Out writer-director-producer and sometime actor Todd Graff ( pictured ) has had an unusually broad career stretching back to his stint as a performer on the children's show "The Electric Company" in the mid-'70s. Since then he's acted, written, and produced in a wide variety of film genres ( everything from The Abyss to Used People ) . But Graff is perhaps best known for Camp, the hilarious and touching 2003 movie about a summer camp for high school musical theatre teens he wrote and directed based on his own experiences. Now Graff has returned to features with Bandslam, another teen movie, this one centered on a rock band contest and featuring a pair of Disney Channel starlets, Vanessa Hudgens and Alyson Michalska who co-star with newcomer Gaelan Connell and gay audience favorite Lisa Kudrow. Excerpts from Graff's exclusive interview with Windy City Times:
Windy City Times: Why did you want to make another teen movie after Camp?
Todd Graff: It's not so much that I specifically wanted to do another teen picture. I was interested in doing another music driven picture and I was interested in doing a studio picture where I had an actual budget and some actors who were in the union.
WCT: [ Laughs ] And a little craft service, perhaps?
TG: Exactly. So I was certainly in the market for that and this came my way. It existed as a script when it was brought to me but in an extremely different form.
WCT: Did those kids know who any of those punk icons that are referenced in the movie were—Patti Smith, David Bowie, The Velvet Underground, Bad Brains, etc.?
TG: No. There was a lot of rock school going on but that was fun. I don't think it changed anybody's mind. I don't think that they're out there buying "See No Evil" by Television but as actors they embraced it because they needed to do that for the character's sake.
WCT: We just lost John Hughes, king of the 80s teen pictures. Having helmed a couple of these yourself, any thoughts on picking up his mantle for a new generation?
TG: Listen, I should only ever be a patch on John Hughes' garment—I don't kid myself. It's not that I don't like this niche that I'm in but I'm in this niche and a lot of stuff that I get sent or things that I present to people are music driven and have young characters. I mean, I don't think I'm going to do another exclusively "teen" movie like this one but I certainly am fond of the idea of there being teen characters. The nice thing about actors that age is they have no idea if you're right or wrong so they don't question you. They just kind of do it so you don't have to worry so much. [ Laughs ]
WCT: I'm sure it was great working with Lisa Kudrow.
TG: Yes, she's not just talented and funny she's truly one of the nicest people in the business.
WCT: She has this new hilarious web series, "Web Therapy," with out director Don Roos.
TG: It's fantastic.
WCT: I love it too. Now he recently said something to the effect that maybe young gay actors in Hollywood should stay in the closet—this was following up on comments made by another out director to the same effect, Todd Holland. What's your take on this?
TG: I don't know the specific context of what they said and they're both friends of mine and I love both of those guys.
WCT: As do I.
TG: Yeah, yeah, yeah. I would say this myself: I was a young actor and it wasn't like I went to The Advocate and said, "I'm out" when I was on Broadway but I never hid anything either. As soon as anybody did care and I was interviewed by Out and The Advocate it wasn't an issue and it was fine. But I was never a real leading man type so maybe the thinking is more about if you're the guy who gets the girl and shoots the guy and fights the alien. Yeah, maybe there are a lot of narrow minded people who would have a problem with that. I don't know. I think you have to live your life. You can't really stand in other people's shoes. They have their own reasons. Outing in general, obviously, is very divisive as an issue. Whether you're a young actor or not. If you're Michelangelo Signorile it's, "Why should there be a problem with everyone being gay?" but it's not you—that's fine for your life and nobody's going to tell you you can't. So, although I would have no problem with it and if any friend asked me I would counsel them and say, "Live your own life and fuck them and who cares" but I would never really judge anybody who didn't have the immediate courage to do that.
WCT: I think everybody should be out but I'm not a young leading man type in Hollywood trying to get jobs.
TG: Right.
WCT: It would be nice to see this change—to have a Rupert Everett not regret his decision to come out, for example.
TG: But you know things do change. I don't know. I'm casting something now and I have no idea and don't care about the sexuality of the hottie older teenage guy who I'm casting for the lead in it and I would have no issue with him being gay and out and I would have no issue with him being straight. The character he's playing is straight and I think at the end of the day no studio is going to say I can't cast the lead in my own movie because that's my job as director. So I'm somebody who is in charge of somebody getting exactly something like this and for me, there'll be no downside to being out. Down the line when they have to market the movie? I have no idea what issues that pop up for that part of the studio's machinery. But in terms of getting the job one just has to hope that the individual doing the hiring is not a Luddite in this area.
