Interview: Bennington Gothique Webseries Producer, Gregory Connor

My daughter Michele was fortunate enough to be cast in the upcoming webseries Bennington Gothique. The producer, Gregory Connor, has a very impressive background. He agreed to speak with me about the series.

Can you tell our readers about your background? What led you to become a producer?

I'm originally from Washington, D.C. I received a BFA in Dramatic Writing from Tisch School of the Arts at New York University and an MFA in Directing for Theater, Video and Cinema from California Institute of the Arts.

My background is more in the creative realm than producing. I've taken the role of Producer to get my work produced and will gladly relinquish it to someone else as we progress. It's been a great learning experience – laying a foundation for the production. At CalArts, we were required to take classes in all disciplines, not just directing. We had acting and cinematography classes. As a director, you need to speak the language when explaining your vision. Therefore, it's helpful to know what your producer is facing when planing production.

I understand you have also written music.

For a period of time, I really got into producing music at home. Into the wee hours, I would use music samples to create songs and even did vocals. It was another creative outlet – one that I had only scratched the surface of previously. This led to me shooting a couple of music videos.

Have you won any awards?

I was nominated for a Grammy for Best Long Form Video. I directed a music video, "Melinda," that was featured on a video album, Where'd You Hide the Body, by singer James McMurtry. The video is available on iTunes. I attended the Grammys. It was sort of surreal and definitely a high point in my career.

What is the inspiration behind the webseries Bennington Gothique? What is the series about?

I've always been a horror fan, especially old school horror like the films produced by the Hammer Studios in England. I've also been a fan of daytime dramas like Edge of Night and Guiding Light. When the original Dark Shadows series premiered, I was quite young, but knew I loved the series. That adoration has always stayed with me. I knew that I wanted to do a series that combined horror/suspense with romance as Dark Shadows did, but with a modern sensibility and my own voice. Bennington Gothique is centered around Bennington House, an exclusive boarding school for girls. Angela Wentworth has learned that she is adopted and the answer to her parentage lies at Bennington House. She enrolls and encounters mean girls, cute boys (there is an all-male prep school nearby), ghosts, witches and vampires.

Article Author: Nicole Weaver

Nicole Weaver was born in Port-au-Prince Haiti. She writes children's picture books. She is fluent in Creole, French, Spanish and English. She is a veteran teacher of French and Spanish at both the middle and high school levels. …

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