Robyn and I we’ve worked together as a writing, directing, producing partnership for 20 years.
Oh, is she the conjoined twins doctor?
Not you too?
(Snort)
We’ve made a bunch of shows like Upper Middle Bogan and The Librarians.
What was …?!
Taylor, Nina, Jordan and Brooke.
Wayne and I were working on a new series together and we were planning to maybe head off in
March to LA to try and sell it. And then the pandemic hit.
And then maybe that’s something to do with …
All the people around us, costume designers, make-up artists, writers, producers, nobody
had a job.
And that is how the little ogre came to live on a swamp with a beautiful princess.
I was playing the role of Princess Fiona in Shrek the musical both in Sydney and then
here in Melbourne.And we didn’t actually realise at the time that Sunday, the 15th
of March, ended up being our last show cos in the next day we were told that all the
theatres had been closed. Those first few days everything was so different and uncertain.
I was having trouble sleeping and I just had this idea I was smashing out that was just
a rom com set completely in isolation. And filmed completely in isolation, I started
to think we could do, like, I think this could happen.
I love rom coms, it’s my favourite genre. And I’d been wanting to work with Robyn
Butler and Wayne Hope for a really long time.
I can’t believe you would do that.
Bring our family back together, I know, what a monster.
We’d worked together back in I think 2014.
Yes, that’s why she’s here.
I think Lucy she does look up to them professionally and personally and I think she aspires to
to live the sort of life that they lead. They’re their own rom com.
Karen’s one of those people, that um everyone goes, oh you should be an actress…
Wayne and I met in 1998 on the set of show that I co wrote called Small Tales and true.
Like at school she had the lead in the um, what was it? Pirates of Penzance …
I remember thinking Wow that Wayne Hope’s a good actor, he’s really good, don’t
tell, he won’t see this bit, will he?
I knew you would, I told you you would. I got a job acting alongside her playing her
husband and our relationship was supposed to be in trouble.
At the time we thought it would be good for Karen’s depression.
But I was thinking she’s lovely, completely lovely.
That’s true, I did get really depressed after the show.
Falling in love snuck up on me, I wasn’t, I wasn’t planning to do that. But we were
we were just kind of kindred spirits and I couldn’t help it.
It’s a rom com set in isolation, filmed …
I think it was about week four of lockdown and our friend Lucy Durack rang Robin with
the idea to do an isolation romantic comedy.
Robyn was like I think we need to do this quickly.
I was terrified that suddenly we’d make it and that the world would be free and no
one would want to watch a stupid show about being locked down anymore, so that pressure
was real.
Three days later she emerges still in her pyjamas, hasn’t showered, pretty rank to
be honest and she’s got a bunch of scripts in her hand and she’s written the whole
six parter. And you know, then I have to work out a way to make it. So I set about researching
youtubers and how they filmed themselves.
Yep, stating the obvious …
So “Love in Lockdown” is a rom com, it’s a six part web series, rom com, set entirely
in isolation, filmed entirely in isolation about two unlikely people Ned and Georgie,
who were very different who met over online ukulele lessons and ultimately fall in love.
I’m Georgie.
Hi Georgie.
Lucy said to me what about Eddie Perfect for this role.
Sorry about this.
And he said yeah, great.
I made up these little kits which consist of a tripod with an arm on it, they look like
little robots with a light and then you screw your phone in sideways and then plug a little
microphone into the top.
Testing one two.
I sent one to Lucy in Melbourne and sent another kit to Eddie in Sydney with an instruction
manual ok, here’s how to film yourself.
This is the rig that Wayne had researched.
Lucy would use her iPhone and film all of her scenes alone in the office in our house.
And then Eddie was doing the same thing. He was filming his scenes on his iPhone in his
bedroom.
Scene four, take three, this is lesson one
Scene four, take three. Action. Clap.
And then Wayne would pick through the takes. They’d have earphones in, talking to each
other on another phone, Sydney, Melbourne.
Five four three two, clap.
They’d have to clap at the same time so we can sync the sounds.
Isn’t that what makes us human?
And then we had this great day where Eddie and I were right in the pocket of it, and
we were feeling really good and we recorded the last three episodes, and we were all feeling
so proud of ourselves and then the next day I wake up and Wayne was like ah, the sound
from your all three of your episodes didn’t work and I was like oh my god I’m the worst.
Lucy’s home life is chaotic. She has got the four year old and an eight month old and
a husband, he’s a dancer, choreographer, and he’s had to move his lessons at home.
And she somehow managed to make it work.
Hello? Oh, hi.
So “Love in Lockdown”, it does have a happy ending, I think all rom coms should.
Why are you outside, at my house.
In the final episode Eddie’s character comes to visit Lucy’s character unannounced.
Hi. Hello.
Eddie’s wife Lucy Cochrane she recorded Eddie and then Wayne recorded me.
The phone holder, it’s hiding your letterbox because there’s two letterboxes.
And it was really fun and I kept saying to Robyn and Wayne please come inside it’s
really cold out and they were like no no we’re staying outside, we’re staying within the
rules.
I just thought I’d get a little of you guys.
Hi. Brilliant, and there’s my husband.
It was pretty awesome because the background in Eddie’s shot is him in Sydney but Wayne
edited it together so that it looked like you know Eddie was there at Lucy’s front
door in Melbourne.
What’ll I do-oo.
Yeah, see I have to disagree.
About what. That is definitely a love song.
I think doing this made us feel quite in love with each other and it wasn’t just the story.
Wayne and I felt like we were in our 20s again. Iit felt as liberating as just being a couple
of kids that went let’s just make something.
Make my own show work.
The whole series from go to woe was written, recorded and edited in 17 days. And then we
release it online.
I'll be honest I’m a little bit nervous.
Within an hour, people are feeding back to you going oh my god I love this, it’s so
nice.
What was your favourite bit of directing?
I would love the opportunity to see what happens to these characters but I think because we’re
not in lockdown anymore it would end up being something quite different which could definitely
work, I definitely think there’s possibility for it.
Never I would never do it again. No, of course, I would do it again. People keep saying do
a series two that would mean another pandemic. Of course, I'm not going to say there's a
series two, That would be terrible. No, one. One pandemic, one romantic comedy.