Speaker 1: Hi everyone, I'm Kitty Kirk and this is next question.
Speaker 1: You know, when I told my team I was interviewing
Speaker 1: today's guest, they went nuts. Winda Brunson just seems to
Speaker 1: have that effect on people. She's the creator, writer, producer,
Speaker 1: and star of Abbot Elementary, a workplace mockumentary following a
Speaker 1: group of determined teachers and one slightly less motivated but
Speaker 1: hilarious principle at of Philadelphia Public School. Guys, I need
Speaker 1: a new rug. Mine is officially done. Me too. I
Speaker 1: shook mine out and all of the asthma kids had
Speaker 1: to go to the nurse's office. Yeah, mine's busted. And
Speaker 1: he can't class up a rug like he kind of
Speaker 1: couch with a nice quota plastic. He would it do?
Speaker 1: Baby booth? Which I think about this low film corrobborading
Speaker 1: here distracting makes our jobs harder, but exciting. Were about
Speaker 1: to be on TV because they are covering undefunded, poorly
Speaker 1: managed public schools in America. No press is bad press, barb.
Speaker 1: Look at mel Gibson, still thriving in front of the camera.
Speaker 1: Quinta plays Janine, one of the newer, more relentlessly enthusiastic
Speaker 1: teachers Behind the scenes, Quinta has created something unique, a
Speaker 1: network sitcom that manages to authentically portray the real world
Speaker 1: struggles of public school educators, and it's resonating. Viewership of
Speaker 1: the show, which is in its second season, is breaking
Speaker 1: records for ABC, and it's piling up all kinds of accolades.
Speaker 1: For this year's Critics Choice Awards, Abbott has more nominations
Speaker 1: than any other TV show it starts or benefiting too,
Speaker 1: including Sheryl Lee Ralph, who's getting some long overdue Recognitionminin
Speaker 1: Dane Species. You might have seen her emmy speech. It
Speaker 1: brought the room to its feet and meet a tears song.
Speaker 1: I am a mana, I'm antist and not be. I
Speaker 1: caught up with Quinta at the tail end of her
Speaker 1: busy production schedule, and she was understandably beat. She spoke
Speaker 1: to me during a break between writing sessions in Los Angeles.
Speaker 1: It must be so fun to be in a writer's room.
Speaker 1: My daughter is a writer for a show called The Boys,
Speaker 1: which is on Amazon. Yeah, yeah, and you know, and
Speaker 1: I hear her. She does a lot of her stuff
Speaker 1: on Zoom. But I've always wanted maybe when I come
Speaker 1: to l a. I'll be able to. Maybe you'll let
Speaker 1: me sit in on your writer's room. I come to
Speaker 1: l A for a month in the winter to see
Speaker 1: my daughter to work, you know, remotely, because I hate
Speaker 1: cold weather. I just have to get out in New
Speaker 1: York City and um, it must be so fun to
Speaker 1: be in a writer's room. It is, um, you know,
Speaker 1: just like any other working experience. It can vary, you know,
Speaker 1: it depends on what room you're in, where you are. Yes,
Speaker 1: so my daughter has been in some not so fun rooms, right,
Speaker 1: it happens. But I bet The Boys is actually a
Speaker 1: pretty fun one. I bet that's a great show with
Speaker 1: great producers. I think that our room is made to
Speaker 1: be a really enjoyable environment. Um. I have two wonderful
Speaker 1: co producers, Justin how Pert and Patrick Schumacher, who really
Speaker 1: help facilitate such a healthy room. I I know, for
Speaker 1: me personally, I always wanted to have an enjoyable room
Speaker 1: where people can feel comfortable speaking, can we can brainstorm easily,
Speaker 1: We can be efficient as well as exciting. But we
Speaker 1: just we have a great room. One of my favorite
Speaker 1: thing about our room is we started ten every day
Speaker 1: and we're done typically before four o'clock. That's not that's nice.
Speaker 1: My favorite part is you know, we get to go home,
Speaker 1: so that's exciting. I would think it would be so
Speaker 1: important to have good chemistry in a writer's room and
Speaker 1: a good environment where people can riff and have fun
Speaker 1: and you know, and I don't know, it's it must
Speaker 1: be the strange alchemy because you have to be respectful,
Speaker 1: but you also have to feel free to throw out
Speaker 1: ideas and not be afraid. Right. Yeah, Like I said,
Speaker 1: like in a healthy room, you get to do all
Speaker 1: of those things. You get to throw out out ideas,
Speaker 1: you get to collaborate, you could be respectful of others.
Speaker 1: I think the key to a healthy room is respect,
Speaker 1: you know, respecting the other writers who are in the
Speaker 1: room with you, their point of view. Um, we just
Speaker 1: had a conversation about the episode we're watching. And although
Speaker 1: it is my show, and I think in a lot
Speaker 1: of other cases people would say, well what I say goes.
Speaker 1: I'm always it's not just open to but grateful to
Speaker 1: be able to hear the thoughts of the writers and
Speaker 1: see making sure that we're all on the same page,
Speaker 1: that we're feeling heard their ideas make the show better.
Speaker 1: So you have to maintain an environment where people feel
Speaker 1: comfortable sharing. And for me, my writing process goes all
Speaker 1: the way back to improv, which is the rules of
Speaker 1: yes ending instead of no butt. So it's always how
Speaker 1: can we build off of each other? Um, how can
Speaker 1: we hear each other out and come to the something
Speaker 1: that makes the entire room comfortable? And if it doesn't,
Speaker 1: let's talk about why and and really get in there
Speaker 1: and make something good. So I that's that's an important
Speaker 1: part of a writer's room, and when that writer's room
Speaker 1: is operating off of that is such a good experience
Speaker 1: like that, But it takes a lot of humility for
Speaker 1: someone like you to be willing to take feedback from writers.
Speaker 1: And what if you feel like you know you want it,
Speaker 1: you're you're open to it, but you totally disagree. I mean, ultimately,
Speaker 1: it is your name on the show, so you do
Speaker 1: you just say, you know, how do you how do
Speaker 1: you handle that? Like that's a really interesting observation and idea.
Speaker 1: But I like it the way I get it, you know,
Speaker 1: I just stay honest. I do. I love to hear
Speaker 1: how everyone feels and very often my mind will be changed.
Speaker 1: But every once in a while, say Nope. This is
Speaker 1: what makes it my show to me, and if I
Speaker 1: were to waiver on this, then it wouldn't feel like
Speaker 1: my show or something that I'm comfortable having my name
Speaker 1: put on, and vice versa, if the thing were to
Speaker 1: Most of the time you're getting into that discussion about
Speaker 1: something that might blow up, you know, something that might
Speaker 1: get get audience feedback that is not necessar saily great.
Speaker 1: We haven't had that happen in it with Avid, thank goodness, UM,
Speaker 1: but you know, every now and then it happens. We
Speaker 1: had a charter school storyline this season that UM upset
Speaker 1: a few people who who work in charter schools, And
Speaker 1: because that was my decision, I was able to say, yeah,
Speaker 1: I own that, Yeah you're upset, and that's okay. I
Speaker 1: made that decision. Uh, and I take that fully on
Speaker 1: my back because that is what I wanted to happen
Speaker 1: in the show. So whenever I do just kind of
Speaker 1: say no, this is the way I wanted, I'm also
Speaker 1: making sure I'm prepared to take whatever blowback could come
Speaker 1: from that decision, which I that's part of the responsibility
Speaker 1: of helming a show UM as a creator and just
Speaker 1: knowing that if things go South. It's on YouTube. But
Speaker 1: also only that I think is really important. Well, it
Speaker 1: sounds like it's it's a fun place to work, and um,
Speaker 1: and thanks are going so well for you. First of all,
Speaker 1: I just want to say congratulations from for all your
Speaker 1: success you're Are you still thirty two or if you
Speaker 1: turned thirty three? Quina? Thirty three? In let's see what
Speaker 1: day it is? How many days? Wow? Wow? Well that's
Speaker 1: still your baby. You're very young and you know, oh
Speaker 1: my god, honey, you know I'm sixty five, So thirty
Speaker 1: three sounds pretty sweet to me. Although I wouldn't change
Speaker 1: a thing. No, I feel I feel lucky to be
Speaker 1: the age I am, and I feel like everyone needs
Speaker 1: to appreciate every year they have on the planet. Absolutely,
Speaker 1: but I feel really bad. Things are going so so
Speaker 1: badly for you these days. I'm kidding. I feel like
Speaker 1: I feel like I feel like every interview must start
Speaker 1: this way. Quenta, Wow, what a year you've had. You're
Speaker 1: the award winning writer, creator, and showrunner of Avid Elementary.
Speaker 1: You single handedly revived the dying Network sitcom. The Hollywood
Speaker 1: Reporter named Comedy Star of the Year, and you just
Speaker 1: played Oprah in Weird The Aligankovic story. So does every
Speaker 1: interview start that way, Quinta? You know most of them do? Yes,
Speaker 1: most of them do? Yeah. I can't lie well. I
Speaker 1: tried to start out in a more original way, but
Speaker 1: I couldn't figure out how to do that. So I
Speaker 1: just want to ask you. I mean, how are you
Speaker 1: dealing with it? Is it is this thrilling? Is it overwhelming?
Speaker 1: Is it a mixed bad? What it is? Um? Over No,
Speaker 1: overwhelming is not the right word. It's thrilling. I think
Speaker 1: that I focus very much on keeping my feet on
Speaker 1: the ground, and I think that's what keeps it from
Speaker 1: becoming overwhelming. You know, I think I know what's happening
Speaker 1: every day, Even on days where I'm don't totally know
Speaker 1: my entire schedule, I'm keeping in tune with what's going on. UM.
Speaker 1: I recently had that interview with Oprah which came out yesterday,
Speaker 1: and although I have not watched it, I remember talking
Speaker 1: about Oprah was talking to me about UM. You know,
Speaker 1: her her rise of making her show was essentially a blur, like,
Speaker 1: it's just happening. You're just doing your job every day,
Speaker 1: and I feel like you probably can relate. You're just
Speaker 1: doing your job and and Oprah said that she felt
Speaker 1: like for the first time she was able to look
Speaker 1: at me and see what it looked like or felt like.
Speaker 1: So I feel like that comforted me because I can't
Speaker 1: really slow down to see what it looks like. Things
Speaker 1: are just happening every day and I'm just writing wave
Speaker 1: because ultimately, I feel like I just need to, like,
Speaker 1: you know, stay healthy, and it feels good to focus
Speaker 1: on my work like that. Um. I think that in
Speaker 1: the future I'll be able to look back and just
Speaker 1: be like, whoa that this is all crazy, But for now,
Speaker 1: I've just compartmentalized it into things that happened every day.
Speaker 1: So even talking to you, although you were the wonderful,
Speaker 1: incredible kid, Curic, it's like, you know that's in the
Speaker 1: calendar is okay, I'll be doing that and then I'll
Speaker 1: be going back to the writer's room and then who knows.
Speaker 1: I think I'll process it in like three months. At
Speaker 1: the same time, have you taken any like moment to
Speaker 1: just say, wow, this is so exciting. I mean, it
Speaker 1: is kind of kiss met when everything comes together. You know,
Speaker 1: it doesn't happen that often, right, And yeah, for you
Speaker 1: to come up with this idea. Yeah, write it, create it,
Speaker 1: starring it, and birth that. Really I hope you've able
Speaker 1: to been able to take a moment to say this
Speaker 1: is this is really cool? I think so I think
Speaker 1: I have I do. I have those moments every now
Speaker 1: and then. I took my dad to a six Ers
Speaker 1: game this past week, and um was that crazy? It was,
Speaker 1: you know, because I'm in my l a bubble a
Speaker 1: lot and getting to go back home is rare, you know,
Speaker 1: it's kind of like holiday time. Um. I was excited
Speaker 1: to take my dad to that game just because when
Speaker 1: I was little, he used to take me to games,
Speaker 1: you know, and so I was excited to be able
Speaker 1: to do that for him. And were you on the JumboTron? Yeah, yeah,
Speaker 1: I heard, I heard I was. But they had us
Speaker 1: ring the Liberty bell, which is what you know, celebrities
Speaker 1: do at the beginning of the six Years game. And um,
Speaker 1: that was a moment where I got to sit and
Speaker 1: take it in, like, whoa, I'm able to take my
Speaker 1: dad to the six Years game. I'm able to like
Speaker 1: sit courtside with my dad and have you know, like
Speaker 1: James Harten say hey to me and like the the
Speaker 1: you know, the nets and stuff, and my dad got
Speaker 1: to meet the legendary basketball player named World be Free.
Speaker 1: I didn't know him. My dad's out about him, but
Speaker 1: then that you know, he's freaked out. Then later that
Speaker 1: guy was like, I love your show, and I was like,
Speaker 1: oh my god, thank you, and you know my dad
Speaker 1: loves you and you know it took a picture with him,
Speaker 1: which was so cool. So it's like moments when I'm
Speaker 1: able to do that for my dad or yeah, this
Speaker 1: is I have a couple of show. It's the most
Speaker 1: you know, odd moments. It's not technically when I'm accepting,
Speaker 1: worried or something. It's like when I can do something
Speaker 1: very hyper specific for my family. Well, it's I think
Speaker 1: it must be incredibly exciting. And I want to talk
Speaker 1: to you about your family, Quentin a minute and a
Speaker 1: little bit about your upbringing and sort of your slightly
Speaker 1: circumlocutious road to creating this show, because you've done a
Speaker 1: lot of other things I know kind of leading up
Speaker 1: to this point, but but I wanted to focus just
Speaker 1: for a minute on the show. I know you came
Speaker 1: up with the idea because your mom was a kindergarten
Speaker 1: teacher and she used to come home and regale you
Speaker 1: all with stories. Did you think, I mean when you
Speaker 1: set out to do this show. Tell me a little
Speaker 1: bit about your thought process, because I'm so fascinated by
Speaker 1: the genesis of an idea. The idea really came when
Speaker 1: I went to go visit my mom, and I spent
Speaker 1: so much time with my mom in schools. I was
Speaker 1: in her class, I went to the school where she
Speaker 1: taught for all of the elementary school, and then constantly
Speaker 1: was just more than just being a student. Was always
Speaker 1: in schools and my mom was very involved, so just
Speaker 1: hearing about everything from her. That wasn't until I, you know,
Speaker 1: I went to college and moved to l A. And
Speaker 1: then all of a sudden, I wasn't in that environment
Speaker 1: as much anymore. But I wasn't in that state of
Speaker 1: knowing how important or formidable, you know, that environment was
Speaker 1: to me and how familiar I was with it. So
Speaker 1: when I went back to visit my mom before she retired,
Speaker 1: I was just in this environment again. All of a sudden,
Speaker 1: that familiarity just hit me in the face. I was like, WHOA,
Speaker 1: I forgot how you know this halways smell these floors,
Speaker 1: this these walls, man, this is so rich and it's
Speaker 1: something a world I know really well that I forgot about.
Speaker 1: So I think for me, I like to create stories
Speaker 1: about a world I know very well, and I feel
Speaker 1: like I like to know the smell of that world,
Speaker 1: you know, I like to know all of those kinds
Speaker 1: of details. And ultimately, you know, despite what people take
Speaker 1: away from when they watch Abbott, I really just wanted
Speaker 1: to make a workplace comedy. That was my goal. Just
Speaker 1: a twenty two minute sitcom. Uh no more poignant than
Speaker 1: then uh, you know any of the other workplace comedies. Really,
Speaker 1: I think with a show like Abbott that naturally the
Speaker 1: heart comes out differently, the lessons that people learn from
Speaker 1: the show, It just comes out because of uh where
Speaker 1: me and the writers the places where we could be
Speaker 1: right from. You know, we're I think we're big on
Speaker 1: humor and humanity and so uh because of that, people
Speaker 1: get a lot more from the show. But my goal
Speaker 1: is to keep it a workplace comedy. These things need
Speaker 1: to happen here the same way that they've happened on
Speaker 1: you know, shows like The Office or just shoot Me.
Speaker 1: Like it just needs to feel um. So I love
Speaker 1: that it's both the sitcom and and sort of the
Speaker 1: mockumentary style of the office. Um, and it feels a
Speaker 1: little ted Lassoe with the heart and the focus on
Speaker 1: the characters, the teachers. How did that come come? Bath?
Speaker 1: Did you just say, I like this style, so I
Speaker 1: want to have the teachers. I want them to convey
Speaker 1: what's happening internally and all that. Yeah. I just thought
Speaker 1: it was a great opportunity for mocumentary. I mean, I
Speaker 1: saw it as a mocumentary initially. That's just what I
Speaker 1: saw when I thought of the idea. But what was
Speaker 1: always fun to me about mocumentary is with it you
Speaker 1: get two versions of a character. It's just multilayered, which
Speaker 1: I think is so beautiful for the mundane field fields. Um,
Speaker 1: you know. Yeah. Uh. There's a show that people don't know,
Speaker 1: but it was one hbos an Australian show called Jamay
Speaker 1: and it was it was very it is really silly,
Speaker 1: not the most politically correct, but it was just this
Speaker 1: girl going to her prep school and you find yourself
Speaker 1: all of a sudden, super into this girl's life, you know.
Speaker 1: And I think it's that those double layers to people
Speaker 1: that mocumentary provides that makes them more enticing and I
Speaker 1: felt like that was really great for these teachers, in
Speaker 1: particular in the school like abbott Um, to get two
Speaker 1: sides of them, what they showed her the camera and
Speaker 1: what they showed to their um uh, their cowork It's
Speaker 1: also interesting to watch that relationship develop over time. You know,
Speaker 1: a character like Gregory, who kind of wants nothing to
Speaker 1: do with the cameras at first, are now finding them
Speaker 1: to be the only people. You know, he they that
Speaker 1: he can trust. And I think it's fun for the audience,
Speaker 1: you know, it keeps them on their toes of There's
Speaker 1: so many people who, like in our show, would love
Speaker 1: for Gregory and Janine to get together. But you know,
Speaker 1: Gregory and Jeanine don't know what the audience knows. They
Speaker 1: really don't. They don't know what the cameras know, you
Speaker 1: know what I mean, they don't they You guys are
Speaker 1: seeing it, but they're not seeing anything really right. Same
Speaker 1: thing with Barbara, I mean, all of our characters. There's
Speaker 1: there's opportunities for Barbara to say stuff to the camera
Speaker 1: about her profession that she would never say to your
Speaker 1: co workers. So I just find it so exciting. It's
Speaker 1: such an exciting format. I don't think it always works,
Speaker 1: you know, like I think sometimes it's a hindrance or
Speaker 1: a crutch, but I don't think it is here. It
Speaker 1: makes you feel like you're part of the inside joke,
Speaker 1: you know, as a viewer when people like glance at you,
Speaker 1: even if it's quick like when you were getting off
Speaker 1: the ladder and you glance quickly at the audience or whatever.
Speaker 1: It Yeah, it makes you. It brings you into that world,
Speaker 1: and it makes it feel much more intimate, which I
Speaker 1: thought was really important too. I knew that, and once again,
Speaker 1: I didn't give it that much thought. I think I
Speaker 1: was just moving with the current of the idea. But
Speaker 1: there are ways people could look at a public school
Speaker 1: like Abbott and dismiss it and dismiss what kind of
Speaker 1: love is there and what kind of cares there. So
Speaker 1: I wanted people when they watched the show to feel
Speaker 1: like they're in this school. I didn't want them to
Speaker 1: to feel like they're the aquarium looking in at the fish.
Speaker 1: I wanted them to be in there with them, because
Speaker 1: a certain kind of care comes from the audience. Then
Speaker 1: they want to protect these characters. They want to protect
Speaker 1: these kids. They work at Abbot two, they go to
Speaker 1: abbit two. Um, I think that that's something that's so powerful.
Speaker 1: And yeah, it was kind of like a theory I
Speaker 1: was testing and it wound up being true watching people
Speaker 1: care so much about these characters and you know, like
Speaker 1: want merch want they want the abbot, they want the
Speaker 1: most the lanyard, Like why do you want that lanyard?
Speaker 1: But you know people want to they feel a part
Speaker 1: of it. And that's so beautiful to me, and I
Speaker 1: think that's the sign of like a good a good show.
Speaker 1: When we come back, Quenta walks me through the often
Speaker 1: real life inspiration for her avid elementary teachers. That's right
Speaker 1: after this. I wanted to ask you about the focus
Speaker 1: of the show because it really, as you know, is
Speaker 1: on the teachers. And um, I'm curious what you're hearing
Speaker 1: from teachers because teachers are rarely portrayed in such a
Speaker 1: loving light I think, and obviously funny too, But have
Speaker 1: you heard from a lot of teachers who who say
Speaker 1: they finally feel seen? I'm getting tired of that expression,
Speaker 1: but you know what I mean. I know, I mean
Speaker 1: all the time, all the time, all the time. What
Speaker 1: do you hear from them? It's always thank you, thank
Speaker 1: you for showing what we go through. And you know,
Speaker 1: teachers are interesting because we usually talk about feeling seen
Speaker 1: in terms of like race or sex, um, sexual preferences, sexy,
Speaker 1: but not with like a profession. And I think that's
Speaker 1: what's so unique about teaching is it's this marginalized part
Speaker 1: of the government workforce. You know, we we have to
Speaker 1: have teachers. We have to No one can do anything
Speaker 1: without a teacher. It's just you know, in order for
Speaker 1: me and you and I to sit here and talk,
Speaker 1: we had to learn English. We had to, you know,
Speaker 1: learn so much. And teachers do that and um, they're
Speaker 1: paid so little. There overlooked, they're under appreciated. Um, they
Speaker 1: should be the most revered next to doctor. You know
Speaker 1: what I mean. I couldn't agree with you more so
Speaker 1: more than feeling seen for them, it's it's not like
Speaker 1: seeing like representation. It's appreciation for what they do, you know,
Speaker 1: for their actual work. I think is what they're feeling.
Speaker 1: It's like someone appreciates our work. And now the world
Speaker 1: is starting to appreciate our work more. We're not just
Speaker 1: someone who stands in front of a chalkboard. I would
Speaker 1: always have kids say to me, you know the way
Speaker 1: they my mom was a teacher, so there will be
Speaker 1: other kids in my class who looked at teachers in
Speaker 1: this very foreign way. But to me, I'm like, this
Speaker 1: is my mom. She comes here, she does this job,
Speaker 1: and then she goes home, she makes dinner, she buys
Speaker 1: me clothes, she takes me to church, to cheese. She said,
Speaker 1: she like five other kids. But to them, when you're
Speaker 1: just a student, that's just a teacher, and they they
Speaker 1: do stuff, they get on your nerves, and then they
Speaker 1: go to sleep at the school and then they wake
Speaker 1: up in the morning and they teach you again. And
Speaker 1: I think that that's the way a lot of like
Speaker 1: America unfortunately, looks at teachers. And I think teachers just
Speaker 1: come up to me to tell me, you know, thank
Speaker 1: you for appreciating what they do and knowing that it's
Speaker 1: more than just babysitting and that it's a hard, hard job. Um.
Speaker 1: I'm such an advocate for them being paid more, and
Speaker 1: I I don't know who I have to, like, I
Speaker 1: don't know what we have to do to get them
Speaker 1: paid more, but they just deserve like so much more money,
Speaker 1: especially in under resourced schools like like Abbot Elementary Um,
Speaker 1: which you you focus on in a kind of funny
Speaker 1: but serious way. And I love that you take real
Speaker 1: life issues that educators face but do it in a
Speaker 1: way that is not too heavy handed. Is it challenging
Speaker 1: to to be able? Wanted to kind of weave those
Speaker 1: things into the script and not feel like you're preaching. No,
Speaker 1: not for me, it's not my storytelling style. Two have
Speaker 1: those things way down the script or the scene or
Speaker 1: the line. I just think that there's more power and
Speaker 1: uh in in showing and telling. And I think we
Speaker 1: just did this in the room. It's and I think
Speaker 1: it's important to focus on the mundane. And in the mundane,
Speaker 1: are the details really? Like if you just listen long
Speaker 1: enough to someone talking about doing their job at the airport,
Speaker 1: they're just talking. I just talked to someone at the
Speaker 1: airport and they're just talking to me. They were having
Speaker 1: a casual conversation. But in that mundane conversation, I'm like, Yeah,
Speaker 1: that's messed up. That's messed up. That's messed up. But
Speaker 1: people are just doing their jobs. They're just getting through
Speaker 1: the day, you know, they're just uh, they don't have
Speaker 1: time all the time to talk about how messed up
Speaker 1: something it is They're just they got to do their job.
Speaker 1: They have to do their work, and so that's kind
Speaker 1: of how I approach Abbott. These are people who just
Speaker 1: have to do their job. They could stop right stop
Speaker 1: and talk about the injustices all day, but they have
Speaker 1: to teach the kids. That's the goal of the job.
Speaker 1: The job is not to talk about the job. It
Speaker 1: is to do the job. And I think you so
Speaker 1: much more out of that. I loved when Shirley Ralph
Speaker 1: was talking to your character about supplies and about not
Speaker 1: emphasizing what the kids don't have, but emphasizing what they
Speaker 1: have and working, working with the tools you have to
Speaker 1: give the kids confidence. And there's obviously a lot of
Speaker 1: wisdom from Barbara, who I guess is sort of loosely
Speaker 1: based on your mom. Yes, absolutely, not loosely very but
Speaker 1: you know what's fun is now the character has taken
Speaker 1: such shape and form. It's I love what Barbara with
Speaker 1: the Barbara character has become, and I love still influencing
Speaker 1: her with my mother, but also watching this character turned
Speaker 1: into you know, someone very special. That's that's my most
Speaker 1: my favorite part about writing. I can start with inspiration,
Speaker 1: but then watching the character take on a life of
Speaker 1: its own is so so that's the most rewarding part
Speaker 1: about it. That's when you really feel like your character
Speaker 1: is alive, and that's so fun. You know, Miss Howard,
Speaker 1: you remind me so much of my favorite teacher from
Speaker 1: the third grade, Miss Elliott. She was well dressed, good
Speaker 1: with kids, a wizard with a glue gun. Thank you, Jenny.
Speaker 1: That is very I wanted to be just like her. Actually,
Speaker 1: I was like obsessed with her. She wrote my report
Speaker 1: card note needs friends her own age, A bit clingy
Speaker 1: she was anyway, Hey, did you get my email about
Speaker 1: the two of us hanging together after school? Or no?
Speaker 1: It must have gone to spam. It's so crazy how
Speaker 1: my emails do that with you and nobody else. And
Speaker 1: tell me about the Lisa and Walters characters, sort of
Speaker 1: the rough Italian um. Of course I loved her in
Speaker 1: the parent Trap. But what was the inspiration for her character?
Speaker 1: Did you create her out of whole cloth? No? My
Speaker 1: mom always had a best friend, no matter where, you know,
Speaker 1: for years it was a woman named Miss Facey, and
Speaker 1: I love miss Facey. She just always had a partner.
Speaker 1: And then when my mom switched schools during the last
Speaker 1: five years of her career, she had this friend UM
Speaker 1: named was it camera? I think it was Melissa. I
Speaker 1: think I just used that name Melissa Michelle or something
Speaker 1: like that. And I met her and I was like,
Speaker 1: I like this woman, you know, like I like the
Speaker 1: role she plays in my mother's life, and my mom
Speaker 1: feels very safe with her. They feel safe with each other. Um,
Speaker 1: they feel comfortable enough to talk about the silliness of
Speaker 1: the school district and the silliness of their principle at
Speaker 1: the time, and I just thought that was such an
Speaker 1: endearing relationship. And these are two women who are from
Speaker 1: opposite sides of the city, different races, different religions, but
Speaker 1: their common ground is we gotta do this job. Let's
Speaker 1: just get it done. Here's the silly thing that happened today.
Speaker 1: And they've been doing the shop for a long time.
Speaker 1: So Melissa was super motivated by that UM woman in
Speaker 1: you know, Lisa audition for that role, and I mean
Speaker 1: really just brought to life what it was. It's in
Speaker 1: a tone of Lisa's voice to be both tough and
Speaker 1: very subtle and caring all in the same breath. And
Speaker 1: she just owned it and made it and I maintain it.
Speaker 1: I think she's one of the best. She's really really good.
Speaker 1: I love people who can be as subtle as subtle
Speaker 1: as she can, and it's like my favorite type of actress.
Speaker 1: And I think that Lisa just killed it. And once again,
Speaker 1: that's a character that has grown so much. We I
Speaker 1: love adding in character traits to that character to make
Speaker 1: her turn into a very alive, well fleshed out character.
Speaker 1: Who's brend Zino? Is this that is a very powerfully
Speaker 1: smelling fish to put in a shared fringe. Don't touch it.
Speaker 1: I'm making it tonight at my cousin and nets. I
Speaker 1: just think she's the best cook in the family. I'm
Speaker 1: gonna show her in a non threatening way. I'm gonna
Speaker 1: look cutter than her too. Janelle James is definitely not
Speaker 1: so subtle, not know, which is one of my other
Speaker 1: favorite parts of the communic spectrum, which is in your face.
Speaker 1: But I will say that Jenell's performance of Eva Um,
Speaker 1: it's just fascinating. There was no one else who could
Speaker 1: have done that job. And jan All has such a
Speaker 1: handle on who that woman is. You know, it's a
Speaker 1: woman that is utterly ridiculous, but you love her, and
Speaker 1: I think we write her that way but Janelle knows
Speaker 1: exactly what to do to make it so that the
Speaker 1: audience can't help but be in love with her. And
Speaker 1: that's something very unique to Janelle. Like I said that
Speaker 1: that those auditions were hard, and jen I mean as
Speaker 1: soon as she spoke, I was like, we're done, no one.
Speaker 1: It's an essence that she can carry of, you know,
Speaker 1: making you be both in love with this character but
Speaker 1: hate them and you you'd be sad if they weren't there,
Speaker 1: but you're mad they're there. It's very very special. Um,
Speaker 1: she's so good and UM, I don't know. I'm just
Speaker 1: excited to build out more of Ava. There's there's stuff
Speaker 1: coming up that I think is so great. The other
Speaker 1: great thing about that characters, even when they're small winds
Speaker 1: for her, the audience feels justified and being like, see
Speaker 1: this is why I like If she can spend the
Speaker 1: whole episode horrible, but then if she just says one
Speaker 1: right thing, you know, everyone's like see see this is
Speaker 1: why I like her. And I think it's really fun
Speaker 1: to have a character like that. Let me see these
Speaker 1: permissions left to the zoo, and they better be real
Speaker 1: because I can tell if you're fake to herb be Hancock.
Speaker 1: Oh it's John Hancock. Girl. I know, I'll just say
Speaker 1: whatever I want. We learned that. Yet it's funny how
Speaker 1: like how complex sort of all these things are in
Speaker 1: terms of the dialogue and the plot lines. And I
Speaker 1: wanted to ask you two about Tyler James Williams, who
Speaker 1: is subtle who Um I've really enjoyed watching as well.
Speaker 1: Tell me a little bit about that character and where
Speaker 1: Tyler came from. So yeah, I mean that character. Well,
Speaker 1: I'll go to the first part. So Tyler. I had
Speaker 1: worked with him one Black Lady Sketch Show, and I
Speaker 1: just so enjoyed working with him. It was just a
Speaker 1: wonderful experience for me with him One Black Lady Sketch
Speaker 1: Show that was kind of like my first time um
Speaker 1: acting with uh, with the guy with the man and
Speaker 1: had that I had to be romantic with. It was
Speaker 1: like get in the sketch or whatever. But it's a sketch,
Speaker 1: so we didn't have time to like build much uh chemistry,
Speaker 1: you know. We had to say our lines and do it.
Speaker 1: But I felt as though we had the natural chemistry
Speaker 1: that you look for with with all of the actors
Speaker 1: in your life, like it's a chemistry I look for
Speaker 1: with Janelle with um, you know, with with all of
Speaker 1: the actors in my show, I have that chemistry. I
Speaker 1: knew it would have to be special though, with the
Speaker 1: Gregory Jeanine relationship, since you know, it's insinuated that it's romantic.
Speaker 1: And when I was writing this character, I just kept
Speaker 1: seeing Tyler in my head. I was like, you know what,
Speaker 1: Tyler has the right look for this. I know he
Speaker 1: can act it. I know we have a natural chemistry there.
Speaker 1: I really hope he can't do it. So I told
Speaker 1: him about it. This was during the pandemic, so I
Speaker 1: didn't know how he was gonna. I don't know if
Speaker 1: he would be one of those people that's like, I'm
Speaker 1: never working again. I don't want to. I don't want
Speaker 1: to do TV to the Mountain said. I didn't where
Speaker 1: it would go. But he was like yeah, he said
Speaker 1: that sounds great. And I sent him the script once
Speaker 1: it was finished and he was like, I really like this,
Speaker 1: and um, he was just like a shoeing. I think
Speaker 1: we auditioned some of other people, but no one beat
Speaker 1: out Tyler's approach on the character. He just headed down
Speaker 1: and so, um, you know, His character comes in very
Speaker 1: much not wanting to be here and now, As I said,
Speaker 1: watching him grow and he he comes off super suave
Speaker 1: and and and everything in the beginning. But one thing
Speaker 1: that I'm really proud of in this show is we've
Speaker 1: gotten to show his quirks and he still gets to be, like,
Speaker 1: you know, to the audience, this guy who's exciting and
Speaker 1: kind of a heart throb, but also it is a
Speaker 1: dork and has these quirky things about him. All right, man,
Speaker 1: you I can't do this. I just don't like pizza.
Speaker 1: Said that again. I don't think I heard you, son, sweetheart,
Speaker 1: What do you mean you don't like pizza? I just
Speaker 1: don't understand the concept of having a bunch of ingredients
Speaker 1: just slosh around in your mouth. It's not just pezza
Speaker 1: to I've got like four or five things that I
Speaker 1: actually like and I just stick to those. Do you
Speaker 1: like pie? Fruit should not be hot? And I think
Speaker 1: that's really important for a black male character to be
Speaker 1: all of that at the same time. And it's just
Speaker 1: exciting to watch that character form um through the writers
Speaker 1: and through Tyler's performance. That's Tyler is the king of
Speaker 1: unexpected choices. And I find it so exciting, you know,
Speaker 1: to see what kind of choice he's gonna make. I
Speaker 1: absolutely love acting in scenes with him. He and I mean,
Speaker 1: I love acting scenes with all of my um all
Speaker 1: of my cast members, but him and Jacob Chris Parfetti.
Speaker 1: I love acting in scenes with Chris. Makes me feel
Speaker 1: like a better actress. Like, well, now that you brought
Speaker 1: him up, I don't want to leave him out, you know, like, uh,
Speaker 1: he put the off and off right tell me about
Speaker 1: him and and and sort of the inspiration for his character.
Speaker 1: So the inspiration for his character was kind of like
Speaker 1: my um. I had a friend and I have a
Speaker 1: friend in New York named Matt, and I love Matt.
Speaker 1: I think he would go to the ends of the
Speaker 1: earth for his children and was always coming up with
Speaker 1: new fun projects and um and just loves his job.
Speaker 1: He genuinely does, loves it so much. And he's one
Speaker 1: of the teachers in my life that I talked to
Speaker 1: the most. And I really wanted to have a character
Speaker 1: someone like Matt represented in this show. And so with
Speaker 1: Chris's character Jacob, I felt like it would be easy
Speaker 1: to say, oh, this white guy, he's being a white
Speaker 1: savior blah, blah blah, but like, no, there's more than that.
Speaker 1: There's more to him than that, and his position and
Speaker 1: why he winds up in the school like this in
Speaker 1: the first place, and the choices he makes, and I
Speaker 1: just think that Chris had such a handle on him.
Speaker 1: It could have easily been a very stereotypical portrayal of Jacob.
Speaker 1: But Chris was so subtle, I felt, I love subtlety,
Speaker 1: and it still funny and exciting. Hey, do you want
Speaker 1: cheesesteaks from the corner store for launch day? Not from there?
Speaker 1: The guy behind the counter he calls me white boy. Well,
Speaker 1: it's like a term of endearment, and like, if you
Speaker 1: don't like it, just ask me this up no way.
Speaker 1: There's an entire chapter on white fragility on that, okay,
Speaker 1: Robin D'Angel And she says, when you start policing people, who, Hey, Melissa,
Speaker 1: can you please tell Tana has He quotes here that
Speaker 1: white boy is a term of endearment from the corner
Speaker 1: store people. So Zach Gertz, Yeah, for him, it's an insult.
Speaker 1: I think he's so funny because he's so earnest, he's
Speaker 1: trying so hard, and he's trying I think he's one
Speaker 1: of these people who is maybe hyperbolically progressive and and
Speaker 1: and really um almost performatively uh progressive in a way,
Speaker 1: which is you know, you know, his heart's in the
Speaker 1: right place. But and we we talked about that a
Speaker 1: lot of One of the main things in this description
Speaker 1: for the character and the pilot was he is woke
Speaker 1: to a fault, Like is that a bad thing? I
Speaker 1: don't know, let's find out. Like I I kind of
Speaker 1: dough all of my characters. I don't like to label
Speaker 1: people bad or good or wrong or right. I think
Speaker 1: the exploration of how all of these different points of
Speaker 1: view mixed with each other. So putting them in a
Speaker 1: scenario where all of their points of views, you know, collide,
Speaker 1: that's the real way to get something good. Instead of
Speaker 1: just labeling Jacob bad because he's you know, overly woke,
Speaker 1: labeling Janine bad because she's overly optimistic. It's just playing
Speaker 1: with those in between gray areas. They give you a
Speaker 1: good story. After the break, Quinta talks about her family
Speaker 1: and her wild and wooly twenties. So you're the youngest
Speaker 1: of five kids, and um, you grew up in West Philadelphia.
Speaker 1: As we've established, your mom was a kindergarten teacher. You
Speaker 1: were the baby, um, and what about your dad? Tell
Speaker 1: me a little bit about your family dynamics and were
Speaker 1: you the the family clown. I'm the youngest of four,
Speaker 1: and I was like that, Oh, I've talked about the
Speaker 1: youngest a lot um being the youngest. Talked about it
Speaker 1: with Nick Kroll. Actually he's the youngest in his family.
Speaker 1: We've talked about with that freedom you're allotted when you're
Speaker 1: the youngest child. Do you feel that too, Yeah, definitely.
Speaker 1: My parents were tired by the time I came around,
Speaker 1: and I think they were much harder on my older
Speaker 1: sisters and even my brother. I agree, um so had.
Speaker 1: My dad was actually a manager of parking lots, which
Speaker 1: I think was so cool in retrospect. It's funny enough.
Speaker 1: I just had the experience that I had going back
Speaker 1: to my mom's school. I had the experience. I went
Speaker 1: into a parking garage and had to go into the
Speaker 1: little booth you go to you know whatever, and I
Speaker 1: was like, wow, this this smell, this familiarity. I spent
Speaker 1: so much time in these kinds of booths as a
Speaker 1: little girl with my dad, and I was like, oh wow,
Speaker 1: is my next show going to be about parking lots?
Speaker 1: But no, but he was a parking manager. He UM.
Speaker 1: My dad's fascinating. I think he is simply everyone says
Speaker 1: it's about their dad, but he's one of the best
Speaker 1: men I know. And I think he made a lot
Speaker 1: of sacrifices to raise so many children. I think it's just,
Speaker 1: you know, he had a whole life. My parents were
Speaker 1: you know, they were they were explorers, hippies, you name it.
Speaker 1: And he settled down in out like a real job
Speaker 1: to be able to take care of his children, which
Speaker 1: I think is so admirable because both of my parents
Speaker 1: is they're they're so talented. My dad was a gymnast,
Speaker 1: he was an artist, and they decided that the children
Speaker 1: they were having were more important. And I don't know,
Speaker 1: I admire him so much for that, I really do.
Speaker 1: So you you graduate from Temple and then you kind
Speaker 1: of are are searching for what you want to do.
Speaker 1: Just tell me a little bit about your twenties, Quinta
Speaker 1: um and and how you ultimately ended up making videos
Speaker 1: for BuzzFeed. But just just fill in the blanks for me.
Speaker 1: The twenties. I loved my twenties, Um, I did. I
Speaker 1: really lived it up. I'm so proud of myself, um
Speaker 1: to the point where it makes me sad when I
Speaker 1: see other kids not doing it. I'm like, no, this
Speaker 1: is the time to live it up, be safe, but
Speaker 1: have fun. But no, I graduated from Temple, had a
Speaker 1: ball in college. Or I'm sorry, I didn't graduate from Temple.
Speaker 1: I just left and went out. Came to l A
Speaker 1: around twenty three, was it. Yeah. I had some breakups,
Speaker 1: had some fun, and then I started working at Apple
Speaker 1: out here to help, you know, I had to have
Speaker 1: a job, and I explored. I was on my own
Speaker 1: and really explored it. Like I had fun. I made
Speaker 1: new friends. I um, I went where I could with
Speaker 1: the little money I had. I took you know, went
Speaker 1: to Palm Springs, went to josh for Street, took the
Speaker 1: trips I could take, met people. Um. When I started,
Speaker 1: it was around two thousand and fourteen when the platform
Speaker 1: Instagram got video, and before Instagram had video just pictures
Speaker 1: and you know you that was it. But the video
Speaker 1: part really opened up a certain section of virality. I
Speaker 1: was already practicing comedy before then. I was doing improv
Speaker 1: and I really wanted to make it big. With stage
Speaker 1: improv and you know, going to either be on SNL
Speaker 1: or somehow find my way to making my own show.
Speaker 1: But then, um, I just started making these little videos
Speaker 1: with no intention of going viral or fame or anything.
Speaker 1: It was just I'll make these little videos for my
Speaker 1: friends to watch. Students, This is peces and a large
Speaker 1: form a large you got your money, he got money,
Speaker 1: get it all. You know. They went super viral, which
Speaker 1: was super new for that platform, and I just started
Speaker 1: serializing them, which was exciting because it made me feel like, Okay,
Speaker 1: I don't know what I'm doing and I don't know
Speaker 1: why I'm doing it, but I'm enjoying this idea of
Speaker 1: you know, serializing, making sort sort of a universe, sort
Speaker 1: of a show. This is what I've always wanted to do,
Speaker 1: and it's cool to be able to do it. And
Speaker 1: um I had fun doing it and made a lot
Speaker 1: of money from selling T shirts with the catchphrases. But
Speaker 1: eventually that money ran out and I needed a job,
Speaker 1: and honestly, I missed the stability of a job. I
Speaker 1: didn't like the idea of all of that being on me,
Speaker 1: having to sell T shirts and having to make weird
Speaker 1: appearances for money. I was like, I'd rather have a
Speaker 1: nine to five than live like this, And so BuzzFeed
Speaker 1: came into play, which would up being a perfect job
Speaker 1: for me because I was able to be creative, have
Speaker 1: an audience, and have a consistent income for a very
Speaker 1: long time. I worked there for three years, I think,
Speaker 1: and it wasn't I needed that. I needed two having
Speaker 1: a consistent check. And over time while being at that company,
Speaker 1: you know, my income grew. I was able to save,
Speaker 1: which I had never been able to do in my life.
Speaker 1: Savings was just out of the question, and I finally
Speaker 1: was able to put money away, which wound up being
Speaker 1: important for me later um to have money, I could
Speaker 1: you know, live off of well, I failed my way
Speaker 1: after I left BuzzFeed. So my twenties was just a
Speaker 1: lot of building career wise, and also I was a
Speaker 1: young single woman for most of my twenties and I
Speaker 1: really enjoy at that time. You know, I feel like
Speaker 1: I lived a lot of life and I I love that.
Speaker 1: And it's funny because people they'll I think I come
Speaker 1: off a little unassuming, but like I lived a lot
Speaker 1: of life during that time, a lot of relationships, a
Speaker 1: lot of experimenting, a lot of fun. I had so
Speaker 1: much life, So it was good. And you're lucky because
Speaker 1: that sort of got through your twenties before the pandemic,
Speaker 1: which was really fortunate because I think for a lot
Speaker 1: of kids, you know, at that age now the pandemic
Speaker 1: has has really kind of affected them in a negative way.
Speaker 1: And I hate that, Yeah, I really do. I wish
Speaker 1: that weren't the case. It makes me sad because even
Speaker 1: you know, there's a twenty six year old p a
Speaker 1: writer's pa, and I talked to him be like, how
Speaker 1: you know what's going on? Like are you dating? Are
Speaker 1: you going on? And no? He's like, yeah, no, it's
Speaker 1: a pandemic. Like we've never he's like in his twenties,
Speaker 1: he hasn't really practiced the art of like going out,
Speaker 1: meeting meeting people, meeting girls. It's all been digital for them,
Speaker 1: even more than it was during the pandemic like that.
Speaker 1: It's just become a more singular life. It's kind of
Speaker 1: left a pall over I think, sort of people's uadity.
Speaker 1: If you will, I agree, I agree, which is which
Speaker 1: is a shame it is. I hope they find their way.
Speaker 1: I hope so too. My daughter's twenty six, and I
Speaker 1: feel like it's it's had an impact on her and
Speaker 1: a lot of kids her age. You did the what
Speaker 1: was the sketch show called again Quinta that you did? Yeah,
Speaker 1: you did that. Um, but this has been obviously sort
Speaker 1: of off the charts successful. Do you do you prefer
Speaker 1: acting to to writing or if you had to pick
Speaker 1: one or one or the other, which would you do?
Speaker 1: Or do you feel like they're inextricably linked. Oh that's
Speaker 1: a good question, you know what, that's a really good question. Um.
Speaker 1: I think now at this point in my career, I
Speaker 1: realize that when it comes to acting, I guess I
Speaker 1: don't want to just act in just anything I do
Speaker 1: want And I feel like every actor feels this way.
Speaker 1: So I don't feel especial in saying this, but you know,
Speaker 1: I want to feel like I can do I can
Speaker 1: do this. Rule Like, I want to have the feeling
Speaker 1: of like I not only can I do this, I
Speaker 1: will also be challenged by it and that feels exciting
Speaker 1: to me. So I've I've gotten offers to do some
Speaker 1: other things, and I just feel like, oh, if I
Speaker 1: don't feel challenged or excited by it, I don't want
Speaker 1: to do that as an actor, I'd rather do something
Speaker 1: that makes me feel artistically fulfilled, like a real piece
Speaker 1: of the puzzle and somebody else's vision, and that I
Speaker 1: can add to it and also perform exactly the way
Speaker 1: that they like me too. I like acting, it's just that,
Speaker 1: you know, I do. I do enjoy writing. I think
Speaker 1: just a little bit more. But but who knows, you know?
Speaker 1: I think that for instance, like when I got to
Speaker 1: go to the opera role such a small thing that
Speaker 1: was so exciting for me and joyful, and like I said,
Speaker 1: it was like something where I'm like, I can do this,
Speaker 1: but also I feel like it's going to be a
Speaker 1: challenge to do this right, and that is exciting, you know.
Speaker 1: I think that's that gets any creators blood pumping. And
Speaker 1: I respect other people's creative vision so much so to
Speaker 1: be able to be a working um cog and another
Speaker 1: machine is actually quite exciting to me. It sounds like
Speaker 1: you're going to have your hands full too with Avid Elementary,
Speaker 1: which I know they ordered more seasons, I mean more episodes, right,
Speaker 1: didn't they order? Didn't they order twenty two instead of twelve?
Speaker 1: Or like crazy? So they did? It was thirteen for
Speaker 1: the first season and this season. Our second season, which
Speaker 1: we're currently filming and airing, is twenty two. And do
Speaker 1: you see it lasting a while longer? Yeah, as long
Speaker 1: as they wanted to and I wanted and we wanted to. Yeah,
Speaker 1: you know, I love what Abbott is for ABC, and
Speaker 1: I love making the show. Well, I think they love
Speaker 1: you and appreciate you too, which is a good and
Speaker 1: important feeling. But listen, I'm really thank you very much
Speaker 1: for the time. Thank you for doing this interview. It's
Speaker 1: really really a treat to meet you. And I'm really
Speaker 1: enjoying the show, so continued success with it. Thank you
Speaker 1: so much, Katie, I really appreciate it. You can watch
Speaker 1: Abbott Elementary on ABC or String both seasons now on Hulu,
Speaker 1: and if you want more of Quinta, you should also
Speaker 1: check out her book of essays, perfectly titled She Means Well.
Speaker 1: Next Question with Katie Kirk is a production of My
Speaker 1: Heart Media and Katie currec Media. The executive producers Army,
Speaker 1: Katie Curic, and Courtney Litz. The supervising producer is Lauren Hansen.
Speaker 1: Associate producers Derek Clements and Adrianna Fasio. The show is
Speaker 1: edited and mixed by Derrek Clements. For more information about
Speaker 1: today's episode, or to sign up for my morning newsletter,
Speaker 1: wake Up Call, go to Katie currek dot com. You
Speaker 1: can also find me at Katie curriic on Instagram and
Speaker 1: all my social media channels. For more podcasts from I
Speaker 1: Heart Radio, visit the I Heart Radio app, Apple Podcast,
Speaker 1: or wherever you listen to your favorite shows,