Fandomania has interviewed Kate Hackett many times in the past. Since the end of Classic Alice, Kate was busy with other great projects. Her newest web series, Not a Plan, has just premiered. It features the highs and lows of being a Millennial along with the hijinks of trying to plan a party. Kate was cool enough to have another interview.
Hi Kate! It seems like yesterday I was interviewing you about Classic Alice. Tell us about your new project.
Not a Plan is a short, eight episode series about two late-20-somethings trying to plan a co-birthday party. It’s a little comedy of errors, but it’s also full of witty banter.
If Ann and Ben don’t stop accidentally ruining each others’ birthdays, they’re not going to be best friends much longer. A joint party sounds like the natural solution, but that requires planning, and that brings up a whole host of issues and insecurities as Ann and Ben confront the fact that their lives aren’t exactly what they expected as they hurtle toward 30. This party is supposed to save their friendship, but will planning it destroy them?
What inspired Not a Plan? Is it your own experiences as a Millennial?
I wanted to play someone different from Alice — and Ann sure is different. The show started as some short sketches that I thought were funny. They used the same characters, so I wanted to string them together into something a little more cohesive — the party plan plot gave it some structure.
What were the highs and lows making the series? What advice would you give to other folks wanting to make a web series?
Highs are always shoot days. They’re fun, they’re exhausting, they’re creative, they’re silly. Chris and I have a pretty easy friend rhythm and we really feed off of each other.
Lows are trying to get partnerships and people interested — I hate that part. It’s exhausting, shopping around.
My advice has changed a little since Alice days — my line now is Don’t Make Everything. Don’t do it. Don’t make a subpar product as your calling card just to “get it out there”. Spend the time, spend the money, spend the effort, and get something polished.
Do you think that Millennials in general get a bad reputation?
I think every generation faces the wrath of They Who Came Before. It’s nothing new.
What type of message are you trying to send to fans?
Hahahah, I don’t think I’m trying to send any message at all with this one. It’s a goofy concept, a goofy set of characters, and just a funny little show.
I’m excited to see Chris O’Brien on the show. Can we expect any more Classic Alice cameos?
KIND of. Kelvin O’Bryant (@KelvinOBryant), who played the guy Alice flirts with right before Dracula, is in it. We also share some screen with the wonderful Velinda Godfrey (@VelindaGodfrey), who has an amazing film called Heartland everyone should check out.
What things are you a fan of?
I’m really loving Catastrophe — their seasons are too short!!
What can we look forward to in Not a Plan?
Well, that depends on how it does! We’ll do an initial run on Funny or Die and hopefully get some good eyes on it, then I’ll start dumping it on other platforms. If anything takes, if someone wants to put some cash into it, hopefully we can make more!
Check out Not a Plan over at Funny or Die!
