“Brazen teens are in charge on racy adaptation of UK drama 'Skins'” |
| Brazen teens are in charge on racy adaptation of UK drama 'Skins' Posted: 15 Jan 2011 06:04 AM PST The Canadian Press - ONLINE EDITION TORONTO - The location is different, the actors are new, some characters have changed and storylines will diverge, but one thing that persists in the American version of the British hit "Skins" is a frank depiction of sex, drugs and teenagers, says creator Bryan Elsley. The man behind one of the U.K.'s most controversial TV series says the edgy fare that drew outrage and fans abroad is maintained for a North American makeover that debuts Monday. He explains that teen life is pretty much the same on both sides of the pond. "I don't know how America will react to the stories in 'Skins,' " Elsley says in a recent interview from the Toronto set. "What I do know is that the show reflects some of the highs and lows of being a teenager today. That does involve drug use, of course it does. On 'Skins,' we don't really think the show is about drugs — we think the show is about friendship and we think that all the characters in the show are very moral people. It's just that their morals are maybe not quite the same as adults." Days before its debut, "Skins" had already drawn the ire of a U.S. parents group angry it was being marketed to a teenage audience. The Canada-U.K. co-production was developed in association with MTV U.S., where it airs south of the border. Here, the 10-part drama airs on The Movie Network and Movie Central. As in the original, "Skins" centres on nine teenage friends led by the manipulative and charismatic Tony, for whom life is a game. This high-school schemer is not above lying, cajoling and coercing everyone around him — including his girlfriend, best friend and every adult he comes into contact with. His morning routine includes looking out his bedroom window to catch a topless housewife across the street preening for him in her window. "He's not the nicest kid around," admits James Newman, an 18-year-old New Yorker who brings a cruel-but-confident swagger to the plum part despite no previous acting experience. "I think every guy, certain guys, at one point or another in their life love the feeling of being in control, whether it be in an awful way or a not so bad way, that's just an emotion that you have. In that sense, you can kind of relate." Canadians feature prominently in the cast, with Rachel Thevenard of Waterloo, Ont., as Tony's sexy girlfriend Michelle; Ron Mustafaa of Oshawa, Ont., as the lovelorn Abbud; Toronto's Camille Cresencia-Mills as the sensible Daisy; Jesse Carere of Woodbridge, Ont., as the fearless Chris; Toronto's Britne Oldford as the troubled Cadie and Toronto's Eleanor Zichy as Tony's quiet younger sister. New Jersey actors Daniel Flaherty and Sofia Black-D'Elia round out the cast as Tony's best friend Stanley and the openly gay Tea. Aside from Mustafaa, who turned 20 during filming last December, all are teens. The cast was chosen precisely because of their lack of experience, says Elsley, who created the original series with his own teenage son, Jamie Brittain. And as in the original "Skins," the stories here are shaped by an advisory panel of teens who peruse the scripts and offer true-to-life tips on the proper slang or a character's bedroom decor. Music supervisor Matt Feldman is just 18. Newman says this uniquely young perspective makes the series all the more powerful, and relevant. The material may be racy, he says, but it is realistic. "(It's) stuff that some people would deem inappropriate and is inappropriate, but I think the show doesn't just do it for the sake of just doing it," he says. "I don't think we're just selling sex.... It is part of teen life. Drugs are part of teen life and I think it's a really accurate portrayal of including it in there." Thevenard says she was a huge fan of the original series and admits the more outrageous exploits could end looking contrived. "We've made an effort not to hold anything back," Thevenard says of the new version. "(But) I think you have to be careful. I think if you go into something looking to push the envelope the product might end up looking safe but I think 'Skins' just is what it is and we tell an honest portrayal of teenage life. The envelope is quite small so sometimes we have to push it." That edginess was too much for at least one cast member's parent, with Mustafaa chuckling over his mom's difficulty in coping with his racier scenes. "I'm like, 'Mom, I might need to stage a sex scene with one of the cast members.' And she's like, 'Aah!' She freaked out for a bit on the telephone," says Mustafaa, a full-time political science student at the University of Toronto. "But I was like, 'Mom, it's all done tastefully and they always care for us.' " "Skins" debuts Monday on The Movie Network and Movie Central. This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php |
| You are subscribed to email updates from Content Keyword RSS To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now. | Email delivery powered by Google |
| Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610 | |
0 comments:
Post a Comment