The Idea The Process The FAQ
The Idea
Where the hell did this idea come from
anyway???
Rick & Steve originated from the idea
that the recent burst in gay and lesbian characters on television has proven that gays and
lesbians have become recognized as a substantial consumer demographic. Writer/director Q.
Allan Brocka felt that these portrayals were always watered-down and the characters were
often presented as a bit too saintly. Granted, it’s a welcome departure from the
seedy and flamboyant stereotypes that have plagued us for years, but what if someone threw
all that history, context, and political correctness out the window and portrayed the gay
community as he knew (and loved) it… and what if he didn’t add water?
The original concept for the show was an 80 second
opening spot shot on Hi-8 video. It introduced the two main characters, Rick the Insatiable Bottom and Steve the Versatile Top. Because Allan was
fairly new to Los Angeles and did not know any actors (he would meet trillions in the
weeks to follow), he used plastic bricks (his favorite childhood toy and stars of his
earliest films) and did stop-motion animation in place of actual people.
The 80 second piece led to the script for the first
episode, where supporting characters were added. Allan decided to use the script to tackle
issues that he felt were often avoided in the gay community: the attitude towards AIDS in
the post-drug cocktail years, community bickering, and the struggle to achieve an image of
"normalcy" as defined by the heterosexual family structure.
There was something charming (and appropriate) about the
jerky animation and plastic smiles of the little plastic gay people, so he decided to keep
the stop-motion format and find actors to record the voices.
(versatile) TOP - (insatiable) BOTTOM
The Process
How the hell was this done???
Rick & Steve was painstakingly animated
on a rushed schedule over the course of three weeks. That's three weeks of twelve or
more hours a day of posing and clicking the tiny characters. To create the
jerky-bricky feel, each pose was held for 3 frames
The moving camera shots were the most
challenging. All dollies and rigging were constructed out of plastic bricks as well,
to give the film an quirky feel that would be organic to the world that Brocka had
created. Rather than motion control, animated camera moves were calculated by the
number of pegs the dolly would move with each frame.
The film was shot with a Sony Digital Video
camera, as it allowed maximum flexibility with lenses and physical placement. Even
this camera and its lenses were too big for some moving shots, and portions of the entire
set had to be built or demolished between frames to create the illusion of
continuous movement.
After filming, the footage was uploaded into
a MacIntosh G3 and edited just in time for its world premiere at Outfest Los Angeles.
Following Outfest, it was transferred to 16mm film in time for the Sundance Film
Festival.
(versatile) TOP - (insatiable) BOTTOM
The FAQ
Brocka tackles other frequently asked
questions...
Q: How many plastic pieces were used in creating the
film?
A: 4,821 pieces. You can guess what the 1 is.
Q: Are the Rick and Steve pieces dating in real life?
A: Absolutely not.
Q: It's so bleak, are you pro or anti gay?
A: I am so pro gay it'd scare you.
Q: Do you like the gay community?
A: I love the gay community, hell I've slept with a
substantial portion of it.
Q: Is the town basically a representation of West
Hollywood?
A: It's actualy more Capitol Hill, the WeHo of Seattle.
But I'm finding it's pretty much the same in every gay ghetto worldwide, hence the
plastic people, homes, and communities. Don't get me wrong though, I love gay
ghettos.
Q: Which character are you?
A: The easy answer of course is 'they're all a little bit of
me.' But here's the dirty breakdown. I'm anal-retentive like Rick. Whiney like
Steve. Sarcastic like Dana. Naive like Kirsten. Jaded like Chuck. Shallow like Evan.
And a supreme being like Pussy. Sound like a real winner, don't I? Yeah some
of them contradict, but sometimes so do I.
Q: Is it suddenly okay to make fun of the AIDS epidemic?
A: We've always made fun of things that torment us, I don't
see why should this be any different.
Q: Did you use real sperm?
A: No, it kept evaporating.
Q: Have you always been a pervert?
A: Yes.
