Episode 8 "The Meeting" June 29, 2016 on Vimeo (Run Time: 1:21 minutes) Modern-day Frodo Baggins meets red-headed Daria when Jessica and Justin connect. Cast: Therese Anderberg, Greg Carere, Jenna D'Angelo, Ava Eisenson, Justin Liebergan, Brennan Lowery, Amy Lee Pearsall, and Billy Bob Thompson, with Rachel Fenton, Taylor Bradshaw, Jake Paque, Leslie Marseglia. Written by Jake Paque and Jenna D'Angelo. Directed by Kristin Skye Hoffmann.
Episode 7 "The Haters" June 22, 2016 on Vimeo (Run Time: 5:02 minutes) In this special episode, co-workers Will and Annie pass judgment at the bar. Will: Billy Bob Thompson. Annie: Amy Lee Pearsall. Written by Michael Ross Albert. Directed by Kristin Skye Hoffmann.
Episode 6 "The Hipster" June 15, 2016 on Vimeo (Run Time: 2:31 minutes) Kathy inspires Jessica to confront the guy who blew her off with an unbelievable excuse. Jessica: Therese Anderberg. Kathy: Jenna D'Angelo. Lisa: Ava Eisenson. Written by Dan Kitrosser. Directed by Kristin Skye Hoffmann.
Episode 5 "The Crowdfunder" June 8, 2016 on Vimeo (Run Time: 3:05 minutes) The guys discover that someone from Justin's past might be the most effective online panhandler they've met. Justin: Justin Liebergen. Chris: Brennan Lowery. Brian: Greg Carere. Written by Sam Byron. Directed by Kristin Skye Hoffmann.
Jake Paque is a writer, producer and voice actor. He created the digital comedy series Buddy System as well as Bar Crossed Lovers. His scripts range from features to pilots to web content and commercials. In addition to writing and producing, Jake voices numerous characters on shows like Pokemon, Yu-gi-oh!, Winx Club and more. www.jakepaque.com (Twitter: @jakepaque) You are the showrunner for Bar Crossed Lovers, the comedy web series currently running on Vimeo that Wide Eyed Productions is co-producing with StagNation Productions. As both a founder of StagNation and core ensemble company member of Wide Eyed, can you tell us a little bit about how the decision for the two companies to work together on this project came about? Yes, I can. Should I do that now? Is that how this works? Ok. Got it. So! I'm an avid content creator; primarily a writer, producer and editor. The work I do is 99% film and television. Wide Eyed has mostly done live theatre, but I learned from Kristin Skye Hoffmann (Wide Eyed's Artistic Director) that the company was interested in expanding into the on-camera world. I came to her with a few pitches for digital series and Bar Crossed Lovers was the one that resonated most with her and the Wide Eyed team. I got busy prepping the treatment and series structure and we were on our way into pre-production. Side note: one of the other series I pitched is actually turning into a short film I'm collaborating on with another filmmaker. We're in pre-pro planning to shoot this fall. It's a political thriller - so very different from Bar Crossed.
Where did you get the idea for this series? And how did you determine that a web series, in particular, would be the best medium to tell this story? After making Buddy System, which is a serial comedy - meaning you kinda need to watch each episode to really follow along with the story - I decided I wanted to make an episodic, something more self-contained. Something where people could pick up anywhere, anytime and get right on board. For instance, Arrested Development is more of a serial comedy than Friends, which is more episodic. A fun part of writing an episodic comedy is finding a way to write in plot points that reward consistent viewers with jokes that they'll only get if they've seen all the episodes. We did a great job with that on Bar Crossed Lovers. For the folks that are following along every week with us, there are comedic rewards in upcoming episodes.
Bar Crossed Lovers was developed as a web show from the get-go. The premise is designed to fall into the internet video sweet spot of about 1-4 minutes long. If we went longer, or turned it into a full length program, I'd change the construct and integrate B and C stories. I wanted BCL to be as consumable as possible. The type of show people can share easily and featuring scenarios where you could go, “That's happened to me!” Because a lot of us have spent time at the bar looking for the one. And it doesn't always go so great. I mean, right? You’re credited as the writer on the premiere (Episode 1 – “The Neighbor”) and as a co-writer with Jenna D’Angelo on the finale (Episode 8 – “The Meeting”). D’Angelo, Andrew Harriss, Madison Comerzan, Sam Byron, Dan Kitrosser, and Michael Ross Albert are also writers on the series. How did the decision come about to pull together this particular group of writers to work on this project? What was the process like in terms of getting everyone on the same page?
Working with the other writers was a treat. The production team sourced a list of writers that we were interested in working with. We reached out to each of them, sending the treatment for Bar Crossed and asking for pitches. The writers who sent back the strongest pitches were brought on board and asked to start working on a first draft. As the head writer, the scripts would get sent to me, I'd respond with any questions, notes or suggestions, and we'd work our way to our shooting scripts.
We were really fortunate that everyone picked up the tone from the treatment. Each writer used their own unique voice to write an episode that fit in our world. Something I love about our show is the diversity of our writing staff. We have writers with resumes a mile long and some very young writers. One of the tricky parts was getting scripts finalized on deadline. It reminded me how brutal the editing process can be. In a perfect world, I would have been able to sit down face to face with every writer on every draft to talk over notes, but with the confines of the production schedule it just wasn't feasible. So being hyper communicative was key for myself and the writers.
Among other things, you served as the editor for the series. Was there anything surprising you discovered about the stories told and the project as a whole once you put the pieces together? One of the joys/challenges of editing comedy is discovering/re-discovering the jokes while you're cutting it together in the editing bay. And on the flip-side, sometimes you're positive something is funny on the page but when you're in the editing bay, it just isn't landing.
A few instances of found gold...In Ep. 1 – "The Neighbor," Justin (Justin Liebergen) goes to drink out of his straw and misses it, he has to look down at his glass to find it, then sips out of it. It's a tiny little moment that only happened in that one take. It's precious and organic and I think it's hilarious.
In Ep. 2 – "The Draper," Kathy (Jenna D'Angelo) is trying to respond to something Jessica (Therese Anderberg) said, but she has beer in her mouth, so has to try and talk with her mouth full. Again, there's only the one take where she got caught like that and it's a gem.
Similarly, there are some camera moves that were pleasant surprises. In the final moments of a later episode, our DP (Travis Jones) racks focus between two subjects. I didn't know how funny that single camera move was until I'd cut the entire episode together in front of it.
Are you working on any additional projects at the moment? Can you tell us about them?
I already talked a little about my next film, the political thriller. I'm producing and co-writing that. Excited to work with the other filmmaker involved on the project. And I voice roles on a bunch of animated shows like Pokemon, Yu-Gi-Oh!, Winx Club and Super 4. You can catch that stuff on Netflix and all over the place. I attend anime conventions, doing panels about voice over, content creation and the entertainment industry. Honestly, anime and comic book conventions are some of the most creative and supportive environments I've ever encountered, and I have a blast every time I attend one. The people there are amazing. So if you get a chance to swing by a convention I'm a guest at, come by and say hi!
Episode 4 "The Cleanse" June 1, 2016 on Vimeo (Run Time: 3:21 minutes) Jessica reveals her most humiliating moment involving a hot guy from her Crossfit class. Jessica: Therese Anderberg. Kathy: Jenna D'Angelo. Lisa: Ava Eisenson. Written by Madison Comerzan. Directed by Kristin Skye Hoffmann.
Episode 3 "The Boss" May 25, 2016 on Vimeo (Run Time: 2:41 minutes) Justin is conflicted when his supervisor from work drops by the bar and wants to say hello. Justin: Justin Liebergen. Chris: Brennan Lowery. Brian: Greg Carere. Written by Andrew Harriss. Directed by Kristin Skye Hoffmann.
Episode 2 "The Draper" May 18, 2016 on Vimeo (Run Time: 2:46 minutes) As Jessica faces the fact that it's been a while since she last dated, a (somewhat) dreamy guy shows up at her favorite bar. Jessica: Therese Anderberg. Kathy: Jenna D'Angelo. Lisa: Ava Eisenson. Written by Jenna D'Angelo. Directed by Kristin Skye Hoffmann.
Episode 1 "The Neighbor" May 11, 2016 on Vimeo (Run Time: 3:37 minutes) Justin gets nervous when a woman who lives in his building stops by his favorite bar. Justin: Justin Liebergen. Chris: Brennan Lowery. Brian: Greg Carere. Written by Jake Paque. Directed by Kristin Skye Hoffmann.
The new digital comedy web series Bar Crossed Lovers is about the steps we take and connections we (try) to make in the world of dating: the hits, misses, stumbles, tumbles, falls, gaffes, and occasional success. Most of the time, though, connecting with other people is challenging...pretty awkward...and sometimes downright funny. But when a genuine connection is made - it is pure magic.
Bar Crossed Lovers stars Therese Anderberg, Greg Carere, Jenna D'Angelo, Ava Eisenson, Justin Liebergen, Brennan Lowery, Amy Lee Pearsall, and Billy Bob Thompson, with episodes written by Dan Kitrosser, Sam Byron, Andrew Harriss, Madison Comerzan, Michael Ross Albert, Jenna D'Angelo and Jake Paque. Stay tuned for the Episode 1 launch on Vimeo on May 11, and join us each week as two sets of friends navigate the rocky waters of social interaction, friendship, and the possibility of love.
Find Bar Crossed Lovers on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, and look for the hashtags #BCL and #BarCrossedLovers.
Join Wide Eyed Productions in celebrating our eighth anniversary and SUMMER SEASON OF FUN! Help us to continue to foster...
Posted by Wide Eyed Productions on Friday, August 7, 2015
Buddy System– the web series created and starred in by Wide Eyed company members Jake Paque and Trevor Dallier – launched on April 10th with a public screening at Manhattan’s Stone Creek Bar and Grill. We caught up with Jake and Trevor to discuss current and upcoming projects for StagNation Productions, their film and media production company. Be sure to check out Episode 1 of Buddy System on youtube (you can also watch it below)!
Please tell us about how this web series was conceived. What inspired you to create Buddy System?
JAKE: Trevor and I started kicking around these characters of BB Roo and Trent Dulcimer and we loved their dynamic: BB, this music video writer who gets fired and doesn’t really know how to do anything else, and Trent, a person who works for a fictitious company called Buddy System that helps people re-enter the workforce. We spent hours riffing on situations these guys could get into, so with the help of our director Kurt Rodeghiero, we built a home for them in our web series Buddy System. We also desperately wanted an opportunity to work with some friends whose work we really respected, but the industry doesn't always provide that opportunity. So we just did it on our own and it was immensely rewarding. TREVOR: I think Jake’s point about wanting to find a venue in which we could work with as many of our favorite people as possible was a huge draw for me. And that is to say, that our company, StagNation, was also formed with the same hope in mind. We thought that this concept would allow us to write scenarios fitting each person we know specifically. After completing filming on another project, we were hooked and knew we had something good going for us in StagNation.
This worked out to be somewhat of a bi-coastal creative process for your team. Can you share with us some of the technicalities of that? Would you say it worked in your favor?
JAKE: We had all of our post done in LA. It was a decision we made with Kurt, knowing he wanted to work closely with our editor Jeremy Bird. Once we decided that the edit would be done out there, it just made sense to have the rest (color correction, sound etc.) done out west as well. The experience was actually pretty cool. We were able to stay updated by watching edits and adjustments via private youtube links and videos stored in Dropbox. We were in the loop every step of the way. Saw dozens of versions of the episode and were able to make adjustments. It definitely worked in our favor and allowed us to establish relationships with industry pros we might not have met otherwise.
Photo by Lauren Marsh Photography
TREVOR: We also had our hearts set on making sure that Kurt was able to direct. This was a tough decision (upping the cost of the production), but we really felt he was an integral part of both the storytelling and the production as a whole. He had such a huge influence on the production, from script edits, to story ideas, to helping us find a great crew and working closely with our DP, Nolan Maloney, we have to give him major props!
Can you tell us a little bit about your plans for future episodes of Buddy System? What’s the next step in the production process for you?
JAKE: We have the next few episodes written and in pre-production. There is a ten-episode arc that we'd love to be able to produce all of. The first episode has already helped expand our audience base and we're really pleased with all the feedback. We also hope that Meet and Greet intrigues potential financiers that would be interested in investing in Buddy System or future StagNation Productions. The immediate next step is acquiring further funding, locking down locations and booking the crew/talent for episodes two and three!
You produce the Stagnant Thoughts podcast. Can you tell us it about that? What inspired you to create a podcast? What excites you about it?
JAKE: The Stagnant Thoughts podcast is an opportunity for us to check in with our friends in the entertainment industry and let others know what they're up to. The podcast medium has always excited me. I love the back and forth, riffing and storytelling that comes out of each episode. The unspoken goal of the Stagnant Thoughts podcast is to bring to light some of murkier elements of the entertainment biz. There are a million places you can go to hear what famous people are doing, but the majority of artists are struggling, scrapping to get the next project. I wanted our podcast to discuss the successes and failures of the emerging artist, while making sure the guests talk about things that are important to them. We love the opportunity to share our friends’ voices and hopefully give people a laugh. For instance, the Goro Fighting reference in our most recent episode... TREVOR: Adding on to what Jake said, podcasts are a perfect venue to describe what independent producing is like for us as a personal experience. I feel like when I was younger, I would have latched onto a program like ours to get a feel for the real world of independent arts. I hope we can both inspire and educate our listeners. I also hope they laugh with us in our rants about Goro fighting and “fixing things in post” (which will never happen, by the way).
Can you tell us about other projects you have in the hopper?
JAKE: We have a ton of things we're interested in producing… sketches, shorts and ultimately a feature. These are each on individual times lines, but I'll say for certain, our youtube channel will be filling with content very soon. The response to Buddy System has been phenomenal and we promise to continue bringing that level of entertainment. TREVOR: All I can say is that I am extremely excited to be working on our upcoming projects, in all facets, and I hope to learn and grow as a producer and an artist. Our viewers will not be disappointed!
White Liars– the web series written, directed, shot and starred in by Wide Eyed company and board members Andrew Harriss and Neil Fennell – launches its second season with a new episode on September 29. While not a direct project of Wide Eyed Productions, the web series has featured the talents of many of our company members. We caught up with Andrew and Neil to discuss their project. Be sure to check out the Season 2 trailer on youtube (you can also watch it below)!
Please tell us about how this project was conceived. What inspired you to create White Liars?
ANDREW: The seed of White Liars came from my cousin, Adam Harriss, who basically gave me a situation and a few lines of dialogue which I used as my starting point, and are the first lines of dialogue in the first episode. The idea of spending the amount of time and money that it would take to produce a web series was overwhelming to me at the time, so I put off writing the first episode for about eight months until I thought, why not? That’s when I approached Neil to direct and Justin Ness to play [the character of] Chet, and we finally sat down and talked about it about three months after that.
NEIL: Andrew brought the script to me and asked if I would direct it. We sat down for a production meeting and ended up mapping out all eight episodes of the first season. Then Andrew wrote script by script, and we shot as we went, episode by episode. We were pretty green in the beginning, and definitely picked up steam with more experience.
ANDREW: I had no idea what the show was going to be about other than con artists. I thought a lot about the concept of lies, and how easy they are to tell to ourselves and others, how comfortable we can be with lies, and how when we convince ourselves of a lie, sometimes we can just go ahead and proceed as if this fiction we’ve created for ourselves is true. There’s a lot of humor there and commentary, too.
Adam wanted it to be a little more like the office. He comes from the corporate world, and I don’t even have a stamp on my passport for the corporate world, so making Tim (my character) an actor and keeping the corporate world vague was a product of my personal experience. That was pretty much the point we were at when Neil and I sat down and talked through the season.
Can you give us a little summary of what happened in Season 1?
ANDREW: In a nutshell, White Liars follows the exploits of Tim, a down on his luck New York actor in need of a job and his friend Chet, who has lots of jobs. Their journey takes a satirical look at the world of business, non-paying theatre, and the little white lies that end up becoming much bigger down the road.
How would you say Season 2 differs from the first?
ANDREW: Season 2 is a continuation of the narrative of Season 1. At the end of Season 1, we see Tim turn from a pawn to a player in the game. The game changes very quickly in Season 2 as the consequences of Tim and Chet’s actions start to catch up with them. There’s still plenty of lying, though…Lots of lying. That’s very important in our show. The quality is much better, too. The lessons we learned on Season 1 bear their fruit this time around.
NEIL: Season 2 is so much tighter. It’s fast-paced; it’s funnier; the performances are fantastic. Plus, we’ve just gotten better at it. The planning was far more extensive, the camera covers more, and it’s on a much grander scale. People will be very interested to see where the story goes.
I’m sure you each have a couple of favorite shots from Season 2. Can you share with us some of the technicalities?
NEIL: Well, I can reveal that a good friend of ours is a Steadicam operator, and we got to utilize his talents for a shot in Season 2. That was an incredible experience, utilizing 15 people for one long moving shot. I had never got to direct something like that before - it was so much fun. Anything else, you’ll have to wait and see.
ANDREW: I do love the Steadicam shot, but I have to say, even though I’ve only seen some of the raw footage, I think the finale has some of my favorite moments and shots of the entire series. They’re beautiful.
White Liars has an original soundtrack. I believe that’s kind of unusual for an indie web series. Can you tell us how that came about?
NEIL: I always hoped that we could do original music for the series, since I’m a musician. I also hoped that we didn’t have to use outside sources due to rights, etc. We wanted to create something original that had our own kind of feel. Luckily, we have fellow company member Sky Seals, who works wizardry. We have a lot of fun, the three of us in a room, coming up with original themes for the show.
ANDREW: I’ll just say that when you have people who are willing and eager to help you out, you should make use of them. I didn’t even think about music until we’d started shooting, but when it came time to score the episodes it became very clear that the music had to tell as much of the story as the rest of the components. I think it’s wonderful and can’t sing Sky Seals’s praises enough for the work he did (and is continuing to do) to bring a musical life to our story.
I understand that White Liars is now not only the name of this web series, but is also the name of your production company. What do you like most about working together?
NEIL: I like that we’re friends first…We work together because we like each other. It’s hard enough to do this without an underlying friendship, and lord knows we can get stressed with/at each other at times. I’d hate to think what it was like working on a project of this scope with someone that I DIDN’T like.
ANDREW: I like what Neil said. Same goes for me.
Can you tell us about other projects you have in the hopper?
NEIL: I’m currently editing Wide Eyed Productions’s short film The Return of Toodles Von Flooz. It’s been on the back burner far longer than I care to admit, but we have a timetable in place and people should keep an eye out for it soon. Other than that, I enjoy the few hours a week I get to sleep.
ANDREW: Smaller, more sketch based videos in 2013! And maybe a nap.
Please join us this Saturday, Sept. 29, at 9:00 p.m.
