by Dov Kornits
Fresh off its Best Series (Comedy) win at Series Mania, the local filmmaker behind the nostalgia-tinged web series Videoland, is most excited about it screening at Queer Screen Film Fest.
“I pretty much finished film school and hopped on a plane,” says Jessica Smith about her time in the US. “I was lucky enough to know someone working in the industry over there and she put me in front of the right people, and I landed a role as a PA on Scream 4, my first ever job in production. I think I spent the entire time wandering around completely awestruck to be there. It was incredibly long hours and hard work, but to be exposed to a big “Hollywood” production right out of the gate really solidified my passion for filmmaking, it all just felt so magical to me. And that feeling has never really gone away.”
Since returning to Australia, Jessica has primarily worked as a production coordinator, however, more recently, she got the opportunity to be director’s attachment on Neighbours, and she also shadowed Peter Farrelly on Ricky Stanicky.
“It was probably the most fun and relaxed set I have ever been on, due in large part to the kind of environment Pete creates,” she says of working alongside the director of Dumb and Dumber, There’s Something About Mary and Green Book. “Unsurprisingly, he loves to laugh and relishes in sharing jokes and stories and involving everyone in the experience. So, I think the biggest thing I learnt from him is to really appreciate the collaborative nature of filmmaking, to be open and approachable as a director and allow others the space to make creative decisions and suggestions. He was never precious about the script and was always happy to use someone else’s idea if it was going to make the film funnier.”
Those lessons were put into play on web series Videoland, a 6 episode coming of age dramedy all set in a fictional video shop back in the VHS days, following employee Hayley (Emmanuelle Mattana from Mustangs FC) as she crushes on Jennifer (Tahlee Fereday) and hangs out with bestie Tanya (Chi Nguyen), all the while obsessing over movies that have lesbian characters.
Is Videoland your story, in the sense that you went through what Hayley goes through in the film? Or is it more symbolic for the whole ‘you can’t be what you can’t see’ aspect of growing up?
“It’s absolutely both. I did work in a video store, and I did spend a lot of time and energy desperately searching for lesbian characters in film and television, so there are definitely big chunks of the story that are inspired by my own life. But I know the desire to see oneself represented on screen is not a unique experience, especially in those formative years and especially for queer youth, so I wanted to really focus on that aspect of Hayley’s journey because it’s so relatable.”
How hard was it to navigate the video store setting for the series, in the sense of production design, copyright, location?
“It was a nightmare! Haha. You’ve basically mentioned all the things that were the biggest challenges for us – finding a video store location, recreating the interior as it would have been in the ‘90s and avoiding showing hundreds of copyrighted movie covers! We were so lucky to find an operational movie rental store that already had the right fit out, but it did mean shooting outside of Melbourne, which brought a different set of challenges. Our Art Department worked tirelessly to research, replicate and replace all the signage, wall and counter colours, graphics, props and electronics, so it was all accurate for the time period. There are so many bits and pieces that they added to the store to really elevate the authenticity of the time and setting – the attention to detail still blows me away.
“And of course, the shelves were full of DVDs, so we spent over 12 months collecting VHS tapes from Marketplace, Gumtree, op shops and garage sales and then had to use stock images to create countless fake films to replace all the covers. I think we ended up replacing more than half the store’s inventory with our fake videos and it was all hands-on-deck throughout the shoot to make sure no real films snuck into any shots.
“And then there were the handful of real films that we did want to show! Administratively and financially, it was a huge challenge to clear those for use, but they were chosen for specific reasons, and it was important to us that they made it into the show, so we started the process very early and worked hard to get them over the line.”
Did you deliberately cast yourself in the ‘mentor’ role in the series? Is that role a nod to someone from your past/life?
“It was never my intention to be in the show, but I do have a performing background and we were set on casting the queer characters authentically. It’s ambiguous in the series, but it was always quite clear to me that Mel is queer and that’s why she takes on this reluctant mentor role, because she understands Hayley’s journey better than anyone else in her life, so whoever played Mel needed to have that lived experience. We did go out to a handful of queer actors that we knew, but we couldn’t get the timing right and eventually it became clear that it was going to have to be me! Which turned out to be quite a cathartic experience and when I watch the scenes now, it kind of feels like I’m watching grown up me talking to a representation of my younger self. So, in a way, it became an on screen nod to my own journey, which is really nice.”
Are you a web series consumer? Why make a web series?
“We did a lot of research about who our audience would be for Videoland and discovered that an overwhelming majority of the people we surveyed watch web series exclusively for queer content. We wanted to make sure we were going to connect with the people we were telling the story for, and queer audiences tend to search online for content because they are still not always well represented in mainstream media. Web series are more accessible, not just for audiences but also for emerging filmmakers – when you have time and budget constraints, making short form content feels much more achievable. I’ve become a real fan of the format, as a creator and as a consumer. There are so many great ones out there and the short length of the episodes means you can watch full series even when you are time poor.”
You received funds from Queer Screen to make the series, are you excited about screening at Queer Screen Film Fest?
“So excited! It’s our only public screening in Australia and we honestly couldn’t think of a better place for it. Not only has Queer Screen been so supportive of us but also it made sense to screen a show about representation at a festival that champions queer stories and queer creatives. We can’t wait to share the show with their audience, in person!”
At Queer Screen Film Fest, the audience will watch it from go to whoa in one sitting; is it challenging to cut it up into episodes? Is it challenging making something that is 40-odd minutes in length in terms of storytelling?
“I had decided on the web series format before I started writing, so it was helpful knowing I had to work within those constraints from the beginning, but it was definitely a challenge telling Hayley’s story in such a short amount of time – she’s got so much going on! I tried to stop myself if I got carried away with too much character or story detail, knowing I didn’t have the time on screen to use it all – which my producer [Scarlett Koehne] will tell you I wasn’t always very good at! In the end, it was a great exercise in focus – I chose a little window of time, a specific part of Hayley’s journey, and tried to just tell that part well, rather than cram lots of stuff into a tight space.
“Having previously written in long form, the biggest challenge around the episodes was actually understanding how to structure them for an online audience. The online team at Screen Australia were a great resource for me – their experience and knowledge helped me learn a lot about the difference between what works for TV and what works for an audience whose attention can be easily stolen by a million other things online. You can’t really do a slow burn web series, you need to make your point quickly and then give the audience a hook at the end of each episode to keep them watching.”
Videoland screens on 30 August 2024, tix here.
