Felicia Day is the pretty redheaded actress known by most horror fans as Vi on 8 episodes of
Buffy the Vampire Slayer. But more recently, she’s the writer and star of
The Guild, an online web show produced by Kim Evey and directed by
Jane Selle Morgan. Oh, it’s a comedic show about online RPG players. Hardcore online RPG players. The show delves into the lives of the “guild” members, who all play in the same online group, while poking fun at RPG’s and the people who play them. And it’s pretty good. It just won the 2007 YouTube award, the 2007 Yahoo Web Series award, and the 2008 Greenlight award at the SXSW festival in Austin this past March. Felicia Day is a fiery, firecracker-y wisecracker who knows her RPG’s. How could we NOT interview her? Read on to hear the inner workings of this amazing show’s front woman, and about her recent appearance in Joss Whedon’s online musical short Dr. Horrible’s Sing A Long…
A recent example of a female-helmed online web-series that has a lot of fans and just got picked up by a major company who is now footing the (higher) budget’s is Amanda Tapping’s Sanctuary, a sci-fi web series she produces and wrote. Now that The Guild has won so many awards, it is likely to be picked up by someone and turned into the show, with the budget, it deserves.
“After all the attention with SXSW and the YouTube awards and Yahoo,” says Felicia, “we are definitely looking at partnerships that will support the show on another level, and also enable us to pay the crew and cast, who have not been paid for anything as of yet.”
Her director and producer, both women, both awesome, came into the project in a very feminist way. Kim and Felicia met director Jane Selle Morgan “through a little women's support group that Kim got me into (She was my first writing teacher!)” says Felicia. “I was addicted to WOW (World of Warcraft) at the time, and they helped wean me off it. I wanted to do something creative with my time spent in-game, so I wrote The Guild as a TV pilot which no one really ‘got’ so Kim, who had recent success with her viral video hit Gorgeous Tiny Chicken Machine Show, said ‘let's do it as a webisode!’ Jane is a director, so it all fell into place!”
The Guild is mainly about Codex (the gaming name of Felicia’s character), “Codex is a girl who's struggling with her addiction to video games, but buries herself in them to avoid her real life and personal problems. She's very non-confrontational, and doesn't adapt to stressful circumstances well,” and how she relates to her guild members, who all have different, and easily made-humorous, living situations, “She loves her fellow players though, and, like the healer she plays in the game, strives to make their lives better: And avoid focusing on her own.”
I myself am addicted to World of Warcraft. And I have kind of always been addicted to Role Playing computer/video games of any kind, like the Final Fantasy series, Wizardry, Ultima, or Might and Magic… what about these fantasy RPG games appeals to women? Aside from the fact that I am a total dork?
Well, let's just say: Clothing and chatting,” jokes Felicia. “I think women have a much more social orientation with gaming, so the guild system in WOW as well as the customizing of characters and colorful backgrounds and graphics are really appealing, to me at least. Playing in groups is a time-honored tradition that nowadays can only be found online. I also think that women's avatars are frequently more of a projection of ourselves than men's avatars. I mean, I always have a red-headed avatar!”
One issue The Guild addresses is the common stereotype of gamers. In doing so, it also seems that the show appeals to gamer directly connecting with them by giving them characters to which they can relate.
"Well, anyone who games knows that the Hollywood cliché of ‘boy in basement’ is nowhere near representing what gamers are. I feel like the best compliment is when people email me and say that that KNOW these characters, that they have one of each in their Guild! People obviously relate to them or the show wouldn't be so popular. It's very easy in comedy to go towards the median clichéd character, but I strive to break that mold, especially with the women characters. No one draws attention to the fact they're women and they game and how weird is that. They just do it, because it's part of their life, along with millions of other women. Half our donors are women, which speaks to their need of having a voice. I love that I'm helping to give them one.”
What can you tell us about Dr. Horrible’s Sing Along, and working with Joss Whedon again?
We wrapped about two weeks ago, pretty much the best shoot I've ever been on. I play Penny, a love interest between Nathan Fillion's character and Neil Patrick Harris' character, both of whom are the most amazing actors I've worked with. I felt inspired and intimidated and giddy every day I was on set working opposite them! And what can I say about Joss Whedon that hasn't been sung from the hills already? The man is brilliant and charming and everything you want to be blessed to work with. He and his brothers, Zack and Jed, and Jed's fiancé Maurissa created an amazing work of art. I can't rave enough about the script and especially the songs! You won't be able to get the music out of your head. I know I can't, and I sung it for 5 days straight! And to see Joss make his vision happen on a low-budget, small-crew, cramped schedule shoot is amazing. What he made happen in such a short time span...man. Suffice it to say, Joss Whedon might be the man to really bridge that gap between internet and old media. And make a damned great product doing it!"
I'm just starting WOW and died at level 6 as a mage gnome in the Troll Caves. Every time I resurrect, I just die again because I am surrounded by trolls. What should I do?
