00:00Raving about this hit new teenage drama, I know you've heard about it, it's called Sterling Point.
00:06It's from writer and director Megan Park, who also, by the way, is the executive producer on this series.
00:11Yep, she's a badass, look at her.
00:12The show follows Annie Jacobson, who inherits a remote island in Canada after the death of her estranged grandfather.
00:19While she's there, Annie uncovers long-buried family secrets, builds new friendships, and, yep, finds some romance.
00:27Okay, turn, turn, turn. But, but, now I'm like, what do people do? Like, how do people do this?
00:35Do what? Like, be with someone, like, not, you know, we're obviously not in a relationship.
00:40Right. But it's just occurring to me that I literally have no idea what to do or, like, how to
00:46be in this context.
00:48Do you know what I mean? Like, I feel like I kind of know myself pretty well in other ways,
00:51I think, like, I'd like to think that.
00:52But with this, I'm like, oh, I'm a baby. Like, I'm a newborn baby. I'm an idiot.
00:56But you're not an idiot.
00:57Well, it's kind of. It's not even a bad thing.
01:00That's the thing. First on CBS Mornings, Megan Park, we're happy to say, joins us.
01:04That's the thing. It's the dialogue, Megan.
01:06I was just going to watch one episode because I go, okay, blah, blah, blah, blah.
01:10I ended up watching all eight of them. I have some thoughts. I have some thoughts.
01:14And notes.
01:15I can't wait.
01:15But I'm so excited about what is happening to you in the series and the cast. The idea comes from
01:21what for you?
01:23I mean, I mean, it started out just as my mom was adopted and I wanted to do, like, sort
01:28of a nature versus nurture sisterhood story.
01:30That's key to the storyline.
01:31Yeah. Yeah. And I just, you know, the characters kind of came to me and I wrote the pilot.
01:36And then from there, Josh and Stephanie, who created The O.C. and Gossip Girl, came on board.
01:41And then from there, it just kind of became the show.
01:43But let's talk about the dialogue is what sort of drew me in.
01:47They're talking about body insecurity.
01:48She said somebody has sex for the first time.
01:51And she says, how do you know what to do?
01:53Did it hurt? Did you like it?
01:54That is such a real conversation that people of any age have.
01:58When it comes to body insecurity, I say, well, could you turn off the lights, put on a blindfold and
02:02wear some gloves?
02:03But somebody was talking about, I'm just, I don't know how to handle this.
02:08How do you tap into that so beautifully?
02:12And it's not just that, it's all of the different writing, the storylines.
02:16Well, I was a young actor acting in YA for many years.
02:19And I often felt like I wasn't saying things or talking about things that felt authentic to what I was
02:24actually experiencing.
02:26So I feel like I have an extra high kind of radar of wanting to do, you know, do it
02:30justice a little bit, get it right.
02:32And I do say the dialogue out loud as I'm writing it.
02:35But then also, you know, you cast these young actors who are the age of the characters.
02:39And it's like, does this feel how you would say it?
02:42Does it feel authentic to you?
02:43And so you kind of collaborate along the way to make it feel organic.
02:46Yeah, because art has changed so much over the last 20 years.
02:49What might have been written by older people back in the day, we would have thought was natural sounding dialogue.
02:55We now know, we look back and go, oh my gosh, how did I ever find that naturalistic?
02:59But today, Generation Z and younger people, they can sniff if it's not authentic.
03:04And that's what people are writing about, that you've been able to elevate this to a level beyond just young
03:09adult.
03:10I also think I'm not thinking about writing young people when I'm writing it.
03:14I'm just, they're people to me in my brain.
03:16And then I'm not trying to put lingo in.
03:18And I think that's when you start to just, yeah, that's when you trip yourself up.
03:22Exactly, exactly.
03:23You're like, that's skibbity.
03:25People would be just like that.
03:27Yeah, exactly.
03:28You proved a point.
03:29But if it comes out naturally from the actors and it makes sense, then great.
03:33You know, as Gail mentioned, you are a badass.
03:35You wear so many hats.
03:37You know, the question people usually ask is, what's difficult about it?
03:40But what's good?
03:41What's great?
03:42What feels awesome about wearing multiple hats?
03:45I love that question.
03:47I mean, it's really, really satisfying, I think, to watch these young actors become so confident.
03:53You know, they get eight hours of material to kind of sink their teeth into and to sort of pass
03:58the torch to them and give them sort of the autonomy to like, yeah, what do you think?
04:02Like, how do you want to say it?
04:03And it was really satisfying as somebody who was a young actor to really watch them kind of come into
04:08their own by the end of the season and just have so much confidence.
04:11With their fingerprints all over.
04:12Yeah, it was really, it was very satisfying.
04:14Their careers are changing, too.
04:15Mark Ruffalo's song.
04:16I didn't even know he's Mark Ruffalo's son.
04:18Yeah, I didn't either.
04:19You didn't either?
04:20No, not when he read, no.
04:21Not when he read.
04:21Yeah.
04:22So their careers are changing.
04:24It's picked up for a second season.
04:25You said you don't really want it to be a love story.
04:28You don't really want villains.
04:29You just want normal life, although I do want Annie and Ellis to be together, just saying.
04:33So you're picked up for a second season, going back into the writing room.
04:36What are you most excited about?
04:37Because now you've left it in such a way it could go so many places.
04:41Now I feel, now I'm scared.
04:43You are?
04:43Well, now it's, you know, people know the show.
04:45They fall in love with the characters.
04:46They want certain things.
04:47So the bar, I feel like, is higher.
04:48But I'm team Annie and Ellis, too.
04:52Okay.
04:52That's good.
04:53That bodes well.
04:54I think it'll be interesting to see how New York has affected Ramona.
04:58She's now spent some time in the big city.
05:00Yes.
05:00And, like, what have Annie and Ellis been doing on an island all winter?
05:03Yes.
05:04We'll see.
05:05But there's a lot.
05:06There's a lot.
05:06We want to get to know Una's backstory a little bit more, I think, in season two.
05:09So there's a lot of threads there that we can pick up.
05:12You and I were talking backstage about being an actor and now being behind the camera as a producer,
05:16writer, director.
05:17Because she's Secret Life of American Teenager.
05:19Right.
05:19With Shailene Woodley.
05:20We all remember you from that.
05:21But now you're also producing for people who are actors and writer, producer, directors.
05:27What's that like?
05:28Like Jay Duplass.
05:28In 30 seconds.
05:31It's really cool.
05:31I honestly am always, like, I want to learn from everybody I'm with.
05:34Like, it's such a master class getting to work with all these amazing people who know more than I do.
05:38So with Jay, I'm always like, did I get enough coverage of this scene?
05:41He was very generous with me.
05:43But it's lovely.
05:43It's really fun.
05:44Well, Megan Parker, thank you so much for joining us.
05:45We appreciate you.
05:46You can stream season one of Sterling Point on Prime Video.
05:50Run, don't walk, as Gail likes to say.
05:52Highly, highly recommend because you want to be caught up for season number two.
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