As mentioned in earlier articles, this summer I had a chance to speak with Felicia Day and Sandeep Parikh at San Diego Comic-Con. I videotaped the interview but, due to technical difficulties, experienced delays in getting the interview online. While I was able to get the interview audio and photos uploaded, the video tape is still trapped in a dead camera. I’m embarrassed it took so long, but am proud to announce that I finally have a transcript of their hilarious interview. Without further delay, I present Felicia Day and Sandeep Parikh from July 27, 2008, at San Diego Comic-Con.
(ÜSFG) We are ÜberSciFiGeek with The Guild at San Diego Comic-Con.
(FD) Hi. I’m Felicia Day. I am the creator of The Guild, the web series, and I was also in Dr. Horrible.
(SP) Are you looking at her or the camera?
(FD) Her.
(SP) You’re looking at… okay. I’m Sandeep Parikh and I play Zaboo on The Guild, and I created my own web series for Comedy Central called The Legend of Neil.
(ÜSFG) How did you come up with the idea for The Guild?
(FD) I was a World of Warcraft addict, so for two years I played World of Warcraft obsessively. But I’ve always been a gamer so when I quit, because I thought it was kind of affecting my life in a bad way, I wanted to write something and use my time more creatively, and I thought it was an appropriate thing to write about, a group of gamers.
(ÜSFG) Can you tell us about how you cast The Guild, the process of deciding who would actually be in it?
(FD) Um.
(SP) My part was written for me.
(FD) Okay. Well, I was going to say that but now that he puts it like that it’s not as funny or —
(SP) Ah… nice.
(FD) — or complimentary.
(SP) Colored man is not funny. That’s nice.
(FD) In fact, Zaboo, it was like a recasting. I was desperate for somebody.
(SP laughing)
(FD) Yeah. I’m kidding. I did write the part for Sandeep and I wrote the part for Jeff, who plays Vork. They’re in my improv group. I’ve done improv with them for years and I always thought they were the funniest people I knew, so why not write parts for them. And the rest of the parts we cast. A friend of my, Helen Geier, who actually is a casting director, she works professionally in Bones —
(At this point, someone drags a metal chair across the concrete patio with such force that everyone cringes painfully)
(FD) That was like the loudest noise ever.
(SP) Ya think?
(FD) That was horrible. That was a horrendous noise.
(SP) Anything can happen at the Comic-Con.
(FD) Wow. Okay, so people need to pick their chairs up and move them. This is my Comic-Con lesson. ‘Cause my Mojito brain is not tolerating this. Anyway, um, you can cut all that out. Let’s see —
(ÜSFG) But that’s the stuff people like.
(SP) What were you saying? You were saying…
(FD) So basically my friend Helen helped me cast the rest of the parts.
(ÜSFG) How long did it take to get it up and running once you had your cast and were ready to go?
(FD) You know, it takes a while to get a show — and it was just me and my two producers getting it, self funding it, getting everybody together, ya know, getting more patience, but once you decide to do something —
(SP) It was pretty quick, I thought.
(FD) Yeah, I —
(SP) It felt like you had the script out and then…
(FD) I had the script done, we did a couple rewrites, but once we decided to do it and I started rewriting it to be a web series, it was only a couple months.
(ÜSFG) Did you ever imagine that it would have as many viewers as it has had?
(FD) No, it’s been crazy. I mean, honestly, I didn’t really think of an end result. I just wanted to make it. The idea of making it, just the fact that I was able to make it was like a privilege. I don’t know, it just seemed like an insurmountable task to try to film something I wrote but, really, when you decide to do something, I don’t know, it just kind of fell in place. And the fact that it’s been so well received by fans is clearly not anticipatable. Is that a word?
(SP and ÜSFG) It is now.
(ÜSFG) We’ll put it in The Guild lexicon.
(FD) Okay, good. Thank you.
(ÜSFG) So, kind of along that same line, this labor of love, are the The Guild cast and crew finally getting paid or is it still just a labor of love?
(FD) Well, for the last two episodes we were able to pay the cast, or some of the cast at least, for their work because of donations.
(SP) Wooooo!
(FD) We got some, yes, and with the DVD sales we’re back paying everybody, so we have a budget, and so as soon as we pay for the expenses for the DVD and we, the cast, is next, and maybe sometime I’ll get something but, you know, for me it’s all about compensating the people who worked really hard for free on my show.
(ÜSFG) Now that the first season has wrapped up and we do have our DVD, what can we expect for Season 2?
(FD) You can expect more of the Codex/Zaboo… well, the Codex/Zaboo Saga really is not complete.
(SP) No, of course not.
(FD) So I think that we —
(SP) I will not quit!
(FD) He will not. I mean, let’s be honest, his character is not a quitter, so — but, you know, we don’t want to rehash the whole same beat. And I think we’re going to learn a little more about the characters we don’t know much about because it’s a large cast and it’s hard in a pilot situation to really establish all the characters and where they’re coming from so, ya know. And I want to keep it funny. That’d be good. Keep a balance between the gaming and the non-gaming, which is a challenge because, you know, especially with Dr. Horrible, we have a huge influx of maybe not-as-gamerish fans, which is cool for me because it means, ya know, I can bounce back and forth between the gaming and the non-gaming storylines, so I’m excited about it.
(SP) Basically, we don’t want to spoil anything —
(ÜSFG) Right.
(SP) — but there will be tons of making out.
(ÜSFG) Oooh…
(FD) No.
(SP) No, that’s not true.
(FD) With you, actually, it’s interesting, because Vork and Zaboo have this sexual tension.
(SP) Oh, you are giving that out. Ah. Yeah.
(FD) Vork and Zaboo have this sexual tension —
(SP) — and they just start making out.
(FD) Nobody wants to see that.
(SP) And then all your views drop. You get negative views.
(FD) They’re like, yeah, give me my view back!
(SP) Yeah, they somehow get an anti-view.
(FD) Not to insult you or Jeff. Well, much.
(ÜSFG) Like in a real guild, will characters quit and new ones join as the series progresses?
(FD) Um, well, like I said, for the sec– I mean, yeah, down the line, but for the second season I think it’s really about re-establishing the characters and really solidifying their personalities and taking them that one more step before we — I mean, because there are already six characters, so before I throw in a bunch of new characters I want to make sure that we know our main cast really, really well.
(SP) There’s so much to explore. Like Blades — I mean, I feel like you haven’t seen the tip of the iceberg with all these guys.
(FD) With everybody, with really even Codex. With everybody. And also, real life is always on the periphery for these people, like Zaboo’s mom kind of represented the real life aspect but, also, every single season is going to have that dynamic to it. There’s always, like, a struggle between the real life and fantasy life that they live and then the relationships that they have. You know, there will obviously be guest cast and who knows who might get killed off if they make me mad.
(SP) She always looks right at me whenever she talks about killing off characters. So weird.
(FD) You’re the only character that’s ever here, so, I mean…
(ÜSFG) With Codex being the priest in game, do you see her filling the same role in real life as healer of the group as they face those real world challenges?
(FD) I like the way you think. Yes, definitely Codex is the healer in game and she is the healer out of the game, and she’s the kind of person who always puts other people’s needs before hers because she maybe too afraid to confront her own problems. So, it’s a great way to avoid — of avoidance. And, yeah, I think she’s a nurturing personality and I think she does that with whatever aspect of her life we’re examining.
(ÜSFG) What other projects do you guys have planned for this year other then Season 2?
(SP) Well, I directed a… I just, ah… you want me to plug it right now?
(ÜSFG) Plug! Plug!
(SP) Is it time? Is it time?
(FD) Plug! Plug! Plug! Plug! Plug!
(SP) Oh, I made a Comedy Central web series called The Legend of Neil. It’s on Atom.com and Felicia… (holds up promo post card) these are her panties.
(FD) It’s true. I’m in episode three, I’m a fairy, and it’s very cool.
(SP) She plays a fairy. It’s about a guy who gets sucked into Zelda and has to fight his way out. Like, a regular Joe Schmo, beer-guzzling dude, and he gets sucked into the game and encounters all the characters and creatures, and they are much realer then you think.
(FD) It’s really funny, and I’m in the third episode, and I’m a fairy, and I’m a — see, it is really cool, because I’m a tiny fairy!
(SP) Yeah, we turned her into a seven inch tall fairy —
(FD) It’s very exciting.
(SP) — which was fun to do.
(FD) It’s a little racy.
(SP) It’s a little racy. It’s a little more South Parky then I would say The Guild is.
(FD) The Guild is layered, has complexer characters, and then is hilariously funny, while yours is, you know… has the shtick.
(SP) Wow.
(FD) I’m just totally kidding here.
(SP) Wow.
(FD) It is really funny.
(ÜSFG) But it will have a built in audience because a lot more people have been exposed to Zelda than have been exposed to The Guild and World of Warcraft.
(FD) That’s true, and a lot of people, like —
(SP) That’s true. I think there will be. We were actually talking about this last night — well, we weren’t, but my friends and I were talking about this last night — and it really actually does touch upon, like, two different markets and I hope that ultimately there will be a lot of crossover.
(FD) But I think it’s the same —
(SP) This is more kind of like, people who love South Park, like the frat boys…
(FD) It’s a little more frat boy, but at the same time it’s, like — I was talking to somebody about it at the Browncoat booth — the Buffy fans aren’t necessarily gamers.
(SP) Right.
(FD) But, it’s like a, ya know, a —
(SP & FD) Venn diagram.
(SP) See, here’s our Venn diagram —
(FD) — and then there is… you know, everybody’s touching —
(SP) — and then —
(FD) — it shows it’s not that far to go from one…
(SP laughs and continues moving his fingers to cover her hands)
(FD) You know, I’ve had enough.
(ÜSFG) All right. Were there any artists, panels, guests here this weekend that you guys were just dying to see, had a chance to see, or…
(FD) There were other things going on besides my signing?
(SP) Right.
(FD) Because I literally didn’t see anything. I mean, all day… I mean, literally.
(SP) I didn’t see anything.
(FD) I have not walked around.
(SP) I didn’t have to do half as much as you did, ’cause I wasn’t in Dr. Horrible —
(FD) That’s true.
(SP) — and I didn’t get to see, like, anything else, so I couldn’t even imagine…
(FD) I didn’t get to do anything, at all. But it was — I mean, you know what, but this afternoon maybe I’ll get, like, two hours of walking around buying stuff but it’s… yeah. I mean, I’m not complaining, because it’s great to have something to show fans and interact with them. But it has been, like, sad that I couldn’t go to some panels, but I did — while I was signing, one of the Browncoat people brought down Jacqueline Carey, the author who writes the Kushiel’s Dart and all those series. I’m a huge fan and I… you know, sometimes fans meet you and they’re really nervous, and I’m like, “Why are you nervous? I’m just a person.” But I got so nervous when I met her, I was a blithering idiot. So, uh, now I understand that.
(SP) It’s so funny.
(FD) It is funny how you geek out over certain people. Like, I can meet somebody hugely famous and I’m like, “Oh, okay.” But when you’re surprised with somebody whom you admire, and you just really…
(SP) Right. Well, it was the same when, the first time I met Joss. Like, I never really met him before and I am a huge Firefly fan, and I was on the set of Dr. Horrible and I just kinda — my girlfriend worked on it, helped out on the set. She helped with props and stuff like that. I walked on the set and everybody was like, “Oh, Zaboo,” because they had heard of the show from you. And I was like “Oh, cool” and they were about to start shooting and then someone was like, “Oh, Zaboo!” And I kinda, like, I couldn’t really see them, and I was like, “Don’t mess up the shoot to say hi to Zaboo.” But then Leah, my girlfriend, leans over and she’s like, “That’s Joss Whedon.” I was like, “Oh, I’m a–”
(FD) And then you get sweaty —
(SP) Yeah, I was like —
(FD) — and you’re like, “Uh… I don’t know what to say to you right now. I’m really nervous.”
(SP) But, no, he was totally cool because… because he liked The Guild and was a fan of what we’ve done, it was really easy to engage him and have, like, a normal conversation with him.
(FD) Really?
(SP) I thought.
(FD) Well, I’m still a geek. I get, like, trembling. I mean, not around Joss… not that he’s not trembling worthy.
(SP) He’s super cool, though.
(FD) Yeah.
(SP) He’s super down-to-earth, which I thought was…
(FD) Well, that’s why his fans are so loyal, I think. ‘Cause he’s just awesome.
(SP) Right.
(FD) And relatable.
(SP) Well, I got to meet Wil Wheaton, which I was very excited about. I know you’re, like, super friends with him, but I love him.
(FD) Yeah. I’m not super friends.
(SP) Well, whatever.
(FD) I mean, I’m not… This is going on the Internet and he’s going to be like, “Hello, Felicia, we’re not super friends.”
(SP) He’d really say that?
(FD laughing)
(SP) He would, like, go out of his way to say that specific…?
(FD) Well, you know, it’s the same thing. I don’t like overstepping myself or being braggy.
(SP) Okay. Well, but you guys are friends.
(FD) We’re acquaintances.
(SP) You’re acquaintances.
(FD) Bordering on friendship.
(SP) Well, you guys were talking to each other, and I hadn’t met him, and I was excited to meet him, so I got to meet him at the con and that was exciting for me.
(FD) Yeah.
(SP) Because I’m a huge Star Trek: Next Generation nerd.
(ÜSFG) Are you guys getting recognized in public now?
(SP) Yeah.
(FD) Yeah, a lot. I mean, especially in this concentrated area. It’s crazy. I mean, I can’t walk a couple feet. It’s cool because it’s the indie side that recognizes us more —
(SP) Totally.
(FD) — and then it’s like when you’re in the corporate side people are like, “Oh, it’s the Aston Martin from James Bond.” But we’re in the comic side and, like, the graphic artist side, and the Browncoats side. It’s like, we get recognized a lot more. Which is cool. I mean, like, I’m an indie girl.
(SP) I think people, like, think they know you more, too —
(FD) Yeah.
(SP) — so they’re like, “Hey, how’s it going?” They, like, come to you like they’re your friends. It’s, like, disarming.
(FD) It’s not… it’s less… it’s almost like, yeah, it’s less fannish. It’s more like, “Hey, how is it? I follow your Twitter.”
(SP) Yeah.
(FD) Or my Facebook.
(SP) Yeah. It’s cool.
(FD) Yeah, I like that.
(ÜSFG) One last question.
(FD) Okay.
(ÜSFG) Worst case scenario, one day the Internet crashes and it never comes back. (both gasp) What would you do?
(FD) I don’t even know why you would do that to me.
(SP) Ooooh! Why? Why… what is this…
(ÜSFG) Well, you know, all of the Terminator hype.
(ÜSFG) Apocalyptic scenario.
(FD) I don’t even want to go there. I mean, it’s so traumatic. I just got my iPhone. I’m connected 24/7. I don’t know why you would even try to rob me of my passions.
(ÜSFG) I’m sorry!
(FD) Um, I would just be reading fantasy novels like I do anyway.
(SP) Yep, pretty much. That’s… yeah, I’d be reading fantasy novels. I’m a dork.
(ÜSFG) Is there anything else that you want to say about The Guild, Legend of Neil, anything that you did this weekend?
(FD) Uh, no… I just want to — I guess I would say “Thank you” to the fans because, I mean, Dr. Horrible doesn’t have PR people. You know, The Guild doesn’t have PR people. This is all grass roots stuff and it’s, like, really revolutionizing the Internet and how people get their entertainment, and I think it’s a turn for the good.
(SP) Right.
(FD) And I love the fact that they made it, all of it, as big as it is. So, thank you! Thank you!
(ÜSFG) Well, I want to thank you for talking to us today.
(FD) No problem.
(ÜSFG) We’re really looking forward to The Guild. We’re looking forward to The Legend of Neil, and we’re really excited at how big Dr. Horrible has been and look forward to hopefully a return of Penny in our own idea of…
(SP) Woo hoo!
(FD) That would be great!
(ÜSFG) …spinning off.
(FD) That would be great!
(ÜSFG) Thank you so much —
(FD) Thank you, Raven.
(ÜSFG) — I hope you guys have a great time at the rest of Comic-Con.
(FD) All right, bye!
(SP) Thanks a lot. Byyyyye!
