HOLLYWOOD—Just on the heels of big news that the drama “The Bay” has been purchased by a distinguished packager of television dramas, I caught up with my friend, actor, producer, director, writer, casting director and “The Bay’s” creator Gregori Martin between flights from L.A. to New York City, where current episodes of the series will be filmed. The handsome, talented and very gracious producer always has time for media and his friends, so I played both cards to get this exclusive chat with him about the future of his hit award-winning series.
Q-How does it feel to have such a positive move for “The Bay”?
A-“I’m very excited. The show has a wonderful support group not only from the people behind the scenes and the cast, but also our fans. I’m extremely grateful for all the love.”
Q-Did this come as a surprise, or have you been working on this behind the scenes?
A-“Are you referring to our deal with Associated Television? If so, it sort of did come as a surprise. Jim Romanovich has been a fan of the show since day one. I met with him a couple times but they weren’t sure what they could do with the show. I got a call from him a few weeks ago and they were interested in acquiring the rights. His plans are to sell 13, 30-minute shows to a cable channel like Hallmark sometime in 2012. I have my fingers crossed. The first step is now finding the financing and the sponsors to come on board so we can produce enough content for 13, 30-minute episodes. Our current episodes are only 5-10 minutes long.”
Q-My readers are psyched about Matthew Ashford’s appearance on your show. Can we expect an even hotter and more exciting storyline next season?
A-“Oh yes! Fans can expect a lot more of Steve Jensen in season two. I have a lot of exciting stories planned for Steve involving several characters. I haven’t written the scripts yet so let’s see how that pans out. Matt is definitely a fun guy to watch! He’s the perfect actor for the role of Steve Jensen. He gives the character a certain unexpected edge that I don’t think I would’ve found if another actor played the part. I love working with Matt and am excited for what’s to come. Steve is a fun character to write for.”
Q-So with the purchase of “The Bay” done now, will you be filming sooner than this summer, as originally expected?
A-Well again, as I mentioned earlier, we shall see how much money we raise. We need those sponsors, product placement, donations, whatever, to keep the show alive. Remember, we don’t have a studio backing us yet, so it’s all still very Indie and very shoestring. Right now we’re shooting a prequel to season two in New York temporarily titled ”˜Far from the Bay’ that we’re planning to release in June. It’s following Peter Garrett (played by Kristos Andrews) on his journey to find the woman who he believes to be his mother, Claire Andrews (played by Marie Wilson). It’ll actually involve other popular web shows like ”˜Empire.’ So, we’ll have some interesting crossovers that I think the fans will get a kick out of. We will also be releasing ”˜Confessions of the Ramos’ which will be the same as ”˜Confessions of the Garretts,’ but of course with the Ramos family. We’ll most likely shoot that sometime in May to release in July. Those confessions will be of Janice (played by Lilly Melgar, from “General Hospital” and “The Bold and the Beautiful”), Lianna (played by Jade Harlow “Passions”) and Janice’s brothers Manny and Frankie (played by Ignacio Serricchio “General Hospital” and Diego Serrano “The Young and the Restless” and “Another World”).
Q-I’ve never seen such a great ensemble cast since the 1980’s with ABC’s “Dynasty.” Are you expecting a breakout new character for season two, similar to Alexis on “Dynasty” or Chase on “Falcon Crest?”
A-“I don’t think so. I honestly think we have plenty of great characters we still need to flesh out. I’m sure we’ll have plenty of one or two day guest appearances, I’m actually planning some out already, but a new lead is not likely. After all, fans still want to see a lot more of Lee Nelson (played by Joe Lando). I guess he’s my Alexis!”
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