Finding ‘Satisfaction’ in young adulthood the central theme to new CTV comedy
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| (L-R) Luke Macfarlane (Jason), Leah Renee (Maggie) and Ryan Belleville (Mark) in a scene from 'Satisfaction' |
Date: 6/24/2013 9:38:00 AM
In the new CTV comedy series “Satisfaction,” Canadian funnyman Ryan Belleville plays a perpetually single guy trying to figure out how to impress the ladies and wondering where the next party is, all the while trying to figure out what to do with the rest of his life.
This tumultuous period of being in one’s 20s is something that Belleville, an award-winning stand-up comedian, says anyone can connect with.
“I think everyone can (relate) to a certain extent. There’s that, ‘What am I doing?’ The older you get you still feel like, ‘I’m still a kid, right?’ But you realize the rest of the world is saying, ‘No you’re supposed to be a grown up,’” says Belleville, who is also a writer on the show.
“When you’re 19 and partying there’s no consequences to it, but when you’re a little older and you go out and party, you have to go to work the next day, you still have to pay bills.”
The single camera show, now available to watch at CTV.ca, takes a humorous look at the challenges of young adulthood and modern relationships through the eyes of Mark (Belleville), and his friends and roommates Jason (Luke Macfarlane) and Maggie (Leah Renee), a couple in a long-term relationship.
See photos from the episode here
While Jason and Maggie are serious about their commitment to each other, they also see the appeal of Mark’s single lifestyle, and vice versa.
“It’s so easy to romanticize a couple. When we’re alone we want to be single, when we’re together we want to be alone so I think it’s a great contrast and that continues throughout the show,” says Macfarlane, who is also known for his role on the TV show “Brothers and Sisters.”
Renee, who has appeared in everything from “The Playboy Club” to “Degrassi,” says the “grass is always greener” mentality is a theme that comes up a lot on “Satisfaction.”
“Those (relationship questions) are all things you think about and deal with while you’re also trying to figure out what’s the job I’m going to do for the rest of my life, who am I going to be with, where’s my place in the world?”
In the premiere episode, titled “The Blackout Cometh,” a massive power outage sweeps over the city and has Jason and Maggie trying to settle an argument without the use of the Internet, while everyone else comes together to party.
“There’s something about the camaraderie that everyone experienced during the (2003 northeast) blackout, I’m sure a lot of Torontonians lived through . . . that brings out the best and worst in people. Their problems seem relatable and funny,” says Macfarlane.
Meanwhile, Mark tries to save six months worth of thawing frozen food and the financial hardship that would come with its expiry, something Belleville says he can also relate to all too well.
“I was so broke (when I first moved to Toronto) I was eating Minute Rice and I would steal from (my roommates), just condiments, just a little bit of salt or soya sauce to put on my rice, to a point where I got so emaciated that these friends of mine and this girl I was dating a little bit took sympathy on me and food just started showing up at my place.”
“Satisfaction” is based on the real-life experiences of executive producer and creator Tim McAuliffe, who has written for “Late Night with Jimmy Fallon,”“The Office” and “Corner Gas.”
When McAuliffe first moved to Toronto from Montreal several years ago, he lived with two friends who were a couple, and experienced many of the things Mark is going through on the show.
“We just had a lot of parties, we had a lot of fun but there also a lot of drama and a lot of very real relationship things. (The couple) was dealing with their things, and I was either in a long distance relationship or I was not, trying to date and stuff. It seems so relatable.”
Over the course of the season, Mark will find himself doing everything from working on his pick- up skills to trying not to get sucked into a relationship.
So is McAuliffe worried he might be revealing a little too much about his personal life?
“All the time,” he says with a laugh. “You’re always wondering, ‘I’m going to sell myself out for a joke,’ but it’s worth it. There’s so many different moments in this series where things that happened are super embarrassing.
“(But) you’ve got to mine those experiences or else it just doesn’t seem believable.”
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