A cornhole tournament in Lindsay, a seniors’ home in Bobcaygeon, and a massage therapy clinic in Cobourg. These may not seem like they have much in common, but they all provide the setting for a new comedy series premiering in February that’s entirely written and directed by women and non-binary artists.
Produced by Firecracker Department and C’mon Mort Productions, I’m Also Here is comprised of six episodes, each telling an original everyday story set in a small Ontario town. Along with Lindsay, Bobcaygeon, and Cobourg in the Kawarthas, episodes were also filmed in the Ontario towns of Cornwall, Arnprior, and Brockville.
“I wanted to do something that’s not just a typical series of following one person’s journey through the series,” says Naomi Snieckus, showrunner and founder of Firecracker Department, who also wrote the three episodes set in the Kawarthas.
“I was really inspired by movies like Paris, je t’aime (“Paris, I Love You”), which is an anthology of love letters to Paris,” Snieckus adds. “These are anthologies, standalone episodes, but if you watch them all together, you can see the through-line. Audiences end up putting it together.”
Including Snieckus and co-creator Liesl Lafferty, the show was created with four writers, six directors, 11 cast members, and three directors of photography — all of whom are female or non-binary artists.
Carving out spaces for underrepresented voices has been at the heart of Firecracker Department since Snieckus launched it 10 years ago. Best known for playing Bobbi in the CBC Television sitcom Mr. D, Snieckus was in Los Angeles at the time and began a podcast to interview female and non-binary voices.
VIDEO: “I’m Also Here” trailer
“I was in comedy, so I was always being asked ‘What’s it like being a woman in comedy?'” Snieckus says. “That kind of question blew my mind. The podcast gave me a chance not only to shine a light on extraordinary women and non-binary filmmakers and artists, but it gave me an opportunity to build a community.”
I’m Also Here, the first show from Firecracker Department, was created with that community at the heart. Each experienced writer and director had mentees working with them side-by-side and learning from them.
“I can mentor people because I’ve had experience, but the person standing next to me with less experience can also be my mentor because they’re coming at it from a different angle,” says Snieckus. “I feel like my mentor hat goes from mentee to mentor all the time.”
Each of the six episodes in the series tells a different story and has a different cast, except for Snieckus who appears in each episode. Also linking the episodes together is a plastic bag that drifts between towns and narration by award-winning actress Kathryn Greenwood (Whose Line is it Anyway?, Ghosts).
Attentive viewers will also notice each town’s slogan is the first line of dialogue in its respective episode.
Before the episodes were written, the creative team did research on each community to find some compelling and unique characteristics that could be the centre of the stories.
That’s how the Lindsay episode came to be set at the very real cornhole festival, Cornapalooza.
In the episode, directed by Hannah Cheesman (The Boathouse), an indecisive bride finds herself forced to choose which friendships deserve a place beside her during her pre-wedding weekend.
“We filmed during that (at Cornapalooza) and it was hilarious,” says Snieckus. “We didn’t know that (Cornapalooza) existed, so we really got educated. It reflects the title ‘I’m Also Here,’ because a lot of these small towns might feel like they’re being outshone by the bigger towns, but they’re also really great and worth exploring.”
The Cobourg episode, which was directed by Winnie Jong (Law & Order Toronto: Criminal Intent) and filmed at The Healing Centre, follows anthropomorphized emotions as they battle for dominance, with Anxiety and Self-Doubt competing for control.
In Bobcaygeon, the episode is set in the lunchroom of the Bobcaygeon Senior Centre where a quirky caregiver risks everything to pursue a dream of becoming a stand-up comic, despite concern from co-workers that she’s not very funny. The episode was directed by Aleysa Young (Baroness Von Sketch Show).
The Arnprior episode was written by Snieckus’ co-creator Liesl Lafferty (Does Anybody Hear?), with the Cornwall episode written by Robin Duke (SCTV, Saturday Night Live), who also is among the episode’s cast.
The Brockville episode, whose cast include Peterborough’s own Linda Kash — best known as Canada’s original Philly Cream Cheese Angel and for her roles in Waiting for Guffman, Best in Show, Seinfeld, Fargo, and many more — was written by Wendy Litner (How to Buy a Baby).
“The thing that was really important to me as a showrunner was that each episode stood alone in style and in tone and voice,” Snieckus says. “Robin Duke wrote an episode that’s very Robin Duke-esque and Wendy Litner’s is very Wendy Litner. Everybody brought their own voices.”
With such an all-star cast and crew, it’s no surprise that for Snieckus, one of the best parts was seeing everyone “come together,” and she hopes another season will be on the horizon so she can do it all again soon.
“It was so much fun to do this kind of work where we go into the towns to discover what’s exciting,” she says. “At the end of the day, this show is about collaboration, community, humour and jokes. I really hope people have a good laugh and maybe they’re inspired, and they take their inspiration and move it into creative action.”
I’m Also Here premieres on Thursday (February 12) on Bell Fibe TV1, Bell Canada’s community TV network that delivers original content from local creators.
Firecracker Department will be hosting a launch party from 6 to 10 p.m. on February 12 at the El Mocambo in Toronto, which will include a special screening of three episodes, a chance to meet the creators and cast, and a warm-up set by transgender comedian Ava Val. Free tickets are available at www.eventbrite.ca/e/1980032471423.
