It’s You, Not Me Episode 4

Kuali’i Wittman plays Bill the Bartender in It’s You, Not Me
Photo ©David Muller
Cliché: Tell us about your character in a couple sentences.
Kuali’i Wittman: He’s the bartender at the bar where Karen and Luke bring have their “first dates.” He knows them well and speaks kindly to them, offering up advice when he can. He’s sometimes the voice of reason for Luke.
Have you ever played this role in your own personal dating life?
I am a bartender and I have offered advice to people, so yes, I have played this role. Wasn’t much of a stretch actually, but it was definitely fun!
What do you like/dislike about your character?
I like that he doesn’t judge. He may not understand why Luke and Karen chose the dates they did, but who cares? People are weird! Here’s to hoping we can find someone whose weirdness matches ours!
Tell us your most memorable experience while shooting this series.
Towards the end of a LONG day on set, my scene came up and I had pretty much lost it. I was in a goofy, weird mood and was dancing around and doing voices and just playing around! I got some strange looks, but I kept people laughing between takes!
How did you come to be a part of this project?
Renee Kay and Lauren Patrice Nadler were looking for a location to film the bar/date scenes, and I offered up the bar I worked at. It became such a central point for the show and was needed, so often they decided to reward my assistance with a small role.
What was is like working with your long time teacher wearing the director hat?
It was amazing! To have someone I trust wholeheartedly in the classroom be on set with me have me so much freedom to just play. And because of that trust, she knew she could count on me to get the job done when it needed doing.
How collaborative or how much freedom did you have to “play” or improvise on set?
She was SO open to improvisation from us as well as personal ideas of character arcs and development. I feel like both Renee Kay and Lauren Patrice Nadler just gave us an outline and let us do what we do to bring these characters to life!

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