2 October 2019 / Greet / Comments Off on Passage the Series: A New Lesbian Show with Paranormal Activities
Passage the Series: A New Lesbian Show with Paranormal Activities
About 1.5 years ago, I was at the table reading of Passage at ClexaCon. I loved witnessing a table reading, and I am excited that this web series will finally premiere this Sunday (Oct. 6th) on Tello Films. Passage the Series is an episodic paranormal thriller centered around paranormal operative and queer mom Ali Prader as she balances her personal and professional life during a crucial shift in power. I have watched the five episodes of this new show before the premiere date, so I can tell you why you should watch it. In this blog post, I will describe three things that I like about this series. In the video included, you will find me reacting to what I see as I watch Passage.
The story of Passage
Passage the Series is an episodic paranormal thriller centered around Janus Agent Ali Prader. This queer mom is a top paranormal operative within the government for a secret division called Caelus. Caelus relies on her special capabilities to handle the different situations that can arise from interacting with paranormal entities. Ali can balance her professional and personal life only until she starts to discover things that can open the door to a new crucial shift in power.
Watch me watch Passage!
What I love about Passage:
the paranormal aspect
The first thing that intrigued me about Passage the Series was the paranormal aspect of the show. Usually, web series have a small budget and frequently, that small budget limits even the basic plans of content creators. I expect that adding sci-fi to a story, and all the special effects that come hand-in-hand with it, requires a big chunk of the project’s budget.
I can
imagine that it is quite tricky. You do not want to cut corners with special
effects either as it will diminish the quality of your show, no matter how good
the storyline is. I have to admit I was a little worried because there is enough
proof on YouTube where shows have not handled that aspect well.
A few
months ago, I was fortunate enough to watch the first episode when it was ready,
and I was relieved to see it was done well. I guess big TV shows have tons of
extra tricks (and money) to make it look even smoother, but this web series
makes the special effects look great.
Watch me discover Passage. And please subscribe to my channel!
What I love about Passage: the queer mom life
Hillary
Esquina, who wrote Passage, and I agree on at least one thing: there should be
more stories about queer moms. Passage is just that. That’s one point for the
Passage team already.
I am a
queer mom. I do not know if you remember me talking about it earlier, such as when
discussing Different for
Girls, but it always seems as if marriage and having a kid is the end game.
That is all we strive for in life, and then after that, we have no more stories
to tell. I mean, if you believe most current films and series.
So yes, with
Passage, there is finally another story that we are in, and it does not just focus
on our motherhood. It is a part of the story but not the center.
Watch me talk about lesbian mom life some more!
What I love about Passage:
the cast
Passage stars
Shannan Leigh Reeve,
whom I loved in I Hate
Tommy Finch. I am excited to see her on screen again. Also, Nicole Pacent is in it,
and they were both in I Hate Tommy Finch! It is good to watch them together again
on screen. Mandahla Rose
is in it as well, so you have at least three cool people in one show. Oh,
Mandahla will make you laugh…
Where can you find Passage?
You will be
able to find Passage on Tello Films as of October 6th. You
will have to subscribe, but there is a free trial, so you can test whether you
like the website. You can find queer movies and series on it, and at the end of
the year, they will also have Season
of Love, which many Earpers probably cannot wait to watch.
As you may know, I visited ClexaCon London in November last year. I have been publishing the interviews of the press room but I have not had the time yet to write down everything about my experience there. So, here are all my ClexaCon London Friday adventures! Below this image, you can also find my vlog.
Flight to London
November 1, I flew to London for ClexaCon’s first international pop-up event. The official event was on Saturday and Sunday but since I know that ClexaCon always has fun activities for us before the event, I flew in a little early. That Thursday, I walked around London a bit and enjoyed the view from Tate Modern.
The next day, I wanted to vlog at the ClexaCon London Friday activities. There was a bus tour but since I have visited London more than once, I did not buy a ticket for it. Still, I wanted to see if I knew some participants and I wanted to see how excited everybody was for the event.
Well, I didn’t. I could not find the bus. I did not know the official meeting point, so I just wandered around Trafalgar Square until I saw some queer people near a bus. It turned out it was somewhere near that square. Hashtag fail.
ClexaCon London Friday activities: screening of I Can’t Think Straight
I visited the British Museum before I headed to the Prince Charles Cinema, where I Can’t Think Straight was screened. It was the movie’s tenth anniversary.
I did not want to visit the actual screening though as I had recently watched the movie. I was told I could pick up my press pass there. Unfortunately, as I expected, the press passes weren’t there. I already thought it sounded kind of random. One of the organizers told me that they had thought about it but decided not to. Oh well, I was planning on going to the badge pick-up party later that night anyway.
I was kind of nervous going to the screening if I’m honest. I knew I would see some of you there. My YouTube channel has received quite some attention after visiting Love Fan Fest, so I didn’t know how people would react. And when you’re already nervous, things seem way worse than they really are, right? I saw some familiar faces and some new ones. Sorry if I was being weird, I just felt like a lot of eyes were watching me. It was probably imaginary 😉 At that point, I wished I had not been so active on the relevant hashtags…
Badge pick-up party
I arrived at the badge pick-up party a little late. That was great though because now, I was able to pick up the press pass immediately. I did not have to wait in line for a long time. I saw some people I already knew, some people I met at the screening, and some new people.
Mandahla Rose and Nicole Pacent hung out at the party as well. I was wondering if they recognized me from ClexaCon Vegas because, you know, they meet so many people at these events. Turns out they did.
Historic moment: I met Emma. Who? She co-wrote and directed the lesbian short film The Date (get your copy!). We met online a few weeks earlier and this Friday evening, we finally met in real life. Loved talking to her! Also, she now adds her magic to my videos. See what an event like ClexaCon can do for our community?
12 December 2018 / Greet / Comments Off on Mandahla Rose Visited the ClexaCon London Press Room
Mandahla Rose Visited the ClexaCon London Press Room
On the final day of ClexaCon London, Mandahla Rose and Nicole Pacent visited the press room together. They are in Passage together, which will come out in 2019. They talked about other projects they have been working on, about queer and non-queer actors playing queer characters, and about mental health. Because the interview was so long, I have divided into two parts. Below, you will find Mandahla’s part and here, you will find Nicole’s part.
You can also find a video of the full interview here.
Me: Mandahla Rose, you just said that you still had so much more to say in your panel. What were some of the things you wanted to talk about?
Mandahla Rose: It was about mental health. The question was about how people reach out to you. So, I have been reached out to by a number of people but one person in particular. This is a trigger warning. She heard me speak about my own vulnerable story, how I tried to take my own life, and it ended up saving her life. To me, if this platform is something that I can be on that can just save one life, then I am doing the right job.
Unfortunately, Tessa did pass away. Not by her own hand but it was because she ended up having a heart defect. So, the wonderful thing that I can take from that is that she could have gone from darkness and sadness in her heart. But what I ended up doing by speaking my truth is actually allowing her to go ask for help, let her family and friends know that she needed help.
She actually got that help. She met someone in care and ended up marrying and moving to Paris. And she had this beautiful, just six months of a new life where she has light and love in her heart. Unfortunately, she did leave but she left with that and love in her heart. So, this platform that I find myself on is wonderful for that reason. If just one life, that is life enough.
On your panels, you two did not get the chance to talk much about your upcoming projects. What would you like to say about them now?
Mandahla Rose: Let’s first talk about Passage because we are both in Passage. Do you want to…?
Nicole Pacent: You are a bigger part of Passage so why don’t you talk about it?
Mandahla Rose: I play agent Diana Atwell, a Caelus agent. It is Sci-Fi and it is kind of, I do not want to give it away, I can’t… It is going to be… I am very excited about it. I did spend a day at the graveyard running around, which was a lot of fun, with guns and everything.
My other project is BIFL. I won’t tell you what that stands for. Does it stand for anything? We don’t know. Find out. I play Sarah, they/them/their, ace lesbian. It is a lot about representation. It is an ensemble cast so there are six of us. Each of us has our own stories to tell. So that one was really exciting as well.
Forever Not Maybe
Forever Not Maybe will be coming out next year. It was originally La Douleur Exquise, a web series that ended up… Shot the first episode in December 2015, which was a while ago but that is the actual reason for me moving to LA in the first place. We were actually able to get the funds to turn it into a feature film. So, now called Forever Not Maybe because good luck pronouncing La Douleur Exquise. So, that one will be coming out next year as well.
Crazy Bitches season 2, I play Pandora, a 20-something YouTuber. I am a little baby lesbian in it, who has a bit of a crush on Guinevere Turner’s character. Then, Guinevere and I are in a series called Alice & Iza, which will be coming out soon. It is based on a one-night stand, which is a little bit of fun, on Tello.
Nicole, you have said on a panel that you have feelings about how important it is for openly queer actors to be playing queer characters. Would you mind going into that a little bit more?
[Nicole Pacent discusses this question. Then, Mandahla Rose adds her comment.]
Mandahla Rose: I think there is a fine line because I can see the “straight” world be like “Well, if you think queer actors should be playing queer characters, then straight people should only be playing straight characters.
Nicole Pacent: Yes, it does work opposite.
Mandahla Rose: It does. But in saying that, we are more than our sexuality. I can play a straight person and a queer person. It is still a talent. It is the talent we should be looking at, not the sexuality. But, again, I really love when… I mean, it is really heart-warming when queer actors are playing queer characters because the straight guys get them all the time. The straight people get everything.
Me: I was at the table reading of Passage. To me, the question is: does the Sci-Fi aspect of it bring more difficulties to shooting it?
Nicole Pacent: Well, we are not on the production side of it. It did not make it more difficult for us as actors.
Mandahla Rose: No, I got a plasma gun and I was really happy with that.
Nicole Pacent: Is it going to take more effects and camera tricks for them? Yes. We definitely were party to that, we could see that happening but luckily, I got to get home and be like “Bye!”
Make sure you follow Nicole and Mandahla on social media! Their handles are @NicolePacent and @TwiistedRose on Twitter and Instagram.
12 December 2018 / Greet / Comments Off on Nicole Pacent Visited the ClexaCon London Press Room
Nicole Pacent Visited the ClexaCon London Press Room
On the final day of ClexaCon London, Nicole Pacent and Mandahla Rose visited the press room together. They are in Passage together, which will come out in 2019. They talked about other projects they have been working on, about queer and non-queer actors playing queer characters, and about mental health. Because the interview was so long, I have divided into two parts. Below, you will find Nicole’s part and here, you will find Mandahla’s part.
You can also find a video of the full interview here.
Are movies and TV trying to do multiple birds with one stone as in “we now have a queer character who is black and in a wheelchair.” How do we counter this attempt to stack multiple forms of diversity within a single character?
Nicole Pacent: That is a great question. I would say that detokenizing all of it is the only way to do that. To say ‘We don’t want the token person of color. We don’t want the token queer person. And we don’t want an X amount of women.’ And I am talking about in front of the camera and behind the camera, right.
I think that is the only way to do it. To start looking at people as people versus what they can bring in terms of their “diversity card.” So, that we are not thinking about it in terms like ‘Ok, have we filled all of our boxes and how can we do this with fewer people?’
I think the root of the issue is the fact that people are tokenized so unless we are talking about it those terms regularly and calling that out, then it is not going to change.
On your panels, you two did not get the chance to talk much about your upcoming projects. What would you like to say about them now?
[Mandahla Rose first talked about their shared project Passage. Then, Nicole Pacent discussed her own projects.]
Nicole Pacent: I have been doing a lot over the past couple of months. So, I have on the podcasting front my Coming-Out Pod with Lauren and Nicole, which comes out weekly on Wednesdays. We interview queer people from all walks of life and tell the tales of how they came out to friends and family and the world at large. See how that rolls off the tongue? I have said it many times. It is the opening of our show. No, it is really wonderful. We have interview Stephanie Beatriz and a bunch of other pretty amazing people. That is on all podcast platforms.
Podcast
I am also on another podcast that is 180 degrees opposite. It is a narrative podcast that just came out from the tech giant SAP. It is Sci-Fi, fantasy, Renaissance nerdy kind of podcast called Searching for Salaì. The podcast is about if Leonardo da Vinci’s assistant Salaì traveled through time and met this one woman. It is about their relationship and trying to debunk his story. There is a whole bunch of nerdy Renaissance and nerdy tech and science stuff in it. And it is just like this beautifully written story and I get to act in it. So, I narrate the entire thing and I am also in all the scenes. That is on the total opposite of the podcasting spectrum but also on all streaming platforms.
Two short films
I shot two short films recently that are both about to do festival runs. One of them is called Other Loving. I play the central character who is a bisexual poly character and who is dealing with a break-up with a boyfriend and having to come home to her wife and talk about that. So, it is stuff people are not seeing, haven’t seen, and are going to feel all different kinds of ways about it, I am sure. It was a really emotional and beautiful project and it has some good people behind it.
I also just shot a short film with Melissa Ponzio. She plays my wife in it and that was also a really wonderful and emotional experience. I do not have dates for the release of either of these movies because again it is going to depend on festivals.
I just wrapped a musical presentation of a musical called Lesbian Love Octagon, which Mandahla saw.
Mandahla Rose: It was pretty fun.
Nicole Pacent: It was f*cking great. We may or may not be doing a full run of that in Los Angeles and/or touring it. If we do, I will let everybody know about that.
Nicole Pacent, you have said on a panel that you have feelings about how important it is for openly queer actors to be playing queer characters. Would you mind going into that a little bit more?
Nicole Pacent: Yes. It is funny; I have not come down on either side of the debate of whether people who are not representative of a certain faction should be playing those characters. We have had that conversation about ethnicity too and it makes a lot of sense that if you are not at least a part of the ethnicity you are playing, that seems wrong to me. I have come down pretty firmly on that side of that debate. I do not think it is that much of a debate anymore.
In terms of LGBTQ characters, it is hard. I have two minds about this. As a queer person, I love being able to play queer characters and I love seeing people who are actually queer portraying that experience. Because there is nothing like somebody who knows to be able to do that. And I love the fans’ reaction that I see to queer people playing queer characters. It is really exciting and fulfilling. I think that there is a real power in that that there is not necessarily when heterosexual people play queer characters. So, from an impact standpoint, I think more queer actors playing more queer characters is the way to go.
Artistic standpoint
From a purely artistic standpoint, I do like to believe that as actors, our job is to be able to transform and to be able to embody different people and different experiences and that is part of how we gain empathy ourselves and how we also loop maybe those who are more close-minded into things.
So, artistically speaking, I am much more open about it but for me, from a business impact standpoint, I do not know. So, those are my two feelings about it.
Me: I was at the table reading of Passage. To me, the question is: does the Sci-Fi aspect of it bring more difficulties to shooting it?
Nicole Pacent: Well, we are not on the production side of it. It did not make it more difficult for us as actors.
Mandahla Rose: No, I got a plasma gun and I was really happy with that.
Nicole Pacent: Is it going to take more effects and camera tricks for them? Yes. We definitely were party to that. We could see that happening but luckily, I got to get home and be like “Bye!”
Make sure you follow Nicole and Mandahla on social media! Their handles are @NicolePacent and @TwiistedRose on Twitter and Instagram.
25 April 2018 / Greet / Comments Off on I had my mind blown at ClexaCon 2018 – Part 3 (ClexaCon 2018 Day 1)
I had my mind blown at ClexaCon 2018 – Part 3
This is part three of my ClexaCon 2018 adventure. April 4-10, I went on a trip to Las Vegas for ClexaCon, all the way from The Netherlands. Let me tell you, it was so worth the jetlag! You can find part one (the first official ClexaCon activities) and part two (the first half of ClexaCon 2018 Day 1) here.
In this blog, I will tell you all about the LGBTQ actresses panel, the Lost Girl panel, the RED panel, and the Wynonna Earp panel. I have to confess that after the first day, I was feeling overwhelmed and emotional because I realized how much this convention means to me and the rest of the LGBTQ community.
ClexaCon 2018 Day 1 – third panel: LGBTQ actresses
This was the first main panel that I visited. I was familiar with Nicole Pacent’s and Dot-Marie Jones’s work but not yet with the work of the other guests.
At this point, I did not know about the designated press area yet, so I sat somewhere in the back. As the place was packed, I felt a bit reluctant to walk around and take pictures. Luckily, after this panel, that reluctance passed.
The five actresses discussed how being an out member of the LGBTQ community influenced their work, what trailblazers in the industry helped them come out (Ellen and Angelina Jolie among others), being cast in gay and straight roles (Haviland Stillwell: “Somebody pass me a damn lesbian role!”), various directors, and support from the community.
Pressroom
After the panel, some of the actresses went to the press room. For me, that was also the first time being in a press room. Beforehand, I did not know what other media outlets were going to be present. It was just me and my smartphone so how would others react to me? All I can say is: I have met some amazing people. I have forgotten some names, but check out these lovely people: Karen Frost, Emily Browne, Jessica Mason, Alyssa, and Jennifer.
I sat at the table with Nicole Pacent and Mandahla Rose. That made me very happy because, as I said before, I loved I Hate Tommy Finch and, hello!, Anyone But Me. And how can you not like Mandahla Rose’s personality immediately? Wow! I asked them about ClexaCon’s network opportunities and if they had seen collaborations starting behind the scenes (which they obviously cannot talk about). Find out in the vlog at the top of this page!
Chatting with Nicole Pacent
After the table interview, I asked Nicole for a picture. Oh my god, such enthusiasm! Just getting used to this whole press thing, I did not know what to expect and she just blew me away with her friendliness and chatter. When I challenged her to pronounce my name, she said she knew it was Dutch. What?! Apparently, she lived in Amsterdam for a while in 2006. LOL.
We talked a bit more off-camera, just because. I told her how I liked I Hate Tommy Finch and she told me about how that was performed with a live band and an audience. I asked her if we were going to see her in something new anytime soon because hey, I want to! She promised me things were developing. Yay!
ClexaCon 2018 Day 1 – fourth panel: RED the web series
I am a fan of RED. If you did not know that yet, I will repeat it. I am a fan of RED. This web series from Brazil is absolutely beautiful. It is so creative and different. You have two characters (Mel and Liz) that are actresses in a show. In the show, they play Scarlet and Simone, who are in love with each other. They take that relationship into their own lives.
The series has a bit of a slower pace and a great eye for detail. The constant switching between the show and their own lives always makes you wonder what storyline you are actually watching. Also, the music is incredible and the colors are simply gorgeous.
So, no matter what, I had to go to this panel. The problem was that it was scheduled at the same time as Lost Girl. Since I did not have to wait in line, I decided to go to RED first to see this incredible cast. They were dropping the first episode of the fourth season as a teaser for the rest of the season, so I was really happy I was present 🙂 Then, I had to run to the Lost Girl panel… I made this awesome vlog about the RED panel:
ClexaCon 2018 Day 1 – fifth panel: Lost Girl reunion
My wife and I watched Lost Girl together and she was pretty jealous when she found out these actresses were coming. Muahahahaha.
This panel was so hilarious. I feel like every time these people come together, they just laugh and laugh. Let us be honest; with sucking chi and needing sex for survival, it is hard to have a serious panel. Friday, April 6th, 2018, at around 2:40 pm, the now legendary brunch joke was born at ClexaCon. For those who do not know what brunch now means, watch it below (after about 10 minutes). Brunch ended up being a recurring theme at the other panels.
I do not mean to say no serious topics were discussed. They also talked about the demand for queer storylines, the stories they heard from fans and having a bisexual person as the lead. Anna Silk and Erica Luttrell later visited the press room for some photos and questions.
ClexaCon 2018 Day 1 – sixth panel: Staged reading of Passage
I have done some amateur acting and every time I watch a show or web series, I am really curious about how it was made and what the preparations were like. This panel had a staged reading of Passage, which Tello Films is currently developing. The reading is usually a closed process done with a small group but we were allowed to see part of this process of story and script development. Because of the pressroom activities, I was a bit later but it sounded good and funny. Now, obviously, I want to know what it looks like on screen!
ClexaCon 2018 Day 1 – seventh panel: Wynonna Earp
Have you ever been to a big concert? I am sure you have. Do you know that moment, right before the band comes to the stage when the audience goes insane? This is how I felt before the Wynonna Earp panel: as if we were all about to see a famous rock star. The audience in the massive room was losing it.
And hey, that was no big surprise, because Emily Andras, Kat Barrell, Dominique Provost-Chalkley, and Tamara Duarte are incredible! They talked about season three, where the WayHaught relationship will be going, the freedom at SyFy to explore these storylines, and how “It is 2018!”
For me, today was the first time seeing Emily speak and I was amazed by how articulate and visionary she is. I was very happy to hear her saying out loud that we are not just gay people; we have jobs, families, problems, and taxes to pay. Previously, when a gay character was introduced, they just had to be gay but now the storylines are getting more diverse. I cannot tell you how happy I am to see that development reflected in shows the past few years.
Wynonna Earp not available on your Netflix? Try Amazon! Want to own it on DVD or Blu-Ray? Try Amazon, eBay or Bol.com. Want to read the books? Try Amazon, eBay, Barnes & Noble, Sanity or Bol.com
FOOD
After this panel, all the press members were starving. Some people with snacks shared them with their neighbors but most of us were just very, very hungry the entire last panel. There simply was not enough time to eat! After the panel, Karen proposed to eat together with a few people. So, I ended up having a lovely stir-fry dinner with her and Immy and Alyssa. After that, I went to the comedy night by myself and finally crawled into bed at around midnight. What a day!
Important
After ClexaCon 2018 Day 1, I realized how important this event is to me and the LGBTQ community. I have talked about it in my first blog about ClexaCon:
I have been looking for movies, TV shows, and web series with LGBTQ themes since right before I came out. Honestly, I knew nobody else who was non-heterosexual, so I had to find SOMETHING or SOMEONE to learn what that whole non-heterosexual thing meant. I was panicking and analyzing myself from top to toe, from my clothes and my posture to my way of walking and my hair. You see, I thought it would be terrible if people immediately knew I was a lesbian, whatever that “looking like a lesbian” meant. Now I can laugh about it, but I will never forget that suffocating and disheartening feeling.
And that is exactly why movies, TV shows, and web series with LGBTQ themes are important to our community. You want to see yourself reflected on the screen: your life, your thoughts, and your feelings. Not being the norm in society can be quite confusing, especially if you are just finding out about it.
Overwhelming
Now, actually being present at the event made me realize how rare it is to fly across the world and be in the same proximity as the people who I have been seeing on screen for years. The movies and series you watch become a part of your daily life. These LGBTQ shows have provided our community with a framework.
However, since these productions are usually from the States or Canada, everything seemed so far away for me at the same time. How wonderful is it to be able to walk up to someone and thank them for their work? Indeed, after ClexaCon 2018 Day 1, I felt a little overwhelmed when it struck me how special this event is.
ClexaCon 2018 Day 2
Liked my blogs about ClexaCon 2018 Day 1? Next week, I will talk about ClexaCon Day 2 (Saturday). That means you will read about the following panels: Anyone But Me, Bisexual Representation, WayHaught, Swerve, Shoot, Alex Danvers, and Hollstein. If you sign up for my newsletter, you will be the first to know when this blog post comes out! You can sign up on the top right of this page or in the footer.
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