Linnea Sage Wildcats Interview

Linnea Sage Wildcats Interview

A group of cheerleaders deal with High School life in this dramedy about standing up for what you believe in, keeping up appearances, and the complexities of farting in a tight uniform. Allison is torn between taking down the sexist traditions of her school while still fitting in with the cool kids (i.e not being a huge homo). Luckily, there's a dance sequence to save her.

Watch Wildcats here

Interview with Linnea Sage

Linnea Sage was born on July 28, 1988 in Newton, Massachusetts, USA. She is an actress and writer, known for WildCats (2014), Hands (2012) and The Oracle on Madison Avenue (2013).


Question: How would you describe Wildcats?

Linnea Sage: Wildcats is a 5 part web mini series about Allison Behave, a varsity cheerleader who struggles with her sexuality while opposing sexist traditions at her school (and trying to work out if one caused the other) all while keeping up appearances and trying not to poop in her pants.


Question: Can you tell us about your character, Allison? How can you relate to the character of Allison?

Linnea Sage: I can certainly related to Allison, and I think everyone else can, too. Allison is your typical loud-mouth, suburban teenager. She's passionate about cheerleading and also has a really solid group of friends. Like any teenager, she's figuring out what makes her different. Instead of suppressing those differences, she's using them to stand up for herself and her team.

Question: How did you become involved with Wildcats?

Linnea Sage: About three years ago, Rachel Puchkoff (the writer and director) was casting the first iteration of Wildcats, which was a short film. The main character, Allison, was based on herself, so it really helped that we look alike. She had also gotten a great recommendation for me from a mutual friend, whose film I had worked on the year before. After we shot the short for Wildcats she started raising money to shoot the series. Two years later, when she was ready, every single cast member was so dedicated to the project, that we all came back to shoot the series.


Question: How important are the messages in this drama?

Linnea Sage: Wildcats is most definitely a hilarious comedy with an important and relatable message. It's such a great feeling to be a part of something good, in every sense of the word. There are teens in high schools all over America, just like Wallis Hills, who are realizing they're different in the same ways Allison is, and they are trying to figure out if standing up for their beliefs and views and opinions is the right thing to do. Wildcats is here to tell them that they should go for it, and the worst that could happen probably isn't that bad in the long run. It was really exciting to get to be a part of that opportunity.

Feminism is a big theme in Wildcats and it's handled in a way that anyone can relate to. Allison is learning that she feels differently about traditions at her school than anyone else does. She ultimately needs to decide if she is going to stand up for herself and her team. It's difficult for a teenager to stand up for something they don't completely understand yet, and the series shows an honest depiction of Allison deciding how to handle it.


Question: How does it feel to receive praise from Ellen regarding Wildcats?

Linnea Sage: That was one of the most exciting features we received after the Webseries dropped. We were never expecting such an amazing review from such an influential blog in the LGBT community. We are completely obsessed with them, now.


Question: What was your biggest challenge regarding filming Wildcats?

Linnea Sage: Waiting for it to come out.


Question: What's next for Wildcats?
Linnea Sage: Wildcats was just nominated for five awards at the Raindance Film Festival (where we took home the Best Discovery Award for a New Series) and we are currently nominated for another five awards at the NYC Web Fest! I was nominated for Best Lead Actor at both festivals. At NYC Web Fest, I'm nominated alongside Colin Quinn and Jerry Seinfeld for their roles in Colin Quinn's -Cop Show.' It's pretty exciting to be in a category with such talented and awesome and influential people!


Question: What originally inspired your acting career?

Linnea Sage: Growing up my biggest comedy idol was Fran Drescher on 'The Nanny." She was the first female actor I really admired for her strength and ambition and absolutely fearless comedic skills. Since then, Hollywood has been blessed with other headstrong feminists filmmakers like Tina Fey, Amy Poehler, Amy Schumer, Lena Dunham, Cherien Dabis, and countless others. I hope I'm able to work with all of them at some point, in whatever way that turns out to be.


Question: How do you feel when you watch yourself on the big screen?

Linnea Sage: I love it. There are some people that hate seeing themselves on film. I am not one of those people.


Question: If you could work with any actress; who would you choose to work with?

Linnea Sage: Any of the women mentioned above!


Question: What advice do you have for aspiring actresses?
Linnea Sage: Do what makes you happy. So far that's working for me. I don't know what the future holds!


Question: What's next, for you?

Linnea Sage: A lot of what is coming on the horizon for me is under wraps. There is a lot I'm not allowed to talk about yet, but keep a close eye on @LinneaSage or @catsgoingwild for all the latest!


Interview by Brooke Hunter