Back in December of 2010, I interviewed a cosplay model named Vera VanGuard. We have become friends since then and we keep in touch from time to time on her latest projects. She emailed me the other day talking about how her web series Goth Girl is starting season 3 soon so of course I wanted an interview. I interviewed Vera as well as Nick who happens to be the writer/director/producer of the series. Well, after a few messages back and forth, I had enough information for the interview. For this interview, the answers are Nick's and the photos were provided by Vera. Just so I can give credit where it is do, the photos were taken by Edward G. Negron (stormgodphotography.com). And now, I present my interview.
1. What is the show Goth Girl about?
Goth Girl is a webseries comedy about a 17 year old girl, Selena Ravenvox, who is the middle child in a middle class family. She is into the Gothic scene and she feels neglected by her family (yet, we the audience can clearly see that's not the case and that she's somewhat spoiled), so she lashes out at friends, family, and innocent bystanders with her anger management issues.
2. Whose idea was the show?
The show was an idea that I hatched with a friend of mine, Malaki Keller, who coincidentally edited the first two seasons of our show. When we originally created Goth Girl, it was going to be a dramatic tragedy where Selena was going to kill herself at the end of the series, but I thought it was way too heavy of a downer, so I didn't want to do that. I started looking at it from a fresh perspective and I saw a comedic angle that works so much better.
3. What makes your show unique?Well, as far as I know, our show is the only live-action series that features Gothic people as the lead characters. We deal with a lot of taboo subjects that you can't necessarily explore on network television, but we do it in a comedic fashion. There are underlying morality themes in what we do, but we do try to bury them underneath laughs and extremities.
4. Is there non-stop action in every show?
No, not every episode features a fight scene or action sequences. Many of the episodes take place in Selena's bedroom and feature a lot of character interaction mixed with numerous insults and one-liners.
5. I saw this is season 3, when did you start?
I actually wrote the first 3 episodes of Goth Girl back in 2006, but we didn't film season 1 until 2009.
6. Where does the show take place?
We always said that the show took place in a middle class suburb of anyplace, California, but this season we actually defined it as being in the city of Burbank. There is a pivotal point in one of the episodes coming up where you will definitely catch Selena telling everyone that we are in Burbank.
7. Who are the main characters and who are they played by?
The main characters are Selena Ravenvox. She's the 17 year old Gothic Girl that the series is based on and she's played by the very talented Vera VanGuard. Her best friend, who may or may not be gay, is Asteroth Darkchiller. He is played by Joel David Reed. We also have Asteroth's troublesome, perverse cousin, Sadisto. Brilliantly portrayed by character actor Darth Schuhe (yes, his name really is Darth! How cool is that, right?). We also have his on again, off again physically abusive girlfriend, Desiree Angelripper. Jocelyn Schutte plays Desiree perfectly. The voice of reason on the show, Selena's father, is played by Mister Marco. This season, our main antagonist is a nemesis from Selena's youth who goes by the name of Trinity Divinity. We are very lucky to have her played by Cara Manuele.
8. Do you travel the con circuit? If so, will you be at the SDCC 2012?
Yes, we do a lot of the Cons in Southern California and we have done one in Las Vegas. Some of us will be down in San Diego for this year's Comic-Con. I personally will be attending.
9. Is there anything else my readers should now about the show?
The show is just a lot of fun! Prepare to tune in and see a lot of things that are just plain wrong. I would loosely compare our show to the American Pie films or maybe even a little of Family Guy. I have made Selena a very extreme character. I actually based her on an ex-girlfriend of mine from years ago (except I amplified her behavior by 10!). 10. What are the future plans for Goth Girl? Comics? Toys? Posters?
As far as the future of Goth Girl goes, we would love to do this show for Adult Swim or a similar channel. We also have an idea for a Goth Girl feature film. I'm not opposed to a Goth Girl cartoon, but it definitely won't be for kids. A comic book would be fun and we are already tossing around ideas for a fourth season. The sky's the limit!
Links to watch Goth Girl:
http://www.youtube.com/watchgothgirl
http://www.watchgothgirl.com
I want to thank Vera VanGuard and Nick Griffo for taking the time to talk to me and answer the questions for this interview. If you would like to see my interview I did with Vera back in 2010, just click the link.
