Where The Bears Are's Ben Zook says series based on creators' lives
Mon. August 20, 2012 9:01 AM by OnTopMag.com
Ben Zook, one of the three actor-producers of the web comedy series Where The Bears Are, says the series is based on their lives.
The August 1 premiere of Where The Bears Are on YouTube and Vimeo has racked up more than 160,000 views. In the comedy series, three gay roommates attempt to solve the murder of a man who turns up dead in their Silver Lake, California bathroom the day after a birthday party.
Reggie (played by Rick Copp), Wood (Joe Dietl) and Nelson (Ben Zook) each claim to have no recollection of meeting the man lying in their tub.
In an interview with Frontiers LA, Zook said the co-creators identify as "bears" and that the series is an exaggerated version of their own lives.
"Joe Dietl and I are partners who live in Silver Lake, and Rick lives downtown and part-time in Palm Springs," said Zook. "We love going to bear functions around the country, so yes, we drew a great deal from our real lives. But the show is a comedy/murder mystery, so it's pretty wacky in comparison to our real lives. Our own lives aren't nearly as sexy or exciting. Rick Copp and I are actually playing very exaggerated versions of ourselves. However, Rick, who wrote the show, isn't nearly as mean as his character Reggie is. And I'd like to think I'm not as deluded in real life as my character, Nelson. However, Joe Dietl is as dumb as his character, Wood, is in real life. [Laughs] Just kidding."
The August 1 premiere of Where The Bears Are on YouTube and Vimeo has racked up more than 160,000 views. In the comedy series, three gay roommates attempt to solve the murder of a man who turns up dead in their Silver Lake, California bathroom the day after a birthday party.
Reggie (played by Rick Copp), Wood (Joe Dietl) and Nelson (Ben Zook) each claim to have no recollection of meeting the man lying in their tub.
In an interview with Frontiers LA, Zook said the co-creators identify as "bears" and that the series is an exaggerated version of their own lives.
"Joe Dietl and I are partners who live in Silver Lake, and Rick lives downtown and part-time in Palm Springs," said Zook. "We love going to bear functions around the country, so yes, we drew a great deal from our real lives. But the show is a comedy/murder mystery, so it's pretty wacky in comparison to our real lives. Our own lives aren't nearly as sexy or exciting. Rick Copp and I are actually playing very exaggerated versions of ourselves. However, Rick, who wrote the show, isn't nearly as mean as his character Reggie is. And I'd like to think I'm not as deluded in real life as my character, Nelson. However, Joe Dietl is as dumb as his character, Wood, is in real life. [Laughs] Just kidding."
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