Shoshannah Stern – Weeds

Q.  What are some of the recent projects that you’ve been working on?

A.  I just finished shooting the second season of “Weeds” and then I went to work on “Jericho” which is a new drama for CBS.  Before I went back to work on “Weeds” I did a play at the Pasadena Playhouse called “Open Window” which I loved doing.  It was a brand new play and it focused a lot on language and what makes us human.  I played a psychologist trying to save a wild child who was locked up in a basement for most of his life and was deprived of language for that reason.  It was fascinating stuff for me.

Q.  We know you’ve been working on the show “Jericho,” what can you tell us about the premise for the show and about your character?

A.  “Jericho”is about a small town in Kansas by the same name.  It’s pretty far removed from any big city, basically in the middle of nowhere.  Skeet Ulrich plays Jake Green, the prodigal son returning to the town after a 5 year absence.  Nobody really knows where he’s been or why.  For the first half of the show, you think it’s going to be a show focused on the intricacies of characters in a small town.  Then the power goes out, the phones stop working, and then we see a mushroom cloud in the distance.  We don’t know at first if it’s a mistake or if we’re under attack and what has happened to the rest of the world.  The show is really more about how people react when they’re isolated and shut off from everything than about the bomb itself, though that of course plays a big part.  I play Bonnie Richmond, a 17 year old girl who runs a farm with her brother Stanley, who is Jake’s best friend from back in the day.

Q.  What made you want to be a part of this show?

A.  I’m really fascinated with people and how we respond under duress.  We adapt so quickly it’s amazing.  People often ask each other in everyday conversation, “Would you want to survive something like that?” It’s easy for us to say no off the cuff. But I come from a family of Holocaust survivors, so I know that wanting to live is a part of the innate human condition.  It’s like people on death row–they want to live every minute till their execution and we can’t understand why because we’re not in their situation.  The interesting thing to me is even when we survive a tragedy, the little things like companionship and humor always matter.  It’s great to be part of something that discusses this on some level.

Q.  Do you have a most memorable moment from working on the show?

A.  I’ve never done action stuff before, so there’s a moment in the second episode where we were working with real guns.  I remember when I was in Tel Aviv, sitting on a bus, when a soldier walking by jostled my face with his machine gun, so I had the barrel slowly scraping my cheek.  It was terrifying, but I have to say working with guns in the second episode was worse!  It felt way too real for me to have bullets flying over my head and having to duck for cover.  They were blanks, of course, but it just made me realize how lucky I am that this is the first time I’ve ever been shot at.  For so many people, it’s just a way of life.  I’m always aware of that, but it takes certain situations to have that really be hammered in your head.

Q.  Why should viewers take the time to check out the show?

A.  It has a fascinating premise, like I’ve said before, but what I love about it is that you can’t help but care about the characters and about the smallest details of their lives.  For every huge, spectacular thing that happens, it also has a very personal, intimate thing happening. That’s what I think makes it really special.  It will keep you on the end of your seat and make you gasp, but it also takes the time for you to get to know the people of Jericho and become friends with them.

Q.  You are also on the show “Weeds,” what is it about the show that continues to draw in viewers?

A.  I think people keep watching the show because it’s just so unafraid.  We live in a very litigious, politically correct society, and we always have to think before we say anything because it’s so easy to offend someone.  Then when you do that, even by accident, there’s always repercussions and a huge backlash.  On “Weeds” there is no such thing.  It is absolutely fearless and it makes fun of everything and anything.  It pisses people off left and right, and it makes no excuses for itself.  That is absolutely refreshing.  Of course, it doesn’t hurt that they have some of the best actors, not only on television, but film and stage, all on one show.  It’s just this cesspool of disgustingly amazing talent that you can’t help but sink into.

Q.  What made you want to get involved in acting?

A.  I really wish I could answer that question.  I don’t know.  It’s like this weird genetic mutation I was born with.  From the minute I could talk I just kept saying I was going to be an actor.  That’s the only thing I ever wanted to do.  I can’t isolate why or how, it’s something that just is with me. 

Q.  What do you enjoy doing in your spare time?

A.  There’s nothing better than good food, good drink, and good conversation with good people.  I love being active and going on hikes with my Chihuahua/Jack Russell mix, Puck, but I also love being a sort of hermit and watching a good movie on DVD under a big, ugly comforter.  I like the cheesy ones almost as much as the good ones sometimes.  Sometimes I have marathons with my boyfriend and we try to get the best movie and the worst movie we can find.  The bad movies are way funnier than your run-of-the mill comedy so I’d rather get something titled “Fatal Passion: A Torrid Story of Danger” than another one of those remakes about a father of eight kids coaching a lousy lacrosse team that ends up winning the championship. 

Q.  Do you have a latest obsession?  Are you into any particular book, sport or activity?

A.  I’ve always loved reading and I could always lose a whole chunk of the day or reading a good book.  But lately I’ve been really into reading nonfiction and watching documentaries or movies based on real people.  I just watched “Capote” and then read “In Cold Blood” and I was absolutely enraptured and fascinated by them both.  I’ve also sadly joined a hoity-toity gym and I have to say I love it.  They have the best classes ever!  I’m never bored.  I’ll never be a gym rat, but I think I could become a gym rodent of some sort.  Maybe a ferret or a gerbil.

Q.  What would you like to say to your fans and supporters?