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Newsletter 07 (1998)
This interview is property of the DXF (German Xena Fan Club). Copying this in any way without written permission is prohibited. All rights are (c) by the DXF 1998.
Exclusive Interview with Steven L. Sears (Co-Excecutive Producer)
What did you do before "Xena"? How did you meet Robert Tapert & Sam Raimi?
Well, contrary to what might be thought, I didn't begin my career with Xena. I got my first job on Staff as a Writer in 1984 on a series called RIPTIDE. I have been working ever since as a Writer and in other capacities as Producer or Story Editor. Some of the other series I've worked on have been A-TEAM, STINGRAY, HARDCASTLE&McCORMICK, SUPERBOY, SWAMP THING, RAVEN, JESSE HAWKES, GRAND SLAM and others as well as writing pilots, features and, even, a cartoon and an interactive movie.
I met Sam and Rob as a result of the original Supervising Producer on the series, Babs Greyhosky. Babs is a wonderful Writer/Producer I had first met on RIPTIDE (She hired me back then). She asked me if I would be interested in writing an episode of this new series XENA. So I was brought into a meeting with Rob Tapert and RJ Stewart. We hit it off and I wrote an episode (DREAMWORKER) for them. Based on that (and my history), they wanted me on staff.. Money was tight, though, so they couldn't afford another Producer. So, I signed on as a Creative Consultant. Soon afterward, Babs left the series to pursue some other works. Finally there was a position open and I moved into it.
How long do you normally work on a script? Do you have "brainstorming" sessions and come up with ideas collectively? Or does everyone work for him-/herself?
In episodic drama (which is the category Xena is in), the Writers write by themselves. We come up with an idea and run it past the rest of the group. Then we write up a story outline and present that to everyone. We meet on it and discuss it. Then the Writer goes off to develop it into a script. And the process repeats until we have a shooting draft. Everyone knows what the other is working on, that way we can preserve the overall "voice" of the show.
As far as how long it takes, it varies depending on the current emergency. Usually, though, it takes two weeks for every step. And the steps are Story, Story rewrite, First Draft, Second Draft, Shooting Draft. So figure a couple of months. But, as I've said, it depends on the current emergency. The problem is that we shoot these scripts in 6 to 7 days. The Script Monster, as I call it, shows up every week to be fed. But it takes two months to prepare the meal. As you can see, we have to be ahead when we start the season or we are in deep trouble!
Where do you get your ideas, your inspiration?
All over the place. The news, incidents in my life, books I've read, research I've done, anywhere. It isn't so much as begin able to go one place for inspiration, it's a matter of being observant to life as it goes on around you. The best stories are all around us every day. I once wrote an entire screenplay around a simple sentence. The screenplay was optioned by Columbia Studios and I was hired to write a Pilot based on it (the sentence was "When Hell freezes over"). Even within scripts, some things have strange beginnings. The Chobos in HOOVES AND HARLOTS is a good example. Some of your readers might already know this story, but I'll repeat it anyway. I don't know how the translation in German has it, but in the episode H&H, Xena is asked what her weapon of choice is just before she fights Melousa, the Amazon Queen. Xena chooses Chobos, which are two short sticks. These actually are weapons. I used to work out with them when I was taking karate. But they aren't called Chobos. When I was writing it, I couldn't remember what they were called (Escrima sticks, I realized later). But I had to write something, anything, just to move on. I knew I could change it later. At that moment, a woman walked past my office window eating a Churro. This is a Mexican pastry which looks like a long stick. I rolled the word around in my head and came up with Chobos. I wrote it in, intending to change it later when I figured out what they were really called. Of course I forgot to do it. Then when I was watching dailies, I heard Lucy ask for Chobos. Ack!
Another example is names. Other Writers look up Greek or Latin names to use in their scripts. I will do that as well, but, most of the time, I make up the names by looking around the room. For example, Talmadeus (from GREATER GOOD) came from a CD of Amadeus Mozart on my desk. Ephiny (HOOVES AND HARLOTS) came from the word "Epiphany". In one of my stranger moments, Gastacius (ACADEMY…) was a result of an upset stomach.
Which episode are you proudest of as an author and why?
This is not a cop out, but I don't have an answer for that that would stand the test of time. It depends on how I feel at the moment. Sometimes it's GREATER GOOD, other times THE DELIVERER, then other times ORPHAN OF WAR or DREAMWORKER. They all have aspects that I am proud of.
Do you have a general concept that you have to adhere to when you start writing for a new season or are you flexible when it comes to storylines? Do Lucy and Renee have any kind of influence on the scripts? Is there room to improvise?
We have a general overall idea of where we want to go. Whether we actually get there depends on so many elements. Not the least of which is that we find new areas to explore and want to explore them. So we are fairly flexible, but we do keep to an overall direction. The main thing, as always, is how our characters are developing and relating to each other.
Lucy and Renee are great, but they don't have input into the storylines. The will have suggestions here and there to clarify their character's intent and some of them are a lot of fun. If they work in the overall plan, we'll add them in. But one of the great thing about our actresses is that they trust us to give them meaty material to work with. And we trust them to do the scripts and stories as we present them. They know that the scripts we give them actually have been crafted as opposed to just being typed. And when they bring it to life, it's wonderful.
There is a certain amount of "improvising" that takes place, but I hate to even acknowledge it because it is so little compared to other series. Many times an actor has to reword little things to make them flow off the tongue better. The problem is when an Actor decides to rewrite scenes to serve himself. In cases like that, you see a lot of discontinuity in the story because, honestly, it's the Writer's job to keep track of that. But it's been a relief on this series. In the vast majority of what we send down there is what you see on the screen.
Although Robert Tapert recently said that Xena is episodic television, it cannot be denied that there are indeed story arcs (which, among other things, make the show so fascinating). How important are these arcs in your opinion? (Additional question: In the third season the so-called "rift arc" was interrupted by a couple of lighter episodes. Did you do this on purpose? Doesn't such a powerful story lose a lot of its impact when interrupted by humorous episodes?)
I remember Rob making that comment, so let me clarify it a bit. We are episodic in the sense that we have to keep in mind that tonight's Xena viewer might not have seen last week's episode. When we are doing an episode in an "arc", we try to find ways to make it stand on it's own without relying on something that the audience might not have seen.
I think that character arcs are extremely important. One of the hardest things to deal with in TV is that the episodes might air out of order, so it's hard to keep track of the emotional arcs and where they are. This has only happened to us a couple of times and, as a result of the intensity of the arcs, they have stood out. On Xena, though, we through convention to the winds and try to write as if the audience will be watching the series in sequential order. The problem is when an episode relies too heavily on past episodes and requires explanations for the casual viewer. There are a few episodes that are guilty of this, especially in the third season.
As for the light episodes, that was a hard one to decide. Yes, I agree that the light episodes pulled from the darkness of the series, but we made that choice precisely because it was so dark. "Let's give the audience a rest!" was said in one meeting. The inherent flaws with this Rift Arc was that it is best viewed all at once in one evening. All five or six hours of it. But we couldn't do that, so we had to have relief somehow. Some were appreciative of it, some didn't like it. The hard part was still keeping track of where everyone was emotionally during the comedy. I'm not sure that was ever possible.
How do you personally see the relationship between Xena & Gabrielle? Could you outline for the German fans - who haven't seen season 3 yet - how the dynamics of X&G's relationship will change and what we may expect for the future? Will the so-called "subtext" remain an integral part of the show? (Additional question: The episodes where Xena & Gabrielle fall for guys don't really seem to be working in the context of their relationship. Why do the writers come up with guys like Ulysses and Rafe anyway?)
Okay, one thing at a time. The relationship between Xena and Gabrielle is a complex one. I look at them as being two sisters, closer than any two friends could ever be, being thrown together late in life. When someone has a sibling, brother or sister, they have their life to grow to know the person, the good and the bad. And to grow close to them. Xena and Gabrielle were tossed into that with very little time to acclimate to each other. They are still trying to figure out why they feel this intense bond toward each other.
In season three, however, we will see how the bond can be strained by expectations and dependency. This will strain the relationship to the absolute breaking point. Most friends wouldn't survive it. The two characters will have their souls stripped bare and will be forced to deal with their own imperfections and, most importantly, the imperfections in each other.
As far as the subtext question goes, I can only say that the relationship will go through a trial. When it's over, we'll have to see what pieces can be put back together again. If any.
The final question, about men, I'm afraid I can't answer because it's too vague. The situations work fine within their relationship and they react to them as they should. When someone is interested in someone else, it can't help but affect the other relationships. Both our women are on a search for truth and happiness. Sometimes it's easy to see happiness in strangers, whether it really exists there or not. And other times it's easy to be blinded to the happiness that's right in front of you all along.
How do you personally see Gabrielle? We sometimes get the impression that the writers can't seem to agree when it comes to her. One week she's an Amazon fighter, next week she's the damsel in distress from Season One (King of Assassins/Blind Faith/The Quill Is Mightier).
There has been some discussion about Gabrielle being true to herself. There is a certain variance on either side of the character and, in some cases, I think that the character was drawn a little off center from the accepted norm. Her fighting skills, though, do remain fairly constant. What changes most often with her is the determination she has when she fights. Even at her best, she is no Xena and we don't want her to be. When we do lighter shows, we like to play that side of her. Playing the Amazon Warrior wouldn't work, obviously. But, even when she has been the Amazon Princess/Queen, the main factor has been her approach to the seriousness of the situation. Her brains have helped her more than her brawn. What Gabrielle lacks in battle, and what Xena has too much of, is focus. Gabrielle's fighting skills are at their best when she has focus.
There seems to be a lot of controversy regarding Joxer. Why do you think there are such extreme reactions? People either love or hate him passionately! Why is that?
Good question. And I don't have an answer. I can say that Xena has a very broad base of fans. I've been congratulated for things that others have vilified me for. So it goes far beyond Joxer. But I am pro-Joxer as he plays an important part in the episodes we have him in. But I certainly disagree that he makes the series about two women and a man. And I certainly disagree with the idea that he is there because women need a man to save them. Obviously those dynamics just don't exist. But the attitudes toward Joxer are changing. Just as they did with Gabrielle (people hated her in the early episodes) and Ephiny (there was a newsgroup called alt.ephiny.die.die.die at one time). On Hercules, Salmoneus went through the same process. The thing I would ask people is why they hate Joxer, but love Autolycus? Autolycus is a womanizer with an ego larger than Joxer's will ever be. And he's even more dangerous because he's good looking and charming. But people didn't mind it when he got the best of Xena in ROYAL COUPLE OF THIEVES. Joxer has had opportunities to exploit the fantasy of being a hero to these women (as has been seen and will be seen), but he can't go through with it because he has a heart that truly cares for them.
It's a mystery.
Has the success of X:WP changed anything regarding the creative process (more pressure, more demands from all sides)? Or doesn't this influence the writers and producers at all?
I don't think so. We're thrilled we're doing so well, but we got to this point by following our hearts. There's no point in screwing that up now. And I think that confidence comes from the fact that we did this without having to follow anyone else's rules. It doesn't influence us. It certainly doesn't influence me. I've been on too many shows where to allow that to get to me. Yes, we do look at the ratings. But it's not something we can chase. We can address only so much in those areas. In the final analysis, it's our instincts that we have to rely on.
What is it like to work with Lucy and Reneé? Can you tell us what kind of people they are?
Well, we don't interact directly very much as they are in New Zealand most of the time and I'm in Los Angeles. But Lucy is a very down to earth person who has her head screwed on right. I think she knows what's important in life and she keeps it all in perspective. She has a very loose way of working that, I'm sure most will agree, makes her look so totally natural in her performances.
Renee is a true professional. She carefully prepares her presentations and it shows. When we first started out, I was hoping and praying she would be able to find the many levels of the character and portray them. I soon learned how good she was at this. Now, I have to admit, I take it for granted that she's not only going to find the levels, she's going to find more than you expected.
There are many stories about actors who are on hit shows and become monsters to work with. We stopped waiting for our "monsters" a while back. We came to the happy realization that we don't have self centered "stars" on our show, we have professional actresses. And I am personally very thankful for that.
How many more seasons of "Xena" can we expect? Will there be feature films after the TV show ends?
At the moment, we are signed for a total of five seasons. We just started shooting our fourth season. Has it been four years already???? That gives you an idea of what it's like on this series. The time has really flown for me. It seems like only yesterday I was pitching DREAMWORKER. Just today I was looking at a catalogue for Xena merchandise and I saw a picture of EPHINY. I smiled and thought about how I had created that character just… yesterday? Heck, it was my second episode!
Anyway. The number of seasons left for Xena depends on so many things. Good ratings, the ever popular dollar, and, not least, the ability to do a good show. When the show becomes tired, it will be time to turn it off. But there's no danger of that as long as we feel as enthusiastic as we did when we first started. Which, as I just mentioned, isn't a problem right now.
As far as a movie is concerned, time will tell. We've been asked by the studio about the possibility of a movie. Right now, it's not in the works. We spend so much time doing the show, and Lucy certainly puts in more time than the rest of us, that we can't even think along those lines. Maybe some day. Then again, I like to think that we manage to pull off mini-movies every week.
For those of you who haven't seen the third season, brace yourselves. I spoke at a few conventions during the second season and I told the audiences to prepare for a real dark ride. I got a lot of applause, as most of the fans like those gritty episodes. However, since then, I've had more than one fan tell me that when I told them it would be dark, they had no idea it was going to be like this! You may hate it, you may love it. But you won't walk away bored. The audience will have to go through a bit of what the characters are going through. I'm actually quite proud of the fact that some members of our American audience got so swept up in it that their "complaints" mirror the emotions of the characters!
Which is not to say there won't be funny episodes. But some of them will seem a bit out of place with the dark episodes. We managed to hit the two ends of the extremes.
And Joxer is still there.
Take care,
Steven L. Sears Co-Executive Producer XENA - Warrior Princess
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