In the Booth: Sarah Champagne & Nancy Lu Hoffman
In the Booth is a new blog series where we go behind the scenes and chat with the folks that make How it Ends. We asked our team a series of questions and let them choose which resonated most, so expect to see some variance in these features. Join us as the creators, cast, and crew members share their experience working on the show. Get ready to meet our talented team and maybe even hear a few secrets behind its gripping conclusion!
Please note that some answers may contain spoilers for How it Ends Season 3, so read at your own risk.
Sarah Champagne, a filmmaker, and Nancy Lu Hoffman, a writer and voice actor, both voice characters on How it Ends, Billie Campbell from Season 1 and Gail Perry in Season 3. While comparatively these characters have had less screen time than others, each made an impact on the show in a unique way. Billie is established as Micah's therapist that encourages her to begin tracking her dreams. Micah not following Billie's methods of doing so notwithstanding, without that suggestion Micah may never have had the opportunity to find answers about her father. Gail emerges in a different light, and to keep from dropping spoilers before we get to the interview... We'll stop there.
Sarah has a background in filmmaking, as you'll soon learn, and Nancy is co-creator of Witches & Dicks: A podcast where she and her co-host Evelyn Archer (who is also How it Ends transcriber) bring you "a cackling good time as they explore the places where mysteries collide."
Sarah Champagne
voice of Billie Campbell
Nancy Lu Hoffman
voice of Gail Perry
Okay, let’s get the ball rolling with the question we’re asking everyone: How did you hear about How it Ends and/or what encouraged you to join the team?
Sarah: Micah and I have known each other since 2011-ish. So when she and Stephanie reached out about a potential role, I signed up! I feel most alive on set - filmmaking was an important part of my creative life. While parenting has (temporarily) shifted those priorities, I was so grateful to once again feel the energy and warmth, and life that is part and parcel of contributing to a collaborative project. Everyone worked incredibly hard to create a truly collaborative and generous experience; I'll always be grateful to have been included.
Nancy: Evelyn Archer and I were super lucky to be introduced to Micah and Stephanie at a Zoom mixer for podcasters during the pandemic. We hit it off, started listening to the show, and then got invited to do some voice acting. Evelyn and I were having a business meeting in her kitchen when we each saw the email invitation, and we both freaked out with joy and bounced around the room! I am thrilled to be part of How it Ends. It's an honor to join a story that's in full swing, with characters that so many people are invested in.
My character may not be as beloved (!) but I was very excited to help contribute to this story of friends coming together to face the mysterious. It's so fun to become part of a world I've been listening to on my commute home.
You both have a history of film and/or acting work. Can you talk a little about your background?
Nancy: I've been performing since just after college, where I got my first part because I knew a little ballet. The play was a stage version of Charles Dickens's Nicholas Nickleby. There was a character named The Infant Phenomenon, a child stage performer; I was short and could dance, so I got the part. I've acted here and there since then, as I am drawn foremost to writing, directing, and producing. But I really love voice acting. I find freedom in it and zero stage fright!
Some of my favorite roles have actually been with The Manton Avenue Project, a Providence-based arts organization where kids write plays and adults perform them. I've played a bossy dragon sister, a giraffe with an oven in her neck, an ice cream cone who runs home to her freezer to cry, and a mad scientist. Great stuff. To prepare for roles, I like to find actions to play, use Uta Hagen's destination exercises, but remain open to impulses along the way. You must commit to taking the metaphorical pie in the face 100% every time. Acting is a great exercise in being present, empathetic, and alive.
Sarah: While I never worked for compensation in the industry, I auditioned for my first short film, directed by Nick Peterson, shortly after my mom passed away in 2004. The audition was actually scheduled for the day of her funeral, and I emailed from California to say I wouldn’t be able to make it, and wish him luck as I was sure that he would already have cast the part. However, he emailed back that he hadn’t cast the part and would still like me to come in, if I were interested. I thought about it and decided I had to take the plunge because I had originally contacted them to audition to learn more about the film industry. I figured auditioning would a way for me to learn - at least what it was like to set up an audition! The very first scene I was ever in, I had to cry on film and he told me he couldn’t afford to re-shoot. He asked me if I needed to take some time to get I. The mood - I told him I needed 10 seconds - turned around and that was it - he rolled and I did the scene in one shot within seconds of my first day on set. I think that kind of artistic decision is actually really creatively freeing in a way, because you don’t get to shoot endless choices and then agonize over the best cut. You also have to pay close attention to your craft, technically, because if something is out of focus or framed poorly, it’s really expensive/impossible to reshoot.
Nick was a gem of a human being and let me ask question after question - how did he light a scene, what editing software did he use? How did he make editing decisions? How did he write a script? How did he create wardrobe/costumes, etc? It was a wonderfully warm and kind community and the perfect artistic distraction during my grief. He subsequently cast me in two other films and that also helped me grow. He made films using 16 mm and that was too expensive for me at the time, so I filmed on Super 8 mm, which was thrilling.
As for my own filmmaking, I made two short films which screened at a variety of film festivals including The Baltimore’s Women’s film festival to Hawaii Film festival, San Diego AFF, etc. Watching an audience experience your creative work is extraordinary - an honor and also surreal. My work has been described as “a dreamy evocative visual poem” but it touched on themes of sexuality, gender, and the ways in which community shows up for those coming of age.
Portland, Oregon has/had a thriving film community (Gus Van Sant once came to the film I was in and sat two seats away!) and it was just a thrilling time to absorb information and learn and support each other. Providence has a very similar feel in terms of the arts community, though I regret never having been able to tap into the film community here in the same way. There’s a certain West Coast vibe - a generosity of spirit and a willingness to collaborate that is different on the East Coast, in terms of the sensibility (at least within the film community).
I approach each project with an open spirit, and much less structure than most. I have an idea of what I would like to capture, but I really loved allowing the actors to improv and see what they came up with - I think that both delighted and frustrated them, depending on how their relationship to structure. In general, shooting on film is expensive, so you do have to think through each shot carefully - I never shot backups - it was one and done, which is actually how Nick shot on film as well. My style was what you would call “guerilla filmmaking” - meaning it shot in lots of lovely spots around Portland surreptitiously- because we never had the funds to get permission this sometimes led to us quickly packing up and beating a hasty retreat but it made for delightful adventures.
Nancy, you have your own podcast, which personally, we think has an excellent title: Witches & Dicks. Give your show a shout out and tell us a bit about it.
I got the idea for Witches & Dicks when I saw a Washington Post bracket to choose the best literary detective. I thought, ooh, I want to talk to my pal Evelyn Archer about this, we should make it a podcast. Which then led to, “Oh, and we should also talk about witches too, that would be fun.” And then the title just leapt to mind.
Then I realized that there is actually a strong Venn diagram between witches and private detectives: they are both outliers, operate by their own code, have clients go to them for similar reasons, and often have exceptional powers of some sort. Evelyn and I have a great time discussing films, books, folk tales, all about magic and mystery.
Since we've moved on to podcasting, Sarah, here's a semi-follow up question from earlier. You've chatted about your film experience, what can you tell us about the similarities and differences in how you approached How it Ends?
In terms of how I approach this project - it’s completely different - everything is meticulously structured and thoughtfully laid out, which is really lovely when it comes to the level of detail, particularly in the script. A podcast is such a different medium from film - you don’t have the distraction of so many of the elements of film - cinematography being the most obvious, so the focus on the script is really important. I think if I were to create a podcast myself, I likely would approach it the same way as I did film - a seed of an idea with miles of freedom for those participating to improv their responses so as to create a more naturalistic environment.
- A quick note from Micah & Stephanie: Incidentally, Sarah just described How it Ends. One of the most frequent comments we receive points to our naturalistic dialogue and relationships that feel true to real life. That's on purpose.
This specific type of dialogue delivery was baked into our original concept of How it Ends. Given the show’s hyper-meta plot and presentation, relying on line-by-line delivery would feel too stilted for our characters. Friends interrupt each other, they overlap thoughts, they finish each other's sentences.That had to be clear about our characters from the beginning, and we think we've nailed it.
I love seeing how differently different artists approach art - it’s one of the greatest joys and why I was so excited to participate in this project - learning new things and being able to feel that crackling energy on set - that’s life!
We’d like to hear your thoughts on Billie and Gail. Are there similarities between you and your character? If so, tell us about that. If not, can you relate to them even though you're different?
Nancy: Even though I would 100% make other choices and communicate really differently, I have empathy for Gail and her desire to pursue the life she thinks she deserves.
Sarah: There is a generosity of spirit about my character that I aim for. Many folks-from friends to an actual mental health professional-have mentioned that I would make a good therapist. But I'm not sure about that? Truly listening-being in the moment and being fully present and sinking into the experience-is both the greatest gift you can offer another person. I think this kind of listening is a skill I'm still working to develop.
When a character only shows up once, or even a few times, there isn’t as much opportunity to make a mark. How do you think about approaching a character like that?
Or alternatively, is there anything you found challenging about performing your role?
Sarah: I think perfection is my goal - and that's always a high bar to reach. Trying to read the lines, without sounding as if you're reading the lines, while not having as much time to actually practice was a challenge - finding the rhythm between two performers in the moment....but I think we did a great job in the end!
Nancy: As actors we're taught that people do bad things for good reasons and to be on our character's side. So I had to find really good reasons for Gail's words and deeds. An exercise in empathy, which I always welcome.
Do you have a favorite line of dialogue, a scene, or even an episode from the show?
Sarah: As for episodes… Ah! Too many! Even just the tagline "You know that feeling....good, it means you're paying attention..." SHIVERS.
Nancy: Oh, I really loved the D&D episode where Devon does the NPC voice for Marvin the Dismaying! Also, as an actor, it’s a thrill to call my daughter Amelia each time. I can get so much emotional mileage from that one word! What a good writing detail from y’all.
Funny cast members... tell us your faves.
Sarah: Hmm that's a really good question! I think I'm pretty funny irl, but I'm not sure everyone gets to see that side of me - Micah has a really dry sense of humor and Shey brings the charisma. But everyone has their own sense of the funnies.
I’m a parent to a little one so these days, I'm mostly into dad jokes such as: "What did the the janitor shout when he came out of the closet? - Supplies!"
Lastly, give us your final thoughts on working with the entire How it Ends team. And, if you've got one, tell us a favorite memory of yours from your time on the show.
Sarah: There is a joy that is palpable when a crew of folks come together to create - and that joy is precious and beautiful and something to be protected and savored. The relationships created and deepened through the process - the experience getting to know a different aspect of creation - podcasting - was an incredible gift. My favorite memory is from Season 1 is actually just being in the warm community that is AS220 and the vibe that Micah and Stephanie created in studio as we recorded. I will savor the memories of the laughter we shared on set for a lifetime. It meant a lot to be included!
Nancy: Everyone is professional, welcoming, and easy to work with. I'm learning a lot about how to organize my own projects! As for a favorite moment... I fangirled upon meeting Mulder in real life!