There are countless web series about actors in L.A., but very few in which the actor is a ten-foot tall, alien robot. Enter hot hunk… of metal Jeff, the well-meaning, socially awkward robot hero of Wired and Condé Nast Entertainment’s new mockumentary web series, Jeff 1000. Check out my review of Jeff 1000 for the L.A. Weekly HERE and continue reading for my full interview with creator Michael Karnow and Wired’s Head of Digital Content, Rachel Samuels.
I’ve seen dozens of web series about “actors in Hollywood”, but never one where the actor is a robot. How did you come up with the idea for the series and especially the super fun meta quality where the “behind the scenes” episodes are actually a part of the show?
Michael Karnow:: The series is about a guy adjusting to contemporary life in L.A. — who just happens to be a nine-foot robot. Jeff may end up with some acting gigs here and there but the show is not about Hollywood or actors. Like so many “millenials” (we later find out Jeff is literally a millennial, from another planet and more than a thousand years old) trying to make ends meet, Jeff is trying to pay the bills anyway he can — walking dogs, slinging lattes at Starbucks, driving for Lyft, etc.
How I came up with the idea… Rachel Samuels, Executive Producer at Conde Nast Entertainment, and I wanted to create a web series that included Summer Glau, who I had worked with at Syfy Channel’s Alphas. A lot of my ideas involve mashing up high concepts with the utterly mundane.
What do you enjoy/find challenging about creating for the digital space vs. television?
MK: Things seem to move a little faster in the digital space. The normal TV development process tends to move a bit slower. Creatively, I think the web offers a chance to take more risks. I think you have to take more risks, in order to cut through the media glut. I am hoping we did did that. Have you ever seen a giant robot baby-talking to a pug? My goal was to make cinematic history. Mission accomplished.
Did improv play a big part in the series at all?
MK: Definitely. I wanted this series to feel real and grounded. Letting the actors improvise can often help with that. Running the scenes, letting the actors play with the lines, you often discover what the scene is really about, or find a more interesting place to go with it. If the actors go too far off the reservation, you can always reel them back.
How did the creative team come together? Were you given a budget/producers by Wired or were you more independent?
MK: Rachel was super cool about letting me pull together whoever I wanted. I just grabbed the most talented people I could find — Summer Glau, David Arquette, Ryan Cartwright, Nick Copus. They were getting paid next to nothing but I promised them a good time and total creative freedom. I don’t think that happens very often with most TV shows and films. They seemed to have enjoyed themselves.
So why did Jeff decide he wanted to become an actor, anyway?
MK: This week Jeff is an actor, next week he’ll be making artisanal soap or manning a food truck. L.A. is the land of dreams. Why not try them all?
Summer Glau and Jeff 1000 – BFFS!
I love that Wired has so much online content. What is Wired’s mission for creating in the digital space?
Rachel Samuels: Our Wired Channel audience is influential millennials seeking premium digital dontent. It is always audience first when it comes to our programming decisions. We take our direction from them.”
Jeff 1000 seems to be a slight departure from your other content because it’s more like a scripted sci-fi comedy. What went into the decision to make a show like this one and how was the show developed with Wired?
RS: The direct impetus for this show was that we’d partnered in creating this awesome, beautiful robot mech for Comic Con: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cFwEiG4I-Wg. So I asked my friend Michael Karnow to pitch us a sci fi show starring the Giant Robot — and ‘Jeff 1000’ is the result.
Will there be additional episodes of the show if these ones do well?
RS: I hope so. We’d love to make more, if the show does well…so everyone who reads this, please go watch the series, and share it with all your friends! It’s up to you, people.
Check out more Jeff 1000 at YouTube.com/Wired and more of Steph’s L.A. Weekly Web Series Picks HERE.
The Tangled Web We Watch 