Feature: The "Strange" Worlds of John Herman

Thursday night found me at another stellar Stranger Than Fiction show at Concord's The Barley House, where bread pudding and heroin-addicted Care Bears reigned supreme. As usual, the talented troupe (Brian Paul, Brian Spielvogel, Chris Bujold, John Herman, Mia Stendahl, Noah Sheola, and Petrus Albus) put on a performance to make the $5 Amstel Light's come out your nose. Afterwards, I was able to pull STF's director and cast member, John Herman, aside to talk about Stranger Than Fiction and his new project, Gravityland, a television web series premiering March 3rd at http://www.gravityland.com/.

Sitting down at an old wood-paneled Pac-Man video game table - the kind you used to find in Pizza Huts as a kid - this self-described "artist, writer, media maker, and teacher with a strong interest in collaborative work" and I talked television, comic books, and how the web is the ultimate in entertainment democracy.

As the Artistic Director of Stranger Than Fiction, one of Herman’s latest undertakings has been the free, live web improv shows broadcast on the online web studio, http://www.mogulus.com/. (their next show will be March 11th at 7:30 p.m.!) These audience-interactive shows are the closest thing to seeing a STF performance in person. Through the site, users can type in suggestions for the troupe (which the other online users can see) and feel that fabulous rush of euphoria when their suggestion is chosen for the scene!

“This last one we did (broadcast Feb. 12th) was only the second web show we’ve done,” explains Herman. “Every time we do it, we have technical difficulties, but each time we've learned from the last one and it kind of adds some excitement to doing these. We never know what’s going to come up with the shows. This company we do these through has only been around for a few months, and already we’re hearing how psyched people are that we’re doing these. Nobody else is doing these kind of live improv shows on this site, so we’re pretty excited.”

Something must obviously be working, because the STF web shows have already garnered over 12,000 hits on the Mogulus site. Herman sees this kind of interest becoming infectious. “I really think there's something there - because I've never seen anything that can really capture a live comedy show," says Herman. "You have shows like Who's Line Is It Anyway, which can’t really replicate the give and take of a live improv show. A live show is never bad, because it all comes from the audience and it’s something new every time.”

There’s no great PR strategy behind these free shows, no hidden agendas lurking in back of the cast member’s minds in doing these. As Herman puts it: “We're really just doing this to see if we can do it!”

A fan of artistic risk-taking, Herman’s newest project, Gravityland, seeks to push his interest in web entertainment into an even more ambitious arena. This web-only TV series is debuting with two new episodes on March 3rd, and continuing with a weekly series of five-minute episodes. The show weaves an interactive tale shot entirely in New Hampshire with a cast of local talent. But, with the STF web shows and now Gravityland, Herman is finding that this local production is finding world-wide interest. “Yeah, it seems like every month we’re figuring out we’ve got friends all over the world – London, Paris, Tokyo. It’s great, this kind of response we’re getting from all these people.”

Running strong on early positive feedback, Gravityland seeks to set the bar even higher, not only with episodes each week, but also viewer challenges, podcasts, interviews, and more. For those worried how all this might affect Stranger Than Fiction, relax. “I don’t see it affecting it at all,” says Herman. “Fortunately, a lot of the STF cast is involved with Gravityland. I’m very passionate about the projects I do, and STF remains a priority not only for me but for everyone else as well.”

If Herman has a watchword, it’s collaboration. Not one to point a finger and bark orders, he genuinely appreciates contribution and teamwork, knowing that those are the tools that will get the best results, and with Gravityland, it’s no exception. “As production continues, I get more and more email from people who want to help. It is very exciting,” he says. “Everyone is a volunteer and collaborator. The show has a dedicated crew for producing all the strange stuff the script dictates - for example, I recently I asked the crew to build a suit out of aluminum foil.”

And though Herman leans on others for producing such necessities as aluminum foil suits, he’s not content to sit in the wings, preferring to dig in and get his hands dirty wherever he can, whether it’s editing, filming, or even drawing. “In the end, I do all the editing for Gravityland,” he says. “I am also illustrating the tie-in comic book called The Old Man and the Whale.” The comic book will also soon be available to the public, a fact that excites Herman. "I've always wanted to do a comic book," he says, "and I’ve already got a publisher lined up for it!"

Funding a project like this can also be an enormous undertaking, but like almost all of his projects, Herman relies and thrives on collaboration to make them come to life. “Right now, the whole thing is out of pocket,” says Herman. “As word spreads, we have some exciting inquiries from potential show sponsors. And several people have asked if they could just give some money to support the show. The answer is YES - we have a support page at the Gravityland website and we think we have a lot to offer for individuals and businesses who want to join up.”

Ultimately, Gravityland is Herman’s love letter to the places, stories, and talents of New Hampshire and the people who live and work there. “People will soon discover that the show is a real cross section of New Hampshire artistry. Gravityland is video, graphic literature, music, and unique opportunities for interactivity.”

Herman doesn’t see his online media aspirations as the singular vision of one man, but rather as a trend that will continue as the full potential for web shows unfolds. With websites like YouTube, MySpace, and Mogulus, the next great breeding ground for network television series seems to be online. “Look at shows like Quarterlife,” explains Herman. “This started out as a web series and now has been picked up by NBC. I think you’re going to see more networks adapting these kinds of shows.”

This being a blog on the arts scene in New Hampshire, I couldn’t leave the conversation without asking Herman, as a rising local media mogul, what his thoughts were on the arts scene in the state and where he sees it going. “From my perspective, the sky is the limit. The Internet enables artists to reach a global audience no matter where they are from. New Hampshire has always inspired a diversity of artists and mediums. In the months and years to come, this will mean fireworks for the local scene. If artists stay creative and savvy, then the world is their oyster. We are truly at the center of a revolution. A creative epicenter not dictated by region is an exciting notion indeed.”