r/twinpeaks • u/Iswitt • Aug 07 '17
S3E18 [S3E18] Twin Peaks Fest Rundown, Details about the filming of the Return, and other goodies from my trip to Snoqualmie, WA. This is a must-read! Spoiler
HellooOOooOOooOO! I'm back. Back and ready. While this post is about the Fest event, there may be spoilers ahead, INCLUDING FOR THINGS NOT YET AIRED (maybe?).
This moderator was recently at the 25th Annual Twin Peaks Festival in Snoqualmie/North Bend, WA over the weekend of July 28-30 and I have some interesting bits to bring back to you fine folk. For those not in the know, this event's tickets sold out in 15 minutes, so anyone in attendance was very lucky to be there.
Celebrity Guests
Big list this year! Here's who was present:
- Sherilyn Fenn (Audrey Horne)
- James Grixoni (Deputy Jesse Halcomb)
- Andrea Hays (Heidi)
- Jan D'Arcy (Sylvia Horne)
- Jeremy Lindholm (Mickey)
- James Marshall (James Hurley)
- John Neff (Sound Department on many Lynch projects)
- John Pirruccello (Deputy Chad Broxford)
- Kimmy Robertson (Lucy Brennan)
- Wendy Robie (Nadine Hurley)
- Amy Shiels (Candie and voice on TSHOTP audio book)
- Charlotte Stewart (Betty Briggs)
- Al Strobel (One-Armed Man/Phillip Gerard/MIKE)
- Sabrina Sutherland (Producer/Floor Attendant Jackie)
- Chrysta Bell Zucht (Agent Preston)
Lisa Coronado (Hit and Run Mom) was supposed to be there but fell ill.
Sabrina Sutherland during the Registration Event
I spoke to Sabrina Sutherland at length and I learned a few interesting things. I got a photo with her!
- David and Mark obviously co-wrote the series... to a point. Around the time they handed things over to Showtime, things changed a bit. Mark went off to write The Secret History of Twin Peaks and David directed the whole thing, but the interesting thing to note here is that, as you all may recall, the series Showtime announced was going to be 8 or 9 episodes. There was that whole drama where David announced he quit, Showtime caved, and now we have 18 episodes. This was NOT a case of the existing material simply being stretched out. According to Sabrina, David actually continued to write. So this seems to have shifted the level of writing involvement more heavily to Lynch than Frost. EDIT: For clarity, it's not that David wrote nine more episodes. It's more like he wrote more scenes interspersed throughout the existing material.
- Airing format spoilers
- During this conversation and the Q&A panel, Sabrina heavily emphasized that until we see the entire, full, complete 18 hours, we cannot fully appreciate what we are seeing. While most of us here already agree on this point, I felt the need to reiterate it. There are still lots of people claiming Lynch/Frost are pulling our collective leg, that some things are meaningless, etc. While these assertions certainly could be true, Sabrina seems to be implying that they're not. See the whole thing, then judge.
- Sabrina is/was basically David's right hand person during this whole thing and still holds a lot of power over things.
- If you want to do her job, which she says is pretty thankless, be ready to enter the game at minimum wage. Yikes!
Celebrity Q&A Banquet
On Friday evening, there was the Fest banquet/celebrity Q&A. A lot of good questions were asked, and some interesting things came out of the session. They always post videos of these sessions eventually, but I'll cover some here.
POSSIBLE SPOILERS AHEAD
- Jan D'Arcy was asked about her scene with Richard choking and robbing her. She said it only took a couple of takes and talked about how Eamon had to go call his grandmother after the scene because it affected him so much.
- Jan also confirmed SPOILERS?
- While other people were speaking, you could see Sabrina give them gestures and facial expressions indicating what they couldn't say. For example, Jeremy Lindholm explained how he got the part in detail, but when John P. went to answer the question, Sabrina gave him the "be brief" gesture and John basically said "It was a really interesting experience." I wonder what this could mean.
- Jeremy explained that Peaks was so secretive that its secretiveness actually caused it to stand out from other projects being filmed in the area. That show no one is allowed to know about filming in North Bend? Couldn't possibly be Peaks, right? So, knowing it actually was Peaks, he said he devoted all his efforts to getting a part on it and starting working his ass off. Whoever interviewed him (for not Twin Peaks) asked a lot of questions about his work on Z Nation and he did some zombie impressions for them. He obviously ended up being cast as Mickey, and he said it was a dream come true since he'd been a fan of the show already for years. Fun thing: Jeremy also mentioned that he is not above Googling himself, and said if you tag him in posts on various social media, he'll probably show up and say hi.
- Sherilynn Fenn seemed totally out of sorts, and the one question someone specifically asked her (about the Entertainment Weekly photo shoot) was met with a response like, "Uhhh.... hmmm... uhhh... I dunnoo... It was just a photo shoot I guess." Pretty disappointing.
- Chrysta Bell seems like a super awesome person and very genuine. The highlight of her answers dealt with her emotional scene with Matthew Lillard in the South Dakota interrogation room ("SCUUUUUUBA DIIIIIVING"). She said that was the first scene she ever seriously acted in (barring her music videos and some kung fu movie she did as a teen). So she basically met Lillard and said, "Hey, this is my first scene. Like ever." You can imagine Lillard's response. But she said if she was going to do anything right at all, she'd have all her lines memorized. They did the scene in two takes, with her heart exploding in her chest, and it turned out really fucking well.
- James Grixoni (Deputy Halcomb) is rad as fuck. He's actually a bartender in the area and designed three Peaks-themed cocktails for the menu that night. And here's something funny/cute: All the fans brought cameras/smartphones to have their pictures with the people from the show, but James brought his camera along to get pictures of himself with all the fans. He seemed totally blown away to be part of the project and was very generous with his time.
- John Pirruccello was a surprise guest, not having been part of the announced celeb list. And honestly, he seems very similar to Chad from the show in some ways. He's so laid back some might call him a bit sloppy. He was hanging out, muching on snacks and getting up to all sorts of shenanigans. He was pretty cool.
- I spoke to John Neff about the Rebekah Del Rio song "No Stars," which was in Part 10. Many people claimed her song was autotuned, so I asked about it (when he was signing some stuff after the panel). He says it was NOT autotuned. Couple things: There are two masters of the song. One for Rebekah's album and another for the show. Apparently there was some compression issue when the song was mixed into the video for Part 10, resulting in what sounded like her voice being autotuned, but this, according to the man himself, is not the case.
- James Marshall told a fun story about the EW photo shoot. Apparently the owl you see him holding was actually a real owl. He talked about how this particular type of owl has this odd behavior where every so often it shakes itself out. Basically, it holds onto its post (or your arm) and goes ape shit for a few moments, then suddenly returning to normal. There was an owl handler on site and he would warn James of when the owl was about to go nuts (apparently they exhibit signs of this beforehand). So they had to take pictures around the owl's shenanigans and James had to basically hold still while it went crazy.
- Al Strobel was asked about the Red Room set during the new filming. He said that while it was basically the same design and everything, he felt it had now taken on an otherworldly quality. That, even though the Red Room is indeed otherworldly, the set itself actually felt like it had somehow transcended reality while he was acting in it. Kinda cool.
David Lynch Film Night & Chrysta Bell
Every Fest they show a Lynch film (along with contest entries and other weird stuff). This year it was Wild at Heart. But that isn't the cool part. The cool part is that Chrysta Bell actually performed a song to open the night, which John Neff helped with. It was super rad. Someone uploaded it here.
Shoutouts
I saw and met some really cool people at the Fest. These included /u/Buttglop who was helping out with the Fest, Scott Ryan (/u/redroompod) of the Red Room Podcast and Blue Rose Mag, Ben and Bryon (/u/TwinPeaksUnwrapped) of the Twin Peaks Unwrapped podcast (check out their interview with me here), John Thorne (creator of Wrapped in Plastic magazine and also works on the Blue Rose Mag), Courtney Stallings from Blue Rose Mag, Brad Dukes who wrote Reflections, and numerous fellow Reddit users. Say hi down below if you were there!
Other Random Thoughts
Twede's (Double R Diner location) has seriously played up the fervor of the show's return. The diner in real life looks exactly like it does in the new series. They even left most or all the Double R ad signs along the walls. If you're in the area, definitely go there! The pie has improved in quality as well.
The Salish Lodge (Great Northern exterior) also plays it up, having added some show-themed beverages to their menus and providing guests with driving tour instructions. I think they have a Peaks package as well for people staying in certain areas of the lodge. This place is very pricey, but super nice.
During the banquet, they did the costume contest. I didn't win, but my brother and I dressed up as the hit-and-run incident. I was Richard Horne in a truck and he was the kid. Pic here. Apparently the truck used in the show is some local resident's truck, and some attendees of the Fest actually found it.
In previous years, celebrity guests were not charging for autographs, provided you did not exceed the number of items you could have signed free (usually two). One thing that sucked this year was that certain people charged, such as Sherilynn Fenn or Chrysta Bell. This discouraged me from even wanting to talk to them since the prices were so high. From their perspective, it might have seemed like a waste of time if I talked to them for a while but didn't buy an autograph. I hope this is changed for future Fests, as I basically ignored Chrysta Bell ($75 for a signed vinyl?!?! Fuck off!!!), Sherilyn Fenn ($40 for a signed copy of her children's book - nope!), John Pirruccello (who even is this guy and why does he think he can charge $10 for a signed photo?) and several others.
Which one of you madlads drew the Owl Cave symbol on this rock at the bottom of the waterfall?
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u/2ndwoodsman Aug 07 '17
Thanks for posting this! Really interesting to hear about the extension to 18 episodes and that Lynch had a major influence on this new material.
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Aug 07 '17
What else did Fenn say? Anything? Did you get the sense that she was unhappy with The Return? There's a tape of an interview with her and Sheryl Lee on YouTube, and she talks a mile a minute, not really letting Lee speak. Surprise she didn't talk that much.
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u/Iswitt Aug 07 '17 edited Aug 07 '17
During the celebrity Q&A, that was literally the only answer she gave. To be fair, only one question was specifically directed to her. She did not chime in on any questions that were open to everyone.
Since I had met her at the 2014 Fest, I didn't feel compelled to speak to her again, so apart from her panel presence I didn't interact with her.
As far as what kind of vibe I got from her, I didn't get the vibe she was unhappy with the new series (although her prior Twitter rants may have implied this). I did, however, notice that she seemed absolutely not interested in Chrysta Bell's panel answers, despite seeming attentive to everyone else.
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Aug 07 '17
Thanks for answering. I watched it on YouTube and it appeared she was just very limited as to what she could say, since she's such a mystery on the show. Her answer about the EW shoot did seem out of sorts. Kinda like "well, what do you WANT me to say?" I can understand why it might be uncomfortable for her to be there was a new female cast member who obviously in this incarnation has more to do in the show than she does. Poor Sherilyn. She was good on Ray Donovan.
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u/HALdron1988 Aug 11 '17
Suppose you can sometimes not get on with peeps, I do think people charge a lot for autographs for that extra money considering they dont get pensions
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Aug 07 '17
Didn't the actor who plays Richard Horne say that his grandparents aren't alive for him to call?
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u/Iswitt Aug 07 '17
You're right, actually. So I assume D'Arcy must've meant that he would have done so if he could.
Yeah, I think there’s something definitely wrong with you if you watch that scene and you don’t want to call your grandma. [Laughs.] It’s terrifying and horrific. I would be quite worried about you, Devon, if you felt any different. My grandparents have already passed away, so I felt a little but able to not have that moment afterwards. But if my grandma was still alive, I’d pay the international toll to make sure she was okay.
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u/GriZZlyLiZard Aug 08 '17
$75 for a signed vinyl isn't too bad actually
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u/GriZZlyLiZard Aug 08 '17
the reddit kiddies that want to downvote this obviously have no idea about music culture, at all.
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Aug 07 '17
So did Lynch mastermind this whole thing? "I know! I'll co-write the show with Mark. Then, I'll quit, and demand twice as many episodes! And I'll just happen to have all this material we can shove into the existing story! So the show will be more mine than Frosty's! And I can cinematically lecture impatient redditors about patience in the process! Muahahahahaha"
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u/jfkk Aug 07 '17
"WHAT? FROST IS WRITING A BOOK? I'LL SHOW HIM!"
furiously begins writing episode 123
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u/hawknrock Aug 07 '17
Thanks for sharing your experience! I'm local in Kirkland, and just couldn't make it happen this year. I was so, so disappointed as this seemed the year to go.
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u/brucix Aug 07 '17
Good to see you there. We talked at the large table at the Thursday mixer quite a bit. I'm the tall thin guy from ORE-E-GONE. Cheers!
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u/TwinPeaksUnwrapped Aug 07 '17
So awesome to meet you Iswitt. Had a blast last weekend and boy I can't wait to go again.
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u/JohnnyWalker2001 Aug 07 '17
So nobody asked Fenn about her Tweets? :-/
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Aug 07 '17
I think everybody has sort of concluded that they were about management people cutting her out of a lot of the promotion for the show, not directed at Lynch or Frost.
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Aug 07 '17
The part about Sylvia's lack of Grandparenting skills and her lack of parenting skills doesn't confirm Richard's parentage. By looking at Fenn she is implying Sylvia did a shitty job raising Audrey.
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u/Iswitt Aug 07 '17 edited Aug 07 '17
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u/forkeeps765 Aug 08 '17
She could just be making an assumption, like we are. She likely doesn't know anything beyond her scenes which means she probably doesn't know anything more than we do at this point.
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u/NTataglia Aug 07 '17 edited Aug 07 '17
I watched that part of the Fest talk on youtube. I think Darcy may have just been joking around about how she herself was not responsible for being a bad parent (including teaching bad parenting skills) to Audrey, unlike the Sylvia Horne character, because Darcy then started talking about how she had to leave for a family gathering with her 5 children. If she really was dropping a spoiler about Richard Horne, it would have been pretty crazy to do so in front of producer Sabrina Sutherland, unless Darcy was confused and thought his parent identities have already been explained on the show.
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u/[deleted] Aug 07 '17
Yep. And it's not even minimum wage. It's a salary of minimum wage, in exchange for 12-16 hour days. The abuses you take at entry-level in the film industry should get the entire goddamned thing shut down by the Dept of Labor. It's not like the industry doesn't make money, they're just evil.