Film Takes to the Streets
- Details
- Published on Wednesday, 02 November 2011 00:45
- Written by Justina Patch
617 Series: Webseries hits the streets of Boston
“Too often production comes through to the area and outsourced to New York and Los Angeles to fulfill those positions, there are plenty of talented individuals here in Boston but sadly their skills are not used and more then often those individuals are forced to leave the area.”
Katie Shannon, writer of The 617 series approached Amy to be the producer of the series. Shannon expressed that this series is different from anything that she has ever written before and she wanted to create something that she would not only enjoy watching, but that reflected the type of friends she has in her life.
After Shannon and Depaola finished with all the casting they soon realized that this may turn into something larger than just a web series. They mainly just used the web as a jumping off point to launch the series.
“I don’t think it was until after we started casting that we decided that this was more than just a web-series.”
“I don’t think it was until after we started casting that we decided that this was more than just a webseries and decided to follow the television format and just use web as a platform to showcase our venture from all aspects as a business, a form of entertainment and media outlet for the growing Boston production scene.”
Finding a different niche in a story is key to success. Shannon and Depaola wanted to find a difference in their storyline so that people would be eager to take interest in it. It’s not too often that you see series about friends living in the city but what is different about this series is that the people do not know each other quite yet.
“What’s interesting about our series though is that we have 2 sets of friends, the boys, Griffin, Sully, and Scotty, and the girls, Alana, Siobhan, and Cat. The sets of two friends don’t know each other yet and it wasn’t until Owen Burke (also from The Town), walked into our auditions, that we decided to create the role of Kevin the Bartender”
Depaola explained that the role of Kevin The Bartender is said to be saved for a Boston celebrity and this role in particular is what brings the two groups of friends together later on in the series.
“That role is designed to be a cameo spot of a Boston celebrity every episode, ambiguous to the cast, but it will be that bartender at their local watering hole that will eventually allow the two groups of friends to merge and get to know one another.”
Due to the great support of the Boston area it easy to fund this production. Depaola explained that because of the huge support, funding was not a huge problem. “We are very grateful to have worked with many businesses and individuals who have seen past our budget constraints and allowed us to go into production; some of those businesses are Murphy’s Law in South Boston, Down Ultra Lounge on High st., LIT Boutique on Hanover st, and Beacon Hill Pub on Charles st.”
Shannon has created some very interesting characters that most people can relate to. From the awkward quirky guy, to the energetic best girlfriend and the all American sports buff. After hearing from some of the actors, the general consensus is that they all seem to really enjoy their characters and showing up to work each day.
“My most memorable moment was probably being able to improv with the guys during our scenes, we have a really talented group or actors and we had good chemistry from the start.”
For more information about the series stayed tuned to the website (http://www.617theseries.com/ ), where several episodes and pod casts can be found.
