Ahead of Melbourne WebFest 2014 we are profiling all the series in the Official Selection as well as the “Second Look” series.
She is at the last week of her trial period at the Immigration Service of New Zealand and stakes are high – there’s a lot to prove (mostly to her boss) if she wants to stay on the job. Thing is, Suzy has a lot on her mind right now. Love, happiness, her own identity; you know, the works.
What inspired your series?
My own experiences as an immigrant from Brazil. When I first arrived in NZ, I was stopped by Immigration and interviewed for about 4 hours, by a woman called Suzy. She didn’t really have a sense of humour and I thought she was going to send me back to Brazil. In the end she didn’t and I always had that moment in mind. I knew I had to use that experience one day and that’s how Suzy was born.
Why should people watch your series?
Because it’s well written, characters are relatable – it’s about an outsider trying (a bit too hard) to fit in. I think we can all relate to that.
What do you want people to take away from your series?
I want them to enjoy the journey Suzy goes through, to cringe with her awkwardness and love her quirks. I’d like to be friends with Suzy and I love people like her – and we have a lot in common.
How do you finance your series?
I worked with Roko Antonio Babich, who provided all the camera/lighting gear – so we had first class equipment. I financed everything else with my own money.
What was the biggest challenge you had to overcome in production?
The budget was getting pretty tight towards the end of the last day – we only had a 3 day shoot, so we had to be smart and quick. We got everything on time, but there were a few challenging moments – the actor who was supposed to play Suzy’s dad pulled out the night before, so I had to rush and find a new actor (that actually was a wonderful thing, Charles Chan is the perfect “Mr. Boon”). Plus the occasional equipment malfunction – but I worked around those and the crew and cast were very supportive as invested in the project.
How do you reach your audience?
Social media plays a huge part, plus we were featured in a few websites in NZ. And word of mouth – I kinda always knew this series would be a slow burner. Being part of MWB will definitely help boost our views and profile – super stoked!
Is it an ongoing project? If so, can you give us some clues about what comes next?
I definitely want to have another season (or two) – I will apply for a digital fund initiative here in NZ and hope we get it. Suzy is such a beautiful character and we all worked very hard to put the first season out there. The next season would start where we left off, (SPOILER ALERT), with Suzy having some interesting times in her O.E..
And back in NZ she would have to find a new job – that’s all I’m saying for now. Trust me, we have amazing surprises to the audience.
Trivia: please tell us a quirky and/or interesting fact about yourself or team that’s unrelated to your web series.
I was born in Brazil in 1981, on the same day as Jimi Hendrix and Bruce Lee – that makes me automatically cool. I’m also a massage therapist.
Why make a web series?
Originally I was going to make a short film. Then co producer Roko suggested expanding the story and characters into a web series format. It was a new thing for me, but I’m happy I took his suggestion. Suzy became a much more interesting character, plus we had the chance to create some wonderful supporting characters to complement the story.
The Adventures of Suzy Boon on the web:
Website: http://www.suzyboonwebseries.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SuzyBoonTV
You Tube Channel:https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJahlptVWWXq46uKEYOH3RQ/videos
Keep up to date with Melbourne Web Fest on twitter: @MelbWebFest
La Trobe University is a festival sponsor of Melbourne WebFest.
