Eric Sheffer Stevens - Q & A

Around December of last year, I was invited to post the following Q & A with Eric Sheffer Stevens on the blog. The questions and answers were compiled by some fans in the Netherlands, who shared them with me. Unfortunately, due to life circumstances, I totally dropped the ball on getting them transcribed and posted - until now. A couple of the questions are out of date (sorry, Eye Candy) but hopefully you'll still enjoy the info.

Q: Which is harder to do, Shakespeare or Caryl Churchill and why?
A: Churchill is more difficult. There was a time I would say Shakespeare, but I am so familiar with his language and I've studied it for so long that this is no longer the case. I chose to do the Churchill play because it was so intimidating and challenging and I didn't know what the heck to do with it. I trusted I would figure it out over the four weeks of rehearsal.

Q: You've just portrayed Edmund. Do you have a favourite scene or favourite lines of his character in King Lear?

A: Favorite lines or close to it. The speech that begins, "This is the excellent foppery of the world." Act I Scene 2 Lines 118-132(ish).

Q: You played three clones in A Number. To which of the three do you relate the most as an actor and/or as a person?
A: Back to Churchill, the third character was my favorite to play - such a fun character to get into and close the play with.

Q: Did you dive yourself in the episode of Dive in Criminal Intent?
A: I did not dive in Criminal Intent. I don't think...

Q: I've read a lot about New Yorkers being different from other Americans. Do you agree and if so, how would you describe the difference?
A: Yes. Definitely. New Yorkers are different than Americans. New Yorkers live on an island off the coast of the U.S. - there are similarities but it is its own country.

Q: What do you prefer: stage, commercials, movies or TV?
A: I prefer stage, but enjoy all forms to varying degrees.

Q: Do you teach drama or literature?
A: I don't teach anything.

Q: We were really surprised to find a CD from Les Miserables and heard your voice. Did you do more projects like this?
A: The Les Mis project was a friend's that I did a long time ago - I've done nothing like it since.

Q: Can you give us more info about your role in the MTV series Eye Candy, you are playing Hamish?
A: The only thing I can say about Eye Candy is that it premieres at the beginning of the year.

So there you have it! Only half a year late. My apologies to Eric and the fans who so graciously allowed me to publish this. I hope it was worth the wait!

Video of the Week - ESS Showreel!

Want to know why I'm such a big fan of Eric Sheffer Stevens? Here's a quick peek - sort of a greatest hits of his work for the past few years. (And, amazingly, nothing from As The World Turns, which is what put him on the radar for many of his fans!)



Eric Sheffer Stevens Showreel from Craig Trow on Vimeo.

So there you go. Enjoy!

Ten Reasons To Watch IHMTD Tonight!

Tonight marks the return of I Hate My Teenage Daughter to the FOX lineup. Sandwiched between Raising Hope and New Girl, it'll be part of the new Tuesday comedy block. So why should you add it to your viewing schedule tonight?

1. Eric Sheffer Stevens.

2. A fantastic ensemble cast that obviously enjoys working together.

3. Guest star Mark Consuelos.

4. Eric Sheffer Stevens.

5. A mention of telenovelas!

6. The cast members who tweet are really nice (and interact with fans).

7. Eric Sheffer Stevens and Kevin Rahm are goofy.

8. If you attend a filming, you'll get pizza.
9. It's only half an hour of your day. You can spare that, can't you?
10. ERIC SHEFFER STEVENS.

Any questions? :)

I HATE MY TEENAGE DAUGHTER, Fox, Tuesdays, 8:30 pm. Be there!

New Pic of Eric!

By request, because some people can't access the photo on twitter or Facebook...

Monday Movie Musings - Changes at IHMTD

Okay, it's not really a movie, but the changes being chatted about concerning new fall FOX comedy I Hate My Teenage Daughter have been on my mind lately.

First, what was already the latest premiere of the fall season has been pushed back even later, to November 30. The first premiere date, November 23, didn't make a whole lot of sense - it's the day before Thanksgiving, and you wouldn't expect it to get much attention (or ratings) then. But a week later pushes it even closer to the winter hiatus season. How many episodes will actually be shown before they go to reruns or holiday specials? At this point, they should just call it a midseason replacement and go with a January premiere.

Then comes the news that they're already retooling the show (which, to be honest, was one of the things I crossed my fingers for when I first heard they were premiering so late in the first place). When I attended the filming, I thought it was funny, but definitely a traditional sitcom-style show (not a bad thing, but it is what it is). And I was very impressed with the cast - the talent there was impressive.

But the show has been eviscerated by the critics. Absolutely shredded. And my hope was that the added time before the show premiered would give them an opportunity to change things up, maybe bring the show and script up to the level of the performers.

So word is (in the new issue of Entertainment Weekly) that they've done some reshoots that make them more confident in the show. The problem? The example given is that Eric's character, Matt, was changed to seem "less pathetic".

Okay. I have no issue with Eric being given more material, or his character switched up. But of all the negative reviews of the show (and believe me, I've read almost all of them -yeah, I'm a little invested in IHMTD succeeding), not one of them said anything negative about Eric or his performance. NOTHING. It's all about the parenting fail by the female characters, or the tone of the show, or the laugh track - but not a single critic has said, "I hated the character of Matt and it killed the show for me."

So, uhm, I really hope that's just one of the changes, and they've done other adjustments to the pilot to help it be successful - and prove the critics wrong. Even if it does start so late in the year.

VSC Auction, and Come See Me on NNN!

Just got back from a weekend fastpitch tournament, and I'm wiped, but wanted to let you all know about a couple of things.

First, if you (like me) were a fan of Reid Oliver on ATWT, there's a great auction going on over at ESS.com for some memorabilia from his time on the show. You can bid on the Harvard diploma that was seen hanging on his office wall in his very first episode, or the script from his final appearance on ATWT, autographed by Eric himself. Proceeds benefit the Vermont Shakespeare Company. Bidding will be taking place until June 26, so if you're interested, be sure to take a peek!

Also, I'm blogging over on Nine Naughty Novelists today about the Four Stages of Internet Embarrassment. Stop by and say hello!

"Hi Kate" Inspires a Birthday Surprise!

Exhibit A

Okay, I know, it can't be much of a surprise if it's being planned and executed publicly online, but the thought is there, right?



In any case, fans of Eric Sheffer Stevens are putting together a photo collage birthday present/card for him, asking people to send in pictures of themselves holding "Happy Birthday Eric" signs with their name and town on them. If you're a fan and want to participate, send in your pic by Friday the 17th to k.5weet@yahoo.com. Easy peasy, right?



Have a great week!

Seriously?

Okay, someone out there who watches One Life To Live - is Jean Passanante really recycling the tragic-death-leads-to-heart-transplant storyline on that soap as well?

That's the rumor I've been hearing, and if it's true, I'm absolutely disgusted.

It was bad enough that she was responsible for the ridiculous, anvil-laden, offensive killing off of one of the most popular new characters on daytime at the end of As The World Turns. She and her team took a promising storyline - the Luke and Reid romance - and shoved it on the backburner, destroyed its momentum, dialed down the heat and sexual tension until it almost disappeared (it's a testament to the talent of the actors that they were able to maintain any romantic spark through months of "I want you and I will show you how much by brushing lint off your shoulder" bs), and shifted the focus to Reid the brain surgeon trying to save the life of a self-centered jerk who refuses proper medical care and exacerbates his own health issues. Followed by a meaningless death and the character assassination of almost everyone involved in the storyline.

And now she's doing it again? On another show?

And I hear this is actually the THIRD time she's done the same storyline?

I have a hint, OLTL team - GET SOME NEW IDEAS.

And if your writing team is incapable of doing that on their own, it might be a good idea to GET SOME NEW WRITERS AS WELL.

*wanders off, grumbling under my breath*

Monday (Not Quite) Movie Musings - My TV Week

(<--- This guy's got a busy week ahead. I think that's why he looks so serious in this picture.)

Sorry, don't have a movie to feature this week. But it's a busy TV week, so that's a decent replacement, right?

MONDAY marks both the start of the network upfronts (when the networks unveil their schedules for the fall season) and the season finale of Hawaii Five-0. I'm excited (and nervous) for the finale, but even moreso for the upfronts, as Fox is revealing their schedule at 3 pm. Will I Hate My Teenage Daughter be on the schedule, or will they hold it as a midseason replacement? With only two hours of programming a night, and large chunks of primetime real estate already claimed by the X Factor and American Idol, nothing is guaranteed until the schedule is out there in black and white.

Oh, and I'll be watching the second to last episode of Chicago Code and sniffling.

ETA: FOX has released their primetime schedule a few hours before their upfronts! I Hate My Teenage Daughter will be on Wednesdays at 9:30 following The X Factor. This is excellent scheduling because a) following a sure-fire ratings juggernaut will bring a built-in audience to the show, and b) I don't already watch anything during that time slot so I won't have to make any hard decisions!

Then there's TUESDAY, with Glee (only a couple of episodes left!) and more upfronts. Not sure which networks roll out the schedules. I'm looking forward to seeing what happens with ABC, since soap fans are planning to protest outside. Also have heard that The Chew and The Revolution, the shows destined to replace All My Children and One Life To Live, are looking pretty lame. Awesome work, ABC Daytime!

Then, at 10 pm, there's a new episode of Body Of Proof, with this guy named Eric Sheffer Stevens in a guest role. If you've ever read this blog, you may have heard of him before. I think I've mentioned him once or twice. (translation: OMG SQUEE I'VE GOT IT SCHEDULED ON MY DVR ALREADY CAN'T WAIT.)

WEDNESDAY is set aside for CBS upfronts, which I'm really only interested in because of Hawaii Five-0 (and now that it's been announced ahead of time that it's been renewed for next year, I'm just waiting to see if they've switched nights.)

Nothing more really exciting that I know about until SUNDAY, when apparently that guy I just mentioned is also guesting on Law and Order: Criminal Intent. (translation: OMG HOW DID I NOT KNOW THAT UNTIL TODAY I HAVE FAILED AS A FANGIRL BUT AT LEAST I'VE MANAGED TO SCHEDULE IT ON MY DVR NOW.)
ETA #2 - First promo pic for IHMTD! ESS is second from the left. That's the costume he wore in the pilot. Wheee!

So there you have it, my TV week in a nutshell. What are you watching/following/looking forward to?

Monday Movie Musings - Update on LLRT (now with sneak peek scene!)

Just got some news about Lefty Loosey Righty Tighty, which is in post-production right now. (I posted about the film way back here, and have been following its progress over the past several months.) They're very close to finishing, and have a new sneak peek available for those who've memorized the trailer and were waiting for new material. :)

Here's the scene, featuring my favorite actor Eric Sheffer Stevens.



Right now, the team is hard at work putting the finishing touches on the film, including color correction, sound mix, and the title sequence. Their website has more details on the process, if you're so inclined.

Once the film is complete they'll be submitting it to film festivals and hopefully gaining interest from distributors, so I'll keep you posted as news crops up.

Also, and slightly off-topic, director James Yaegashi has been putting a lot of effort into fundraising for Japan. Here's a vid about the project he's working on, which includes some actors I recognized (and you might as well...)

A Milestone For ESS Fans!

Eric Sheffer Stevens in Body Of Proof, airing this spring.

Happy hump day!

Time is flying for me these days, probably due to baseball/fastpitch eating up huge swathes of our family schedule, and I keep turning around wondering where the hell that day/week/month went when I wasn't looking.

It's also flying for my friends over on http://ericshefferstevens.com/, who are about to celebrate their one year anniversary next month. They asked if I'd be willing to spread the news about a contest they're holding in honor of this milestone, so here are the deets:

On May 17th, we will be celebrating our one year anniversary at ericshefferstevens.com. It's been a great year of meeting new friends, learning new skills, campaigning with everything we've had in us and enjoying the talents of one amazing actor. We've laughed, squeed, fallen in love and cried our hearts out as a fandom. Now Eric is moving on to new roles and developing new characters for us to love. We hope you will all stick with us as we continue to follow his career. I think we are all in for an amazing ride.

Since this is our 1st anniversary, the Crew has decided to share a few gifts with some of our friends in the Eric Sheffer Stevens community but we'd like a little something from you too. During the month of April we'd like Eric's fans to drop us a note on the website (by clicking the "Contact Us" in the top right corner) and share some of the following with us...

*Tell us about your year as an ESS fan...highs, lows anything special you'd like to share
*Tell us what you like or would change about the site/forum, anything that stood out for you
*Tell us any ideas you have or anything you'd like to see on ESS.com/ ESS fan forum (not that we can make any promises...every member of the Crew is still working on a huge learning curve when it comes to web stuff)

We are hoping to add a page or two to the website with quotes from as many fans as possible. Then on May 17th we will randomly draw 6 names from the list of fans that participated and share one of these gifts with them. We will post the names on the forum and contact you for your addresses. (Yes we will ship to wherever!)

Thanks again for helping us make ESS.com and the ESS fan forum such a great place to hang out and follow Eric and his career.

The Crew/Crew Friends

So there you go! Have a great rest of the week!

Monday Movie Musings - Pilot Filming Follow Up

Over the past week I've gotten some questions about the filming of I Hate My Teenage Daughter (thanks, LoveLure!) and I thought I'd take today's blog post to answer them, rather than burying them in the comments of an older post.

1. Do they shoot the episode in the sequence we'll see the final episode? Or do they go out of order (e.g., if they use the kitchen set twice, do they do both those scenes before moving to another set)?

The pilot was filmed in order. The first scene (and last, as well) was pre-filmed, so we watched it on the monitors in completed form. After that, the cast and crew went through the script in order, making sure each scene was done to their satisfaction before moving on. Hence, the 4 hour filming time for what's essentially a 22 minute episode.

(Side note: I wouldn't be surprised if it was trimmed a little from what we saw filmed. Even taking into consideration the multiple takes and between-scene pauses, it still seemed longer than 22 minutes. Fingers crossed none of Eric's work is lost, though!)

Also, the video feed we watched on the monitors wasn't just raw footage - the angles and camera changes were already decided ahead of time, so we saw the angle change from one character head-on, to the other head-on, to a wide shot, as the scene played out.

2. Are there multiple sets of multiple cameras (one for each set)? Or do the cameras stay fixed and just point at different sets? Or do the sets move?

The sets are fixed, and the cameras moved from set to set, as each scene changed. One set was around the corner (we watched on the monitor as they filmed behind the wall at the edge of the audience seating), and I can't remember if they moved the cameras all the way back there. But otherwise, when a scene change was announced, the cameras would roll over to the next set, a clump of people following behind (director, cinematographer, various other behind-the-scenes crewmembers). This is part of why breaks between scenes took a while; the equipment needed to be in place before they could start again.

(Side note: When the flats were moved away from the front of the set and we could finally see the whole setup, I originally thought there was a narrow backyard or outdoors set between the kitchen set and the family room set. It took me a while to realize it was actually just set dressing for both sets, so that if the camera angle caught the view outside a window, it would look like there were trees and bushes out there. LOL)

Also on the topic of IHMTD, a quick perusal of general TV discussion boards and prognosticators shows that most people expect it to be on the schedule for next year. This means pretty much nothing, of course, since the Powers That Be at FOX have the last word, but it's encouraging in an inside-baseball, fantasy league sort of way.

Also also, I'm still highly tickled when I run across links to this blog in discussions of the show and the coming TV season.

Have a great Monday!

What I Learned On My Almost-Summer Vacation

I admit it. The main reason I flew down to LA last week for the pilot of I Hate My Teenage Daughter was to see Eric Sheffer Stevens perform live. (You might have picked up on that detail in previous posts. There were some subtle clues.) But I was also interested in seeing just what goes on behind the scenes during the filming of a TV show. So this was a chance to meet two goals at once! (And sharing that experience with friends was a definite bonus!)

The first thing I noticed as we entered the studio was the set construction pieces all around us, and the black curtains masking so many parts of the set and the studio. We were led to a stadium-style seating area, with approximately 200 chairs set up for the audience. There was a DJ spinning tunes at a sound system at the back of the audience section, lots of upbeat and dance-oriented tunes. A big section of the middle seating area was empty, and those seats were reserved for (we assumed) friends and family of the cast and crew.

The entire audience area was surrounded by black curtains that hung down from a framework, low enough to mask the microphones and monitors that lined the front of the seating, but short enough we could see the sets and equipment in front of us.

There were three sets visible (well, partially; the tops of the sets were visible, while the rest was blocked off by black partitions). Directly in front of us was the kitchen set, to the left was a living room set, and to the right was a coffee shop set. Later we discovered there was a high school hallway and principal's office set off to the side of the seating area. We couldn't see it, but while they were filming there, we could watch on the monitors.

There were many people walking around on the set, and more clustered around equipment. It was clear that there were a LOT of people involved in the filming of this one episode, and I remember thinking how many people would be affected by the decision of the network whether to pick up the show or not. (Apparently FOX has optioned eight half-hour comedies this season, with space for likely two or three of them. IHMTD is the only multi-camera comedy of the bunch.)

It's cold on set; I was glad I had a coat. I always assumed that they kept the studios cold so the heat of the lighting wouldn't be too much for the actors. But apparently it was too cold even for the stars, because Jaime Pressly mentioned the chill, and would wrap up in a sweatshirt between takes.

The first scene was in the kitchen set. Each scene is filmed multiple times, with adjustments to the script and performance in each take. I was impressed with the writers' ability to take note of audience reactions, rewrite/change jokes on the fly, and hand the revised scripts to the actors, who would learn their new lines and perform them - all without an unreasonable amount of downtime. For example, one of the jokes really fell flat in the first scene. The writers changed it, the actors performed it, and the audience gave the new joke one of the biggest laughs of the evening.

After the scenes are filmed two or three times, the director may decide to film just a short part of the scene over - one conversation, a few lines, even some stage business. The actors are careful to start and end in the same spot on set for each section, presumably so they can be cut together later if necessary. The camera work is also decided on prior to filming - as we watched on the monitor, we saw the cuts and changes as they would be in the finished product. The filming seemed to go quite smoothly to me, with the actors knowing their lines and stage direction very well.

There were only a few flubs and stops, one of which was when Eric said a line and immediately followed it with "no, I don't want to say it that way. Go back?" Which they did.

Between takes, or when the scenes were switching between sets, the warm-up guy would try to keep the audience interested and enthusiastic. When he wasn't busy making me look like a creeper, he arranged a dance-off, put together the dating game for another audience member, and auctioned off a pie.

It was a fascinating process, and I enjoyed the experience very much. I'd love to go back again now that I know what to expect! Only this time I'll keep my mouth shut around the warm-up guy. And maybe wear a disguise.

Sorry I don't have pictures of the set/actors/studio, but any recording device is strictly verbotene. Tune in later this week for some pics of my time in LA!

Yes. I Met Eric Sheffer Stevens.

So yesterday may have been just about the most surreal experience of my life.

I was up at 4 am and headed for the airport, where I had a 6 am flight to Los Angeles (with a stopover in Las Vegas). We actually made it to L.A. early, so I changed into a less-warm top (the temp was probably 40* warmer than what I'd left behind) and met up with the others. We were able to check into the hotel early, which was nice.

We made a quick reconnaissance drive down to Warner Brothers studios and scoped out the area, then had lunch followed by a return to the hotel to get ready.

The filming was at 6 pm, but we wanted to be sure to get good seats so we got to the studio before 4. The holding area was actually inside the visitors parking lot, with a bunch of long benches in rows. The first side of the first row was already filled, as was another row at the back of the holding area - we found out later it was for groups. We sat down and waited, wondering if anyone else there was attending for the sole purpose of seeing Eric perform live.

About half an hour into the wait, Carol (Pin from ESS.com) came over and introduced herself. Her husband held her spot (in the first waiting row) while we chatted. At about 5:15 or so they started walking people across the street to the studio. The first side of the first row was escorted across, followed by the first row from the group section. (I may have muttered something about how they'd better not take all the groups in before us, since we'd been there longer.) Carol and her husband gave up their spots so they could go in with us, which was sweet. We walked across the street and got in line for the security check. All of us made it through and continued on down the street, past big studio buildings.

Finally, we were escorted across the street to building 19, where the pilot was going to be filmed. There's a placard on the outside of the building next to the door listing all the movies and TV shows that had been filmed there - everything from Key Largo to The Last Samurai to Life Goes On to Ocean's Eleven (both versions). I thought it was appropriate that The West Wing was also on the list, since Eric named it as the show he wished he could go back in time and be on.

We were led into the theater to the seating area, which was on a riser set up with chairs, six rows deep. Our seats were in the fourth row, directly in front of what looked like a kitchen set, though the majority of the set was masked by black-fabric-covered barriers. A black fabric curtain hung down in front of the audience seating, just far enough to block the television monitors and microphones from the view of those on set. The monitors were there for us to see what the show would look like with the camera cuts. Also, because of all the equipment between us and the set, it was actually easier to see the show on the monitors than to watch the actors on set.

There was still some time to kill until filming started, so we amused ourselves by trying to identify what the other sets were by the little we could see over the barriers. There's a coffee shop set, which of course made us speculate whether Noah would be there wiping the counter or not.

About 15 minutes before the show was scheduled to start filming, a warm up comedian came up into the audience and started trying to build enthusiasm for the show. There was a competition between the two halves of the audience to see who could cheer and laugh the loudest (our side won, of course) and asking where people were from and why they were at the filming. Then he brought me up in front of everyone and asked where I was from and why I was there. I responded that I was from the Northwest, and was there with other Eric Sheffer Stevens fans from all over the country. He said that there was a name for that - stalking -and asked if we wanted a lock of his hair or something. (I told him no, that was kinda creepy, and all we wanted was to see Eric perform live.) Then he went on to make fun of me for being a romance writer. Ah, good times.

By then, it was time for filming to start, so I went back to my seat just in time to see the cast walk out from behind the barrier DIRECTLY BEHIND ME, WHERE THEY'D BEEN THE WHOLE TIME I WAS INTERVIEWED. Eric had heard the whole thing. I was *mortified*.

I'm going to skip over the details of the filming, because that's going to be a separate blog post on Monday. But I will say that the warm up guy NEVER LET GO of the whole stalker/fan thing. Every damn time Eric appeared on set, he'd say something to us like, "Now's your chance! Jump the barrier and get a hug! You may end up in jail, but you'll have what you've always wanted!" or "Look, there's Eric! Don't you just want to be his jacket? I bet he can feel the vibe of your jacket love." Let me tell you, it got old REALLY fast.

Oh, and one very cool thing? They passed out bottled water and pizza halfway through the filming so we didn't starve to death. It was very nice. Almost made up for having to sit in a meat locker for four and a half hours.

Finally, the filming was over, and Traci and I and a few others waited for a few minutes to see if we might have a chance to say hi to Eric. He was busy talking to some gentlemen in suits, though, and the ushers told us we'd have to leave. We walked out, feeling a little disappointed, but overall very happy with the experience.

We were more than halfway back to the garage when we heard someone running up the road behind us. We turned around and it was Eric, chasing us down to thank us for coming.

Um. Yeah. Eric Sheffer Stevens. Looking for us.

I may have died a little.

He said he was sorry, that he didn't know they were going to make us leave before we could talk to him, and wanted to make sure we didn't leave before he said thanks for coming. I got to shake his hand, and all I could think to say was "I am so sorry!"

He responded, "Why? For making me run?" I said no, for talking to the warm up guy and causing the long-drawn-out teasing. He said he was glad it happened because it let him know we were there. He took a little time to talk to everyone in our little group, and then had to go back to the theater again, so we said goodbye.

Then we walked to the crosswalk pretty much on air.

(Also, as we waited for the light to change at the crosswalk, someone in the group mentioned the interview I'd done with Eric, and the woman standing next to me said, "Are you Kate Davies? I loved that interview!" So I had a brief moment of being recognized as well.)

It was an amazing, surreal, fantastic experience and I wouldn't change it for anything. (Except for the annoying warm up guy.)

And I was so glad to be with friends I could share it with!

(And stop by Monday for more detail on the actual filming of the show!)

Squeeee!

I quite like the fact that ESS is front and center in the ad. Good choice, promo department!

Heading out tonight to the airport hotel, for an early morning flight to L.A. I've scrounged up some hopefully-appropriate clothing (it's in the 40's-50's here, so finding clothes for 80-plus weather is a challenge) and triple-checked my ticket for the filming. Phones and cameras are a big no-no in the studio, so I won't be live-tweeting the experience, but rest assured that I'll be providing an epic trip report after the fact!

Don't know if I'll actually get to meet Eric, but just seeing him perform live will be fantastic. Have I mentioned I'm a fan? No? Wow, sorry about that. Don't know how it slipped my mind. :) Have a great rest of the week - I know I will!

Random Post of Randomness!

* Take A Chance On Me, my upcoming title from Samhain, is now on the Coming Soon pages, and available for preorder! Better yet, it's discounted - so if you buy it now, you'll save some coin, and it'll show up in your account on release day. It's also on the Men In Uniform bestseller list already. Cool, huh?

* Silent House, a horror film from the team that produced Open Water, screened at Sundance over the weekend and just sold to Liddell for $3 million. Congrats to the cast and crew, which includes Eric Sheffer Stevens as the uncle, and the reason I'm even tracking the sales information for this film in the first place. A huge thank you to Parrish Hurley, who verified the sales info for us. You rock, Parrish! (And ABC News, FAIL. Next time, be sure there's a sale before you report it, because we believed you.)

* Loved Hawaii Five-O last night. Glad the ratings were good! Just wish the DVR hadn't cut off midway through. Would have enjoyed watching it again. *stares meaningfully at On Demand*

* That's it for me at the moment. What are you up to?

Happy Reidiversary!

Reidiversary? What is Kate talking about?

Well, January 19, 2010, was the first appearance of Eric Sheffer Stevens as Dr. Reid Oliver on As The World Turns. I wasn't watching the show then; it had never been one of "my" shows. I'd watched the Luke/Noah storyline on YouTube in a marathon some time before that, but hadn't kept up with it. I was happy with my German soap and not paying attention to what was happening on other shows.

It was a few months later when a friend halfway around the world finally talked me into giving ATWT a try. She'd been raving about the new doctor in town, and the actor who played him, and ultimately piqued my curiosity.

I was immediately hooked. (This may not come as a surprise to you.)

And by the end of 2010, I had:

Promoted the show (and Eric Sheffer Stevens) to anyone who would listen;
Become friends online with a great group of LuRe fans, from all over the world;
and
Started a new side career as an interviewer, at least on my blog.

A big impact from a character on a TV show, I'd say.

And I wasn't the only one to see the impact. ESS has received quite a bit of attention for his nine month stint during ATWT's final days. Here are just a few kudos:


Named one of 2010's Hottest Newcomers by TV Guide Canada
Hit the Daytime Confidential Hot 100 List at #56
Named Soap Star of the Year by Greg In Hollywood
TV Guide's Couple of the Year with Van Hansis' Luke
#1 on Daytime Confidential's Top Ten Soap Newcomers of the Year
Multiple mentions on Michael Fairman's Best And Worst of 2010, including:
~ Best overall performance by a supporting actor
~ Best new couple, Luke/Reid
Shortlisted for Supporting Actor Daytime Emmy predictions by CBS Soaps In Depth.
TV Guide Canada's 2011 Soap Opera Spirit Awards nominations
~ Outstanding Male Actor in a Recurring or Guest Starring Role
~ Outstanding performance by a duo, with Van Hansis
Named best new character by two different columnists for soapcentral.com
(and, just for fun, he made the Hot 100 on AfterElton - landing at #25!)

I'm sure more praise will be headed his way, especially as we get closer to Daytime Emmy nominations. For now, I'll leave you with a little taste of Dr. Reid Oliver, from ESS's first appearance on the show. Enjoy!

Welcome 2011!

Wow, that was one crazy year, wasn't it?

It's still hard to believe we've made it past Christmas, let alone all the way into 2011. I'm still working on my to-do list from January of last year!

But it's time to dust off, tidy up, take stock, and start looking forward again.

So without further ado, here's KATE'S 2010 IN REVIEW:

January:
Had letter published in Entertainment Weekly. Who knew that by the end of the year, I'd be *interviewing* the stars of the soaps I'd been fangirling way back then?

February:
Posted a new Current TV Crush, Dennis Grabosch and Igor Dolgatschew. Became known as the Infamous DeRo Pusher.

March:
Went to Hawaii. Whee!

April:
Went to Ohio for the Romantic Times convention, where I received the Reviewer's Choice Award for Best Small Press Romance. Still amazed and thrilled at that one. Met LB Gregg and a host of other fabulous, wonderful writers, and had a great time.

May:
New Current TV Crush: Eric Sheffer Stevens. This is significant, just in case you haven't read the blog/followed me on Twitter/friended me on Facebook/listened to me babble in real life.

June/July:
Sold a new book to Samhain, which comes out in February. Did a lot of camping with the family.

August:
Prepping for new school year, working on new manuscript.

September:
Complained about the ending to As The World Turns. Blog post went minorly viral, which was a bit of a thrill.

October:
Celebrated my birthday by starting a new "career" as interviewer of people in the performing arts. My first interview, with Parrish Hurley, focused on the creative process and his journey to produce a TV pilot, 'the (718)'. It was linked on AfterElton, which was another thrill. I also interviewed James Yaegashi, director of Lefty Loosey Righty Tighty.


November:
Easily my most surreal month. After weeks of biting my tongue to keep from blabbing, I finally got to spill the news - I'd asked Eric Sheffer Stevens for an interview, and he'd said yes! So in six short months, I'd gone from random fangirl to talking on the phone with my favorite actor for almost an hour. It was an amazing experience, and I learned a lot. Plus, that interview went viral too, which was so fantastic!

December:
Got my bookcover, finished final edits, started polishing up a new trilogy idea, and celebrated the holidays with those nearest and dearest.

What's coming up in 2011:
A new book in February. Hopefully, some new manuscripts written and new contracts signed. At least one new interview (yes, it's a definite, no, I'm not telling who it is yet). A new Current TV Crush (if you follow me on Twitter you can guess what show the crush is from - LOL). And, if this year is anything like last year, a whole bunch of experiences I couldn't even begin to imagine now.

Here's wishing you an amazing year ahead as well!

Interview with Eric Sheffer Stevens Part Four

Hard to believe, but this is the last day of my interview with Eric Sheffer Stevens. I hope you've enjoyed it as much as I did! Today, we take a look at what's coming up next for Eric, and some final thoughts on the acting life.

I know you’ve just finished up with SILENT HOUSE; are you working on anything right now? Do you have anything on the horizon? Or are you just appreciating a little time off?

Yeah, that’s good. I’ve been trying to get stuff done at home this whole week, stuff I’ve neglected for months now.

We’re developing a play that’s just about written. It’s a four-hander (four characters), a playwright that I’ve worked with before. Over the past year and a half we’ve also been doing readings of a two-hander (two character play) that he had written about a married couple. Right now he’s writing the four-hander. Jenny Mudge and Chris Coffey, my wife Jenny and I. The couples are mixed up, and it’s sort of – I don’t know how to really pitch it. It’s very funny and it’s really good. [The playwright] is about 60 pages into it, and we just had a reading of it last week. We’re sort of close on a grant to start a company that would produce this sometime next year when all of our schedules come together.

Eric and his wife Jenny in last summer's Much Ado About Nothing

He’s just sold the film rights to this other script, so he’s in L.A. all the time. All of us are in different places. But that’s what we’re working on right now, this week included. Taking some time to all work on it together, try to move it closer.

And then it’s always a mystery as to what acting work comes along. You just start auditioning again, and something happens, and you start it two weeks later. I’m sure nothing right now, over the holidays. I’ll just be doing this, and then in January things are going to start up in earnest again. And I may be here, or I may go out to L.A. for a couple months, just sort of be back and forth a little bit.

LEFTY LOOSEY RIGHTY TIGHTY. Where is that in the process right now?

I just heard from them today. They think they’re going to have a rough cut next week, which is pretty amazing. It’ll still be a little bit of time before they have a final cut. Their deadline for themselves is the first week of December so they can make the cutoff for SXSW festival. I know James is working every single night on it. They’re sending it back and forth. The editor, who was also our DP (Director of Photography), is out in LA, so they’re doing a lot of filesharing and putting it all together. I haven’t seen any of it, except what you’ve seen, the teaser, which I loved. I’m going to go out there sometime this week to James’ house to go over the footage with him.

Well, we’re campaigning hard for the Seattle International Film Festival. Late January deadline. Plenty of time.

Sounds great! That sounds perfect, yeah.

Current TV lineup, broadcast and cable – what show would you like to be a regular cast member on, and what show would you like to guest star on?

MAD MEN, I’d love to guest star on. Just started watching that; it’s a great show. I’d love to go back in time and be a regular on THE WEST WING. That show was amazing.

Here’s another one that came through on Twitter. People were tossing out questions for the radio call in but didn’t get through. If you were to create your own primetime show, what kind of show would it be? Is there any kind of a feel to a show that you’re really drawn to, or just whatever happens to cross your plate?

I think anything that David Simon was writing, I would kill to be on. The guy’s doing TREME right now, he did THE WIRE, did HOMICIDE. That’s just amazing TV writing.

I’m sort of behind in TV shows. I don’t have cable, and so I watch things on DVD later. Much later. Sometimes years later. I still haven’t seen DEADWOOD; I’ve never seen THE SOPRANOS. I have kind of bizarre little quirks like that.

But yeah, I think it would be an hour-long drama, but also something bizarre and funny, which I think all good writing has. Tying all of the elements together, which makes the comedy more funny and the profundity deeper, by contrasting those two things.


I have some questions from my kids.

FutureStar: How did you become an actor? What advice would you give to someone just starting out?

I was always interested, and I started doing it in college. I stuck with it, and it just sort of kept happening. Sometimes that works out, and sometimes it doesn’t.

I’d just say pay attention to the story, more than to your own character. As far as how your character is telling the story and contributing to the story. For too long I just really wanted to be an actor. I was focusing a little too much on my role, my character, and not about storytelling. Something clicked for me when I realized that I was a storyteller, and that made me a much better actor.

Midkid: How early do you have to get up in the morning for acting jobs?

Yeah, that’s hard for me. Theater is pretty awesome because you start late. A lot of times you rehearse noon to eight pm, or ten to six. But TV you get up really early. Always before the sun comes up. It’s awful. And film, too, but they’re longer days. At least on [daytime] TV you’re getting up at 5:30 to be there at seven, but then you’re done usually at two or three. The worst day was five pm, but you’re not doing twelve hour days. They don’t do that. Film and [primetime] TV is often twelve or fourteen hours. You’re working from seven in the morning to nine at night on those days that you’re shooting. But no, you don’t sleep in.

GPS: How would you feel if you were a superstar?

I don’t think I would like it. Not what I’m gunning for. I think I would hate it. It just seems like you would lose a huge part of your life. It would be nice to skirt that and still make a living at it.

A huge thank you to Eric Sheffer Stevens for taking the time to talk with me, and for sharing so much with us all. And thank you to all the readers who took the time to keep coming back for more. I so appreciate it!

If you missed the earlier parts of the interview, links are below. And if you liked this interview, and want to read others in the series, check out the two-parter interviews with James Yaegashi, director of Lefty Loosey Righty Tighty, and Parrish Hurley, creator of "the (718)", a TV pilot.

Eric Sheffer Stevens, Part One

Eric Sheffer Stevens, Part Two
Eric Sheffer Stevens, Part Three

James Yaegashi, Part One

James Yaegashi, Part Two

Parrish Hurley, Part One
Parrish Hurley, Part Two

Interview with Eric Sheffer Stevens Part Three

Is it day three already? Wow - time flies! Today's theme is As The World Turns, which is where the majority of us were introduced to Eric Sheffer Stevens. Learn how Dr. Reid Oliver impacted Eric's life/career, how some of those character quirks came about, and what he REALLY thinks of the Cartoon Saga. Enjoy!

Would you say that the role of Dr. Reid Oliver opened doors for you, limited you, both, or neither?
It remains to be seen what kind of doors it might open, but it was a great opportunity, and it can only be good. There’s nothing that’s limiting about it. Because it was such a character role, and also because it was just less than a year. It would be pretty impossible for me to be stereotyped. It was actually great for me as far as other things I’ve done, to have a guy like that in my body of work. Because of how bizarre and specific he was written. So yeah, for me, it can only be a really great thing.

Were you surprised by the reception for the character, or the attention that you got for the role? On paper I can see it looking like, “oh, secondary character in a secondary storyline, couple of days a week, a good, solid few months of work, steady income” kind of a thing. A great character, a lot of fun to do.

Yeah, that was all exactly my reaction.

And then, all of a sudden did it feel like it exploded on you? In a good way?

It was very surprising. I was pretty unaware of it for a while. Just [noticed] that they kept me working and brought me more and more into the world there. It was just a lot of fun. And that he got so popular was very surprising to me and very unexpected. And, obviously, you think you’re just going along and … it was just what you said. They said two or three months. I’m not sure what they thought the storyline would be, but that character would be around for two or three months. And I thought, “that’s fantastic! That’ll be so much fun.” And then that they wanted to keep him around indefinitely was such a surprise. A welcome surprise – it was a happy thing. That was a character I could have played for…I would have been happy to go on longer with it.

We would have been happy to watch it, too.

My friend Maia and I live in different cities, but we always watched the show together. We’d get on IM and chat while we were watching. I used to joke that it was time for Master Class, because we loved seeing the choices you would make for the character. Line deliveries, or bits of stage action, it was like, “Oh, my God, I never would have thought of that, but it’s perfect.” It was really enjoyable.

That’s really nice. Thank you. You know, it was fun because there was a freedom there that I didn’t realize at first. I think each little thing that I got away with … I mean, they were really happy with it, but I felt more and more emboldened. “Oh, they’ll let me eat whatever food is on set, they’ll let me do anything! This is great!”

Let you drink somebody else’s lemonade.

Yeah, right. [laughter] That one was an odd one. I’ve talked about this before, but we had to redo it, because one of the cameramen started laughing. It was just so random.

Excellent. [laughter] You know it works when you can get the crew to break.

Or it’s just that bad. It could be that as well.

Have you been approached by any other soaps since the end of As The World Turns?

Yes, two. They were contract roles. I remember they were described as “nice”. And I said both times to my agent, “Wait, wait, stop.” So, neither one of those seemed right, but I’m definitely open to it. It depends on what would come along.

I have to say as someone who has done some theater, I completely get where you’re coming from. Because the nice characters are not as interesting to play.

And there’s a lot of them, and they just sort of move through the story. I know I would be really bored. And that’s a really bad place to be. Just not feeling challenged. I’d be miserable, my family would hate me, I’d be very crabby. So that’s something I have to think very seriously about.

I remember being offered a role in PICNIC, down in Baltimore. This is right after Trent and I worked down there together. It was for the role of Alan, who is the nice guy who gets jilted. The hunky guy, Hal, you know, the William Holden part, that’s the fun role to play. I’m not right for that, but I also didn’t want to play the nice guy. It would just be really … this is coming out wrong. I don’t have anything against being nice. At all. In life. And there are plenty of nice characters. But there are tons of parts where that’s their only function is to be the nice guy, so the other person can be interesting. That’s what I’m talking about. So I passed on that.

But then the guy who was playing it bailed on them after opening weekend, to go do something else. And they called me to go on in a week. And I said, “No! What?” That’s actually your nightmare. That whole being naked, not knowing your lines, onstage thing. And my wife said, “Do it. It would be the most ridiculous challenge. It would be horrible and they would love you and you’d save the situation and it would be the most unique experience.”

So I called back and said, “Uh, okay.” And I took a train that day, and the director took the train with me. I rehearsed that night, and then I rehearsed the next day, and went on that next night with a book in my hand. It was terrifying. And that was fun. The character wasn’t the challenge, the circumstances were. I went on twice with a book and the third night, the Friday night, I did it off-book. That was another scary, horrible night. And I got through. It was fun. And after playing that part for a week I was completely bored. But the whole first week was worth that.

The cartoon saga. I know you’ve heard of it, or been made aware of it.

Oh, I’ve watched a lot of them. Yeah, it’s hilarious.

The Mistake is my personal favorite because it’s based on the first time we talked, on that radio call-in when I asked about the Shakespeare plays.

The one with Yorick? Yeah. Those cartoons are hilarious. They’re so smart. They’re ridiculously smart. I think my favorite was the Bad Hair Day. The continuity one. That was genius. So funny.


There have actually been major posts on that (subject).

Oh, yeah. We had to shoot one scene, [where] we were making out, at the end of one of the episodes and the beginning of the next. And we never did the other episode until a month [later] because of some snow day or something, I don’t remember what happened. And he got his hair cut. I was like, “what are you doing?” And he said, “Yeah, it wasn’t supposed to be this short.” So then they’re trying to push it forward or something. Trying to make it all look [the same]. That was one where I knew it wouldn’t work right away.



There were a lot of conspiracy theories about that – were there reshoots, are they trying to make it hotter or what?

No, no reshoots. Just a scheduling thing. Your hair grows. When you wait that long to shoot the next scene, it’s going to look a little weird.

The joke making the rounds was that it was such a hot kiss, not only did it shorten Luke’s hair, it dried Reid’s hair.

[laughter] Yeah. That’s something they let go of, a little bit.

It must be cool to have something like the cartoon saga created around a character you developed.

Oh, yeah. Of course it is.

Guess what? Tomorrow is the last day! So be sure to stop by to see what's on the horizon for Eric!

Eric Sheffer Stevens, Part One

Eric Sheffer Stevens, Part Two
Eric Sheffer Stevens, Part Four