July 23, 2026 • 55 mins
The pilot of Portlandia wasn't always called Farm. Originally, it was an entirely different episode. A hilarious examination of the farm-to-table movement, the Dream of the 90s musical number, and the introduction of the feminist bookstore, Women and Women First, perfectly set the tone for the series to come. All of that and we haven't even mentioned Steve Buscemi yet! Join Fred Armisen and Carrie Brownstein as they reminisce about the evolution of restaurants, discuss how to make Portland look like Los Angeles, and the extra bit of magic Jason Sudeikis brings to a role.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:02):
Hey, you're listening to pod land now.
Speaker 2 (00:16):
H I am Fred Armison.
Speaker 3 (00:18):
And I'm Kerry Brownstein and this is AO rewatch.
Speaker 2 (00:21):
Hey Landy or rewatch podcasts.
Speaker 3 (00:23):
All right, so now we are going to talk about
season one episode one, Yes, which we should note was
not the original first episode. So this is not when
we talk about us shooting a pilot for IFC to
determine whether to pick up or not. This first episode,
the Farm is not the original pilot. So yeah, that's
(00:44):
a fact we'll get when we get to the episode
one oh two, which is the real pilot. We will
talk about that. And to me, that one looks and
feels like the pilot. Oh yeah, this has a polish
for a first episode that is kind of a cheat
because it really was the second thing we ever shot. Yes,
And the reason it became the first episode is Lauren
(01:06):
and uh, there's the cold open is dream of the
nineties and it's a it's a thesis statement essentially. We
didn't think of it at the time like that, but
Lauren saw it and was like, of course, this is
the first episode. And it took some finangling with IFC.
They really did not want this as the first episode.
They wanted the pilot, the real pilot, as the first episode,
(01:31):
and I mean I could, I could.
Speaker 2 (01:34):
You know, I'm glad it turned out this way. I
could see the well, I guess we can't really get
into that second episode of the pilot episode yet because
that's that has put a bird on it. Yeah, so
I could see how that does also seem like it's
a statement of some kinder But still.
Speaker 3 (01:48):
This is such a huge I mean, it's just such
a big song, and I feel like it also sets
up an identity for Portland and for the show, and.
Speaker 2 (01:56):
Just it's a real proper intro. It's a proper in
the other thing is like and there's a lot of
Lauren stuff, but I also feel like something that Lauren
is great at, I'm like, you've got to trust him,
you know, Like I'm like, Lauren Michaels is saying that
this should be the first episode. That's enough, you know.
So okay, dream of the nineties John's basic idea. And
(02:22):
I remember, like I think the song was written little
by little, like he had a concept of it, and
I think you wrote it with him and then maybe
asa to Connie.
Speaker 3 (02:32):
Yeah it was but I remember though, So okay, so
we're now writing in Portland, right, So we're up in Portland,
were writing the bulk of the season after writing originally
the real pilot, the original pilot we wrote in La
So now in Portland. I just remember Jonathan coming in
one morning and he's been in Portland now like a
couple of weeks. This is like late in the season
(02:53):
that we write this song, and he's like, I just
having this thought about Portland, like it's so nineties, like
it just seems stuck. Like he it took him being there, yes,
to write this song or to come up with this idea,
which I think is important, Like we would not have
come up with this when we were still just writing
in Los Angeles, like it was boots on the ground, experiential, observational. Yes,
(03:20):
and so yeah, he started like this idea started percolating.
Speaker 2 (03:25):
I'm remembering that I hadn't thought about this before. Our
writer's room in Portland was under a sort of convention
center hotel. Yes, yeah, sort of, and it was kind
of run down, not a nightmare, but sort of like
you know, it wasn't glamorous.
Speaker 3 (03:43):
It has been torn down since. Okay, In the fact,
most of the writers' rooms we've ever worked in Portland
since been torn down, so I think fair enough to
say that it was, you know, near derelict. Yeah, yeah, yeah.
And did we even have a writer's assistant, which is
like a common thing and a writer room. It's like,
I don't know, I don't think we did.
Speaker 2 (04:03):
I was Alice was Alice Mathias was a version of
a writer's assistant. I don't know if she had that title, but.
Speaker 3 (04:12):
Yeah, she was there. She was a small room. Yeah,
yeah for a show. This was a small writer's room.
So yeah, so John comes in with this idea, we
start talking about it. We start, you know, the verses
are essentially your character Jason, right, yeah, Jason from LA
is your character, and you're sort of telling my character.
(04:35):
You're regaling me with the story of like what the
city is like. And each verse, each spoken verse, you're
sort of outlining all the ways that it's unlike other cities.
Speaker 2 (04:47):
Yes, and there's like a build up to it. There's
like a sort of every every line is like builds
up a little bit more. And how excited I am
about this place called Portland? Yeah, and what you're you know,
watching the show we shot Portland for LA that first
scene in LA, and I remember when we were shooting it,
(05:10):
it didn't seem convincing to me. I was like, shouldn't
we shoot this in LA. That's that's where I was
sort of ignorant of, like, how all you need is
that opening shot of the you know, the you know
LA from a distance, that's all you need. But for
some reason, I was like, but of course it looks
it's fine. It's just two people on the street. Yeah.
Speaker 3 (05:30):
I remember the costume designer, like a man Anita putting
me in like a juicy couture that was for a
shorthand for someone in LA, like juicy cuture and uggs.
Speaker 2 (05:40):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (05:40):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (05:41):
And I had this sort of I had like a
beanie like a hat, yeah, which is very La sort
of you know, it's like nighttime La, where.
Speaker 3 (05:49):
Yeah, like pulled pretty far back on your head yeaheah.
And so yeah, you're telling me about it, and some
of the beats in the song or you know, that's
when we get to the line Portland is where young
people go to retire, Yes, which is a line that
you think is from Nick Kroll, But now that's maybe apocryphal.
I remember we've talked about it, but You're like, then
maybe he said it wasn't right. He claimed he didn't
(06:11):
say that originally, right.
Speaker 2 (06:12):
I thought we got it from him, and then he yeah,
he wasn't so sure.
Speaker 3 (06:16):
Yeah. We also talk about clowning and the Jim Rose yeah, sideshow, Yeah,
all these sort of nineties things.
Speaker 2 (06:24):
Yeah, yeah, which really resonated with me. Anyway. When I
watch it, I'm like, I mean, I'm so nostalgic about
that time that I get such a good feeling when
I'm watching it, like, oh yeah, that's right.
Speaker 3 (06:35):
Yeah, I just remember so for the actual the stuff
that isn't when we're walking along the streets with the
part where we get to the chorus yeah, and you're
down there on the waterfront with a cast of thousands.
It was like this very big music video. I only
come in at the end of that video, so I
was not there like all day, you know, I had
(06:58):
like a late call time and show up and it's
just like this incredible production. It was the biggest thing
we had done so far. Most everything else had been
you know, in someone's house or in this you know,
like a little shop, and it's us just like you know,
a couple people. This is like one hundred background you know, actors,
(07:18):
gay men's chorus, clowns and circus performers.
Speaker 2 (07:23):
So many people. I mean it was in costume.
Speaker 3 (07:25):
In costume, someone for every verse, you know, like if
we mentioned like hot girl and glasses, we had the
hot girls and glasses. We had people riding double ducker bikes,
we had people juggling like. It was such an amazing
set to walk on too. And it was really the
first time that I just became aware of how Jonathan
was just thinking of this show, not just as like Okay,
(07:47):
it's you know, let's put up a couple cameras and
catch people like improvising. It was like, no, this was
a huge like production with you know, done very cheaply,
but like he I'm very big, and he was always
able to implement that. And we had such great production
designer and Tyler Robinson.
Speaker 2 (08:07):
Who were in the video.
Speaker 3 (08:08):
Yeah, so Amanda Needham incredible costume designer. Yeah, you know again,
are in fact a lot of our crew.
Speaker 2 (08:15):
In the foreground.
Speaker 3 (08:16):
Yeah, which is a very common recurring thing of our show.
But it was really the first time that I thought, oh,
I guess we're making something a lot bigger than I realized.
And that the vision of it was going to be
like much grander than I had imagined. I just couldn't believe.
You know, there's like a crane, you know, all these
(08:37):
things and yeah, and plus the song itself right like that,
it wasn't you know. You and I had like written
some incidental music for the show and we were just
like in a studio with like a guitar, and like,
all of a sudden, this sounded like a big pop song,
you know, like very produced, very Yeah, it was. I
think it really like set the tone for what like
(09:00):
the ceiling could be that it was in. The ceiling
was so much higher than I imagined. And even though
we were making it in a city that wasn't you know,
New York or London or LA. And you know, we
didn't have New York or LA crew. We just had
people who were nimble and inventive and scrappy and like
you and I come from punk, like it's a scrappy medium.
(09:23):
And I was like, oh my god, we get to
make a scrappy show and this is the best kind
of show that I can ever Like it was so
in line with who we were. That was the moment
that it really clicked for me.
Speaker 2 (09:34):
Yeah, I same. By the way, especially with the backing
tracks those songs being done, that was also beyond me
that all of a sudden it was finished. When did
you know? When was this recorded? When it was ready
to go? And like you said, right, you know, right
there by the river, this location that was perfect. Things
(09:56):
that are really easy to take for granted. Yeah, and
then the sort of I don't even remember who choreographed it,
but the choreography and the setups of how people would
walk towards the camera gigantic. Something was just the scale
of it was so big. But I also remember for
me it evoked this There's a Stranglers video for the
(10:17):
song called Strange Little Girl, and at the end of it,
there's this punk you know who's like walking with this
whole crowd of people. So I just was like, oh,
maybe this is a little bit like that Strangers video.
Oh that's but yeah, same thing that everything was so complete,
and that San Francisco joke at the end of it.
It was great. That's a very specific thing.
Speaker 3 (10:38):
Yes, that is the thing I think we you know,
we never know how much of a joke or a
sketch an audience is getting but we never like we
always assumed that they were intelligent and in the note
or that they would like it either way. Like there's
you know it operates like we liked it, operating on
a very on multiple levels and being very specific, you know,
(11:00):
like if you knew the like just subtle difference between
like an SF punk.
Speaker 2 (11:06):
And a you know, thiercings.
Speaker 3 (11:08):
Yeah, it's it's very true. Yeah, and I think that's
something I always loved about The Simpsons. We end up
later with the Simpsons writer, but how things just are
operating on these multiple levels, like the references. You don't
need to get the references. We're not trying to be
too cool for anyone, but if you get the reference,
it's like an extra Easter egg. Yes, yeah, and yes
there's I feel like even down to like people and
(11:32):
the crew, like they all also brought in those ideas.
Like that's another thing about the show worth mentioning early on,
like it was like best idea wins. Like our production
design team they always pitched jokes, visual jokes, like you know,
our ad would pitch lines like it was all hands
on deck. It had to.
Speaker 2 (11:53):
Jokes.
Speaker 3 (11:54):
Yeah, it kind of had to be because we were
shooting so quickly like that was that we we shot
that video in a day easily, that would have been
a you know, a two day shoot.
Speaker 2 (12:05):
Oh yeah, yeah.
Speaker 3 (12:06):
So yeah, so that's that's the that's the opening, and.
Speaker 2 (12:10):
I enjoyed, like also, who came up with some of
the did you improvise some of those lines as we're
walking along?
Speaker 3 (12:17):
A lot of it? I mean early on we should
just say we had outlines for this guy. We even
had scripts, but the scripts were so threadbare we did
so much improvisation. Yeah, some some of it was improvised,
like I gave up clowning years ago, like that one. Yeah,
that's right, some of the but you know, and a
lot of it was because of that. There's such a
(12:38):
like a lot of heavy lifting from the editors. But this,
I think also was one of the first ones we
did that felt very we had to be locked in
because there was a cadence, you know, the verses or
a certain length. There had to be sort of a
button at the end of each verse that led into
the chorus, and also that that verse had to tie
in with the lyrics of that part of the chorus.
(12:59):
So this one, unlike say Feminist Bookstore which we'll get
into in a second, which is much more meandering. Yes,
like this felt like a little more.
Speaker 2 (13:09):
I don't know, structured and a great way to start. Yeah,
and you know, I'm glad that. I'm glad that that
decision was made.
Speaker 3 (13:17):
Same and yeah, also introduced the idea that we would
be doing things with music, you know, like music was
so important to us. Oh yeah, that's right, And it
just it always was so intrinsic to the fabric of
the show. So I think to start with something that
said like, yeah, this will be part of the vernacular,
I think was important too.
Speaker 1 (13:36):
Right.
Speaker 2 (13:37):
It's even presented as a music video.
Speaker 3 (13:39):
Yes, it says like Jason from La right as the artist.
Speaker 2 (13:43):
Yeah. I mean, I guess going from there, it would
be crazy to do this every time. But I guess
we should talk about the opening credits too, because that's
like the first time anyone's seen that. Yeah, And basically
we had as a place holder for the theme song,
feel It All Around. I washed out just because it
(14:05):
was not a comedy song. It was like sort of melancholy,
and you know, I just like the mood of it,
and we all did. We all like this mood, so
you know, it costs a lot to get a you know,
a proper you know, a song. Yeah, so we just
kept it until we couldn't live without it.
Speaker 3 (14:26):
Yeah, and you and I meanwhile, we're working on a
theme song. We went into a studio and we recorded
a bunch of songs that ended up being more incidental
music and transitional music. But everything we were doing did
kind of feel like more like expected comedy. Like there
(14:48):
was sort of a thing at the time where comedy,
like if you listened to like the John Stewart The
Daily Show or Colbert even going back to like Kids
in the Hall, it's like guitar guitar riff, you know,
was like comedy.
Speaker 2 (15:00):
It's edgy yeah, or it's ours.
Speaker 3 (15:03):
Yeah, and which is cool, It's totally fine, like all
those theme songs. But I feel like we were not
able to sort of even even skilled wise, that is
just what we do, Like I'm the guitars, you play drums,
Like we could have done something else, but that was
kind of in our wheelhouse. But Yeah, as it often happens,
you get really attached to the placeholder music, and it
just had a vibe that I think we really loved.
Speaker 2 (15:25):
Yeah, and it worked with the edited you know, the
actual sequence itself.
Speaker 3 (15:30):
Yeah, and now I kind of can't obviously can't imagine
any other version.
Speaker 2 (15:34):
No, Yeah, I remember or I was gonna say, like
watching because I watched the opening credits again. You know,
I still go to Portland and the credits are like
still accurate as to like the coloring. It's just sort
of there's like a hue to it all. Yeah, and
(15:55):
I still get that same, you know, feeling because it
there's like some emotion in those opening credits.
Speaker 3 (16:01):
Yeah, and I credit again to the to the song.
You know, I think, yeah, washed out, there's something there's
heart in there, you know, there's something bittersweet too, Like yeah,
to me even at the time, like it just there's
a warmth to it. And also there's so many, you know,
shots of local Portlanders and yeah, it just feels like
(16:22):
it's it's such a like time capsule in some ways,
but also just could be anywhere, any city at the
same time, like it's so wonderfully Portland but also just
looks like someone you know. And that's what I think
we try to do a lot with like the background,
you know, it's just have it feel like really textured,
(16:42):
like these could be people, you know, these are your friends,
these are you know, really build out that world. I
think the credits do a good job of that.
Speaker 2 (16:50):
I'm guessing would have been Doug Lasson Hop and Daniel
Graylandino and John maybe who edited that for season. Yeah,
and also maybe obviously they're opening credits. Yeah, but anyway,
so that, yes, that's the opening credits.
Speaker 3 (17:04):
Yeah, but worth yeah, worth mentioning because it was I mean,
I guess, you know, maybe saying the obvious, but the
first season of a show, especially we you know, we
were producers on the show too, so all of these
decisions are sort of there for us. And it's it's
a lot, like you, a lot goes into it. And
that might sound obvious, but it was just we didn't know,
(17:24):
you know. It was like every little thing Yeah, and
a lot of it are you know those things are
happy accidents yep, and fall into place, and but yeah,
it's you're building a world.
Speaker 2 (17:36):
And he stuck to it. He stuck to that. Those Yeah,
those credits. So we'll go on to the you know,
Colin Farm. Yeah, I guess like you, it's just not
just a sketch. It's like a three parter. I think
we used to think of the mass.
Speaker 3 (17:56):
Yeah, so the structure of the show is essentially a
cold open. Then it would be the credits, and then
we would have what was called like a wrap around sketch,
like what's the you know, and every episode had a
wrap around. It was a three part sketch beginning, middle,
and end, and that kind of was the container for
the show.
Speaker 2 (18:12):
Yes, and so based on we might have I think
tried to write different sketches about ordering it a restaurant
because our experience I remember, or my experience, there was
always that whenever you order something, there was a lot
of there was like a sort of like specialness to it,
(18:33):
you know what I mean, Like is that the right word,
you know, like preciousness preciousness yeah or not tradition, but
like there was like it wasn't just like you just
order something from a waiter. There was like a lot
of explanation, a lot of storytelling, a lot of storytelling,
a lot of this is you know, they would tell
(18:54):
you what your experience was going to be for.
Speaker 3 (18:57):
Me, yeah, and the other thing and again so I
you know, just to remind people what it's twenty eleven,
so this has become pretty normal almost everywhere you go,
but there was definitely kind of a shift into this
kind of experiential, immersive restaurant going where you know, it
(19:17):
was people trying to differentiate themselves like, well this restaurant.
There was a lot of this was the first time
you heard have you dined with us before? And you're like, no,
but I've eaten at a restaurant, so you know, unless
you're going to do something absolutely shocking here, like I'm
pretty sure I know what's going to happen. But they
always told you that as if like this was going
to be this very bespoke experience. Part of that was
(19:38):
to give you a background of the food, the food
story yes, which again most of us don't need. And
this was also when menus got very like narrative. It
was like can I get the cliffs notes of this
menu please? Like what's the short version of this menu?
And then these you know servers memory seeing so much
(20:01):
like to tell you this story, so yes, and.
Speaker 2 (20:04):
Also trying to be casual so it was proper and
then just casual at the same time, like yeah, just
so you know, this is what we do and and
you're right it is. You do see it a lot
more now even and not fast food, but there's like,
you know, there are sort of fast foodish places right
like you a little story.
Speaker 3 (20:24):
In fast casual because everything's about like, well, what's your story?
You know, and it's like that it's so endemic now,
but this felt like a way of differentiating between you know,
a certain kind of restaurant and like the old, like
the old and new. This was like the dividing line here. Yeah,
lots of like what's the origin, what's the provenance of
the food, and you know, obviously people genuinely starting to
(20:45):
care like where is this coming from? Like you know,
is this like what's the environmental and ecological impact? Is
like is this humanely sourced?
Speaker 2 (20:55):
And you know all that and is it local.
Speaker 3 (20:57):
Local exactly how how local is it? So with all
of that in mind, I think, and having that be
really prevalent and newly prevalent, we started, you know, talking
about this and I think you're right. I think there
were certain ideas that we had disparate sketches, and then
we started to sort of coalesce that into like, well,
what if we just did one sketch that was about
(21:18):
all of these things ordering, ordering, and another thing in
terms of like these wrap rounds, these three parts, is
that we often started, as this one does, with a
grounded premise or as you know, grounded mostly grounded premise,
and then of course we deviate from there. But usually
the part one is like, Okay, we're starting somewhat in reality,
(21:41):
which we do. Here we go to a restaurant. We're
introduced to two characters, and.
Speaker 2 (21:47):
I would say new characters even though it's the first
episode we hadn't done them before.
Speaker 3 (21:50):
Were in under Yeah, So Peter and Nance a couple. Yeah,
and I guess because it's you and I. Like most
of our characters, many of our recurring characters are couples. Yes,
you know, married or friends or but this was kind
of a classic married couple, no friction, no friction. This
(22:10):
is like the least the couple with the least amount
of friction.
Speaker 2 (22:13):
Yes, And did you see them around, Like wow, they
really seem to get along.
Speaker 3 (22:18):
Just the other day, I was walking my dog and
a couple was holding hands. They were in their seventies,
and I was like, wow, that's so much dedication. It's
pouring rain, hand hand out exposed, like yeah. I just
thought like, wow, this is it's very sweet. It also
makes me, for some reason angry, which is like every
other character like the reaction to that. Yea, for no reason.
(22:40):
I'm so happy for them my thought, you know, may
they die holding hands, like I want that for them.
But at the same time, like I'm just so perplexed.
But and I think that's often where we build characters from,
is things that we don't like how and why, Like
let's embody that for a while. Yeah, and Peter and Nance, Yeah,
I mean they are so cloying. They just melt into
(23:01):
each other.
Speaker 2 (23:02):
There's soft and they're also not even particularly you know,
like it's not like this erotic trip of like how
hot they are for each other. It's just comfortable and comfortable.
They just love each other. And it really I felt
like that was something that was I just that existed
in Portland. Was like it's all fine.
Speaker 3 (23:24):
Yeah, especially embodied by them. Yeah, frictionless is definitely the
right word. And you kind of didn't know where one
ended in the other.
Speaker 2 (23:32):
Yeah. Even their clothes are kind of flowing loose. Yeah,
they're not hippie, no heart edges, no heart edges.
Speaker 1 (23:40):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (23:40):
And they're at this restaurant and they they really let
ordering linger, oh boy, as opposed to let's just get
our food, it's let's make this an appointment.
Speaker 3 (23:54):
Yeah, they have a lot of questions. The weight person
is played by Dana Milliken. This was her first role
on the show, and she became a recurring actor on
the show. She played many In fact, she never played
this character again, but she is a local Portland actor.
She was on a reseason. Yep, we adore Dana and
(24:15):
to her credit and to the credit of almost everyone
on the show, no script. You know, she had a
few lines, but everything that you see, at least ninety
nine percent of it is her absolutely improvising. Yeah, playing
it straight, playing it straight the whole time, which is
exactly the assignment for that. This is also I would say,
for Peter, you have a Peter stammers. He has a stutter. Yeah,
(24:37):
and you do that for the first time here. Yeah,
And I don't think it was something that certainly wasn't
in the character description. You just you picked a word
and you sort of let it roll and you had
a hard time getting it out, and then that became
part of who he was.
Speaker 2 (24:52):
Yeah. Yeah, I remember like as I was watching it too,
I was like, what was I going for like who
that's what pretentious to say. Well, but like I remember
thinking that maybe he looked a little bit like either
like or it was a little bit like either Chevy
Chase or Martin Short, like a mix of them doing something.
So that's kind of what that was a little bit.
Speaker 3 (25:15):
And I remember thinking, as I was rewatching this that
you still had more of your Fred voice here than
you do later.
Speaker 2 (25:21):
That happens in a lot of sketches.
Speaker 3 (25:22):
Yes, and you know, I do the same thing where
we sort of we didn't know which characters would be reoccurring,
and so some characters we never had time to develop further,
but these characters we recurred over and over again. But yes,
I think my version of Nance also becomes more pronounced.
It's like the more we sort of grew into each other,
even as a couple, a couple of Peter Nance, Yes,
(25:45):
the more we started playing off the other person's you know,
sort of you know, little syrapy nature. But yeah, so
we ask Dana where we want to order a chicken,
and she brings out the paperwork for this chicken.
Speaker 2 (26:04):
Who is this chicken specifically.
Speaker 3 (26:06):
And the chicken's name is Colin. Yeah, and we decide
that we need to go and really investigator, really investigate.
And he's from a local farm nearby. So we leave
the table and say we're going to be right back.
Speaker 2 (26:21):
And we even say like, just hold these seats, hold
these seats while we go on this little trip.
Speaker 3 (26:25):
Yeah, and we had off.
Speaker 2 (26:26):
Talking about Peter and Nance. I don't know if this
ever happens with you, but you know, sometimes when with memory,
I do sometimes like we'll sort of fill in the blanks.
Speaker 1 (26:39):
And later in.
Speaker 2 (26:40):
The existence of Portlandia, we ran into a couple who
was out and I think they were walking their dog
or something, and we're very much like Peter and Nance.
So somehow I always think like, oh, maybe they were
kind of based on them, which is impossible.
Speaker 3 (26:53):
Because you met them afterwards.
Speaker 2 (26:55):
We met them after right, But maybe it's to say
that I think somewhere I did notice couples like that
in Portland.
Speaker 3 (27:02):
Yeah, I will say that I think a lot of
our characters, and obviously when we get to each character
we can talk more about this, but are based on
people we know, or are iterations of ourselves, Like we
talk about that all the time. How like there's just
some facet of our personality and where I'm like, if
(27:23):
I only like highlighted this part of myself, like the
part of myself that's really frustrated and short tempered, then
I would be this character. If I only highlighted this
part of myself, I would be like this. And I
think that's a place that we came from, was not
making fun of people, not looking at someone and saying Haha,
aren't they weird or strange or eccentric? But oh, I
(27:45):
can see myself in that. I know who this person
is because when I'm in a certain situation, I'm I'm
like that, and like, let's build a character around if
I only did that or you only died that. And
then it's especially putting them together. How would we play
off each other if we were like that? And I
think a lot of it, you know, like they remind
me of my parents' friends.
Speaker 2 (28:07):
Sure well you know growing up.
Speaker 3 (28:08):
But yeah, but I agree that Peter and Nance like
I feel like we know them. That's often where I
came from, Like I know this person. Yeah, I've been
around this person or I've felt myself doing something like this.
Speaker 2 (28:19):
And I am a sucker for like, even though it
seems like we're making fun of those restaurants. I'm a
sucker for those places. That's where any city I go to,
I go to whatever seems the most you know, farm
to table or whatever it's called. Now that same, all
those graphics and all that stuff, that is where I'm headed.
(28:42):
So I don't look at it like from like, hey,
we'll get over yourself. It's not like that. It's more
like every city, Yeah, that's where I end up in
a place like that.
Speaker 3 (28:53):
No, it's true. I think the ethos of the show
even early on, was like, let's explore something like it's
it comes from a place of curiosity, you know, not
not a place of derision. It's just like, yeah, I
want to know more about this, like I want to
understand it, whether it's something that we already participate in
or not. You know, like what what makes this place tick?
(29:14):
What makes this person tick?
Speaker 2 (29:16):
Yeah?
Speaker 3 (29:17):
So yeah, so here an announce.
Speaker 2 (29:20):
Announce And in part two of this wrap around, we
go to the farm in my real.
Speaker 3 (29:25):
Car that's right in my Volvo that I had at
the time, and that was up.
Speaker 2 (29:30):
In the hills of around around Portland.
Speaker 3 (29:33):
Yeah me West Hills. And remember there was a guy
he's not there was a guy who has a cameo
in this who that year was voted like Portland's Hottest
farmer remember that. It was like I didn't even know
we had that competition anyway, Just just a little easter
egg for the people. Also, our makeup person Jessica Needham
(29:55):
is in the scene, our costume resigner a Manda need Hm,
and a handf of other again, just so many, so
much crew in the background.
Speaker 2 (30:04):
But this Ashby is in it.
Speaker 3 (30:06):
Ashby is in it.
Speaker 2 (30:07):
It was in many episodes in the sketches.
Speaker 3 (30:09):
Are these all these? All these women play the wives
of Aliki, who is the head farmer called Leader played
by Jason Sudikis.
Speaker 2 (30:20):
I'm going to say also about you know, shooting things
and not knowing how things work. I was still under
the impression that you needed at the time footage of
us driving when are we gonna do? Us? Looking for director?
And I really learned on Portlandia about like you don't
need any of that stuff. Once we arrive, of course
they're you know, yeah, I can't believe I ever was questioned. Oh,
(30:44):
I mean I didn't question. I was just sort of like, oh,
I guess we're just here. But works perfectly.
Speaker 3 (30:48):
Fine, Yeah, listen, I'm in the same boat. Like, there's
so much you learn about editing and filmmaking by just
being around it all the time. Yeah, like you know,
things that you take for granted and you know, it's
just like, yeah, the process is revealing itself to you.
And I felt really surprised a lot too, just in
(31:11):
the early days because it's so new, and you know,
for our listeners that might sound ignorant, but there's actually
something really wondrous about kind of being surprised, you know,
as you're going along and just yeah, like not it's
also a good thing to demystify for people, like, you know, yes,
there are definitely people who know exactly what they're doing,
but a lot a lot of people, especially in TV
(31:33):
and film and working on set, you learn as you go.
You know's there's people that have the knowledge beforehand, but
even those people are learning and every day is very different.
You know, things are thrown at you, but it's it's
like a big machine that requires everyone like working and yeah,
and we're just one small part of that. So a
lot of things we would just show up on set too,
(31:54):
like because we're done with the writing, you know, now
we're just in acting mode. And we would show up
to set and I was all amazed, I should say too,
as like what how it went from page to screen?
You know, like something we would write, a little thing
you put in the script. Yeah, and then all of
a sudden you're like, oh my god, here are like
here's this farm and everyone's in these like the same
(32:16):
outfits because they're you know, in this cult. Yeah, in
this cult. Yeah, that was you know, running you know, Jason,
I don't I think I don't even know if we
had seen him beforehand that day, Like sometimes I feel like.
Speaker 2 (32:27):
That's the first time we saw him was on set,
although I mean I worked with him a bunch. Yeah,
And I gotta say he is so funny, Yes, in
this and watching it again, there's little things he does
this just so just this smooth character. There's this one
thing he does where you say your name and he
sort of leans into you to say, like what was that?
(32:51):
I'm sorry one more time, you know, and so funny
and so good. It's just like this sort of all
he's doing, all that character is doing, is just finding
an excuse to sort of lean into you a little bit. Yeah,
oh man, it's so good.
Speaker 3 (33:06):
And another thing that occurs here that becomes, you know,
a theme that we repeat in a tool we use
is incidental like background music. Yes, you know, and every time,
you know, Peter Nance, we're getting shown around the farm
by this young woman and she keeps pointing out a
leaky We haven't met him yet and he's far off,
and every time we look at him, there's just this
(33:28):
little this this cue this music cue.
Speaker 2 (33:30):
Yes, it's like sixties psychedelic.
Speaker 3 (33:33):
Yeah, and it's sort of intoxicating. You can see us
like sort of entranced by this guy wanting to get closer.
And you know, we end up using the editors and
you know, the directors would make this choice to just
use that music all the time. And same with cutaways
of like reaction shots from background. You see that a
lot here. But yeah, to speak to you what you're
(33:55):
saying about Jason, the other thing I noticed he did
that's really brilliant is he decided he made a choice
that he would treat Peter and Nance differently. So Peter,
he sees as he's is like the weaker character, right,
He's really playing to your like vanity, right, you know,
Peter says in the first part one, you know of
his eyes and you know he immediately says, any right,
your eyes and then nance he sort of is like
(34:17):
nagging the whole time, like he's sort of putting her down.
He like kind of has her number. Yeah, and like
he just made this choice to treat each of us differently,
and it was so much smarter than just seeing us
as like this monolith. He really sort of comes at
us and like just it really created a much richer
dynamic I thought for something that's.
Speaker 2 (34:37):
So short, Yeah, I also understood how he would be
a cult leader or whatever that yes, because it wasn't
it wasn't the stereotype or the cliche of a long
haired yeah you know, yeah, that kind of wisdom. It
was this other thing that that even today I'm like, hey,
(34:58):
I want to follow that guy.
Speaker 3 (35:00):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (35:01):
And then jumping into that uh that third part of
the wrap around that jump that he's dying. Yes, I
thought I assumed that somewhere there was going to be
a scene of him going on, I don't feel so
well or you know, I'm dying right away, deathbed that's
all you need.
Speaker 3 (35:21):
Yeah, And I think, you know again part of that
learning curve, like you know, they say with like fiction
or short stories, like you know, enter the scene late
and leave early. And that is so true with sketch
as well, like you just you don't need heads or tails,
like let's just get right to the meat of it.
And yeah, we kind of had to. We sort of
(35:41):
learned how to do that, and certainly our editors I
think early on really helped us. We started to write
more like they edited because they were like, oh my god,
this is so like, let's just let's cut this in that. Yeah.
So yeah. So the you know, it's this big deathbed scene,
which was so great. That's all that was. We just are,
you know there all of his wives now including me
(36:03):
and Peter and Nance are sitting around this deathbed. And
then he finally dies and this fell is broken. We
realize we've been in a cult. We look down, we
see that we're wearing these long.
Speaker 2 (36:14):
Skirts, and back we go to the restaurant.
Speaker 3 (36:16):
Back to the restaurant, and we decide to order something else.
Speaker 2 (36:19):
I think we order salmon or something yeah, fish, salmon.
Speaker 3 (36:23):
Yeah, yeah, yeah, and it you know again that kind
of sort of the going back to like how he
structured things. It was sort of like grounded, absurd, surreal.
That's how I always think of it, like if you
were to in general terms, you know, so it ends
kind of it very heightened, you know, Dana suspends her
disbelief that we would you know, O. Sensibly it's been
(36:45):
years later, but we returned to the same table as
if she's just been waiting for us the whole time. Yes,
and continue our order.
Speaker 2 (36:52):
Going back to that first part, the fact that she
had that folder with all that information, well, it's kind
of a really good move that she's not just a
straight person of like you guys are crazy. Yeah, it's
a little bit like we're all engaging in whatever this is.
Speaker 3 (37:08):
And again that you know, credit to the art department
prop wise, I mean they like for us too, you know.
The props really I think helped because with sketch, you know,
you don't have a lot of time. We would sometimes
shoot like three or four sketches a day, completely different characters,
different setups, different wigs, hair makeup. I mean, a prop
(37:29):
can be the thing that just brings you right into
you know the characters. You know, same with clothing, same
with a you know, like a hat or piece of
you know whatever, glasses, but it really you need that shorthand.
And I think that our department was really good at
visual storytelling. You know, they were the ones that gave
her that, you know, the folder with you know, she went,
let me get Collins paperwork. She comes back, there's a
(37:51):
little photo of a chicken. You know, we didn't we
didn't write that into the script. So there's a lot
of additional stuff. So yeah, and that one, I will say,
you know, there's certain Portlandia sketches that people still bring
up and that you know, in a way that I
feel so lucky to have been part of, like became
part of like cultural parlance. And definitely, like sometimes when
(38:15):
I go to restaurants, and especially during the years PORTLANDA
was airing, people would always some people would be self
conscious as they took my order because they were like,
oh god, I know it's like I'm telling you this thing.
But the whole call in the chicken and you know,
asking about the origin review food definitely became a thing
that you know, port Landy was part of that conversation.
But specifically this sketch, it might be.
Speaker 2 (38:37):
At number one for like a reference that someone was definitely.
Speaker 3 (38:42):
Top five, I think, Yeah, But Yeah, so that was like, yeah,
I liked that. It was a lot and definitely Peter
Nance love and I'm not even sure why we went
back to them, but we did. And you know, it's like,
again a lot of things we weren't saying, oh here,
We didn't start out writing the show and said here
(39:04):
are the ten characters at all. No, you know, like,
here's the ones we'll write for they that was very organic.
Speaker 2 (39:15):
Peter Nance just are really a good template for a
lot of sketches where we don't need them to be
too opinionated about anything. Yeah, I want to say also,
I want to add that the element of wigs for
every season was an issue in a good way since
the pilot, since the where just like the music that
(39:40):
we chose, we didn't want that to be too comedy ish.
We also didn't want the whigs to be too comedic.
So it took a while. And this is like a
budget conversation where we had the really you know, ratchet
up a little bit of like we really need good wigs.
Speaker 3 (40:03):
Yeah, and so you brought the people from unl It
brought the best of the best.
Speaker 2 (40:07):
That's right, Jodi Manquso, who I think it was just
hur at first and then she ran in gen But
it's a kind of it's a secreting. It is just
a good I mean, there's many great ingredients, but that
ingredient was an immediate visual one.
Speaker 3 (40:21):
Yeah. Yeah, I mean I think in general everyone was
punching about their weight. I mean, obviously Jody was high,
like best of the best, but coming to Portland and
working on much different like with different resources and fewer resources,
everyone was really like doing a lot of fantastic work. Yes,
also just pointing out we had we didn't have dressing rooms.
Speaker 2 (40:45):
You and I.
Speaker 3 (40:46):
So you know, a traditional show, you know, the stars
of the show would have their own dressing rooms. We
just we're in the back of the hair and makeup
trailer in a camper, in a camper, yep. We never
in fact, for all eight seasons, we never had our
own dressing rooms. But definitely first season we were all
together and along with the driver yep, yep, and his
(41:12):
wife of the r V they were there and hair
makeup costumes. We were all together all together, yep. And
we never never had our own bathroom or yep. It
was very threadbare.
Speaker 1 (41:27):
I mean.
Speaker 2 (41:29):
As it was happening, I think we also didn't know
what the show was in a way, so I didn't
have the argument in me at the time to be like,
don't you know what this is. It was more like,
I have no idea. This might be you know, too
good for what. You know, Yeah, we're trying to accomplish.
Speaker 3 (41:47):
I think it helped the spirit of the show. You know,
it felt very communal, and we also didn't want it
to look or feel like it was taking place in
sort of the usual you know, media centers.
Speaker 2 (42:00):
Yeah, yes, I.
Speaker 3 (42:01):
Mean not that I didn't want my own bathroom.
Speaker 2 (42:04):
We had to say. We really navigated it well. I
don't think we ever got into the whole run. Nothing
was ever weird about the the dressing room.
Speaker 3 (42:13):
You know, I literally shared the whole time.
Speaker 2 (42:15):
I never never was an issue. Was your order food? Yeah,
you know, we had a break in between whatever.
Speaker 3 (42:20):
There was never a point where it was like, oh,
season three we had to start. Yes, you know, they
even weren't even talking to each other.
Speaker 2 (42:26):
No, no, yeah, or like hey, you know I kind
of like this door closed, just just so you know,
it was all yeah, totally fine.
Speaker 3 (42:33):
And by the way, the guest stars didn't have their
own Nope, like we've already mentioned Jason Sudeikis. We'll get
to other guest stars, including like Tony and Oscar winners.
They also did not have their own dressing room, and
everyone you know say it. We'll say it again and again,
probably as we talked about them individually. People were a game.
They came and like were able to adapt to the strange,
(42:58):
you know, culture of the show. But yeah, people, that
was Jason's dressing room too, was just yea, oh sorry,
I'm in the back, you know. That was it that
was changing and that when there was no hierarchy, there
was no one person that, oh, they need their own
dressing room. That just was what they were told before
they got there, and it seemed okay with it.
Speaker 2 (43:17):
I think later what we would do is, because we
had an airstream, one of those airstream trailers, we would leave.
If a star was big enough, we'd be like, well,
let's let's let them have it. That was our big.
Speaker 3 (43:32):
Yeah, but there was a back room in the airstream,
and so they would let there was a door at
least and they could change. But yeah, all right, well
so let's just quickly I guess we chalked about the
two main sketches, just like the other sketches in the show.
So we had the cold open, part one of the farm,
and then we do into the technology loop.
Speaker 2 (43:51):
Yes, technology loop, And I like watching this one because
I identify with it still happening today.
Speaker 3 (43:59):
Yes, I mean, I don't want to say we were
early adopters, but we definitely were already sensitive to the
ways that tech was overtaking our lives and kind of
hijacking our brains.
Speaker 2 (44:11):
And it didn't seem like it's really well edited. And
it was also that one had the first bit of
like digital fixing that I didn't even know is possible.
At the end of the tech Loop, I sort.
Speaker 3 (44:28):
Of freeze over, oh right in your eyes.
Speaker 2 (44:30):
My eyes go up and my mouth goes down right,
And that was all done. The editors did it.
Speaker 3 (44:36):
Yeah, and then we here is the introduction of feminist bookstore, which,
as Fred and I discussed, was predates the show. So
here we are bringing Tony and Cannis into Portlandia. We
changed the location so this we were working out of
a real feminist bookstore on North Killingsworth called in other words,
(44:58):
they were generous enough to let us use their store.
We renamed it Women and women first, and our first
customer Steve Buscemi, who another person will talk about. Hopefully
we'll have him on the show because he comes back
year after year. We love Steve. He ended up directing
multiple episodes. But yeah, a classic feminist bookstore setup. Someone
(45:20):
comes into the store, which is already an upfront and yeah,
he wants to use our bathroom and we make him
buy something.
Speaker 2 (45:28):
Yes, we make it difficult. Yeah. Whenever I watch the
feminist book store sketches, it's almost like they just want
someone to stay. Yea, even if it's confrontational, it's more
like don't leave, No.
Speaker 3 (45:42):
You're Yeah, they're still holding them hostage even though you
want them to leave. It's very confusing.
Speaker 2 (45:46):
Yeah, all improvised, all improvised.
Speaker 3 (45:49):
Yeah. And then adult Hide and Seek, which is a
sketch that I really love. It also introduces Ellen Right
Ellen Bloodworth, Yeah, whose plays the woman who Fred's character
Stuart Right is interacting with, who's kind of a little
bit disdainful, a little bit skeptical of adults acting like kids.
Speaker 2 (46:11):
You know, library really good, she was great, She was great.
She really made us laugh.
Speaker 3 (46:17):
Yeah, local actress who based on this performance we brought
back a year after year, and that happened a lot
of times. You know, we had great background and local
casting directors and they would bring in talent from all
over Portland and many of them we just loved what
they did and they became part of the part of
the cast essentially. But Ellen was definitely one of those people,
(46:39):
and you guys just had such an instant chemistry which
I really like.
Speaker 2 (46:42):
Yeah, we definitely did. And she was just perfectly funny.
Speaker 3 (46:47):
She was really funny. Yeah, and then I think another thing.
I yeah, anyway, I'll stop there, and then.
Speaker 2 (46:54):
What else do we have? That's it. That's all our sketches.
So that's episode one.
Speaker 3 (47:03):
All right, Well, thank you so much for listening to
our very first AO rewatch episode. This is very fun.
Speaker 2 (47:11):
It was. I really enjoyed getting to watch that again.
Me too, And to talk about it. I feel like
we haven't talked about it that much a little, but
like not to this extent.
Speaker 3 (47:22):
We talk about it broadly, and we'll talk about it
like sort of anecdotally, But to get Granular is really enjoyable.
Speaker 2 (47:31):
Agreed this fifteen years later or whatever it is the
feeling of watching it now is I feel mostly good
about the decisions we made, like things like the tech Loop.
And I think it's because at the time when we
were shooting it, we knew it wasn't going to come
(47:52):
out until six months later or something, so it wasn't
that topical because of that. I like it it's a
little evergreen.
Speaker 3 (48:03):
Yeah. I think that's one of the things that I
keep sort of monitoring as I'm watching it, thinking, Okay,
what is evergreen? What feels a little dated because of
course times change, and often that is technology. And I
remember that was a conversation we had at the time.
You know certain things. Of course, you're never gonna like
be able to be ahead of things. But I feel
(48:25):
like that was a conscious decision we made, and whether
it was politics or you know, certain references, like we
wanted it to feel like timeless in a way. We
wanted to be speaking to larger things in terms of
just like, let's let's focus on who these people are,
you know, and how they relate to their environment versus
(48:45):
like the time period. Yeah, you know, but I it's
that is something that I'm looking for when I'm watching
just I'm excited when something does feel like, oh yeah,
that's still relevant or even better, like we were ahead
of the curve there on something. That's a good feeling. Yeah. Also,
you know everyone looks really young.
Speaker 2 (49:08):
That part is yes, that's yeah, notable. Yeah.
Speaker 3 (49:13):
Also I remember our takes were really long, and I
can see I remember our camera people like Feminist Bookstore especially,
so like Tony and Cannice can improvise forever. Yeah, And
I mean I just remember like the camera people who
I think was TG and Aubrey that first year were
(49:36):
would have to adjust. Of course, the camera is heavy.
They weren't on sticks, they were like on their shoulders.
And you can see sometimes the camera just tilts because
the camera operators like no, I'm sorry, but now so
I definitely see see that, and I just yeah. But
for the most part, to me, like the wrap round
(49:58):
sketches so far, like hold up, you know, like sometimes
the individual ones, it's just such a sheer amount. I'm like, oh, okay,
you know some of those I can take her leave.
But I felt like this this episode felt strong to me.
Speaker 2 (50:12):
Yeah, I feel the same. And technology wise, for however
much things have changed, there are some things that I'm
actually kind of surprised has stayed the same. The idea
of texting, So then you know, there's in the tech loop,
we're texting a lot, and you know, I'm kind of
surprised that that's still the way we communicate that it's thumbs.
(50:34):
I thought by now there'd be some other thing. But
I'm glad. I'm glad it's that way. And I think
there's even an iPad on the table there, so I'm like,
all right, oh yeah, yeah, iPhone. That stuff is like
we're still it's not which wouldn't be the worst thing
in the world, but it's not so antiquated that I'm like, oh,
I can't believe we've got right.
Speaker 3 (50:53):
What's what's interesting is, you know, we switch in that
sketch to mindfi, which is how sort of speaking just telepathically,
but then your brain still gets hijacked by ads, and
to me, even though it's not literally like that, it
does feel like we're in a version of that where
like we're just never safe from being inundated with like
(51:13):
you know, slog or brain rod or clutter. Yeah, like
you know, so in that sense, it's true, like that
has just been a continuum, like we've been on a
slow decline since then. But yeah, I feel I can
I can feel us getting our feet weather. There's all
to me. I mean, you and I talk a lot
about this, like and we make analogies to music. But
(51:34):
you know, there's this is kind of our first album
this season, and like, yeah, I like it. I think
it holds up as a first album. Like to me,
it has like some highs and then it has things
that looking back, I'm like, Okay, that probably didn't work.
But I feel like as a statement, it feels good
coming out of the gate, Like there's little things I
would do differently, but it feels like a debut album
(51:57):
in a good way, the good kind of debut album
where it's like, Okay, it's coming onto the scene. It
has like it looks different to me, Like when I
was watching it, I was like, this looks different than
other sket shows. You know that like Yes started to
come out after us, once all the networks that had
turned us down decided that they were going to put
out sket shows. You know. I think the closest thing
(52:18):
that it looks like is probably Kids in the Hall definitely,
because that was you know, shot in Toronto, so again
was in La or New York. Had a slightly cinematic quality.
To it and had that kind of shambalic quality to it. Yeah,
I would say that's the closest like aesthetic analogue to it.
Speaker 2 (52:37):
Speaking of analog I think that because I like the
you know, it's enough to say that it's it's a
good debut album or first album, and but to get
more specific, I for some reason what comes to mind
is talking Head seventy seven. That's very much them. They're
(52:57):
very talking even though they evolved being on that anyway.
So that's that's that's usually what I think of where
it feels like that kind of I think of that
album specifically interesting. Maybe the Police's.
Speaker 3 (53:12):
First album, which is The Police is for.
Speaker 2 (53:15):
Some it's just it's just the Police and it has
rock sanne Is on it.
Speaker 3 (53:20):
Yeah, it has a big it.
Speaker 2 (53:22):
Has like yeah, it's like it's a definite beginning. And
same with talking Heads where that has cycle Killer on it.
Speaker 3 (53:29):
Yeah, it has like it creates a vernacular. It like
it changes. But it also it's like, you know what
a talking Head song is based on that album, where
you know what a Police song is based on their
first album? Yeah, like it wasn't they didn't keep like
they they push forward, but it wasn't like an act
of full like reinvention every time, which I feel like,
(53:53):
you know, we do return to, like you see the
DNA in these sketches, I think, yeah, we build upon.
Speaker 2 (54:00):
So that was episode one. I love getting to do
this and I'm looking forward to the rest of it,
to having guests you know that we've had on the show,
that I've worked on the show. It's really fun for me,
and I'm excited to do it me too.
Speaker 3 (54:19):
Yeah, I'm also very excited. I'm excited to hang out
with you. I'm excited to keep rewatching these episodes and
I'm unpacking all of it and going off on tangents,
which we definitely will. And I'm excited to bring in
some of the great guests that we had on the
show and talk to them about their experience. And we're
so grateful for our listeners and viewers, so very excited
(54:43):
for this podcast series, the one.
Speaker 1 (55:03):
On one one one one one one one one
Speaker 2 (55:07):
One one one
Hey, you're listening to pod land now.
Speaker 2 (00:16):
H I am Fred Armison.
Speaker 3 (00:18):
And I'm Kerry Brownstein and this is AO rewatch.
Speaker 2 (00:21):
Hey Landy or rewatch podcasts.
Speaker 3 (00:23):
All right, so now we are going to talk about
season one episode one, Yes, which we should note was
not the original first episode. So this is not when
we talk about us shooting a pilot for IFC to
determine whether to pick up or not. This first episode,
the Farm is not the original pilot. So yeah, that's
(00:44):
a fact we'll get when we get to the episode
one oh two, which is the real pilot. We will
talk about that. And to me, that one looks and
feels like the pilot. Oh yeah, this has a polish
for a first episode that is kind of a cheat
because it really was the second thing we ever shot. Yes,
And the reason it became the first episode is Lauren
(01:06):
and uh, there's the cold open is dream of the
nineties and it's a it's a thesis statement essentially. We
didn't think of it at the time like that, but
Lauren saw it and was like, of course, this is
the first episode. And it took some finangling with IFC.
They really did not want this as the first episode.
They wanted the pilot, the real pilot, as the first episode,
(01:31):
and I mean I could, I could.
Speaker 2 (01:34):
You know, I'm glad it turned out this way. I
could see the well, I guess we can't really get
into that second episode of the pilot episode yet because
that's that has put a bird on it. Yeah, so
I could see how that does also seem like it's
a statement of some kinder But still.
Speaker 3 (01:48):
This is such a huge I mean, it's just such
a big song, and I feel like it also sets
up an identity for Portland and for the show, and.
Speaker 2 (01:56):
Just it's a real proper intro. It's a proper in
the other thing is like and there's a lot of
Lauren stuff, but I also feel like something that Lauren
is great at, I'm like, you've got to trust him,
you know, Like I'm like, Lauren Michaels is saying that
this should be the first episode. That's enough, you know.
So okay, dream of the nineties John's basic idea. And
(02:22):
I remember, like I think the song was written little
by little, like he had a concept of it, and
I think you wrote it with him and then maybe
asa to Connie.
Speaker 3 (02:32):
Yeah it was but I remember though, So okay, so
we're now writing in Portland, right, So we're up in Portland,
were writing the bulk of the season after writing originally
the real pilot, the original pilot we wrote in La
So now in Portland. I just remember Jonathan coming in
one morning and he's been in Portland now like a
couple of weeks. This is like late in the season
(02:53):
that we write this song, and he's like, I just
having this thought about Portland, like it's so nineties, like
it just seems stuck. Like he it took him being there, yes,
to write this song or to come up with this idea,
which I think is important, Like we would not have
come up with this when we were still just writing
in Los Angeles, like it was boots on the ground, experiential, observational. Yes,
(03:20):
and so yeah, he started like this idea started percolating.
Speaker 2 (03:25):
I'm remembering that I hadn't thought about this before. Our
writer's room in Portland was under a sort of convention
center hotel. Yes, yeah, sort of, and it was kind
of run down, not a nightmare, but sort of like
you know, it wasn't glamorous.
Speaker 3 (03:43):
It has been torn down since. Okay, In the fact,
most of the writers' rooms we've ever worked in Portland
since been torn down, so I think fair enough to
say that it was, you know, near derelict. Yeah, yeah, yeah.
And did we even have a writer's assistant, which is
like a common thing and a writer room. It's like,
I don't know, I don't think we did.
Speaker 2 (04:03):
I was Alice was Alice Mathias was a version of
a writer's assistant. I don't know if she had that title, but.
Speaker 3 (04:12):
Yeah, she was there. She was a small room. Yeah,
yeah for a show. This was a small writer's room.
So yeah, so John comes in with this idea, we
start talking about it. We start, you know, the verses
are essentially your character Jason, right, yeah, Jason from LA
is your character, and you're sort of telling my character.
(04:35):
You're regaling me with the story of like what the
city is like. And each verse, each spoken verse, you're
sort of outlining all the ways that it's unlike other cities.
Speaker 2 (04:47):
Yes, and there's like a build up to it. There's
like a sort of every every line is like builds
up a little bit more. And how excited I am
about this place called Portland? Yeah, and what you're you know,
watching the show we shot Portland for LA that first
scene in LA, and I remember when we were shooting it,
(05:10):
it didn't seem convincing to me. I was like, shouldn't
we shoot this in LA. That's that's where I was
sort of ignorant of, like, how all you need is
that opening shot of the you know, the you know
LA from a distance, that's all you need. But for
some reason, I was like, but of course it looks
it's fine. It's just two people on the street. Yeah.
Speaker 3 (05:30):
I remember the costume designer, like a man Anita putting
me in like a juicy couture that was for a
shorthand for someone in LA, like juicy cuture and uggs.
Speaker 2 (05:40):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (05:40):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (05:41):
And I had this sort of I had like a
beanie like a hat, yeah, which is very La sort
of you know, it's like nighttime La, where.
Speaker 3 (05:49):
Yeah, like pulled pretty far back on your head yeaheah.
And so yeah, you're telling me about it, and some
of the beats in the song or you know, that's
when we get to the line Portland is where young
people go to retire, Yes, which is a line that
you think is from Nick Kroll, But now that's maybe apocryphal.
I remember we've talked about it, but You're like, then
maybe he said it wasn't right. He claimed he didn't
(06:11):
say that originally, right.
Speaker 2 (06:12):
I thought we got it from him, and then he yeah,
he wasn't so sure.
Speaker 3 (06:16):
Yeah. We also talk about clowning and the Jim Rose yeah, sideshow, Yeah,
all these sort of nineties things.
Speaker 2 (06:24):
Yeah, yeah, which really resonated with me. Anyway. When I
watch it, I'm like, I mean, I'm so nostalgic about
that time that I get such a good feeling when
I'm watching it, like, oh yeah, that's right.
Speaker 3 (06:35):
Yeah, I just remember so for the actual the stuff
that isn't when we're walking along the streets with the
part where we get to the chorus yeah, and you're
down there on the waterfront with a cast of thousands.
It was like this very big music video. I only
come in at the end of that video, so I
was not there like all day, you know, I had
(06:58):
like a late call time and show up and it's
just like this incredible production. It was the biggest thing
we had done so far. Most everything else had been
you know, in someone's house or in this you know,
like a little shop, and it's us just like you know,
a couple people. This is like one hundred background you know, actors,
(07:18):
gay men's chorus, clowns and circus performers.
Speaker 2 (07:23):
So many people. I mean it was in costume.
Speaker 3 (07:25):
In costume, someone for every verse, you know, like if
we mentioned like hot girl and glasses, we had the
hot girls and glasses. We had people riding double ducker bikes,
we had people juggling like. It was such an amazing
set to walk on too. And it was really the
first time that I just became aware of how Jonathan
was just thinking of this show, not just as like Okay,
(07:47):
it's you know, let's put up a couple cameras and
catch people like improvising. It was like, no, this was
a huge like production with you know, done very cheaply,
but like he I'm very big, and he was always
able to implement that. And we had such great production
designer and Tyler Robinson.
Speaker 2 (08:07):
Who were in the video.
Speaker 3 (08:08):
Yeah, so Amanda Needham incredible costume designer. Yeah, you know again,
are in fact a lot of our crew.
Speaker 2 (08:15):
In the foreground.
Speaker 3 (08:16):
Yeah, which is a very common recurring thing of our show.
But it was really the first time that I thought, oh,
I guess we're making something a lot bigger than I realized.
And that the vision of it was going to be
like much grander than I had imagined. I just couldn't believe.
You know, there's like a crane, you know, all these
(08:37):
things and yeah, and plus the song itself right like that,
it wasn't you know. You and I had like written
some incidental music for the show and we were just
like in a studio with like a guitar, and like,
all of a sudden, this sounded like a big pop song,
you know, like very produced, very Yeah, it was. I
think it really like set the tone for what like
(09:00):
the ceiling could be that it was in. The ceiling
was so much higher than I imagined. And even though
we were making it in a city that wasn't you know,
New York or London or LA. And you know, we
didn't have New York or LA crew. We just had
people who were nimble and inventive and scrappy and like
you and I come from punk, like it's a scrappy medium.
(09:23):
And I was like, oh my god, we get to
make a scrappy show and this is the best kind
of show that I can ever Like it was so
in line with who we were. That was the moment
that it really clicked for me.
Speaker 2 (09:34):
Yeah, I same. By the way, especially with the backing
tracks those songs being done, that was also beyond me
that all of a sudden it was finished. When did
you know? When was this recorded? When it was ready
to go? And like you said, right, you know, right
there by the river, this location that was perfect. Things
(09:56):
that are really easy to take for granted. Yeah, and
then the sort of I don't even remember who choreographed it,
but the choreography and the setups of how people would
walk towards the camera gigantic. Something was just the scale
of it was so big. But I also remember for
me it evoked this There's a Stranglers video for the
(10:17):
song called Strange Little Girl, and at the end of it,
there's this punk you know who's like walking with this
whole crowd of people. So I just was like, oh,
maybe this is a little bit like that Strangers video.
Oh that's but yeah, same thing that everything was so complete,
and that San Francisco joke at the end of it.
It was great. That's a very specific thing.
Speaker 3 (10:38):
Yes, that is the thing I think we you know,
we never know how much of a joke or a
sketch an audience is getting but we never like we
always assumed that they were intelligent and in the note
or that they would like it either way. Like there's
you know it operates like we liked it, operating on
a very on multiple levels and being very specific, you know,
(11:00):
like if you knew the like just subtle difference between
like an SF punk.
Speaker 2 (11:06):
And a you know, thiercings.
Speaker 3 (11:08):
Yeah, it's it's very true. Yeah, and I think that's
something I always loved about The Simpsons. We end up
later with the Simpsons writer, but how things just are
operating on these multiple levels, like the references. You don't
need to get the references. We're not trying to be
too cool for anyone, but if you get the reference,
it's like an extra Easter egg. Yes, yeah, and yes
there's I feel like even down to like people and
(11:32):
the crew, like they all also brought in those ideas.
Like that's another thing about the show worth mentioning early on,
like it was like best idea wins. Like our production
design team they always pitched jokes, visual jokes, like you know,
our ad would pitch lines like it was all hands
on deck. It had to.
Speaker 2 (11:53):
Jokes.
Speaker 3 (11:54):
Yeah, it kind of had to be because we were
shooting so quickly like that was that we we shot
that video in a day easily, that would have been
a you know, a two day shoot.
Speaker 2 (12:05):
Oh yeah, yeah.
Speaker 3 (12:06):
So yeah, so that's that's the that's the opening, and.
Speaker 2 (12:10):
I enjoyed, like also, who came up with some of
the did you improvise some of those lines as we're
walking along?
Speaker 3 (12:17):
A lot of it? I mean early on we should
just say we had outlines for this guy. We even
had scripts, but the scripts were so threadbare we did
so much improvisation. Yeah, some some of it was improvised,
like I gave up clowning years ago, like that one. Yeah,
that's right, some of the but you know, and a
lot of it was because of that. There's such a
(12:38):
like a lot of heavy lifting from the editors. But this,
I think also was one of the first ones we
did that felt very we had to be locked in
because there was a cadence, you know, the verses or
a certain length. There had to be sort of a
button at the end of each verse that led into
the chorus, and also that that verse had to tie
in with the lyrics of that part of the chorus.
(12:59):
So this one, unlike say Feminist Bookstore which we'll get
into in a second, which is much more meandering. Yes,
like this felt like a little more.
Speaker 2 (13:09):
I don't know, structured and a great way to start. Yeah,
and you know, I'm glad that. I'm glad that that
decision was made.
Speaker 3 (13:17):
Same and yeah, also introduced the idea that we would
be doing things with music, you know, like music was
so important to us. Oh yeah, that's right, And it
just it always was so intrinsic to the fabric of
the show. So I think to start with something that
said like, yeah, this will be part of the vernacular,
I think was important too.
Speaker 1 (13:36):
Right.
Speaker 2 (13:37):
It's even presented as a music video.
Speaker 3 (13:39):
Yes, it says like Jason from La right as the artist.
Speaker 2 (13:43):
Yeah. I mean, I guess going from there, it would
be crazy to do this every time. But I guess
we should talk about the opening credits too, because that's
like the first time anyone's seen that. Yeah, And basically
we had as a place holder for the theme song,
feel It All Around. I washed out just because it
(14:05):
was not a comedy song. It was like sort of melancholy,
and you know, I just like the mood of it,
and we all did. We all like this mood, so
you know, it costs a lot to get a you know,
a proper you know, a song. Yeah, so we just
kept it until we couldn't live without it.
Speaker 3 (14:26):
Yeah, and you and I meanwhile, we're working on a
theme song. We went into a studio and we recorded
a bunch of songs that ended up being more incidental
music and transitional music. But everything we were doing did
kind of feel like more like expected comedy. Like there
(14:48):
was sort of a thing at the time where comedy,
like if you listened to like the John Stewart The
Daily Show or Colbert even going back to like Kids
in the Hall, it's like guitar guitar riff, you know,
was like comedy.
Speaker 2 (15:00):
It's edgy yeah, or it's ours.
Speaker 3 (15:03):
Yeah, and which is cool, It's totally fine, like all
those theme songs. But I feel like we were not
able to sort of even even skilled wise, that is
just what we do, Like I'm the guitars, you play drums,
Like we could have done something else, but that was
kind of in our wheelhouse. But Yeah, as it often happens,
you get really attached to the placeholder music, and it
just had a vibe that I think we really loved.
Speaker 2 (15:25):
Yeah, and it worked with the edited you know, the
actual sequence itself.
Speaker 3 (15:30):
Yeah, and now I kind of can't obviously can't imagine
any other version.
Speaker 2 (15:34):
No, Yeah, I remember or I was gonna say, like
watching because I watched the opening credits again. You know,
I still go to Portland and the credits are like
still accurate as to like the coloring. It's just sort
of there's like a hue to it all. Yeah, and
(15:55):
I still get that same, you know, feeling because it
there's like some emotion in those opening credits.
Speaker 3 (16:01):
Yeah, and I credit again to the to the song.
You know, I think, yeah, washed out, there's something there's
heart in there, you know, there's something bittersweet too, Like yeah,
to me even at the time, like it just there's
a warmth to it. And also there's so many, you know,
shots of local Portlanders and yeah, it just feels like
(16:22):
it's it's such a like time capsule in some ways,
but also just could be anywhere, any city at the
same time, like it's so wonderfully Portland but also just
looks like someone you know. And that's what I think
we try to do a lot with like the background,
you know, it's just have it feel like really textured,
(16:42):
like these could be people, you know, these are your friends,
these are you know, really build out that world. I
think the credits do a good job of that.
Speaker 2 (16:50):
I'm guessing would have been Doug Lasson Hop and Daniel
Graylandino and John maybe who edited that for season. Yeah,
and also maybe obviously they're opening credits. Yeah, but anyway,
so that, yes, that's the opening credits.
Speaker 3 (17:04):
Yeah, but worth yeah, worth mentioning because it was I mean,
I guess, you know, maybe saying the obvious, but the
first season of a show, especially we you know, we
were producers on the show too, so all of these
decisions are sort of there for us. And it's it's
a lot, like you, a lot goes into it. And
that might sound obvious, but it was just we didn't know,
(17:24):
you know. It was like every little thing Yeah, and
a lot of it are you know those things are
happy accidents yep, and fall into place, and but yeah,
it's you're building a world.
Speaker 2 (17:36):
And he stuck to it. He stuck to that. Those Yeah,
those credits. So we'll go on to the you know,
Colin Farm. Yeah, I guess like you, it's just not
just a sketch. It's like a three parter. I think
we used to think of the mass.
Speaker 3 (17:56):
Yeah, so the structure of the show is essentially a
cold open. Then it would be the credits, and then
we would have what was called like a wrap around sketch,
like what's the you know, and every episode had a
wrap around. It was a three part sketch beginning, middle,
and end, and that kind of was the container for
the show.
Speaker 2 (18:12):
Yes, and so based on we might have I think
tried to write different sketches about ordering it a restaurant
because our experience I remember, or my experience, there was
always that whenever you order something, there was a lot
of there was like a sort of like specialness to it,
(18:33):
you know what I mean, Like is that the right word,
you know, like preciousness preciousness yeah or not tradition, but
like there was like it wasn't just like you just
order something from a waiter. There was like a lot
of explanation, a lot of storytelling, a lot of storytelling,
a lot of this is you know, they would tell
(18:54):
you what your experience was going to be for.
Speaker 3 (18:57):
Me, yeah, and the other thing and again so I
you know, just to remind people what it's twenty eleven,
so this has become pretty normal almost everywhere you go,
but there was definitely kind of a shift into this
kind of experiential, immersive restaurant going where you know, it
(19:17):
was people trying to differentiate themselves like, well this restaurant.
There was a lot of this was the first time
you heard have you dined with us before? And you're like, no,
but I've eaten at a restaurant, so you know, unless
you're going to do something absolutely shocking here, like I'm
pretty sure I know what's going to happen. But they
always told you that as if like this was going
to be this very bespoke experience. Part of that was
(19:38):
to give you a background of the food, the food
story yes, which again most of us don't need. And
this was also when menus got very like narrative. It
was like can I get the cliffs notes of this
menu please? Like what's the short version of this menu?
And then these you know servers memory seeing so much
(20:01):
like to tell you this story, so yes, and.
Speaker 2 (20:04):
Also trying to be casual so it was proper and
then just casual at the same time, like yeah, just
so you know, this is what we do and and
you're right it is. You do see it a lot
more now even and not fast food, but there's like,
you know, there are sort of fast foodish places right
like you a little story.
Speaker 3 (20:24):
In fast casual because everything's about like, well, what's your story?
You know, and it's like that it's so endemic now,
but this felt like a way of differentiating between you know,
a certain kind of restaurant and like the old, like
the old and new. This was like the dividing line here. Yeah,
lots of like what's the origin, what's the provenance of
the food, and you know, obviously people genuinely starting to
(20:45):
care like where is this coming from? Like you know,
is this like what's the environmental and ecological impact? Is
like is this humanely sourced?
Speaker 2 (20:55):
And you know all that and is it local.
Speaker 3 (20:57):
Local exactly how how local is it? So with all
of that in mind, I think, and having that be
really prevalent and newly prevalent, we started, you know, talking
about this and I think you're right. I think there
were certain ideas that we had disparate sketches, and then
we started to sort of coalesce that into like, well,
what if we just did one sketch that was about
(21:18):
all of these things ordering, ordering, and another thing in
terms of like these wrap rounds, these three parts, is
that we often started, as this one does, with a
grounded premise or as you know, grounded mostly grounded premise,
and then of course we deviate from there. But usually
the part one is like, Okay, we're starting somewhat in reality,
(21:41):
which we do. Here we go to a restaurant. We're
introduced to two characters, and.
Speaker 2 (21:47):
I would say new characters even though it's the first
episode we hadn't done them before.
Speaker 3 (21:50):
Were in under Yeah, So Peter and Nance a couple. Yeah,
and I guess because it's you and I. Like most
of our characters, many of our recurring characters are couples. Yes,
you know, married or friends or but this was kind
of a classic married couple, no friction, no friction. This
(22:10):
is like the least the couple with the least amount
of friction.
Speaker 2 (22:13):
Yes, And did you see them around, Like wow, they
really seem to get along.
Speaker 3 (22:18):
Just the other day, I was walking my dog and
a couple was holding hands. They were in their seventies,
and I was like, wow, that's so much dedication. It's
pouring rain, hand hand out exposed, like yeah. I just
thought like, wow, this is it's very sweet. It also
makes me, for some reason angry, which is like every
other character like the reaction to that. Yea, for no reason.
(22:40):
I'm so happy for them my thought, you know, may
they die holding hands, like I want that for them.
But at the same time, like I'm just so perplexed.
But and I think that's often where we build characters from,
is things that we don't like how and why, Like
let's embody that for a while. Yeah, and Peter and Nance, Yeah,
I mean they are so cloying. They just melt into
(23:01):
each other.
Speaker 2 (23:02):
There's soft and they're also not even particularly you know,
like it's not like this erotic trip of like how
hot they are for each other. It's just comfortable and comfortable.
They just love each other. And it really I felt
like that was something that was I just that existed
in Portland. Was like it's all fine.
Speaker 3 (23:24):
Yeah, especially embodied by them. Yeah, frictionless is definitely the
right word. And you kind of didn't know where one
ended in the other.
Speaker 2 (23:32):
Yeah. Even their clothes are kind of flowing loose. Yeah,
they're not hippie, no heart edges, no heart edges.
Speaker 1 (23:40):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (23:40):
And they're at this restaurant and they they really let
ordering linger, oh boy, as opposed to let's just get
our food, it's let's make this an appointment.
Speaker 3 (23:54):
Yeah, they have a lot of questions. The weight person
is played by Dana Milliken. This was her first role
on the show, and she became a recurring actor on
the show. She played many In fact, she never played
this character again, but she is a local Portland actor.
She was on a reseason. Yep, we adore Dana and
(24:15):
to her credit and to the credit of almost everyone
on the show, no script. You know, she had a
few lines, but everything that you see, at least ninety
nine percent of it is her absolutely improvising. Yeah, playing
it straight, playing it straight the whole time, which is
exactly the assignment for that. This is also I would say,
for Peter, you have a Peter stammers. He has a stutter. Yeah,
(24:37):
and you do that for the first time here. Yeah,
And I don't think it was something that certainly wasn't
in the character description. You just you picked a word
and you sort of let it roll and you had
a hard time getting it out, and then that became
part of who he was.
Speaker 2 (24:52):
Yeah. Yeah, I remember like as I was watching it too,
I was like, what was I going for like who
that's what pretentious to say. Well, but like I remember
thinking that maybe he looked a little bit like either
like or it was a little bit like either Chevy
Chase or Martin Short, like a mix of them doing something.
So that's kind of what that was a little bit.
Speaker 3 (25:15):
And I remember thinking, as I was rewatching this that
you still had more of your Fred voice here than
you do later.
Speaker 2 (25:21):
That happens in a lot of sketches.
Speaker 3 (25:22):
Yes, and you know, I do the same thing where
we sort of we didn't know which characters would be reoccurring,
and so some characters we never had time to develop further,
but these characters we recurred over and over again. But yes,
I think my version of Nance also becomes more pronounced.
It's like the more we sort of grew into each other,
even as a couple, a couple of Peter Nance, Yes,
(25:45):
the more we started playing off the other person's you know,
sort of you know, little syrapy nature. But yeah, so
we ask Dana where we want to order a chicken,
and she brings out the paperwork for this chicken.
Speaker 2 (26:04):
Who is this chicken specifically.
Speaker 3 (26:06):
And the chicken's name is Colin. Yeah, and we decide
that we need to go and really investigator, really investigate.
And he's from a local farm nearby. So we leave
the table and say we're going to be right back.
Speaker 2 (26:21):
And we even say like, just hold these seats, hold
these seats while we go on this little trip.
Speaker 3 (26:25):
Yeah, and we had off.
Speaker 2 (26:26):
Talking about Peter and Nance. I don't know if this
ever happens with you, but you know, sometimes when with memory,
I do sometimes like we'll sort of fill in the blanks.
Speaker 1 (26:39):
And later in.
Speaker 2 (26:40):
The existence of Portlandia, we ran into a couple who
was out and I think they were walking their dog
or something, and we're very much like Peter and Nance.
So somehow I always think like, oh, maybe they were
kind of based on them, which is impossible.
Speaker 3 (26:53):
Because you met them afterwards.
Speaker 2 (26:55):
We met them after right, But maybe it's to say
that I think somewhere I did notice couples like that
in Portland.
Speaker 3 (27:02):
Yeah, I will say that I think a lot of
our characters, and obviously when we get to each character
we can talk more about this, but are based on
people we know, or are iterations of ourselves, Like we
talk about that all the time. How like there's just
some facet of our personality and where I'm like, if
(27:23):
I only like highlighted this part of myself, like the
part of myself that's really frustrated and short tempered, then
I would be this character. If I only highlighted this
part of myself, I would be like this. And I
think that's a place that we came from, was not
making fun of people, not looking at someone and saying Haha,
aren't they weird or strange or eccentric? But oh, I
(27:45):
can see myself in that. I know who this person
is because when I'm in a certain situation, I'm I'm
like that, and like, let's build a character around if
I only did that or you only died that. And
then it's especially putting them together. How would we play
off each other if we were like that? And I
think a lot of it, you know, like they remind
me of my parents' friends.
Speaker 2 (28:07):
Sure well you know growing up.
Speaker 3 (28:08):
But yeah, but I agree that Peter and Nance like
I feel like we know them. That's often where I
came from, Like I know this person. Yeah, I've been
around this person or I've felt myself doing something like this.
Speaker 2 (28:19):
And I am a sucker for like, even though it
seems like we're making fun of those restaurants. I'm a
sucker for those places. That's where any city I go to,
I go to whatever seems the most you know, farm
to table or whatever it's called. Now that same, all
those graphics and all that stuff, that is where I'm headed.
(28:42):
So I don't look at it like from like, hey,
we'll get over yourself. It's not like that. It's more
like every city, Yeah, that's where I end up in
a place like that.
Speaker 3 (28:53):
No, it's true. I think the ethos of the show
even early on, was like, let's explore something like it's
it comes from a place of curiosity, you know, not
not a place of derision. It's just like, yeah, I
want to know more about this, like I want to
understand it, whether it's something that we already participate in
or not. You know, like what what makes this place tick?
(29:14):
What makes this person tick?
Speaker 2 (29:16):
Yeah?
Speaker 3 (29:17):
So yeah, so here an announce.
Speaker 2 (29:20):
Announce And in part two of this wrap around, we
go to the farm in my real.
Speaker 3 (29:25):
Car that's right in my Volvo that I had at
the time, and that was up.
Speaker 2 (29:30):
In the hills of around around Portland.
Speaker 3 (29:33):
Yeah me West Hills. And remember there was a guy
he's not there was a guy who has a cameo
in this who that year was voted like Portland's Hottest
farmer remember that. It was like I didn't even know
we had that competition anyway, Just just a little easter
egg for the people. Also, our makeup person Jessica Needham
(29:55):
is in the scene, our costume resigner a Manda need Hm,
and a handf of other again, just so many, so
much crew in the background.
Speaker 2 (30:04):
But this Ashby is in it.
Speaker 3 (30:06):
Ashby is in it.
Speaker 2 (30:07):
It was in many episodes in the sketches.
Speaker 3 (30:09):
Are these all these? All these women play the wives
of Aliki, who is the head farmer called Leader played
by Jason Sudikis.
Speaker 2 (30:20):
I'm going to say also about you know, shooting things
and not knowing how things work. I was still under
the impression that you needed at the time footage of
us driving when are we gonna do? Us? Looking for director?
And I really learned on Portlandia about like you don't
need any of that stuff. Once we arrive, of course
they're you know, yeah, I can't believe I ever was questioned. Oh,
(30:44):
I mean I didn't question. I was just sort of like, oh,
I guess we're just here. But works perfectly.
Speaker 3 (30:48):
Fine, Yeah, listen, I'm in the same boat. Like, there's
so much you learn about editing and filmmaking by just
being around it all the time. Yeah, like you know,
things that you take for granted and you know, it's
just like, yeah, the process is revealing itself to you.
And I felt really surprised a lot too, just in
(31:11):
the early days because it's so new, and you know,
for our listeners that might sound ignorant, but there's actually
something really wondrous about kind of being surprised, you know,
as you're going along and just yeah, like not it's
also a good thing to demystify for people, like, you know, yes,
there are definitely people who know exactly what they're doing,
but a lot a lot of people, especially in TV
(31:33):
and film and working on set, you learn as you go.
You know's there's people that have the knowledge beforehand, but
even those people are learning and every day is very different.
You know, things are thrown at you, but it's it's
like a big machine that requires everyone like working and yeah,
and we're just one small part of that. So a
lot of things we would just show up on set too,
(31:54):
like because we're done with the writing, you know, now
we're just in acting mode. And we would show up
to set and I was all amazed, I should say too,
as like what how it went from page to screen?
You know, like something we would write, a little thing
you put in the script. Yeah, and then all of
a sudden you're like, oh my god, here are like
here's this farm and everyone's in these like the same
(32:16):
outfits because they're you know, in this cult. Yeah, in
this cult. Yeah, that was you know, running you know, Jason,
I don't I think I don't even know if we
had seen him beforehand that day, Like sometimes I feel like.
Speaker 2 (32:27):
That's the first time we saw him was on set,
although I mean I worked with him a bunch. Yeah,
And I gotta say he is so funny, Yes, in
this and watching it again, there's little things he does
this just so just this smooth character. There's this one
thing he does where you say your name and he
sort of leans into you to say, like what was that?
(32:51):
I'm sorry one more time, you know, and so funny
and so good. It's just like this sort of all
he's doing, all that character is doing, is just finding
an excuse to sort of lean into you a little bit. Yeah,
oh man, it's so good.
Speaker 3 (33:06):
And another thing that occurs here that becomes, you know,
a theme that we repeat in a tool we use
is incidental like background music. Yes, you know, and every time,
you know, Peter Nance, we're getting shown around the farm
by this young woman and she keeps pointing out a
leaky We haven't met him yet and he's far off,
and every time we look at him, there's just this
(33:28):
little this this cue this music cue.
Speaker 2 (33:30):
Yes, it's like sixties psychedelic.
Speaker 3 (33:33):
Yeah, and it's sort of intoxicating. You can see us
like sort of entranced by this guy wanting to get closer.
And you know, we end up using the editors and
you know, the directors would make this choice to just
use that music all the time. And same with cutaways
of like reaction shots from background. You see that a
lot here. But yeah, to speak to you what you're
(33:55):
saying about Jason, the other thing I noticed he did
that's really brilliant is he decided he made a choice
that he would treat Peter and Nance differently. So Peter,
he sees as he's is like the weaker character, right,
He's really playing to your like vanity, right, you know,
Peter says in the first part one, you know of
his eyes and you know he immediately says, any right,
your eyes and then nance he sort of is like
(34:17):
nagging the whole time, like he's sort of putting her down.
He like kind of has her number. Yeah, and like
he just made this choice to treat each of us differently,
and it was so much smarter than just seeing us
as like this monolith. He really sort of comes at
us and like just it really created a much richer
dynamic I thought for something that's.
Speaker 2 (34:37):
So short, Yeah, I also understood how he would be
a cult leader or whatever that yes, because it wasn't
it wasn't the stereotype or the cliche of a long
haired yeah you know, yeah, that kind of wisdom. It
was this other thing that that even today I'm like, hey,
(34:58):
I want to follow that guy.
Speaker 3 (35:00):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (35:01):
And then jumping into that uh that third part of
the wrap around that jump that he's dying. Yes, I
thought I assumed that somewhere there was going to be
a scene of him going on, I don't feel so
well or you know, I'm dying right away, deathbed that's
all you need.
Speaker 3 (35:21):
Yeah, And I think, you know again part of that
learning curve, like you know, they say with like fiction
or short stories, like you know, enter the scene late
and leave early. And that is so true with sketch
as well, like you just you don't need heads or tails,
like let's just get right to the meat of it.
And yeah, we kind of had to. We sort of
(35:41):
learned how to do that, and certainly our editors I
think early on really helped us. We started to write
more like they edited because they were like, oh my god,
this is so like, let's just let's cut this in that. Yeah.
So yeah. So the you know, it's this big deathbed scene,
which was so great. That's all that was. We just are,
you know there all of his wives now including me
(36:03):
and Peter and Nance are sitting around this deathbed. And
then he finally dies and this fell is broken. We
realize we've been in a cult. We look down, we
see that we're wearing these long.
Speaker 2 (36:14):
Skirts, and back we go to the restaurant.
Speaker 3 (36:16):
Back to the restaurant, and we decide to order something else.
Speaker 2 (36:19):
I think we order salmon or something yeah, fish, salmon.
Speaker 3 (36:23):
Yeah, yeah, yeah, and it you know again that kind
of sort of the going back to like how he
structured things. It was sort of like grounded, absurd, surreal.
That's how I always think of it, like if you
were to in general terms, you know, so it ends
kind of it very heightened, you know, Dana suspends her
disbelief that we would you know, O. Sensibly it's been
(36:45):
years later, but we returned to the same table as
if she's just been waiting for us the whole time. Yes,
and continue our order.
Speaker 2 (36:52):
Going back to that first part, the fact that she
had that folder with all that information, well, it's kind
of a really good move that she's not just a
straight person of like you guys are crazy. Yeah, it's
a little bit like we're all engaging in whatever this is.
Speaker 3 (37:08):
And again that you know, credit to the art department
prop wise, I mean they like for us too, you know.
The props really I think helped because with sketch, you know,
you don't have a lot of time. We would sometimes
shoot like three or four sketches a day, completely different characters,
different setups, different wigs, hair makeup. I mean, a prop
(37:29):
can be the thing that just brings you right into
you know the characters. You know, same with clothing, same
with a you know, like a hat or piece of
you know whatever, glasses, but it really you need that shorthand.
And I think that our department was really good at
visual storytelling. You know, they were the ones that gave
her that, you know, the folder with you know, she went,
let me get Collins paperwork. She comes back, there's a
(37:51):
little photo of a chicken. You know, we didn't we
didn't write that into the script. So there's a lot
of additional stuff. So yeah, and that one, I will say,
you know, there's certain Portlandia sketches that people still bring
up and that you know, in a way that I
feel so lucky to have been part of, like became
part of like cultural parlance. And definitely, like sometimes when
(38:15):
I go to restaurants, and especially during the years PORTLANDA
was airing, people would always some people would be self
conscious as they took my order because they were like,
oh god, I know it's like I'm telling you this thing.
But the whole call in the chicken and you know,
asking about the origin review food definitely became a thing
that you know, port Landy was part of that conversation.
But specifically this sketch, it might be.
Speaker 2 (38:37):
At number one for like a reference that someone was definitely.
Speaker 3 (38:42):
Top five, I think, Yeah, But Yeah, so that was like, yeah,
I liked that. It was a lot and definitely Peter
Nance love and I'm not even sure why we went
back to them, but we did. And you know, it's like,
again a lot of things we weren't saying, oh here,
We didn't start out writing the show and said here
(39:04):
are the ten characters at all. No, you know, like,
here's the ones we'll write for they that was very organic.
Speaker 2 (39:15):
Peter Nance just are really a good template for a
lot of sketches where we don't need them to be
too opinionated about anything. Yeah, I want to say also,
I want to add that the element of wigs for
every season was an issue in a good way since
the pilot, since the where just like the music that
(39:40):
we chose, we didn't want that to be too comedy ish.
We also didn't want the whigs to be too comedic.
So it took a while. And this is like a
budget conversation where we had the really you know, ratchet
up a little bit of like we really need good wigs.
Speaker 3 (40:03):
Yeah, and so you brought the people from unl It
brought the best of the best.
Speaker 2 (40:07):
That's right, Jodi Manquso, who I think it was just
hur at first and then she ran in gen But
it's a kind of it's a secreting. It is just
a good I mean, there's many great ingredients, but that
ingredient was an immediate visual one.
Speaker 3 (40:21):
Yeah. Yeah, I mean I think in general everyone was
punching about their weight. I mean, obviously Jody was high,
like best of the best, but coming to Portland and
working on much different like with different resources and fewer resources,
everyone was really like doing a lot of fantastic work. Yes,
also just pointing out we had we didn't have dressing rooms.
Speaker 2 (40:45):
You and I.
Speaker 3 (40:46):
So you know, a traditional show, you know, the stars
of the show would have their own dressing rooms. We
just we're in the back of the hair and makeup
trailer in a camper, in a camper, yep. We never
in fact, for all eight seasons, we never had our
own dressing rooms. But definitely first season we were all
together and along with the driver yep, yep, and his
(41:12):
wife of the r V they were there and hair
makeup costumes. We were all together all together, yep. And
we never never had our own bathroom or yep. It
was very threadbare.
Speaker 1 (41:27):
I mean.
Speaker 2 (41:29):
As it was happening, I think we also didn't know
what the show was in a way, so I didn't
have the argument in me at the time to be like,
don't you know what this is. It was more like,
I have no idea. This might be you know, too
good for what. You know, Yeah, we're trying to accomplish.
Speaker 3 (41:47):
I think it helped the spirit of the show. You know,
it felt very communal, and we also didn't want it
to look or feel like it was taking place in
sort of the usual you know, media centers.
Speaker 2 (42:00):
Yeah, yes, I.
Speaker 3 (42:01):
Mean not that I didn't want my own bathroom.
Speaker 2 (42:04):
We had to say. We really navigated it well. I
don't think we ever got into the whole run. Nothing
was ever weird about the the dressing room.
Speaker 3 (42:13):
You know, I literally shared the whole time.
Speaker 2 (42:15):
I never never was an issue. Was your order food? Yeah,
you know, we had a break in between whatever.
Speaker 3 (42:20):
There was never a point where it was like, oh,
season three we had to start. Yes, you know, they
even weren't even talking to each other.
Speaker 2 (42:26):
No, no, yeah, or like hey, you know I kind
of like this door closed, just just so you know,
it was all yeah, totally fine.
Speaker 3 (42:33):
And by the way, the guest stars didn't have their
own Nope, like we've already mentioned Jason Sudeikis. We'll get
to other guest stars, including like Tony and Oscar winners.
They also did not have their own dressing room, and
everyone you know say it. We'll say it again and again,
probably as we talked about them individually. People were a game.
They came and like were able to adapt to the strange,
(42:58):
you know, culture of the show. But yeah, people, that
was Jason's dressing room too, was just yea, oh sorry,
I'm in the back, you know. That was it that
was changing and that when there was no hierarchy, there
was no one person that, oh, they need their own
dressing room. That just was what they were told before
they got there, and it seemed okay with it.
Speaker 2 (43:17):
I think later what we would do is, because we
had an airstream, one of those airstream trailers, we would leave.
If a star was big enough, we'd be like, well,
let's let's let them have it. That was our big.
Speaker 3 (43:32):
Yeah, but there was a back room in the airstream,
and so they would let there was a door at
least and they could change. But yeah, all right, well
so let's just quickly I guess we chalked about the
two main sketches, just like the other sketches in the show.
So we had the cold open, part one of the farm,
and then we do into the technology loop.
Speaker 2 (43:51):
Yes, technology loop, And I like watching this one because
I identify with it still happening today.
Speaker 3 (43:59):
Yes, I mean, I don't want to say we were
early adopters, but we definitely were already sensitive to the
ways that tech was overtaking our lives and kind of
hijacking our brains.
Speaker 2 (44:11):
And it didn't seem like it's really well edited. And
it was also that one had the first bit of
like digital fixing that I didn't even know is possible.
At the end of the tech Loop, I sort.
Speaker 3 (44:28):
Of freeze over, oh right in your eyes.
Speaker 2 (44:30):
My eyes go up and my mouth goes down right,
And that was all done. The editors did it.
Speaker 3 (44:36):
Yeah, and then we here is the introduction of feminist bookstore, which,
as Fred and I discussed, was predates the show. So
here we are bringing Tony and Cannis into Portlandia. We
changed the location so this we were working out of
a real feminist bookstore on North Killingsworth called in other words,
(44:58):
they were generous enough to let us use their store.
We renamed it Women and women first, and our first
customer Steve Buscemi, who another person will talk about. Hopefully
we'll have him on the show because he comes back
year after year. We love Steve. He ended up directing
multiple episodes. But yeah, a classic feminist bookstore setup. Someone
(45:20):
comes into the store, which is already an upfront and yeah,
he wants to use our bathroom and we make him
buy something.
Speaker 2 (45:28):
Yes, we make it difficult. Yeah. Whenever I watch the
feminist book store sketches, it's almost like they just want
someone to stay. Yea, even if it's confrontational, it's more
like don't leave, No.
Speaker 3 (45:42):
You're Yeah, they're still holding them hostage even though you
want them to leave. It's very confusing.
Speaker 2 (45:46):
Yeah, all improvised, all improvised.
Speaker 3 (45:49):
Yeah. And then adult Hide and Seek, which is a
sketch that I really love. It also introduces Ellen Right
Ellen Bloodworth, Yeah, whose plays the woman who Fred's character
Stuart Right is interacting with, who's kind of a little
bit disdainful, a little bit skeptical of adults acting like kids.
Speaker 2 (46:11):
You know, library really good, she was great, She was great.
She really made us laugh.
Speaker 3 (46:17):
Yeah, local actress who based on this performance we brought
back a year after year, and that happened a lot
of times. You know, we had great background and local
casting directors and they would bring in talent from all
over Portland and many of them we just loved what
they did and they became part of the part of
the cast essentially. But Ellen was definitely one of those people,
(46:39):
and you guys just had such an instant chemistry which
I really like.
Speaker 2 (46:42):
Yeah, we definitely did. And she was just perfectly funny.
Speaker 3 (46:47):
She was really funny. Yeah, and then I think another thing.
I yeah, anyway, I'll stop there, and then.
Speaker 2 (46:54):
What else do we have? That's it. That's all our sketches.
So that's episode one.
Speaker 3 (47:03):
All right, Well, thank you so much for listening to
our very first AO rewatch episode. This is very fun.
Speaker 2 (47:11):
It was. I really enjoyed getting to watch that again.
Me too, And to talk about it. I feel like
we haven't talked about it that much a little, but
like not to this extent.
Speaker 3 (47:22):
We talk about it broadly, and we'll talk about it
like sort of anecdotally, But to get Granular is really enjoyable.
Speaker 2 (47:31):
Agreed this fifteen years later or whatever it is the
feeling of watching it now is I feel mostly good
about the decisions we made, like things like the tech Loop.
And I think it's because at the time when we
were shooting it, we knew it wasn't going to come
(47:52):
out until six months later or something, so it wasn't
that topical because of that. I like it it's a
little evergreen.
Speaker 3 (48:03):
Yeah. I think that's one of the things that I
keep sort of monitoring as I'm watching it, thinking, Okay,
what is evergreen? What feels a little dated because of
course times change, and often that is technology. And I
remember that was a conversation we had at the time.
You know certain things. Of course, you're never gonna like
be able to be ahead of things. But I feel
(48:25):
like that was a conscious decision we made, and whether
it was politics or you know, certain references, like we
wanted it to feel like timeless in a way. We
wanted to be speaking to larger things in terms of
just like, let's let's focus on who these people are,
you know, and how they relate to their environment versus
(48:45):
like the time period. Yeah, you know, but I it's
that is something that I'm looking for when I'm watching
just I'm excited when something does feel like, oh yeah,
that's still relevant or even better, like we were ahead
of the curve there on something. That's a good feeling. Yeah. Also,
you know everyone looks really young.
Speaker 2 (49:08):
That part is yes, that's yeah, notable. Yeah.
Speaker 3 (49:13):
Also I remember our takes were really long, and I
can see I remember our camera people like Feminist Bookstore especially,
so like Tony and Cannice can improvise forever. Yeah, And
I mean I just remember like the camera people who
I think was TG and Aubrey that first year were
(49:36):
would have to adjust. Of course, the camera is heavy.
They weren't on sticks, they were like on their shoulders.
And you can see sometimes the camera just tilts because
the camera operators like no, I'm sorry, but now so
I definitely see see that, and I just yeah. But
for the most part, to me, like the wrap round
(49:58):
sketches so far, like hold up, you know, like sometimes
the individual ones, it's just such a sheer amount. I'm like, oh, okay,
you know some of those I can take her leave.
But I felt like this this episode felt strong to me.
Speaker 2 (50:12):
Yeah, I feel the same. And technology wise, for however
much things have changed, there are some things that I'm
actually kind of surprised has stayed the same. The idea
of texting, So then you know, there's in the tech loop,
we're texting a lot, and you know, I'm kind of
surprised that that's still the way we communicate that it's thumbs.
(50:34):
I thought by now there'd be some other thing. But
I'm glad. I'm glad it's that way. And I think
there's even an iPad on the table there, so I'm like,
all right, oh yeah, yeah, iPhone. That stuff is like
we're still it's not which wouldn't be the worst thing
in the world, but it's not so antiquated that I'm like, oh,
I can't believe we've got right.
Speaker 3 (50:53):
What's what's interesting is, you know, we switch in that
sketch to mindfi, which is how sort of speaking just telepathically,
but then your brain still gets hijacked by ads, and
to me, even though it's not literally like that, it
does feel like we're in a version of that where
like we're just never safe from being inundated with like
(51:13):
you know, slog or brain rod or clutter. Yeah, like
you know, so in that sense, it's true, like that
has just been a continuum, like we've been on a
slow decline since then. But yeah, I feel I can
I can feel us getting our feet weather. There's all
to me. I mean, you and I talk a lot
about this, like and we make analogies to music. But
(51:34):
you know, there's this is kind of our first album
this season, and like, yeah, I like it. I think
it holds up as a first album. Like to me,
it has like some highs and then it has things
that looking back, I'm like, Okay, that probably didn't work.
But I feel like as a statement, it feels good
coming out of the gate, Like there's little things I
would do differently, but it feels like a debut album
(51:57):
in a good way, the good kind of debut album
where it's like, Okay, it's coming onto the scene. It
has like it looks different to me, Like when I
was watching it, I was like, this looks different than
other sket shows. You know that like Yes started to
come out after us, once all the networks that had
turned us down decided that they were going to put
out sket shows. You know. I think the closest thing
(52:18):
that it looks like is probably Kids in the Hall definitely,
because that was you know, shot in Toronto, so again
was in La or New York. Had a slightly cinematic quality.
To it and had that kind of shambalic quality to it. Yeah,
I would say that's the closest like aesthetic analogue to it.
Speaker 2 (52:37):
Speaking of analog I think that because I like the
you know, it's enough to say that it's it's a
good debut album or first album, and but to get
more specific, I for some reason what comes to mind
is talking Head seventy seven. That's very much them. They're
(52:57):
very talking even though they evolved being on that anyway.
So that's that's that's usually what I think of where
it feels like that kind of I think of that
album specifically interesting. Maybe the Police's.
Speaker 3 (53:12):
First album, which is The Police is for.
Speaker 2 (53:15):
Some it's just it's just the Police and it has
rock sanne Is on it.
Speaker 3 (53:20):
Yeah, it has a big it.
Speaker 2 (53:22):
Has like yeah, it's like it's a definite beginning. And
same with talking Heads where that has cycle Killer on it.
Speaker 3 (53:29):
Yeah, it has like it creates a vernacular. It like
it changes. But it also it's like, you know what
a talking Head song is based on that album, where
you know what a Police song is based on their
first album? Yeah, like it wasn't they didn't keep like
they they push forward, but it wasn't like an act
of full like reinvention every time, which I feel like,
(53:53):
you know, we do return to, like you see the
DNA in these sketches, I think, yeah, we build upon.
Speaker 2 (54:00):
So that was episode one. I love getting to do
this and I'm looking forward to the rest of it,
to having guests you know that we've had on the show,
that I've worked on the show. It's really fun for me,
and I'm excited to do it me too.
Speaker 3 (54:19):
Yeah, I'm also very excited. I'm excited to hang out
with you. I'm excited to keep rewatching these episodes and
I'm unpacking all of it and going off on tangents,
which we definitely will. And I'm excited to bring in
some of the great guests that we had on the
show and talk to them about their experience. And we're
so grateful for our listeners and viewers, so very excited
(54:43):
for this podcast series, the one.
Speaker 1 (55:03):
On one one one one one one one one
Speaker 2 (55:07):
One one one
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