Dollhouse

A Post-Episode Chat with Tim Minear

After "True Believer" aired, the episode’s writer Tim Minear was kind enough to chat with me a bit about this episode, his contributions to the show and what he’s got coming up in development. Enjoy.

Jackal: "True Believer" was conceived as one of the "seven pilots", as Joss has called them. With this in mind, what was the process of breaking the episode like?

Tim Minear: Well, Joss wanted to do a cult episode. The only real edict was that the culties should have a point of view — that they shouldn’t just be crazies. In fact, they should be right. I liked that notion. I don’t recall who came up with the "blind Echo" angle — I think it was Andrew. Anyhow, we were behind in scripts and I just said "let me do it." Took what little we had and worked it out on my own. In terms of my thought process I wanted to make sure there was a real reason why only the Dollhouse could do what needed to be done in this instance and I wanted the story turns to be rooted in the Dollhouse premise so I used the sci-fi angle to make a scientific miracle.

They could create a real woman who had really experienced a divine vision. And the fact that she was really blind proved that she wasn’t lying. That’s why she could recognize Sparrow through touch because the vision she experienced was no lie. Granted, Topher put it in her head, and we saw the 3-D model of Sparrow’s head and understood how this was accomplished, but to Echo/Esther, all was true. So when Sparrow knocked the cameras loose and her vision was restored, this was also really a miracle... to her.

J: How do you write Echo in such a way that the audience relate to her when her persona is so different week to week?

TM: Well, that’s always going to be the trick with this concept. We know she’s not really that person, so there is a distance there, for the viewer. One can only keep that element in mind when working out the story. So as I mentioned, the "miracle" is always double-edged — they work on that level, but they also always must illustrate the show concept. Hopefully if that happens, then even with the emotional distance, it’s compelling enough to hold the interest.

J: Once you’ve overcome those obstacles, what about the premise most interests you?

TM: What interests me most are questions of memory and identity. These are difficult to really dig into in the "case of the week" episodes. But once we get all mythology-y... ka-pow with the existential conundrums.

J: The theme of identity was quite prevalent in The Inside and in many ways Echo’s arc isn’t dissimilar to Rebecca Locke’s. Has anything from The Inside spilled over into your Dollhouse input?

TM: Uh, I’d say so, yeah. Writing the FBI stuff is pretty easy for me, because of The Inside. You may have detected a shout out to myself in there tonight. Also, I may have suggested the Elizabeth Smart thing to Joss in the hostage expert thing.

J: A ha, thought that plot seemed like a you-thing.

Who did you enjoy writing for in "True Believer"? I’m thinking it wouldn’t be a stretch to suggest Topher?

TM: I think it took me as long to write the Topher/Saunders stuff as it took to type it. Kind of a snap, actually. I also like writing for Adelle. And I have affection for Boyd.

J: The cast for "True Believer" featured a few Drive alums — Brian Bloom and Mark Totty of the healing staple gun. Did you have a hand in the casting and were you writing with them in mind?

TM: Oddly, I wasn’t really thinking of Brian when I was writing. I was kind of writing for Jeremy Renner (Penn from “Somnambulist” [Angel]). When he wasn’t available, I heard that Brian had been submitted. Joss and I both thought he would be great. In the back of my mind, I was kind of thinking of Mark Totty for Agent Lilly. And I asked for casting to bring him in. I cast the episode myself.

J: Aside from casting, how involved were you in the production and post-production of this episode?

TM: Pretty involved. I prepped it with my old friend Allan Kroeker, I was on set much of the time, and I was in the editing room until it was done.

J: What’s it been like consulting on the show during episodes you weren’t involved in? What duties did you take on?

TM: “Consulting” is just a title. I do the same thing I do on any show where I’m a producing writer — when not the actual show runner. I’m in the writer’s room, breaking stories. Writing scenes when needed, writing episodes, going to casting, goofing off, making wisecracks and eating pie.

Lots of pie.

J: How have you approached the theme of exploitation on the show? Even though "True Believer" was bereft of some of the bra-shots of the last few episode, how conscious do you have to be of causing offence when writing a show that is so near the mark?

TM: It’s difficult. We are talking about a whorehouse on some level. Happily I’ve been able to skirt around it a bit on my episodes.

J: Finally — now that the show’s wrapped and the introduction phase is over, what can we expect from the rest of the series? And what can we expect from you in a post-Dollhouse world?

TM: Well, you’ll get juicy arc stuff coming up soon. We just ram headlong into it all by the end, and it’s fun.

As for me, working on a few things. Two pilot ideas that I’m developing with the studio. One is science fiction — based on an old title. And the other is a dark thriller. Also have some movie stuff going. And I assume before Dollhouse resumes, assuming it does, the studio will have me consulting on some other ongoing concern of theirs. I’m on an overall deal, recall.