Pop-Culturalist.com

Stefanie Scott, JJ Niemann, and Robbie Kay are three of the stars of Wondery’s new YA Podcast series, Academy.

Inspired by true events, the wryly funny, propulsive eight-part series follows the story of Ava Richards (Myha’la Harrold), a scholarship student who transfers to Bishop Gray. As Ava tries to find her place in this high-pressure environment, she soon crosses paths with an underground society known as The Night of the Wolf, which caters to the school’s wealthiest students and enforces strict secrecy (employing some questionable practices). With trust in short supply, Ava must navigate a dangerous and alluring world where friendships will be tested, romances will bloom, and ambitions cut short.

Listeners will immediately attach to the colorfully written, complex characters that surround Ava, including Jesse (Benjamin Norris), her star-crossed love interest; Amber (Stefanie Scott), Ava’s frenemy and a bona fide overachiever in every possible way; Noah (JJ Niemann), Ava’s cunning and conflicted handler in The Night of the Wolf; Charlotte (Victoria Grace), her bubbly co-worker at the school coffee shop; Layla (Sibel Damar), Ava’s razor-sharp stoner roommate with her sights on a new girlfriend; and Caden (Robbie Kay), the ladies’ man homecoming king who’s more fragile than he seems.

Pop Culturalist was lucky enough to speak with Stefanie, JJ, and Robbie about Academy, their first ventures into the podcast medium, and more.

Please Note: This interview was filmed prior to the SAG-AFTRA strike. We stand in solidarity with SAG-AFTRA and the WGA, and will not be conducting further interviews until a fair deal is reached.

PC: Stefanie, you’ve had such an illustrious career in this industry. As it’s progressed, you’ve said it’s about the people that you’re working with and the message of the project. What was it about this creative team and the themes of Academy that resonated with you?
Stefanie: That’s a funny question because I never met anyone who I was in scenes with while doing the show. I really trusted the creative team and the whole message of the project. The show was really fun. It’s mysterious and juicy. It’s a gripping story to listen to while you’re going about your day since it’s an audio series. That’s what really excited me about doing this show.

PC: JJ your voice has been so instrumental throughout your career. How have your experiences in musical theater and your training lent themselves to the podcasting world and your work on Academy?
JJ: For all three of us, this was our first podcast and audio experience. Stefanie has done some voiceover work, but I had never done anything like that. I’m so used to the stage. Everything is very loud and over the top. Sometimes it was good to get some direction to make it more intimate. Also, you’re really, really present. You’re in a booth, and it’s a small space. Stefanie actually said this in another interview, but creating the environment with your voice is very interesting because it’s not a visual medium in that way. Hopefully, my training and all that stuff helped me with all of it, but I also think sometimes, it presents challenges with TV, film, and those intimate settings. It was cool to work through that and find a more grounded one-on-one experience versus a theatrical one.

PC: Robbie, throughout your career, you’ve attached yourself to projects that have created a lasting impact on audiences. What was it about Academy and Caden in particular that excited you as a storyteller? How much of your young fan base goes into consideration when you’re figuring out what you want to be a part of?
Robbie: This one really stuck out to me because I’ve wanted to do a scripted podcast for a long time. I have a few colleagues that I have worked with in the past who have worked in this world. They talked about how much fun it is and how creatively freeing it is. There’s a lot that you can do on a much smaller budget with podcasts.

So, I was really excited to join one. As you were saying, the YA element to this is really great. It really resonates with my fan base and the things that people know me from. As soon as I saw this and read the script, it was very much in the ballpark of something that I wanted to do. I surprised myself with how much fun I had with this.

PC: Stefanie, Amber could easily be a one-dimensional character, but as the series goes on, we get to see the different layers to her and her insecurities, which you brought so much depth to. As an actress, how did you create the space for yourself to dive into those vulnerable traits and moments?
Stefanie: It was easy because it was all in the writing. They did a wonderful job, even in this medium, making each of the characters so layered and how it’s revealed throughout the series, as you mentioned. That’s what it was all attributed to. It was really easy to take their lead and go with the flow as the layers were revealed about her.

PC: Robbie, similar to Stefanie’s character, there’s more than meets the eye when it comes to Caden. Are there any particular techniques that you’ve learned from your work in film and television that lent themselves to this process? Were there new ones that you developed for this particular medium?
Robbie: Yeah, like I said, it’s my first scripted podcast experience. There were a lot of new things. But really early on in my career, I did a couple of dubbing sessions for a foreign language series. They needed English dubbing back when I lived in the Czech Republic. So, from a really young age, I had a bit of experience in the audio booth. It was fun to go think back to those projects. I also dived into new techniques as well, like pretending to have a sex scene over audio over and over again. That was very strange.

PC: JJ, in the first few episodes, Noah appears to be this ally and guide to Ava. Who were the people in your own life who shaped the storyteller you are today?
JJ: What a great question. The easiest answer is my family. My sisters all grew up doing theater. My parents actually had a theater company when I was really, really young. I was never old enough to do it at the time, but all three of my older sisters did theater, and I would go and see their shows. I was raised around that. I was literally in a playpen at rehearsals and surrounded by music, dance, and art. I genuinely think that’s a huge reason why I went into it and also specifically went into theater because of this community. Those have always been my people. It was a no-brainer that that’s who I wanted to spend my time with in my career. My sisters are a big part of that. Also, my professors in school who encouraged me. They definitely helped shape me.

PC: Robbie, you’ve also been so open about the ups and downs of this industry and the importance of diversifying yourself as a storyteller. How does the podcasting medium change the landscape for actors like all of you?
Robbie: It’s great. It’s another way to work. All of us want to be working actors and do what we love for a living. It’s really important to have consistency in that because it’s very difficult for actors to find work. It’s an incredibly competitive industry. The podcast medium suddenly coming up as a viable option for work is really exciting. It’s another string to a lot of people’s bows. It’s a low-cost way to test out IP and delve into new characters and use stories without attaching a major budget to it. The barrier to entry is a lot lower with something like this. It’s brilliant.

PC: Stefanie, so much of acting is reacting to what your partner is giving you. Like you were saying earlier, you didn’t meet any of the cast. How challenging was it to adjust to that and the lack of visuals? What was that process like?
Stefanie: It wasn’t too challenging. It was a really fun experience. They fed us the lines with different voices, so I definitely had something to play off of at times, but it really didn’t feel as challenging as I would think now that I’m talking about it. It’s like having to do an audition with nobody there. It was fun to tune in and be in your own world and get into character. The story is so juicy and fun. It was freeing not being seen because I felt like I could be free and go for it and be as wild as I needed to be.

PC: This industry is ever evolving and podcasting is a relatively new medium. As you’ve brought this story to life, has anything surprised you about this overall experience? What have you learned that you’re going to bring to projects on the screen and stage?
Stefanie: JJ?

JJ: [laughs] I learned a lot. Even what Robbie just said made me laugh because having sex scenes via audio, you’re like, “What is this?” You’re also creating all of these different sound effects. It’s a different way to use your voice. It’s a different way of storytelling. I will be taking a lot of this moving forward. I’ve already noticed a difference because I’m doing Back to the Future right now. We open in two days on Broadway, which is crazy. So, I’m a little crazed right now. I cover the lead Marty McFly, and we had to record like four or five different lines and all these different versions of sound effects for them to use when the cars are crashing. I was like, “Oh, I just did this for this podcast series.” I’ve already found myself using some of the tools that I’ve learned, and hopefully, it’s the first of many because this is an industry and a medium that could really take off.

Robbie: I would do it again after this experience. I loved it. The fact that you can work on an entire series or season in just a day or two is fascinating to me. Seeing how it all came together shows me how viable and feasible this is. It was so much fun. I want to do more.

Stefanie: I totally agree with both of them. It’s a cool exercise, in a way, where we would have a line and do A, B, and C, so you do the line in three different ways. You got to try a lot of different stuff to see what sticks. That’s definitely something that’s fun to take into screen acting as well and being on your toes and ready to try anything.

Make sure to follow Stefanie (Twitter/Instagram), JJ (Instagram) and Robbie (Twitter/Instagram). Listen to Academy exclusively on Amazon Music and Wondery+ apps.