Welcome to ScreenTime!

 

 

 

 

 

As you know if you’ve been following along, I’ve recently had the opportunity to get some ScreenTime with several people involved with Valley Peaks.  Today we get into the mind of Phil Donohue who plays Reese, and along with other ScreenTime interviewees, is one of the creators of the show.

 

 

Reese is the character who goes from star of the universe to disheveled pit of despair when an accident lands him in a wheelchair.

 

 

Once again, definitely check out Valley Peaks.

 

 

Here we go.

 

 

 

1. The show is definitely taking aim at a certain genre of television… are there any shows you watch regularly that might be surprising given the no holds barred approach of ValleyPeaks?

 

 

I honestly can’t get enough of the Time Life “Soft Rock Classics” infomercial hosted by Graham Russell and Russell Hitchcock from Air Supply – it really levels me out.

 

 

 

 

2. Have to throw this out to everyone who does webshows… What webshows do you watch that you don’t think are getting enough attention?  Can  you sell them briefly?

 

 

 

I really haven’t caught too many web series I hate to say. I enjoyed Italian Spiderman and I got to give a shout to the girls at Whatever Hollywood, but apart from them I am fairly ignorant… in life.

 

 

 

3.  If you had the opportunity to make a similar show that took aim at another genre, what might we expect?

 

 

I think I would enjoy taking aim at Time Life “Soft Rock Classics” infomercials or a show like CSI. In my version of CSI, CSI: Duluth, the characters are constantly contaminating, losing, or accidently eating specimens and evidence. Hence brutal murders and rapist are set free every episode.

 

 

 

Ow. I like that show.

 

 

 

4.  Are there any films that you would say inspired your sense of humor? Can you elaborate a bit on how they might have influenced you?

 

 

I would say the absurd surrealism of the films of Luis Bunuel and the self analytical pontifications of Woody Allen have been a very direct influence on me. I am most moved by films which after first viewing, when the laughs go away, still stand as great films, Being There comes to mind and the converse of that, films like Boogie Nights or Buffalo 66, that became funny after their initial dramatic viewing. I think it’s important to be conscious of content and form within Comedy as humor is constantly evolving and without something great behind it, you just have dated jokes that you hold onto for nostalgic purposes. Too bad none of this applies to Valley Peaks.

 

 

 

5.  What’s the best thing on television right now?

 

 

The best thing going on TV right now is It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, and if it was in season I would then say Curb Your Enthusiasm. Lately though I have been catching up on two of the greatest shows in television history Twin Peaks (which is an indirect reference for the show as I hadn’t seen it until recently) and Arrested Development, the best written show ever, period. Time Life “Soft Rock Classics”…

 

 

 

6.  The show has a certain element of bad acting as good acting, because it’s supposed to be bad acting… does that theory came from anywhere specific?  Any shows or movies that inspired that particularly approach?

 

 

I think the inspiration comes from the fact that the shows we make fun of take performances that are equivalent to what we are doing seriously. Those actors work at, and mean, what they are doing. So in order to do it right we have to take being a bad actor very seriously, as they do trying to be a “good actor”. One has to channel the spirit of being horrible in order to be truly good at being bad.

 

 

 

7.  If you could get anyone to guest star on the show (particularly an actor of some repute as that would make for a convenient answer),who would it be and why?

 

 

It’s a tie between our 43rd President George W. Bush as Valley Peaks‘ Mayor and Penelope Cruz, Scarlett Johansson, and Natalie Portman as Reese’s tres lovers.

 

 

 

8.  What are the last five things you did that involved a screen… starting from right… now… and not counting this.

 

 

I screened a call, shortly after removing a screen from my window that a bird has just crashed into it, beating his wings until he breathed his final bird breath. I then went online to research what kind of diseases I might catch if I were to handle the bird, the list was alarming, so I got distracted and played some basketball. I did a screen on the opposing team, that is when you block your opponents plane of view, and when I got home, realizing I had left the bird in the screen I took some photos of him/her (I can’t tell a birds sex) and projected onto a pull down screen.

 

 

Ah… comedians.

 

 

 

9.  What’s the best movie you’ve seen recently…in theater or not doesn’t matter.  Can you sing its praises a bit?

 

 

I haven’t seen any great new movies of late. I went and saw Two or Three Things I Know About Her and Friends of Eddie Coyle at the American Cinematheque recently, both were quite good. I recently re-watched Irreversible and Petulia which are both stunning and difficult films in very different ways.

 

 

 

10.  If I were going to give you the money to turn Valley Peaks into a movie, who would you demand I get on board the project, and why?  Directors, actors, whatever.

 

 

I think David Lynch would bring a lot to a new kind of Peaks. Ace of Base should do the Soundtrack. I also think to get it to really work we need the cast I mentioned above, and then I will fill every other roll that isn’t played by the main cast members of the show, or even theirs, this if you want the movie to be good. I will be like the Peter Sellars of Valley Peaks, but horrible and not good.

 

 

 

Thanks again to Phil, and everyone at Valley Peaks.  Here’s Reese’s Vlog (or something) from the show’s site.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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