Saturday October 9, 2:30 PM
Panelists: Tricia Helfer, Katee Sackhoff, Nicki Clyne, Michelle Forbes
Katee Sackhoff’s first comment: “I don’t know what I am, so stop asking me.”
Life on the Show
The cast members continually raved about how wonderful it was to be part of such an important show, and how that experience was felt on the set. Katee Sackhoff, who played Kara Thrace in the series, commended the directors and creative staff for the freedom they afforded the actors in playing their parts. “We did what ever we wanted to do, and it became a family of collaborative work,” she said. “Nobody else has the balls to do what we did.”
With the freedoms of being a cable show came some constraints, namely small budgets. Sackhoff explained one particularly humorous manifestation of the budget constraints, telling us about the scene from Season 1 where she was having sex with Gaius Baltar but pretending it was with Apollo. “Literally, to save money,” she said, “I would play having sex with Apollo and then they’d say, ‘Ok Jamie’s good, James get on her!’”
Tricia Helfer, who played Cylon Number Six, recounted her scenes as Baltar’s mental companion. “To save time with editing, we had to use shots where I was just off camera.” She demonstrated how she would have to duck underneath the table, “and then I’d slink up.” Helfer said she often got trampled on by the crew or got tangled in wires. But that’s all part of being on a science-fiction TV series.
On the Nature of the Show
The cast knew from the start that they had signed onto something significant. Helfer recalled that Edward James Olmos said early on, “Kids, this show is gonna go five years.” The show is often lauded for the things it doesn’t tell the audience. “We call it spoon feeding,” said Sackhoff, “and there needs to be less of it.” Nicki Clyne, who played Callie, said, “through the inductive process, you continue to see new things. You’re not told what is right and wrong; you connect to the characters; your views change as you grow as a person.”
On Sexuality in the Show
In a comment that beautifully frames the discussion, Sackhoff said, “they wrote the characters first and then decided what gender they were.” I really don’t need to say any more. I’ll let Michelle Forbes, who played Admiral Cain, continue for me.
“I’ve been around forever and I’ve seen a lot change; I was around when it was complete objectification. I think we’re in an incredibly healthy place right now, and I have no complaints…. It’s so easy to focus on what hasn’t been done and not to keep up with what’s going on today. We often forget to be proud of where we are…. I don’t feel that the chasm between men and women is there any more, but there’s always work to be done,” she said.
“People like Rob Moore and Alan Ball are not afraid to put women in… very interesting situations, [but] networks still need to catch up,” she noted, adding, “We have a long road ahead of us in lots of other industries.”
In another beautiful comment, Sackhoff explained one of the central tenets of sexuality on the show, and perhaps of the show as a whole, “It’s love… it’s not about what you are but who you are.”
No, I swear I’m not a fan boy….
Ok, I’m lying.
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