stays affordable: Top Shelf, Freezer Stage, Crisper Drawer, Back of the Fridge, Butter Compartment Trading Floor, Middle Shelf, Door Tablet News Desk, Freezer Door, Spud's Potato Salad.

RULE 07

The Hand always wins

Every episode ends with somebody getting eaten, thrown out or dumped in the trash. Nobody is safe.

Sde Drater & The Dried Out

The show's resident rapper and his backing band, four raisins drying out in the back of the fridge. Tap a card to open it.

The Dried Out, a raisin band in recovery
Resident rapper · host of Live From The Freezer
Lead vocals · The Dried Out
Bass · The Dried Out
Drums · The Dried Out
Keys · The Dried Out