Jeff Geddis - The Interview

I had a really extensive conversation with Jeff Geddis for the article in this month's Outlooks, but with only so much room, there was so much left unsaid.  Here is the interview, where Jeff talks about being a working actor in Canada, the Canadian film and television industry, and more about his role on Sophie.  One of the things I consciously avoided in this interview was the kind of thing you might find in OUT or The Advocate, where the interviewer immediately has to establish the actor's sexuality, and frame the interview around that.  If I was going to write about a gay character who was representing the maturation of the way gay men are portrayed on television, I might as well also show the maturation of writing about said portrayals.  On the whole, Jeff was a fantastic interview, and great to talk to about all of that range of subject matter.

Q: Give us a little bit about your background.

A: I’ve been an actor based out of Toronto for coming up on ten years now, a graduate of York University’s acting programme. Graduated in 1998, which feels like a million years ago now. I’ve been a “working professional” for coming up on ten years now, done everything from popular TV commercials to bit-parts in feature films, to lead roles in MOWs, to guest spots in other TV shows, and then of course most recently the part of Matt on Sophie, and I also play a regular role on a show called The Latest Buzz for the Family Channel, and I’m currently working on an animated series called Stoked which will be on Teletoon. So I’m kind of multitasking these days. Whenever I have two or three days off with Sophie, I’m sort of whisked back to Toronto to do a day or two on my other two shows. It’s been good—I’ve been very fortunate in that respect, it’s not often that you can manage a schedule like this, but I’m losing years off my life and my grey hair is getting greyer, but I’m managing—barely.

Q: Why Matt? What drew you to that character?

A: At the risk of sounding boring, it’s simple that in the professional life of an actor in Canada, opportunities present and sometimes you respond well to the material and other times not, and generally when you do respond well to the material and deliver what they’re looking for then you’ll be lucky enough to be hired. With Matt, it was just something that I found—I found Matt to be a very charming character, and I tend to gravitate towards those characteristics in any of the roles I play. It’s a little bit quirky which is kind of fun—those are some of the things that I responded to. And I think generally speaking I just kind of ‘got’ the tone of what they were looking for, for the show, and so the rest is kind of history. Here I am, I think a year-and-a-half later—I think we did the pilot in 2006. It’s just been a matter of trying to finesse the performance and pay attention to what the writers are looking for, and again the tone of the show, and keep delivering what they’re looking for.

Q: What about your approach to playing the character? Is there anything in particular that you wanted to bring to it that necessarily might not have been in the material?

A: The biggest thing for me is that I wanted to make Matt very real and relatable. I think we see all kinds of presentations of gay men on television and in film, and there are some stereotypes that we see, but for the most part I wanted to keep Matt to just be as relatable as possible to just about anyone watching the show, be it gay, straight of otherwise. I wanted to just get it right down the middle and I think I’ve managed to do that pretty well, and I think the response has been pretty favourable. I think Matt is generally a pretty positive person who is a positive role model in Sophie’s life, and this is something that we’ve been trying to maintain.

Q: That was one of my observations watching the show is that it escaped most of the obvious stereotypes, and that was something I really enjoyed about it. A lot of sitcoms get lazy in their writing of gay characters and you become the sexless best friend or just someone for a wisecrack here or there, and Matt seemed to escape that while still being a funny and, like you said, relatable character.

A: I think we definitely touch on some of those characteristics that you mentioned, but I think it’s much more thorough than that, and we give a real living, breathing person with a real pulse who’s got all the same challenges and desires and interests and flaws and positive characteristics that everyone has. I think the sexuality factor in a lot of ways almost plays secondary to who Matt is, and I think that’s a really important thing in our culture now is to try to take the focus off sexuality so much anymore. I think it’s really important to just [see] ‘who is the person that we’re dealing with here,’ and I think that’s been something we’ve been pretty good at focusing on. Again, it doesn’t just fall on me, it falls on everyone—the writers, the overall style and approach to the show and the character in general.

Q: One of the other things I noticed was that they did a very straight-down-the-middle treatment of Matt’s relationship with the neighbour, Verner. It wasn’t just hinted about or seen off-screen, it was actually there and matter-of-fact and not played coy with.

A: Yeah, I personally think that’s a really good thing. I responded really well to that when we first saw the scripts for it. It’s a relationship, and this is a character who’s going to have relationship ups and downs like any other person, and it’s just something that ‘it is what it is,’ and we made it real, and we had a lot of fun with that storyline, and I think it’s something that people responded really well to.

Q: I also liked the way that, in the episode after Verner was introduced when Matt went and had his ‘affair’ on the side, it made it much more relatable to a gay viewer because it wasn’t so moralistic in the treatment of ‘oh, you’re just playing him as the stereotypical promiscuous character’—there was depth and nuance to it.

A: I’m glad—just hearing you say that, you don’t get that many direct reviews, so I’m really happy to hear that’s how it came across because that was really important to us. I think to your point about the stereotype of promiscuity in the gay culture, it’s in all cultures—people have question marks, they have second thoughts, they have second guesses, we have something called ‘cold feet’ in the world.

Q: That’s part of how the whole concept of Sophie came about.

A: Exactly! And as you’ve noticed in the show in general, the whole premise of the show is built on that. Even good, strong, heroic characters are going to have dilemmas, they’re going to have moral dilemmas, they’re going to make choices sometimes that even the viewing audience in its entirety won’t necessarily agree with, but that’s the whole point. You’re supposed to challenge people, you’re supposed to present ideas that a lot of people, whether directly or indirectly can relate to. I think that’s really important. Going back, this is a show that’s based on a French show, and again the relationship is really strong in that version as well, and it’s just something that plays really well on the screen, and I’ve watch the French show myself and I responded really well to the way that the character was portrayed and the way that relationship with Sophie was built, and I think that it was just a really positive example of modern TV writing.

Q: Being as the show was based on a French predecessor, how much has that influenced your portrayal of the character?

A: You should watch it—it’s really, really fantastic. I only understand about thirty percent of it, but on a personal basis it’s a really, really well-built show. It’s a one-hour, so the difference between that show and this show, is that it’s a one hour format so it has time to kind of pace out and explore side storylines and some of the surrounding characters a little more, whereas our show is a half-hour and it’s a bit more of a punchy-style of comedy, so it’s more just based on the original Sophie, so it plays more to that format of a half-hour comedy. The characters are a little more broad, we’re playing to the comedy a little bit more, and we all centre more around Sophie in this version of the show. In terms of what influences came from the original show, almost none at all. I didn’t even see the original show until we were pretty much completed filming the first season of our show. It was more just for curiosity’s sake, and it’s good in a way. I don’t think any of us wanted to set out to mimic something that was already there. We just wanted to make it our own. As far as building the character of Matt in the first place, obviously I’ve got a few images in mind of good friends I’ve spent time with over the years, and small characteristics that you’re charmed by. It’s like any role—you bring to it what you know and what you understand, and your experiences, and hope that it can all blend into one little presentation.

Q: You’ve said the response has been fairly positive so far. Can you talk a little more about some of it that you’ve had?

A: Just in general, the feedback that we’ve had from focus groups and from the audiences is that they’ve responded very, very well to the relationship between Matt and Sophie, and it’s a true friendship and it’s a truly thorough, supportive relationship. That’s been the response, and that’s what we set out to create and in that sense we’ve succeeded, and they just really believe the two of us as friends. I think it’s the kind of friendship too, that—these are people in their early-to-mid thirties, and there are so many challenges that come with that—anything to do with work, relationships, we have a single mother, all this kind of stuff, and people, they bought it. They really believe that we are two people who are weathering the storm of life together. That was in general, that’s sort of the main response, so that to me felt like success.

Q: Anytime I read an interview with an American actor who plays a gay role, they talk about the flood of fan mail from all these kids in Middle America who thank them for helping them come out to their parents, and I’m wondering if you’ve had that parallel experience?

A: I haven’t! I have not had that parallel experience at all, and I don’t know if it has anything to do with our culture being a few steps ahead in that respect to begin with—I’m not sure. I would be happy to receive any kind of feedback like that, but as it stands, I haven’t, and again if a positive portrayal of a gay character can help someone’s who’s struggling with their coming of age or coming out to their parents, I think that’s terrific. Maybe it has something to do with the fact that our core audience is maybe a little older, I don’t think we’re necessarily targeting a younger audience, I’m not sure if that’s a factor.

Q: Do you think that might change once it airs in the States on ABC Family?

A: Yeah, it’s very possible. It’ll be really interesting to see how we roll forward once that happens. I mean, we play to a pretty small audience—Canada only has thirty million people—so as soon as it hits the States, you’re going to be hitting a larger audience, so it’ll be interesting to see how it’s received.

Q: The new season—how’s that going so far?

A: It’s going really well. It’s like any TV show, I think you do a little bit of finding your feet in your first thirteen episodes, and we’ve been picked up for eighteen this time around so the morale is really high right off the bat. The scripts have been really strong, and everyone had the benefit of the first season to get to know each other and get comfortable, so now it kind of feels like it’s in you—you’re no longer trying to find it. You feel strong in the character, and you feel like the show is being written for what you’ve brought as opposed to you trying to find what’s already on paper. That’s a fun feeling, to know that every script I get now is being written for me, whereas the first half-dozen episodes of season one, it’s just me trying to meet them half-way and now it’s more symbiotic.

Q: I know you’ve done a lot of writing projects on your own—any interest in doing your own scripts for Sophie, or are you content just to be the actor on this one?

A: I think in this case, it’s television and I don’t know if television is really my forte. I’ve done quite a bit of writing over the years, but it’s mostly feature-film format, so I don’t know that I would ever feel as confident writing for the half-hour TV world, but it would be fun and any chance I get, I’m always throwing ideas or suggestions—I’m the guy who’s always raising his hand at meetings, asking questions, making suggestions, making sure that everything is consistent, and making sure that everything works for what we’ve built so far.

Q: I take it the response has been pretty good to that kind of input?

A: Yeah, we have a great writing team on that show, and it’s a real team environment. It’s nice, and I think anytime you do get on a show that seems to be working the one characteristic in common is that everyone is really joining hands and playing it like a team as opposed to anyone ruling over anyone else.

Q: You’ve been a working professional for ten years, and you haven’t gone off to the States, and I’m wondering a) why didn’t you go away—and it’s not a bad thing, but it’s something I’m always curious about, and b) your take on where the industry in this country is at right now.

A: As for the a part, why didn’t I go, I actually did spend a bit of time in the US about five years ago just to kind of explore and see what it was about, and I had worked on a few MOWs and projects that were popular in the US, and so I got some representation and spent some time down there, and strangely, on a personal level I didn’t really find—you’ve got be careful not to say anything bad about the United States—but the one thing I learned about myself is that I spent some time in LA, and I spent some time after that in Vancouver, and there was a stretch of time where it became apparent to me that the place I live, that the home I make for myself, is much more important than I ever thought it was. I just had this thought in my head that I would just pack up and go off to the States and never come back, and it didn’t really feel like the right fit for me, it didn’t feel like home for me, and I didn’t want to stay there and put in the time and do the grind—I mean, there’s always a bit of a grind involved, and I thought if I’m going to be doing that, then something felt more right about Toronto for me. That doesn’t mean I won’t ever go to the States, but as far as where I want to base myself is that I do want to stay based in Canada, and I think I had a renewed appreciation for Canada being away for a stretch of time, and I knew that I wanted to take that renewed energy and enthusiasm about the country that I live in and I really wanted to find myself working more in Canadian projects, and lo and behold not long after that I was doing almost entirely Canadian work, so it was kind of interesting how that played out. Since that time—I just love this country, just seeing politically what goes on around the world, I just really love where we are and I think that we have very smart, interesting writers and we have really strong, talented actors in this country, and I think that it’s unfortunate that we have such a small population because we have a lot to deliver, and I just want to be a part of that. The last couple of years, I’ve really just been putting my energy toward that, just really trying to contribute to making really good Canadian TV and film. To your second point about where the industry is heading, I think we’re in a really good place. We’ve got shows like Flashpoint that debuted simultaneously here in Canada and the US to great numbers, and the CBC had a couple of shows—our shows and The Border last year which again people responded really well to, and I think that it’s exciting and we need to keep doing it, we need to keep forcing and making it happen, and at the end of the day, audiences will watch what’s good, and if it’s good, people will talk about it, marketing will happen, people will pay attention, and before you know it, you’ll have a long-standing audience.

Q: One thing I always hear about is the lack of a star system in English Canada. Being as you’re shooting in Montréal with Sophie, I’m wondering if you have any different experience with that versus shooting in Toronto.

A: One thing I have noticed is that Québec in general has an enviable situation. I’ve never worked in Québec before this job, and I find I’m envious. They have a strong culture here, and it’s quite—insular in a way. It’s not necessarily that they’re watching things from France. Their audience watches their shows here, they make great TV, and they have great viewership, and they have a small star system and they really do have their own thing happening here in Montréal. Being from English Canada and knowing that just south of the border that people walk and talk and think and act quite similarly to the way that we do, so of course you have the option to watch a CBC programme or you could flip over to another channel and watch an NBC programme. So here, it’s just amazing—I didn’t realise it until I saw it first-hand that the practitioners here are really amazing, and the local culture really responds, and the they do have stars here and they have a completely amazing, singular TV and film world here that I didn’t realise existed. I wish we had a similar thing in English Canada, and again we have the US situation right there, and it’s about options. I guess if we could find a way to get patriotism into the eyes of the TV viewing audience it would be helpful. We’re really quick to criticise the US on their politics and their world relations but they don’t think about it when they flip over to watch CSI instead of The Border.

Q: I’m just wondering about some of your other writing projects.

A: I wrote a book sort of like my list of things I want to do in life, and it has yet to be published so it’s not something I go on at length about. I’ve written a bunch of screenplays with a writing partner I’ve been working with for a few years now, and we’ve had a few things in development, a couple of near-misses and a couple of “almosts,” but we actually have a film that should be getting made in early 2009 if all goes according to plan, which is like a feature-comedy, so that’s exciting. It just adds another variable, trying to manage three jobs plus writing scripts, it’s pretty interesting life, I don’t have a lot of time for anything else. But it’s a passion, and it’s something I’ve been working with for quite a while now. It’s funny—I used to think that acting was a difficult professional path, but writing is probably more so. I think you have to really love it to keep with it, and like anything over time, it will start to pay off. 

On how writing and acting intersect

Being a writer myself, I write a character and I get an idea in my head and somebody walks into the room and they’re a brilliant actor and they weren’t what I was thinking, it’s nothing against them, it’s just that you’re not right for the guy that I wrote. The thing is that’s really important for younger actors or people who are really struggling to understand that.