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Interview by Sean Boelman
Photo Courtesy of Hulu.
Australian animator Michael Cusack is best known for creating the series Smiling Friends and YOLO: Crystal Fantasy. His newest series, Koala Man, is now streaming on Hulu and goes all-in on the Australian humor while still delivering a story that is universally enjoyable and approachable.
We got to sit down with Cusack to discuss having sex with planets (you’ll get it when you watch the show), Australian culture, and his inspirations and challenges working on the show. Check out the full interview below! On the Show’s Specific Humor
disappointment media: If you could have sex with any planet in our solar system, which one would it be and why?
Michael Cusack: Ooh, that’s hard. That’s a good one. Uranus is too obvious. I'm gonna go Jupiter. Because it's a gassy planet. I feel like it would be nice and sensual. disappointment: Would you right swipe or left swipe on earth? Cusack: Whatever the bad one is. I’ve had enough of Earth. Let's move from Earth for now. I've had 32 years of Earth. disappointment: So this show, as an American, introduced me to the wonderful world of showbags. Why don't we have showbags in America? Cusack: I don't know. That was something that we said in the writers room, assuming that Americans knew about it, too. And then when Americans didn't, it was a shock to us. Like, that was a staple of our childhood, going to the Easter Show and more than anything, looking forward to getting like the showbag of whatever it was — the Pokemon show bag, the Dragonball Z one, or like the Mars Bar showbag. Like everything that you love had its own show bag full of the treats and goodies and toys of that same brand. And it was the best, but super expensive and overpriced. Yeah, I think hopefully, if anything, the main goal is this show introduces showbags to America and ruins your economy with them and makes kids’ parents absolutely broke. disappointment: So do you think that, you know, one day we could get a Koala Man themed showbag? Cusack: That would be the dream. I’d sell them myself. We should have done that as a promotion for this season, I just realized. disappointment: And there was the prawn-themed showbag. Is that a real thing or is that a complete fabrication? Cusack: That's fake too. But again, something I'm going to push after this call. I'll be making some calls and some emails, because the world needs a prawn showbag. disappointment: I noticed that in your shows you’ve made several prawn themed jokes. Where does your interest in prawns come from? Cusack: That's an Aussie thing, because at Christmas time, we don't have turkey or chicken. It's not the same as America in that aspect. It literally is just a bowl of prawns and a little ball of water to wash your hands with after you've broken the prawns. That's Christmas dinner. I had it a few days ago for Christmas at my mom’s house. It's just kind of a staple of Australia, prawns… they feel Aussie. So yeah, I had to stuff as many prawns in there as possible. 
Photo Courtesy of Hulu.
Crafting an Aussie Show for American Audiences
disappointment: The series has a voice cast full of all of these Australian and New Zealand A-listers. What was it like assembling this cast for the show?
Cusack: Really great. Really incredible. I really didn't think we'd be able to get anyone because I've got low expectations. But the showrunners on this show, Dan and Benji, and a lot of our American staff were extremely keen on aiming for the stars. And I was like, “What, we're not going to get the likes of Hugh Jackman?” But apparently we did and we could. So I am truly just still shocked. I think it was maybe because we had an Aussie show for American TV and it felt fresh. And hopefully it's a good concept that they liked and it seemed like they did and they came on board. Sarah Snook, Hugh Jackman, Hugo Weaving, Jemaine Clement, Rachel House, all these amazing actors, I can't believe it, they were just incredible. And they were a joy to direct. And they really, really elevated the whole project to something so much better than I ever would have imagined. It was great. disappointment: And as you kind of mentioned, there are these very specific jokes and elements that are related to Australian culture, but the show also feels very universal. How do you strike this balance between the two? Cusack: My thing is that it’s Aussie, but it’s not stereotypically Aussie. So when I say that, I mean it's not like, “Chuck another shrimp on the barbie,” kind of Aussie. Hopefully, it's not cliche. The show, at its core, our aim is still to make it character driven and plot driven. At the end of the day, there's a human kind of conflict. So ideally, it would be relatable and the Australiana is more of a garnish on top of something that is more about really the character and the story. disappointment: One of my favorite things about the show is that I feel like anyone could watch the show and walk away with a different favorite character. I know it's kind of hard to pick, but if you had to pick one of your favorite characters, which would it be? Cusack: I think it'd be Big Greg. I don't know. It's maybe 50% because it's always by Hugh Jackman. And also just the character I like. He's just so confident in his skin, and he has life figured out. He's a good role model to look up to. And I really like the dynamic between him and Kevin, it’s a funny back-and-forth. Because Kevin would dream to be Big Greg, and Big Greg would just kinda look down upon Kevin. That's funny. And Damo and Darren. I love Damo and Darren. And they come from the heart. They've been with me since about 2014 when I made a cartoon called Ciggy Butt Brain. disappointment: And what was the inspiration to integrate these two characters into Koala Man? Cusack: I always liked how Kevin Smith put Jay and Silent Bob in everything he did. I just thought that was nice glue that pulled things like Mallrats and Clerks and Chasing Amy all together. And they kind of are a bit Jay and Silent Bob-ish. And I made shorts called Damo and Darren years ago on YouTube, and that was set in Dapto. So I just thought if Koala Man is in Dapto, then Damo and Darren would be. So it’s just kind of the same world, I guess. 
Photo Courtesy of Hulu.
The Challenges of Koala Man
disappointment: So the episodes of Koala Man are longer than the episodes of Smiling Friends and YOLO. Did you find that the longer format was exciting? Scary? Challenging?
Cusack: It was scary and challenging, for sure. But I was lucky enough to have a lot of help. Dan and Benji as the showrunners, they're extremely talented and experienced in the world of TV. So they brought a lot of experience in that arena and we had a great writers room too. But yeah, it was definitely a challenge for me. It's a new learning curve to write for that length of time because, as you say, I'm used to the 11-minute format. But we did alright, I reckon. disappointment: Obviously, this is kind-of a superhero show, but Koala Man doesn’t have any powers. Where did this more grounded superhero approach come from? Cusack: I just thought that Australian humor is a lot based in reality — I guess, the depressing reality of natural things happening. So I just thought if there was an Australian superhero, it would make sense if it just was this middle aged guy in the suburbs that had no powers. Because that generation of men are very passionate about cleaning up the town and saying that the police aren't doing anything about it, and the government's not doing anything about it. There's just a reality to that archetype that's funny to me and fits in with the superhero mold. And what makes it even funnier to me is it's grounded and everything, and you know, he has no powers, but in this world, we do realize, he's got a nemesis and there are actual, real threats and supervillains and creatures with powers, but you have to dig a bit deeper to find them. It’s a fun world to play in. disappointment: And the show blends those grounded elements with absurdist humor. How did you balance the two tones? Cusack: It's really hard. Probably the hardest part about it actually was balancing those two tones because it was a little bit of having your cake and eating it too. There's a world where this show could have been like a King of the Hill, where it just was completely Koala Man with no superpowers and no one else with any powers and it was just 100% grounded. But I just felt like that was gonna get a little bit old. So offsetting that with that, it actually could have a supervillain from space just emerging felt like it could shake it up. And the way to kind of balance that is really just staying true to what the characters wants and needs are at the end of the day. If the characters have strong goals and strong motivations, then you can really get away with a lot when it comes to having fun with changing the tone. That was the big thing we kind of learned and stuck to.
Koala Man is now streaming on Hulu.
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Interview by Dan Skip Allen  Will Smith in "Emancipation," now streaming on Apple TV+. Antoine Fuqua’s new drama Emancipation, starring Will Smith in a story inspired by the picture of “Whipped Peter,” is considered to be a strong awards contender for several below-the-line awards. We at disappointment media got the opportunity to speak with several of the craftspeople behind the film, including VFX supervisor Rob Legato, costume designer Francine Jamison-Tanchuck, production designer Naomi Shohan, editor Conrad Buff, cinematographer Robert Richardson, and re-recording mixer Steve Pederson. disappointment media: How did you get the look of the film and the splashes of color and make it look seamless? Rob Legato: Part of what we did when we were coming up with the look for the film is that, instead of going full black and white, we would first adjust the different colors — red, green, and blue contributions — to that black and white. Like if you had a red shirt on, and you were to change the contribution of that particular color layer, you can adjust its gray value to anything that you want. You're able to kind of fine-tune match it and then mix a little of the color back in. And then on top of that, if we want to add a little red or a little green or a little from the foliage, we could do that. But so what we had is complete control as if it was all black and white. We could change any costume or any shade to whatever gray value seemed to make the most sense or look the most pleasing or match and then mix back color into that. So we were able to creatively create this palette that Bob [Richardon] would sit in with dailies colorist Benny, and every day make the subtle artistic adjustments. So that, mixed with the costumes and the art direction, we were able to very finely control it for artistic reasons. Bob would sit with the colorist every day and make these very subtle adjustments based on the drama that he and Antoine [Fuqua] had worked out. It was a fun collaboration. It was very fun to do it and come up with something because the look was so wonderful for the film, that we were very excited every day to come out of dailies and we would find something that we really liked that played the drama very well. Francine Jamison-Tanchuck: I agree with Rob. My collaboration with Bob Richardson and Antoine and Naomi [Shohan] every day or at least once a week was to find out what these colors are going to do on screen — figuring out how much over dyeing it needed or if it had to be dyed at all, or aged, and how all of that blends in and just makes it appear to be seamless. So I think with Bob's wonderful photography, and with Naomi’s sets, with all of that came Antoine's vision of what that is and what that could be. And the sense of as Peter is running, and the way that he is going through a lot of the terrain and a lot of the sense of what he is encountering along the way, all of that has to be really reviewed on how that works and how that translates with the costumes and what happens with them along the way. I feel by viewing the film, it really did work. A lot of that is because of collaborating with all of the department heads and people who really know their profession, and just making it all work together. I think we all felt that it was a story that really had to be told and wanted it to be told realistically. Naomi Shohan: The choice of the way color was used here that Bob and Rob have been discussing, there's kind of a distancing that happens with black and white that also creates intimacy. So there's this contradiction in terms that works very beautifully to allow you to both receive the movie and also kind of look at it as a time-out-of-time experience. I also want to say that everybody did a lot of research on this project. We all had a pretty good visual understanding, at least, of enough of what this world was in order to try to recreate it. Also, the landscapes that we used to film the movie are magnificent and Antoine had said that he wanted the movie to be both beautiful and brutal. As we explored them scouting for locations, they spoke eloquently to us. I think that the land had a little bit to say to us as well about what may have happened in the past, even our experience of how rugged it was to be living and working there. So the combination of historical research, the poetic distancing, and listening to the land — all of these things contributed to the unity of the end result and Antoine’s striving vision.  Will Smith and Ben Foster in "Emancipation," now streaming on Apple TV+. disappointment: On all of his appearances to promote the film, the thing he mentioned that stood out was that he didn’t want to take away from the people that made this movie. You all deserve being championed. Would anyone like to comment on him standing up for the people like you behind the scenes? Conrad Buff: I think we all certainly appreciate it. We all know how much work was put into making this and how we all supported Antoine. You know, on the production end of things I was spared, of course, being in editorial and distant from Louisiana, but Antoine had so many challenges on this film. That sad incident with Will at the Academy Awards was like one more difficulty to overcome. So I know all of us certainly appreciate him acknowledging our work. He couldn't have been more lovely in my dealings with him, which were primarily in post production. Rob Legato: I only got to work with him a couple of times, but I got the impression just from working on this film, that his comment is how he really feels because he's appreciative every day. He was excited by the shots that Antoine and Bob would create that he would see playbacks of and all the contributions of everybody on the film productions on costume and everything. So he was, in my view, always in everyone's corner — everybody out collaborating, producing the movie. So I’m not terribly surprised that's the comment he would make about this and not wanting whatever happened to diminish the contribution he felt everybody made while we were making the movie. Not just as a response or nice thing to say afterwards, but as something that he feels rather deeply and as a performer, he's appreciative of the art form of everybody else who makes him look good. Robert Richardson: I agree with you totally, too. I think that Will’s spirit is one of giving. He was remarkable to work with. He led us, he sat on the set on the most difficult days and waited out. He didn't go to his trailer, he was with us. We all appreciated it. And of course, he continued that, despite what took place. And he's a true gentleman. Rob Legato: I remember when we were shooting the pit scene where we threw the older gentleman into the pit. I think he offered something like $5,000 to everybody who had to now lay in that pit in the hot sun. So he appreciated even that work that the extras were doing and the other people who were in it. He was always involved and always appreciative of the contribution and the difficulty of shooting this film, which was pretty difficult to shoot. High heat and thunderstorm and lightning conditions would interrupt shooting every so often. So he was a very generous man I have to say. Francine Jamison-Tanchuck: I totally agree with everyone that Will Smith has got to be one of the kindest, warmest, just understanding people I've ever worked with in front of the camera. He was just a very gracious person and he was just so appreciative of everyone's work. Especially with the type of character that this man was going through all these months. He is a human being first and his acting and everything comes next. But he was so professional and such a gracious person and who knows how that affected him later. But as far as working with all of us and just working with him in the fittings and on the set, there was not one time that he did not have a kind word for anyone and everyone. So I feel that he is just really the epitome of professionalism. He is the epitome of what it is to be a humble and gracious filmmaker. I just feel very honored to work with him any day, anytime, and to work with all of these wonderful filmmakers that are here now. And I'd like to say a comment to Bob Richardson, Bob Richardson, I do not care what color you are. To me you had your vision and what you did on this film, just brought it all to a reality that the entire world needs to know about and needs to see. And for as far as I'm concerned, you are an American, artistic, incredible cinematographer that Antoine in his vision knew that he needed that hand in order to make this to bring this to the screen. And also Naomi's wonderful sets and Cindy, and add all of the collaboration. It doesn't matter where you're coming from, what your your skin tone is, your gender, your age — it is about really having the compassion and knowing and seeing that something's wrong in this picture. There's something wrong when one human being has to brutalize a mother. And so in having that vision and having that scope, you really brought it, everyone brought it out and just brought it to a reality. And I commend everybody. Thank you so much. Steve Pederson: Being part of the mix, we're at the very end. And Will did come in for a playback when we basically had everything there, it was 95% done. Will came in and was so appreciative when the lights came up of what he had heard and seen. And it was very gratifying for us because we took inspiration, the slap aside, from what was on the screen. Thanks to everybody here and what you had done, we felt we needed to step up the sonic and meet that. It's such an important film, we had such a great time doing it. Will was appreciative and we're very appreciative of Will and what he did and his performance, that we all felt we had to rise to that level. And it was such a pleasure to meet him and to get his feedback and to see how he responded to our work. Emancipation is now streaming on Apple TV+.
Interview by Cole Groth  Photo: Nickelodeon/PARAMOUNT+. © 2022 Paramount Global. All Rights Reserved. Joshua Dela Cruz plays Josh, the third host of the Blue's Clues franchise. He stepped in for the role during the rebooted Blues Clues & You! show, which currently airs on Nickelodeon and Paramount+. Donovan Patton plays Josh, the second host of the Blue's Clues franchise. Both have inspired children everywhere by leading in this classic franchise. We at disappointment media got the opportunity to speak with Cruz and Patton about the experience of being a Blue's Clues host, and what it's like to work on the big screen. disappointment media: At one point during the movie, Steve eats a “thinking pretzel,” and now I wonder, do you have anything in your life that helps you think? Joshua Dela Cruz: Listening to music definitely helps me think. I have a difficult time dealing with procrastination and just general anxiety about failing to do something, so I'll put on ambient music whenever I have to sit at my computer and work. It's something that we do for our dog when we leave because we love our dog. And I was like, “well, why don't I try it?” It does the trick. Donovan Patton: I always find myself listening to two different things: the Beastie Boys and Run the Jewels x Aesop Rock have these instrumental albums, which aren’t quite ambient, but those albums are super great for me. It's either that or Bach Cello concertos, and as long as they don’t have words, then I’m good. disappointment: Well, is music your ‘thinking pretzel,’ like Josh, or do you have anything else that gets you thinking? Patton: If I'm trying to work and get stuff done, I’ll usually listen to music. I also find that taking a walk or hiking helps. When I write, I always have a pencil in my hand. I don't usually write on my computer because I'm very analog. I’ll usually write in a notebook, and the good part about that is that I can just chuck a notebook in my bag or my pocket and go for a walk. And then, if I'm not listening to something with words, like a podcast, my brain will go places where it'll help me to get some stuff done. disappointment: Donovan, I know that your character returning is significant for the fans, especially since this is a movie. What was your thought process when you first got that call that said, “Oh, hey, we want you back in the movie?” Patton: Well, I was so excited just to be a part of it. Having done Blue's Clues on my own, seeing Steve do it, then watching Blue's Clues & You!, and working with Josh on it made me think about what those guys would be like in the real world. Like, how would they even just get a coffee together? You get to see that happen in this film, so I was super excited. I'll also work with these guys on anything because they’re so much fun. We work together so well, and I didn't even know how great Josh was before I saw him in this film. He’s so talented and fabulous, and he’s excellent at acting, singing, and dancing. It's fantastic to watch Josh be, to use the dog pun, "unleashed." disappointment: Josh, what is the best part of being a part of the trio of Blue's Clues leads? Cruz: There are only two other people who know what it's like to do this job: Steve and Donovan. The coolest part is that we're cousins on the show, and I watched them while I was growing up with my little sister and my cousin, and now we're pretty much cousins in real life. It's like a family reunion whenever we get to work together, and to Donovan's point, I will do anything as long as Steve and Donovan are there. I love them to death and learn so much from them whenever I get the chance to work with them. This time around, you'll see Steve and Joe as you've never seen them before. You're going to laugh; you're going to smile. If you don't have kids, you're still going to have a great time, and that's because of them. And I'm so, so excited for people to see this. Blue’s Big City Adventure releases exclusively on Paramount+ on November 18th.
Interview by Cole Groth  Photo: Nickelodeon/PARAMOUNT+. © 2022 Paramount Global. All Rights Reserved. BD Wong is an acclaimed actor who's known for his roles as Dr. George Huang on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, Father Ray Mukada on Oz, Dr. Henry Wu in the Jurassic Park franchise, and Captain Li Shang in Mulan. Brianna Bryan is the voice actress behind Rainbow Puppy, a role from Blues Clues & You! that she's reprising in Blue's Big City Adventure. We at disappointment media got the opportunity to speak with Wong and Bryan about what it's like to be a part of the Blue's Clues franchise, and to inspire children everywhere. disappointment: What's it like to join the cast of a beloved franchise like Blue's Clues? Wong: It is so great. I've had the experience a few times over my career where I get to be a guest star on a sitcom or a television show that’s very important and well-revered. When a franchise like this is so beloved, you feel special to be a part of it. It's a unique experience. I felt like I was aware of the importance of this, and I had my investment in what the show means to people. I was not let down by how the crew created this movie; how they behaved, thought, and collaborated was so wonderful, so I loved that part. It made me realize that, yes, you can meet your heroes. From the top down, the whole cast and crew have created a tone of exceptionally positive energy and mindfulness that I think you can feel when you watch the show. We’re doing something fundamentally important, and I don't like to overstate it, but this franchise has done so much good for kids worldwide. disappointment: Brianna, you've voiced the character of Rainbow Puppy on the Blue's Clues & You! and now you're playing her in a movie. BD just mentioned the environment around the production; what was that production experience like for you? Bryan: For me, the production was more similar to the regular show, whereas it was very different for Joshua. I got to be in the studio again, so it all felt like a natural progression from Rainbow Puppy being introduced and going through smaller adventures. Now she gets to be seen in a new light. The experience behind the scenes was in the studio; I was solo, just like I usually am. In this film, I sang my heart out and danced around the studio. I'm very animated, so I enjoy being in that space. But who knows? I mean, we don't know what the future holds. Someone mentioned a potential cameo at one point. Wong: Haha, in a Rainbow Puppy costume? Bryan: Yeah, in that costume. It was pretty similar for me on the production side, although it’s just a different experience to be in the magic of making a movie. Delivering Rainbow Puppy to this big screen was such a great time. Wong: Shooting the movie on location, let alone locations in New York City, makes this a new experience than the show. It's a vastly different enterprise for the filmmakers, and that must have been wild, especially for Josh. disappointment: BD, I mentioned I had this interview with one of my friends, and as a gay man, he excitedly asked, “You're interviewing BD Wong?!” Which reminded me that you’re already such an inspiration, especially to those in the gay community. How do you think this movie will inspire kids of every background? Wong: Well, thank you, because I wanted to be part of it because I've felt very comfortable and trusting of their understanding of diversity and inclusion. Throughout the show's history, their commitment to inclusion has grown, especially in the Josh version of the show, and they have a fundamental understanding of representation. For this new generation, there are clues they will take with them through their lives of how important it is to accept all people. It’s important to show them to have open hearts and minds and be optimistic about differences. So, I am aligned with this whole mission. Because the kids are so young, I think getting this message across is super important. Bryan: Yeah, and just to add to the awareness of it all, I think placing these messages where they’re meant to be seen is very important. If you don't get the message, you don't, but it's intended to give you an awareness of differences in the world the way you might see it in the classroom. Wong: ...which is exactly what representation is. That's all it is. It's got to be there for a person not to be invisible. Blue’s Big City Adventure releases exclusively on Paramount+ on November 18th.
Interview by Cole Groth  Photo: Nickelodeon/PARAMOUNT+. © 2022 Paramount Global. All Rights Reserved. Matt Stawski is an up-and-coming director who directed some of the biggest music videos of the early 2010s, including "Hey, Soul Sister," by Train, "When Can I See You Again," by Owl City, and "[Forget] You," by CeeLo Green. Blue's Big City Adventure is his second feature, and perhaps his biggest project yet. We at disappointment media got the opportunity to speak with Stawski about what it's like to direct a live-action/animated hybrid film. You can check out Blue’s Big City Adventure on Paramount+ starting November 18th. disappointment: I was doing a little perusing through IMDb, and I know that you've directed some very influential music videos. How did your experience with music videos prepare you for this film? Matt Stawski: From doing music videos for years, I learned how to shoot a performance, get all the different angles, and the musicality of it all. If you look at CeeLo Green's "[Forget] You," it's obviously inspired by Motown. And I'm originally from Detroit and the oldies. It's all we listened to when we were young. So I'm always thinking of taking genres, whether it's swaying, jazz, or doo-wop, and researching the dance style. So for this film, we looked backward for choreography and then took it and put it into a contemporary space. So making music videos and working with choreographers got me ready for this. When the days on set were with Blue - when we were doing the musical numbers - it was like clockwork, and we hammered stuff out quickly. So that experience helped the preparation for that. disappointment: Well, speaking of the production style, what's it like to work with the live-action/animation hybrid? Stawski: I have experience doing a lot of green screen work, and I’ve worked on many projects with animation comped into live-action situations. However, this was the first time we had these motion-tracking balls on set; there's a blue one and a gray one, which is how they capture the lighting. And that gives all the actors their eye lines. So this was the first time we had multiple actors interacting with different eye lines on set at one point. You know, in the film's final scene, you'll see the director of the play, BD Wong’s character, with Josh, Steve, and Joe. In that scene, there’s a total of, like, 12 animated characters all around them. I'm glad we didn't do that scene first because that was a heck of a scene. But yeah, shooting with all the different eye levels was interesting because we had to make sure the heights were aligned and that everyone was interacting with the animated characters as best as possible. disappointment: Earlier, you mentioned Steve, and one of the critical scenes of this film is when he opens his door and looks back at the audience. It’s such an important scene, and I want to know how you approached it. Stawski: It was essential to have a big reveal, so we made the high contrast, noir Godfather aesthetic. When he opens the door and addresses the audience, Steve is talking more or less to the adults because they were young in the 90s growing up with him, so he's speaking at a different height since he's standing up. Eye level is fundamental in Blue's Clues. Steve, Donovan, and Josh never talk down to anyone, and he stands up when he opens the door. His mannerisms and phrasing are very much oriented to talking to the adults while Josh is still talking to the kids. So that was a fascinating contrast between Steve and Josh in a Blue's Clues movie in 2022. Blue’s Big City Adventure releases exclusively on Paramount+ on November 18th.
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