girl play - wordpress.com...updated 1.15.13 4 synopsis girl play tells a story of four feminine...
TRANSCRIPT
Girl Play A New Orleans Web Series
Season One Press Kit
Updated 1.15.13 2
Table of Contents What is Girl Play? 3
Background 4
Synopsis 5
Character Study 6-8
Starring Cast 6
Recurring Cast 8
Press Features 9
About the Writers 10
Frequently Asked Questions 11-12
About the Show 11
Acting, Music, & Design Submissions 11-12
Media Inquiries 12
Miscellaneous 12
Show Credits 13
Contact Information 14
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What is Girl Play? Aryka Randall, creator of TheFabFemme.com, is excited to introduce Girl Play, a compelling new lesbian web
series based in New Orleans, Louisiana. Girl Play tells the story of four feminine lesbian women who are searching for true love in the ‘Big Easy.’ Olivia Black (portrayed by new-comer Katherine ReJouis), a driven New Orleans twenty-something, and her group of gal pals work to form successful, though sometimes turbulent, relationships while maintaining their careers and independence. With her friends Tiffany (Tiffany Anderson), Marty (Andrea Price), April (Leslie Bohorquéz), and April’s girlfriend LJ (Kia Stephens), Olivia and the women will take viewers on relatable journeys, highlighting stories of lesbian love, deceit, political hardships, and self-acceptance. Girl Play will feature eight 15-20 minute episodes and an hour long finale following the women as they focus on their exhilarating careers while finding love and most importantly, their own identities. The series will aim to end common lesbian stereotypes and showcase diversity among feminine lesbian women; it will also initiate dialogue on hot topics in the LGBT community such as femme invisibility and gay marriage.
With a colorful cast of players, Girl Play will provide an accurate and entertaining portrayal of life as successful lesbian women of color. Additionally, the series will aim to shed light on the true southern lesbian lifestyle which is commonly overlooked by mainstream and independent media alike. Randall believes, “Critics will say this web series is a hybrid of The L Word and Sex and the City with a southern twist.” In a short time, Girl Play has established a dedicated following via social media websites such as Twitter, Tumblr, and YouTube. Since its creation in June 2012, the Girl Play YouTube channel has amassed nearly 60 views of its promotional content*. With an 85% female viewing audience, of that number 28.7% are ages 25-34 with an additional 14.4% being from the ages of 35-44. Many creative entities are collaborating to make Girl Play a viable success. Established LGBT hip-hop duo Kin4Life (featured on Logo TV and MTV Europe) has taken on the assignment of creating the series’ theme song. Additional music has been contributed by performers such as New Orleans dance artist Vockah Redu, Logo TV artist Solomon, DJ Rhiannon, and a host others from various genres. Clothing and accessories will be provided by notable designers such as Alicia Hardesty (contestant on Season 11 of Project Runway) for Original Tomboy, Los Angeles fashion house Lé D, Toronto custom jewelry & apparel maker G Fox Gems, and Kate Ross (accessory designer for Beyoncé’s “Love on Top” music video) for Distinguished Cravat. Join us on our journey to tell a story from the femme perspective and get to know these ladies in our Official Trailer. The series premiere episode of Girl Play will air January 28
thj, 2013.
*As of January 1st, 2013
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Synopsis
Girl Play tells a story of four feminine lesbian women who are searching for true love in the ‘Big Easy.’ Narrative character Olivia Black and her group of gal pals have had a turbulent time attempting to form successful relationships while maintaining careers and independence in New Orleans, Louisiana. Olivia (Katherine ReJouis, pictured left) is a star publicist who owns and operates her own PR firm that specializes in LGBTQ clientele.
Stylist April (Leslie Bohorquéz, pictured left), a Midwest native with Creole and Latin roots, is making her way back on the NOLA scene with her girlfriend Lindsey, “LJ” Jones (Kia Stephens) at her side. Electrical engineer Marty (Andrea Price, pictured right) is a “ladies lady” amongst the New Orleans elite who will only look a
woman’s way if she has a Hermès Birkin bag. The group is rounded out by Tiffany (Tiffany Anderson, pictured left), a bright young law student who can’t seem to shake dating women who do not match her intellect and great qualities. Each character will take viewers on a journey they can
relate to highlighting stories of lesbian love, deceit, political hardships, and self-acceptance.
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Background
Girl Play is the brainchild of Aryka Randall (pictured below), creator of
TheFabFemme.com, and is based loosely on
her life and those of her close friends.
Some of the show characters were further
inspired by those from her “Confessions of
a Femme” short story series. The aim of
this series is to provide entertainment as
well as to end common lesbian stereotypes
and showcase diversity among feminine
lesbian women, as well as initiate dialogue
on hot topics in the LGBTQ community like
femme invisibility and gay marriage.
Randall, the cast, and crew hope Girl Play
takes the platform of LGBTQ issues to new heights.
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Character Study Meet the characters of Girl Play. Each of these ladies brings something special to the table
and has their own intriguing story to tell.
Starring Cast Olivia Black (portrayed by Katherine ReJouis): Olivia Black is a 27 year
old publicist that would give Samantha Jones a run for her money. With Louisiana roots and a California upbringing, Creole beauty Olivia relocated to New Orleans to attend college and start her own LGBT public relations firm. Her career is successful and her agency is constantly evolving. There’s just one problem: She can’t seem to get her love life together because she’s still hung up on her ex Tara. Will she ever get out of her own way and allow herself to find a new lady
love? Only time will tell…
Tiffany Landry (portrayed by Tiffany Anderson): Tiffany is a smart, sweet, good looking 25 year old lesbian from New Orleans who is in law school at Tulane University. Tiffany has a tough time dating women who are on her same mental and financial level. She always ends up playing mom and supporting her girlfriends instead of enjoying her relationships with them. Tiffany’s mission is to pass the bar and find a stable woman, who isn’t 100% codependent, to settle down with.
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Marty Gastineau (portrayed by Andrea Price): Marty is a 28 year old electrical engineer from New York who works overseas most of the year. After graduating from NYU and attending grad school in New Orleans, she makes NOLA her home when she’s stateside. Marty is a ladies lady and has no problem finding women to pamper her and show her
affection. What’s Marty’s quirk? She can’t seem to get the pretty women to keep away after she’s entertained them for a month or two. Marty is always in lesbo drama and can’t seem to figure out what the “one” might look like. One thing is for sure, if she’s not carrying a Prada bag, Marty isn’t interested.
April Broussard (portrayed by Leslie Bohorquéz): April Broussard, a 28 year old stylist who recently moved back from the Midwest. She and her girlfriend LJ are living the All-American gay family dream: They have the house, the car, and perhaps they’ll even have the marriage too. Unfortunately, their relationship didn’t start out as stable as it is now and sometimes, the past still haunts April. The only way these two will make it to the altar is if April learns to trust LJ and if LJ learns to trust herself.
Lindsay "LJ" Jones (portrayed by Kia Stephens): LJ, a 32 year old New Orleans native, is a reformed Playgirl who is now happy and settled with her girlfriend April. She and April are seemingly living the dream life but as LJ climbs the corporate ladder, their true happiness will be tested.
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Recurring Cast
Gabe Landry (portrayed by Bryson Richard): Gabe is a 21-year-old ball of energy who is Olivia's assistant and also Tiffany's cousin. With his quick wit and call-it-like-he-sees-it attitude, Gabe keeps the ladies on their toes and is always there for them to lean on.
Whitney (portrayed by Farrell "Mookie" Lockett): Whitney is the epitome of everyone's worst nightmare of a girlfriend. As the ex-girlfriend of Tiffany, one would think some of her productive qualities would have rubbed off on Whitney...WRONG! Beyond her good looks and charm, Whitney continues to manipulate and mooch her way through the hearts and designer wallets of the women of New Orleans.
Tara (portrayed by Rachel Lockhart): Tara is the ex-girlfriend of Olivia, who although is one of Tulane Medical Center's most budding minds, is a bit aloof to her trifling personal behavior. The scrubs and stethoscope do not keep Tara from lacking the common sense to recognize a good thing once it's gone.
Renee (portrayed by Tamara Thorpe): Fitness instructor Renee is one of NOLA’s most eligible bachelorette’s yet one of the City’s most mysterious women. As vivacious as she is secretive, Renee will impact and influence the ladies of the core group in ways no one will expect.
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Press Features Since its conception in June 2012, Girl Play has had the honor of being featured in many media publications across the nation and internationally. Distinct honors include:
Rave reviews from several media entities such as ATFierce.com and Studology 101
Received international press from entities such as LGBT Underground (Great Britain) and Queer Magazine Online (Sweden)
Featured as AfterEllen.com's "Video of the Day"
Below are the media entities that have helped expose Girl Play to the masses. For a detailed list of articles and links, please visit www.GirlPlayTV.com/PRESS
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About the Writers
Aryka Randall is a 26 year old media mogul in the making from San Diego, California. After relocating to Louisiana in 2004, Randall became active in her local LGBTQ community. It was here she saw the need for a more diversified representation of topics relating to the LGBTQ in the media. She decided to create a blog that would cater to a number of demographics infusing her passion for blogging, writing, and public relations. Since its inception, TheFabFemme.com has become widely popular creating a new avenue for African-American LBGTQ women by bringing visibility to lesbian women of color and putting them into main stream media.
With Girl Play, Randall works to unite women of color by creating an online web series that promotes positive images of African-American and Hispanic-American women. In the future, she hopes to continue writing and to inspire young women by excelling for greatness through positivity while maintaining a healthy work ethic. She currently resides in Baton Rouge, Louisiana with her two dogs Molly and Panda.
Neira Hayden is a 24 year old Hahnville, Louisiana native and avid screenwriter. Hayden, an English Major and Cinema Studies Minor, was approached by Randall to help give Girl Play a broader technical view, being a Louisiana native and a heterosexual woman of color. As a woman with deep southern roots, Hayden’s perspective adds culture and balance to the rich storylines indicative of a series based in New Orleans. In her own words she possesses “years of over-the-top life experiences, and extensive experience in performing arts,” which strengthen the plot lines of Girl Play even more. In addition to Girl Play, Hayden is developing her own series entitled Smokin’ Diaries. Hayden currently resides in Lafayette, Louisiana with her loving fiancé, Nate; the couple is awaiting the arrival of their first child this spring.
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Frequently Asked Questions About the Show
Q: How did Girl Play come into fruition? A: Girl Play is the brainchild of LGBTQ Blogger of www.TheFabFemme.com and Media Personality Aryka Randall. Randall saw the need for a more in-depth depiction of feminine women of color in the media and decided to act on it. She posed a question to her over 15,000 Twitter followers and simply asked, “Would watch a web-series primarily about femmes?” and received an overwhelming response. From there, she teamed with writing partner Neira Hayden to make Girl Play a reality.
Q: Is Girl Play based off of Randall’s real life experiences? A: Loosely! Girl Play is actually based off of TheFabFemme.com’s short story series “Confessions of a Femme.” The 30+ installments written by Randall were inspired by her real life group of friends as they were coming into their own careers and adult identities after college in Louisiana.
Q: So is Girl Play a reality series or is it scripted? A: Girl Play is an entirely scripted series. All characters are fictional and their likeness to any entity real or fictitious is purely coincidental.
Q: When will Girl Play premiere, where, and how often? Also, is there a price to watch it? A: Girl Play will premiere via their YouTube channel at www.YouTube.com/GirlPlayTV Monday, January 28
th,
2013. The program will be shown on a bi-weekly basis. There is no cost to view Girl Play; the webisodes are absolutely free to the public.
Q: How many episodes of Girl Play will there be? A: There will be a total of nine episodes in Season1; eight 15-20 minute episodes with a 30-45 minute long season finale episode. Q: 15-20 minutes? Why so short?
A: Most shows that occupy a 30-minutes timeslot on television are no longer than 22 minutes without commercials. The writers at Girl Play hold to this standard as well for storyline and production consistency.
Acting, Music, & Design Submissions Q: I am an actor/artist/film crew worker and I am not LGBTQ identifying and/or not a person of color. May I still submit to work with Girl Play? A: Yes! Girl Play is an equal opportunity entity and does not discriminate against sex, race, ethnicity, orientation, age, or religion. We boast a diverse group of individuals aboard our team and are welcome to anyone who shares our vision in making Girl Play a success.
Q: May I submit my music to Girl Play? A: We welcome all genres of music to enhance the quality and diversity of our show. Music must however be tasteful and not viewed as derogatory to any group or community. Submissions can be sent to [email protected].
Q: I am an apparel/jewelry designer and would like to submit pieces to Girl Play? How do I do that? A: Contact us at [email protected] to tell us what you would like to showcase on Girl Play. From there we will see how your pieces fit with our character(s) and/or storyline, and then proceed further.
Q: I am a writer and would like to submit my script or story idea to Girl Play? May I? A: NO! Girl Play does not accept any unsolicited materials which may include but is not limited to scripts, plot lines, and story elements. We encourage you to instead create your own entity to share your creative work
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Q: I am an actor/actress and would like to audition for a role in Girl Play! Is it too late? A: The Season 1 cast of Girl Play is already set, however we will be casting for Season 2 in Late Spring 2013. Casting call information will be posted prominently on our website and social media accounts.
Q: Do I have to live in the New Orleans area to be a part of Girl Play? A: Starring (all episodes) and recurring (various episodes but pertinent to the story arc) players are not required to live in the New Orleans area. Extra or minor character roles however are required to be in the Southeastern Louisiana region or be able to make their own accommodations to be there during filming.
Media/Event Inquiries Q: How do I receive the latest press information from Girl Play? A: Please email your entity’s contact information to be added to the Girl Play media list. You will then receive all press releases and updates which we usually mail out about once a week. Press releases emails include the release in both Microsoft Word and PDF formats, with the text embedded in the body of the email, and high-resolution photographs related to the release. If you would like any back-issued press releases, please email us at [email protected].
Q: I operate a blog/website/media entity. May I feature Girl Play? A: Yes! Our press allies are our STRONGEST allies and help expose Girl Play to new audiences. All features are posted on our website at www.GirlPlayTV.com/PRESS so make sure you link us back the article Q: Great! May I use photographs of your cast members in my feature?
A: Yes! Our Media Team can provide you with high-resolution pictures of the requested cast/crew members for your story. Please ensure the proper photographer credit is identified in your article.
Q: I would like to interview a cast/crew member of Girl Play? How may I do that? A: Contact Amy Duncan at [email protected] to discuss setting up an interview. Your media entity will be provided with all vetting materials on the cast/crew member. Interviews may be conducted via email, phone, video chat, or in person.
Q: I own an event/production company and would like for the cast/crew to make an appearance at my function. How do I make that happen? A: Girl Play is always looking to venture out into new markets and meet new supporters! To book a cast/crew member for your event, please contact [email protected].
Q: I see many of your cast/crew have active ventures in the media/fashion/music/art industry outside of Girl Play. May I contact them about a feature/event that is not Girl Play related? A: Yes! A part of what makes our cast so great is they possess many diverse talents. If you are not able to locate there contact information on your own, please contact Amy Duncan at [email protected] to put you in touch with the cast/crew member.
Miscellaneous Q: I fully support what Girl Play is hoping to do for LGBTQ Women of Color in the media. May I volunteer or donate money or items to help Girl Play? A: We humbly welcome any donation of time, services, or monetary contribution from our supporters. All things provided are put directly back into production and enhance the quality of Girl Play. To inquire about how to donate, please contact [email protected].
Q: I have a question but it was not answered here. Where may I ask my question? A: You may email all questions, comments, and concerns to [email protected]. For all non-media related/time sensitive inquiries, response time can be expected within 24-48 for most questions.
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Show Credits Starring Cast
Character Actor Olivia Black……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..Ava ReJouis Tiffany Landry…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………Tiffany Anderson Marty Gastineau………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….Drè Price April Broussard……………………………………………………………………………………………………………….Leslie Bohorquéz Lindsey “LJ” Jones………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….Kia Stephens
Recurring Cast Gabe Landry……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….Bryson Richard Whitney………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………Farrell “Mookie” Lockett Tara…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….…………….Rachel Lockhart Renee………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..Tamara Thorpe
Crew Creator: Aryka Randall
Writers: Neira Hayden & Aryka Randall Director: David May & JonGunnar Gylfason
Producer: David May Production Company: Sarsaparilla Productions
Cinematographer: JonGunnar Gylfason Executive Producer: Aryka Randal
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Contact Information
www.GirlPlayTV.com
www.twitter.com/girlplaytv
www.facebook.com/girlplaytv
www.youtube.com/girlplaytv