Mockumentary III - The Search for Stories (Read 8,505 times)

[André DiMera]

Good evening. I am André DiMera from MyHourglass Forums. Over the last few years, I have written several stories. Among those stories were two mockumentaries. They are called A Look Back and Looking Back (to the Future). It's been about two and a half years since my last mockumentary was posted. In these mockumentaries, there are interviews with the cast, as well as some behind the scenes stuff, including some stuff that didn't make the final cut of the stories. Starting Monday, my third mockumentary, The Search for Stories, will begin. I hope that you enjoy it!

[Kpatch]

I love your mockumentaries. They are so entertaining and insightful. I like getting the behind-the-scenes scoops!

[heroicmuse]

Can't wait!

[fluffysmom]

I like behind the scenes info. Looking forward to reading your new story André DiMera.

[unavitasegreta]

Sounds fun!

[André DiMera]

Winter/Reflections

CHARLIE (as Ciara): Which state are you most excited to see?
SHAILENE (as Claire): I don't really know. I'm just excited to see them all. What about you?
CHARLIE (as Ciara): New New Jersey.
Shailene laughs.
CHARLIE: What?
SHAILENE: That's not the line, Char. It's New New York.
Charlie joins in laughing.
CHARLIE: I'm...I'm sorry. Can we just do that one more time.
ANDRE DIMERA (of MyHourglass): Okay, cut.
Charlie and Shailene are both laughing. They stop after a few minutes.
ANDRE DIMERA (of MyHourglass): We good?
CHARLIE: Yeah. Yeah, we're good.
ANDRE DIMERA (of MyHourglass): Okay. Take it from “What about you?”.
SHAILENE (as Claire): What about you?
CHARLIE (as Ciara): New York.
Shailene and Charlie stare at each other.
SHAILENE (whispering): That's New New York, Char.
Both start laughing again.

SOUNDTRACK
“Get Through” by Mark Joseph

INTRODUCTION
ANDRE DIMERA (Writer): There was a lot more that I felt could be done with the group that I'd put together for the future series. This is where “Winter/Reflections” comes in.

STORYLINES
ANDRE DIMERA: The biggest thing I wanted to do was to show the roadtrip that Claire and Ciara had discussed during “The Autumn Effect”. I wanted to see where that would take us. This required us to go on a location shoot. The place in question was Sauk City, Wisconsin.
SHAILENE WOODLEY (Claire Brady): Most of our time was spent in Salem. Charlie (Ray) and I have loved working together since André (DiMera, of MyHourglass) first put us in scenes together.
CHARLIE RAY (Ciara Brady): Our storyline mainly consisted of us getting ready to go on the trip. We did a lot of packing and discussing for most our scenes, until almost the near end. That's when the poop hit the fan.
SHAILENE WOODLEY: Jan Spears returns and claims that she's my mother and that Belle is just a surrogate. Obviously that's nonsense, but to Claire, it kinda makes sense in a weird way. Either way, Claire and Ciara leave town before finding out if it's the truth or not, and that really affects Claire. We spent a few days in this nice little town in Wisconsin called Sauk City. Charlie and I had fun. It was a great time.
ANDRE DIMERA: I put in a somewhat minor story about Chelsea becoming pregnant, and Morgan Hollingsworth trying to ruin Max and Chelsea's relationship.
RACHEL MELVIN (Chelsea Brady): Here's Morgan, one of Chelsea's best friends, trying to steal Max from her. But, thankfully, she couldn't get between Max and Chelsea. They're pretty solid. Especially since they're gonna have a kid.
KRISTEN RENTON (Morgan Hollingsworth): Morgan's not through yet. Chelsea may have won this battle, but Morgan's not out for the count yet.
ANDRE DIMERA: The main storyline, though, has to do with Sydney and Ceri, and this goes on two different levels. The first is how everyone, not just Sydney, but everyone is coping with the death of Marlena.
LIANA LIBERATO (Sydney DiMera): Sydney took Marlena's death really hard. It was difficult, because Marlena's always been there for Sydney whenever she needed anything. Now, Marlena's gone.
ANDRE DIMERA: The other level is the relationship between Sydney and Ceri. This story deals with Sydney moving forward and healing, but it also deals with Sydney maturing in her relationship.
CAMILLA ROSSO (Ceri Alamain): Ceri and Sydney have a lot of really cute scenes together. Liana (Liberato) was great during those scenes. She is a joy to work with. It was also nice to have a few serious scenes in which Ceri and Sydney discuss their relationship and taking the next step in that.
LIANA LIBERATO: I feel that in this story, Sydney becomes more confident in who she is, and in her sexuality. By the later half of the story, she's ready to take things further and the relationship becomes a lot more serious.

CLIFFHANGER
ANDRE DIMERA: With the underlying threat of Jan Spears still around, but the story for Chelsea and Max, as well as the story for Sydney in places that I liked, I felt that this was a good stopping point. It wasn't the end by any stretch, as will be seen in a few days.

[Kpatch]

This is great. I always love hearing the actor's own take on their characters and story. They really become entrenched in it.

Thanks for the interviews, André DiMera!

[fluffysmom]

I like hearing the actor's thoughts on their characters as well as the storylines.

[André DiMera]

It's a Wonderful Life

LIANA (as Grace): Try to be quiet.
CHANDLER (as Will): You're coming with me, aren't you?
Liana shakes her head.
LIANA (as Grace): I can't. It's too painful.
CHANDLER (as Will): Why?
LIANA (as Grace): You'll see. Just go.
ANDRE DIMERA (of MyHourglass): Okay, cut. That's good. Let's move to the scene after Will sees Other Grace.
CHANDLER: Okay. Just give me one sec. I need to work on crying on cue.

SOUNDTRACK
“Auld Lang Syne” by Mannheim Steamroller

INTRODUCTION
ANDRE DIMERA (Writer): Christmas is probably my favorite time of the year. I love everything about it. One of my favorite things is the films that always come on TV during the Christmas season, one of my favorites being “It's a Wonderful Life”. So, when it came time to write my Christmas story for 2012, I knew exactly which one I had to write.

THE STORY
ANDRE DIMERA: Will takes the place of George Bailey.
CHANDLER MASSEY (Will Horton): It was interesting playing that side of Will, since Will is usually fairly confident. Playing him like George Bailey was a nice change
ANDRE DIMERA: I, of course, had Sonny as his husband, Gabi is there as one of the angry townspeople, and Stefano and E.J. both kind of form Mr. Potter.
JAMES SCOTT (E.J. DiMera): E.J. is terrible in this story. I mean, in many of the stories I've done, he's been terrible. However, I feel that he was particularly cruel in this one, telling Will that he's worth more dead than alive. A line which, if I'm not mistaken, comes directly from the original film.
ANDRE DIMERA: There were several lines and scenes taken directly or have direct parallels with the original. Any time that you make an adaptation, however far away from the original source material, there will be some touches of the original still there. This comes mostly from the dialogue. One of the other things that I did was use a teenage Grace in the place of Clarence. This meant that I got to work with Liana Liberato again.
LIANA LIBERATO (Grace the Angel): We finally get to see what Grace would have been like were she alive. It was interesting playing Grace, as I've now played four different characters. I've played an evil version of Sydney in “A Christmas Carol”. I played Sydney in all of the future stories. I played a Sydney clone that was named Grace by Johnny. And now, I've played the real Grace as an angel. And, like in all of my other appearances, I've loved every minute of it. This is an extremely great group of people to work with
CHANDLER MASSEY: Liana (Liberato)'s great, both as Grace and in her usual role as Sydney. She's a wonderful young lady. Some of my favorite scenes in this story were with her.
ANDRE DIMERA: Of course, there comes a time when Will wishes he was never born, and Grace grants that wish. I decided as a further homage to the original film, to make all of the scenes in the world where Will was never born be shot in black and white; just to give the feel that this is a completely different type of Salem.
LIANA LIBERATO: The black and white scenes were really cool to shoot. Even though, of course, we saw it in color, it still had a totally different feel to it. Everyone played a really warped version of themselves.
CHANDLER MASSEY: The world where Will was never born was so interesting. I really enjoyed the way that everyone's life is affected by Will. Even in a way that most of us would think is so indirect. And it would make a big difference. If any of these characters weren't around, it wouldn't be the same show.
ANDRE DIMERA: There was a scene I was a bit nervous about, the scene in the world where Will was never born that involves the alternate Grace. I had become fascinated by the story of Genie, a young girl who, for the first thirteen years of her life, had little to no positive human contact. I found that story so interesting and wanted to incorporate it into Days somehow. Originally, it was going to be its own separate story. But, then I trimmed it down. I was nervous about this scene in that I didn't know how it would be received. I had worried that it may be too dark. But, I went with it, and I'm glad that I did.
TATUM MCCANN (Grace from The World Where Will Was Never Born): I played Grace for one chapter, and it was the alternate Grace, the one who was tied down to a potty chair. The reason behind me playing her and not Liana is because the alternate Grace was supposed to be malnourished. She would be smaller than the angel version of Grace. I'm really glad that I did it, as it was such an interesting character to play.
CHANDLER MASSEY: Tatum (McCann), who was the other Grace, was such a great actress. I wish we'd gotten to work together more someday. The scene with her and Will is heartbreaking, especially when you read the true story that it's based on.

[Kpatch]

So great to see Chandler! I miss him so much. Thanks for the soundtrack too, Andre. Love Mannheim Steamroller too. I always look forward to your special Christmas tales and your mockumentaries!

[fluffysmom]

I like the reminders of your version of It's a Wonderful Life.

[André DiMera]

A Summer (Camp) to Remember

Brie and Cameron look up at the stars.
BRIE LARSON (as Joy): Ever wonder what's up there?
CAMERON BRIGHT (as Johnny): Kinda. I always wonder if someday there'll be a bunch of spaceships out there. Seeking out new life, exploring new worlds, boldly going.
BRIE LARSON (as Joy): You mean, like in Star Trek?
CAMERON BRIGHT (as Johnny): Yeah. Silly, I know.
BRIE LARSON (as Joy): No, it's not. I think it'd be cool if someone actually did that someday. Whoa! Look at that!
Brie points to the moon.
CAMERON BRIGHT (as Johnny): Wow!
BRIE LARSON (as Joy): It's beautiful!

SOUNDTRACK
“Alone Again (Naturally)” by Gilbert O'Sullivan

INTRODUCTION
ANDRE DIMERA (Writer): It was established, I think in “The End of Summer”, that something had happened between Johnny DiMera and Joy Wesley. After Christmas, it came time for me to write a new story, and I knew I wanted to write a prequel to my future storyline. That's where I came up with the idea to go into detail about Johnny and Joy.

THE STORY
ANDRE DIMERA: The first thing that I had to establish is that Johnny wasn't always a bad kid. I had to make him likeable, but also have it be believable that he would eventually turn out the way that he did.
CAMERON BRIGHT (Johnny DiMera): Johnny's parents are Sami Brady and E.J. DiMera. How could that not end badly for a kid? Nonetheless, I really liked the way that Johnny's backstory was written. In “End of Summer” and “Autumn Effect”, I played a very evil Johnny. He's almost like a mini E.J. In “Summer (Camp) to Remember”, though, I got to play a much nicer, softer Johnny. And, I liked it. It was a nice change to play a softer side to this character, and also to show how he became the evil little twerp we see in “End of Summer”.
ANDRE DIMERA: Then, there's the element of Joy. I wasn't quite sure how I was going to have the two of them interact. Then, I decided, “why not have them go to summer camp together?”
BRIE LARSON (Joy Wesley): All of my scenes were done on location. We went to this camp out in Kingston, Illinois, and they let us shoot there for a few days. It was a really cool place to go.
ANDRE DIMERA: Walcamp. That was the name of the shooting location. Walcamp is very special to me. I've been going there for...oh, it must be about seven or so years now. Once we got the location set, I needed to figure out how to work out this storyline.
BRIE LARSON: Joy starts out as being very shy, and it's not because she doesn't want to talk to people. She stutters, and she's embarrassed by that stutter. When she meets Johnny, he's really nice and helps her with the stutter, and Joy kinda falls for him. He's the first boy who's ever really been nice to her, and that's why she ends up falling for him so easily.
CAMERON BRIGHT: Johnny's got a crush on Joy almost instantly. He just thinks she is the cutest, sweetest girl he's ever seen. And, though they never make it official, they do have a brief kiss or two.
ANDRE DIMERA: But, this is a soap opera, so not everyone is always happy all the time. Once they were together, I needed to find a way to change the way they felt for each other. If you go back and look at “End of Summer”, Johnny and Joy are very different with each other then than they are in this story. I'd long wondered “what could have happened to have this change in them?”. Then, I finally came to it.
DEBBY RYAN (Allie Horton): I think Allie really was just trying to help. She wasn't trying to hurt Johnny or Joy, she was just looking out for them. Her methods may not have been great, but she meant well. She wasn't jealous or anything, she just didn't want to see Joy or her brother get hurt.
CAMERON BRIGHT: When Allie interferes with Johnny and Joy, Johnny sees this as a betrayal. Much like his parents, I think Johnny has a tendency to over react. Deep down, he knows that this is for the best, but he isn't thinking about that. He's only thinking about how hurt he is by what Allie did. His anger only gets worse when he witnesses Sydney shoot E.J. at the end of the story. Had things been different, I think Johnny may have eventually, after years of intense therapy, been okay. However, he was instead offered help from André, his uncle, who I think is technically his cousin as well, so that's how he goes down that dark path. And, as we see in stories like “Autumn Effect”, he eventually reaches the point of no return. With André as his mentor, though, who could be surprised?

[Kpatch]

I love how you flesh out the children of Salem as they grow to be adults!

[fluffysmom]

I like seeing the kids as teenagers.

[André DiMera]

Partners in Crime

MATT (as Max Headroom): And, working out of doors does allow you to address passing women with the macho conversation opener:
Matt whistles.
MATT (as Max Headroom): Whoa! Which is not to be confused with the standard greeting of male friends: (British voice) All right, all right, my son!
Taylor laughs.
TAYLOR (as Mia): You are so good at that!
ARIANNE (whispering): Little early, Taylor.
Taylor Arianne, and Matt laugh.
TAYLOR: I'm sorry.
MATT: No problem.
TAYLOR: I'm sorry. Can we try that again?
ANDRE DIMERA (of MyHourglass): Okay. Matt, take it from your line, please.
MATT: Okay.
Matt coughs.
MATT (as Max Headroom): And, working out of doors does allow you to address passing women with the macho conversation opener:
Matt whistles.
MATT (as Max Headroom): Whoa! Which is not to be confused with the standard greeting of male friends: (British voice) All right, all right, my son! (Max Headroom voice) Tim, don't get frightened. I'm only telling them about it. Wait! Wait! Geez, some people have no sense of humor.
Taylor laughs. Arianne and Matt soon join in.
TAYLOR: What?
ARIANNE: I'm sorry. It's Matt. He's making a funny face at me!
MATT: I'm getting into character. When I used to play Max, I had to be really expressive just to get the latex and plastic to move. I guess quoting the lines again made me start doing that again.

SOUNDTRACK
“Paranoimia” by Art of Noise feat. Max Headroom

INTRODUCTION
ANDRE DIMERA (Writer): In “Salem Beauty”, I'd set up a scenario where Nicole was Mia's daughter, but Mia didn't know that yet. I really liked the bond between Nicole and Mia, that was a very interesting story arc. And, I wanted to explore that a bit more, to show the similarities and differences between the two of them, as well as showing Mia's reaction to learning that Nicole is her mother.

THE STORY
ANDRE DIMERA: We started the story at the very end of where we left off in “Salem Beauty”.
ARIANNE ZUCKER (Nicole Walker): We actually reshot the entire last scene between Taylor (Sprietler) and I from the end of “Salem Beauty”. From there, it just sort of went on. We went down to Clearwater, Florida, and shot about two thirds of our story there.
TAYLOR SPRIETLER (Mia McCormick): I hadn't been on Days in...about two, maybe three years. At least, not in a full storyline. When I got the call from André (DiMera, of MyHourglass), I was thrilled! Especially because I was back working with Ari (Zucker), and we had the best time together!
ANDRE DIMERA: Most of the story was shot in Florida, specifically Clearwater. I've been down to Clearwater many times and, though I don't recall staying in the hotel we shot at, I love Florida. It is so beautiful!
ARIANNE ZUCKER: The Florida shoots were amazing! It was one of those rare times when you do a location shoot, and everything goes right. You always hear about these locations shoots that TV shows go on, and usually either the weather's bad, or they're not able to get in to where they want to go, but with this, it was completely different. It was beautiful outside! We were able to get in all the scenes we wanted to!
TAYLOR SPRIETLER: I remember the weather being amazing! Florida was so nice! On the last night in Florida, the whole cast and crew got together and had a pool party in the motel. It was awesome!
ANDRE DIMERA: I wanted to do something weird in this story, something out of the blue. At the time of writing, I had recently become interested in varying incidents in history of TV signal hijackings. Just the idea that a few people had enough technological know-how to be able to hack into a TV signal and play a...”show”, for lack of a better word, of their own, it was so interesting. The most famous one, to my knowledge, happened in 1987, when Chicago's PBS affiliate, WTTW, was airing a rerun of Doctor Who, and fifteen minutes in, the program was interrupted by a man wearing a Max Headroom mask. The whole thing lasted about two minutes before returning to Doctor Who, but I found it so interesting, that I paid direct homage to it in this one.
TAYLOR SPRIETLER: It was freaky! I remember shooting that, and it was freaky! I've seen the original video that it's based on, and that's even weirder. Don't get me wrong, it was really cool to shoot, and I had such fun doing it. And then, it got tied in to the real Max Headroom when we had Matt Frewer as a guest star.
MATT FREWER (Himself): I came in for one day, where we shot a scene on an airplane. It was really fun. I got to watch a bunch of old clips of Max Headroom with Taylor and Ari, and it was nice to revisit those.
ANDRE DIMERA: Moving on to the meat of the story, Mia finds out that Nicole is her mother, and they sort of bond over their love of scheming.
ARIANNE ZUCKER: It was nice to play a more maternal side of Nicole, as we don't really see that very often. I've always kind of thought that Nicole would make a good mother, and I'm a bit disappointed that that hasn't happened on the show yet. But, I'm glad that it happened in these stories.
TAYLOR SPRIETLER: The scenes where Mia and Nicole bond as mother and daughter were great! Ari and I had such a great time doing those scenes, and it was nice to see the way that Nicole and Mia's relationship has changed over time. And, who knows, maybe we'll see it develop even more.

CLIFFHANGER
ANDRE DIMERA: I sort of ended the story on a cliffhanger, with Nicole and Mia fleeing to Australia. Will that ever be followed up? Only time will tell.