Interview with the team behind "1 For All" - Dungeons & Dragons Web Series
Interview conducted by Aesthel
We recently featured the team behind the Dungeons & Dragons web series “1 For All” by Deerstalker Pictures in the 2020 Dungeons & Dragons issue of Cosplay Realm Magazine. We were so excited to chat with them more after the magazine came out and learn more about the behind the scenes of this awesome series!
Photo Credit Information:
"1 For All" created by Deerstalker Pictures @deerstalkerpictures
Photography by Etienne Reynaud @etphemera
Nixie costume/MUA/worn by FallCosplay @fallcosplay
Evandra costume/MUA/worn by Eva Devore @eva_devore
Antrius costume/MUA/worn Forgeling @forgeling
Marquis costume/MUA by Eva Devore @eva_devore , worn by Kendall Drury @kendallthehuman
Killit costume by Forgeling @forgeling, MUA by Soylent Cosplay @soylentcosplay, worn by Kendall Drury @kendallthehuman
CRM: Hello Elliot and Goldie! Could you please introduce Deerstalker Pictures to the Cosplay Realm readers and tell them a bit about what you all do?
Deerstalker Pictures: We’re a couple of filmmakers from Sydney. We teamed up in film school and made a YouTube channel where we make fun, nerdy pop culture videos. I am the writer, director, and editor, and Goldie is the cinematographer and producer. Over the years our channel has taken quite a few twists and turns, from Japanese fashion skits to convention CMVs to cosplay fan films. We’re currently working on an unofficial D&D web-series called “1 For All”.
CRM: You work on the Dungeons & Dragons series “1 For All” Which can be found on your YouTube channel. What is the origin story for this series?
Deerstalker Pictures: We played D&D for the first time last year in a one-shot run by Eva Devore’s partner and “1 For All” photographer Etienne. It was a fun night with a lot of booze and a lot of Leroy Jenkins moments. We’d been looking at the future of our channel for a while at that stage and trying to figure out how to move forward and grow as filmmakers while still trying to appease our eternal lord and master The YouTube Algorithm. After a few more D&D sessions, we thought it would be great to share our silly memories with the world. I was very surprised to find out that no one had done this idea before, with the expectation vs reality of the players around the table intercut with the characters in the fantasy world. I knew we had a great idea on our hands. We went through a few different party iterations until we settled on our cast, and then set ourselves some harsh deadlines to finally move ahead and shoot Episode 1. The rest is history.
CRM: Most Dungeons & Dragons series online are people live playing through campaigns. 1 For All is a comedy web series that is done closer to the style of skit comedy and covers common D&D topics and tropes such as “You Meet in a Tavern”, “Murderhobo”, and “Tragic Backstories”. What are some of the biggest differences between a show like this and the more traditional live play D&D shows?
Deerstalker Pictures: As much as I enjoy a good live play campaign, I have to admit it can be a real slog to get through hours worth of content waiting for the good bits to happen, especially when all you have to look at is the player’s faces. I wanted to distill the crazy antics, the tragic 1s, the triumphant 20s, and the heartbreaking character revelations, all down into a bite size 5 minute video. It’s D&D without the boring bits. Unfortunately that makes it way more expensive to produce than a live stream...
CRM: The 1 For All series has been going strong since October of 2019! Where do you guys see this series going in the future? Can you tell us about some of the tropes you hope to cover in future episodes?
Deerstalker Pictures: There are so many to choose from, it’s hard to narrow them down! I’ve got about 10 complete scripts in the bank that we’re waiting to greenlight as soon as this lockdown is over, as well as a couple dozen concepts waiting to be fleshed out. Not to mention if / when we decide to add a guest character or two. One that I’m really excited to see is The Rule of Cool - we’re hoping to film some awesome stunts with Plus Ultra VFX!
CRM: Each of the characters in this series are so funny and unique in their own ways! What were some of the inspirations behind each of the characters in this series?
Deerstalker Pictures: We went through a bunch of iterations until we finally settled on these characters. The only character that we knew was set from the beginning was Antrius, as Forgeling is basically that character IRL anyway (as seen in the bloopers). Nixie is based on a war mage that Goldie ran, and Evandra is the classic male anti-hero but gender-swapped. There was a point in time where Evandra was going to be a holier-than-thou Paladin, and Nixie was going to have a French accent. We also had a pacifist Barbarian and a socially awkward Warlock during the first table read. I was even going to be in it at one stage. But in the end I decided to keep it simple and run this party.
CRM: The production quality of 1 For All is incredible! We love seeing the switch between the in game world and the real world. Some of the factors that really make the in game portions stand out are the costumes and locations. What are some steps you take to plan filming for these portions of the episodes?
Deerstalker Pictures: Most of our cast are cosplayers so they’re great at pumping out high quality costumes for cheap. Killit’s costume was made by Forgeling over a few hours and a crate of beer. Since Goldie’s been working as a freelance cinematographer for almost ten years she has a huge bank of locations from other shoots and already has the best angles in mind. I also take great care to keep the scripts contained to a single space, and usually write a new draft with a specific location in mind. Because we have fewer set-ups to get through we can spend the time making sure our shots look as good as possible.
CRM: Because the production quality for this series is so high, we imagine there is a TON of work put into each episode! On average, how long does it take to produce one episode of 1 For All from the initial concept to a finished episode?
Deerstalker Pictures: The first episode obviously took the longest. It took about 6 months from conception to the first table read, and still a couple of months more until we filmed it. Once we got the ball rolling, our more recent episodes have taken much less time - I’d say about 6 weeks from writing the script to publishing the video on YouTube. We’re always staggering the production process though, so while I’m busy editing an episode Goldie will be hard at work planning the next shoot.
CRM: In addition to the cast seen in each of the episodes, there is also an incredibly talented crew behind 1 For All! Can you tell us a bit about this awesome team?
Deerstalker Pictures: In the past I’ve had to run my own set, and it’s always been difficult deciding whether or not to go for an extra take to get the performance right, or to move on with something I’m not quite happy with just to make sure we capture everything on the day. We’ve had our 1st AD Vinny on board since Episode 4, and he’s been a great help in keeping us focused and making sure the cast are dressed and where they need to be. We also have our assistant Andy, who’s been with us for several years now helping out with camera and lighting. Forgeling refuses to come on set without him! We’ve very recently had Soylent Cosplay come on board, who is a make-up artist and cosplayer does amazing prosthetic work. I really can’t wait to see which other fantasy races she can help bring to the production! And how could we forget our stills photographer Etienne, who is responsible for most of the content on our Instagram feed? He’s great at making his subjects feel comfortable in front of the lens, and capturing candid moments of the cast and crew.
CRM: We also love that you put out blooper reels for each episode! It makes them all feel even more real, and we can really see how much fun you all have working on this series! What are some of your favorite behind the scenes moments from working on this series?
Deerstalker Pictures: Anything with Lumi! She’s very cute and disruptive, and ruins a lot of takes, but how can we say no to that face? I also love watching the spicy exchanges between Antrius and the DM. It’s amazing how this dysfunctional family gets anything done.
CRM: Aside from 1 For All, Deerstalker Pictures has also produced a lot of other cosplay and fandom related content! What have been some of your other favorite videos that you have worked on in the past?
Deerstalker Pictures: I love all of the videos we’ve done with Vina, especially our Girl’s Generation x Overwatch K-Pop song “GG”. She looks bad-ass and it was fun to produce a music video! Other than that I’d say my favourite series I’ve made is Cooking With Arpakasso, a cooking show starring a stuffed alpaca with a sultry voice. Even though it was hell to puppeteer that plushie from underneath the table, I still giggle at it after all these years.
CRM: Besides watching your videos, the best way to support Deerstalker Pictures is through your Patreon! Can you tell the Cosplay Realm readers a little about what they can find on your Patreon?
Deerstalker Pictures: Patreon has been such a big help in making this show, and we literally could not have gotten this far without the support from our fans. Besides stuff like updates, sneak peeks, etc, my favourite thing we have on offer is a personalised video from the cast or crew. It’s been so much fun watching Antrius serenade our patrons. We’ve also been slowly releasing goodies on our merch store on TeeSpring, so people can support the show there too and take some 1 For All home with them!
CRM: Can you tell us about any other upcoming projects that you all are working on over at Deerstalker Pictures?
Deerstalker PIctures: I’d love to but I’m afraid there’s not much to talk about at the moment. Before this pandemic hit we had a massive sponsored shoot scheduled, as well as two 1 For All shoot dates locked in, but unfortunately everything has been postponed for now. We’re hoping to kick off 1 For All Season 2 as soon as this lockdown is lifted. I’m also using this time to write some short films, and plan another series that is completely different to 1 For All but still using the same cast - I think it’ll be so much fun to see these same faces playing entirely different roles!
CRM: Thanks so much for taking the time to chat with us! Is there anything else that you would like to tell us about?
Deerstalker Pictures: We just want to thank everyone for their support! It’s taken us a long time to get where we are, and we still have a long way to go, but we appreciate everyone giving us a chance and checking out our stuff. So stay home, stay safe, and we’ll see you all soon!
See more of the 1 For All series and other great content from Deerstalker Pictures by following their social media!
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/deerstalkerpictures
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/deerstalkerpictures/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/deerstalkerpics