The Royals of Malibu - LATTES WITH LUCY E4 - Ghosting with Director Matt Sav (Pt 1)

Episode Date: August 26, 2024

Welcome to Lattes with Lucy, a special bonus series of The Royals of Malibu hosted by Stephanie Sherry (Lucy in The Royals of Malibu). Today, Matt Sav (director, The Royals of Malibu) joins Steph and Emma to discuss what colleges each TROM character would go to, why ghosting should be avoided, and more. This show is different because we want to hear from you! Let us be the Lucy to your Ella Sinclair - and write to us your questions on life. Let us know what you’re going through, nothing is too big or too small, too scandalous or too cringe - whatever you may be going through, we want to hear it. You can write/upload your questions at https://www.emeraldaudio.co/latteswithlucy for a chance to be featured in the show • Follow The Royals of Malibu on Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/theroyalsofmalibu/) • Follow Stephanie Sherry on Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/itsstephsherry/?hl=en) • Follow Emerald Audio on Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/emeraldaudionetwork/?hl=en) • Follow The Royals of Malibu on TikTok (https://www.tiktok.com/@theroyalsofmalibu) • Explore more: https://www.emeraldaudio.co Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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The content of this podcast is intended for informational and entertainment purposes only. We are not licensed therapists, counselors, or mental health professionals, and while we aim to provide insightful and helpful discussions, our views and advice are based on personal experiences and general knowledge, not professional expertise. If you are seeking professional mental health support, which we totally support, we encourage you to consult a qualified therapist or counselor. Welcome back to Lattes at Lucy, a special bonus series of

The Royals of Malibu. And always a reminder, everybody, that you can write or upload your questions at emeraldaudio.co slash latteswithlucy for a chance to be featured on this very show that we are doing at this very moment. Or, as always, you can always check us out at the Royals of Malibu on Insta, send us a GM, if that's more your style. All right, we are not alone in this room, Emma. This virtual room. In this virtual space.

And I am so happy about that. We have a very special guest today. I am also thrilled. Very special guest. I am someone that sometimes feels like I have no direction and you know what helps? A director. Without further ado, Matt Saff everybody!

Wow. Hello, hello. I'm so excited to be here. I'm also excited to get to hang out with you all as friends, we were saying, just chat. We're always working so hard, so I'm just really excited to get to have this time with you all. So fun game I want to play is we're going to, I'm going to say a Royals character. And I want you all to tell me where you think they're going to go to school. Oh, I love this. a Royals character. Okay. And I want you all to tell me where you think they're gonna go to school. Oh, I love this.

Oh, done. Let's do it. So starting with, we're gonna start with the easy one, Reed. I mean, they write with Princeton, right? I was gonna say, I think he's gonna make it to Princeton. I mean, they're recruiting him. I feel like it might happen.

We don't know yet. Hasn't been written, but. I mean, because of the script, Princeton, but he seems like a Dartmouth kind of Ivy League guy. That's true. I don't know what it is about him, but... Princeton Dartmouth. Really?

Okay, what about, um, let's say Val? Oberlin. Oh, well, that's where Tam went. I think Oberlin because she's, like, artsy and, like, would want to get the fuck out of the West Coast and would be with just all the cool artsy kids. For that reason, I was going to say, I think, NYU. I could see you're like, you know, being like, screw the world.

Absolutely. I could see you're NYU. OK, what about Easton? Naval Academy. Oh, wow. I mean, that's where Callum would want him to go. But I feel like he'd thrive at, like, I went to UVA, it was a big state school, I feel like Easton would thrive there.

Also, that's where I met the actor who plays Easton. That's true, Nick. Went there. We were actually, we knew each other in college. We sang together in a cappella. I love that. Though I did not audition him. He auditioned separately, and the rest of the team loved him, but that was a long-standing connection.

So maybe that's why I see Easton at a big state school. I don't know, no. I feel like he'd do Stanford, where they have really great sports, but he could still feel, like, kind of away from it all. But still kind of close by. Stanford's like the big state school of the Ivies. It has that, like, sort of, like, you do it all live, you know? Like, he needs to party hard, but I think he actually likes California.

I think... can I justify my Naval Academy answer for a second? Yeah, go ahead. I can't believe that. I think Easton... Okay, Callum. No, I think Easton needs to be sober, and I think Easton has a lot of potential, and if he focused all of his energy on something like that, he would be really great at it.

I feel like if he went to a party school, like it could be very bad for him. So mature of you to say. So is that realistic answer? Maybe not, but that's, I don't know. That's where my head's out. Oh, that's a great answer. Okay, let's go over to, we'll do two more. Savannah. Vanderville. Vanderville feels so right. Or like Wake Forest. Yeah, she's going somewhere that's like really a little bit like preppy and like school pride, but like smart and like they're all like journalists and like...

Yeah, type A. Yeah. Going places, yeah. Yale makes total sense, too. Yeah, type A. Yeah. Yeah, yeah. Going places, yeah. Yale makes total sense too. Okay, last one. Emma, who do you think? I was gonna say SMU. Why did we all gravitate towards like Southeastern schools for Savannah?

Do we think she kind of wanna escape the West Coast? I feel like she wants to try something different, but I think she wants to, she'd go to a school with good academics too, for sure. Okay, big one here. Where do we think Ella is going to college? I think Brown. I think she wants to go somewhere that's an ivy and to feel like she's arrived, but she

wants more freedom. And I think, I don't think she wants to or needs to go where Reed is. And I think, but I think she likes the proximity. And I feel like she can be like fulfilling her purpose by going somewhere Ivy and elite, but to the artsiest of the Ivies. I like that answer. That's what I think.

Maybe Columbia? I could see her thriving in a big city. A New York City IV. And then she could also be with Val. They could both be in Manhattan. Exactly. Wait, never mind. I agree completely. I think the two of them are gonna conspire.

Maybe even Barnard. In the NNYA. Yeah. She just like, is like, enough men, ladies. Again, nothing has been written yet. But I do, I could see Ella being a college dropout in the sense that she starts some kind of crazy business that blows up.

And she pulls the marks out of her and builds some kind of empire. I mean, she's been working so hard ever since she was, what, like 15, 16 years old? And she's so smart that I don't think she'll be fine. I see her, yeah, I can see her just starting her own business and not needing college. And I think it would be really... I mean, not advising anyone.

I agree with that too, in that, like, I feel like so much of her story has been, like... taking the different path. And I feel like, in a way, she will be continuing to forge her own path by not just, like, feeling like she has to go to college like everybody else. And I feel like it... Yeah, that could really...

That could work dramaturgically. I could also see her, like, going to, like, Paris or something, like, studying in a different country. Yes! Oh, my God. Just saying, screw this, I'm gonna completely try something new, leave the country. Yes, she like gets an internship in Paris and then it's like Ella in Paris. Yeah, exactly. And then it's bye bye, read, hello Francois.

Right, then there's some French dude. Ugh, and then, yep, what's that? Oh my God, that's like- Wait, is this all the prologue to Emily in Paris? Yes. This is it, Ella just becomes Emily in Paris. Yeah. Oh gosh. Well, guys, we could talk about this forever.

I love theorizing about the different characters. We didn't officially introduce who you are, Matt, which is the director of Royals of Malibu. Yes. I have spent hundreds, if not thousands of hours at this point with these characters, so they're very dear to my heart. And getting to work with you all has been a blast. What I do on the project is I work closely with Emma and our writers on story development,

so we do a ton of scripts. Before we get to recording, there's so much scripting and re-scripting and making sure that every character's voice is popping off the page and making sure the story structure is all working to get those amazing moments, you know, where things all connect or go horribly wrong and timing that all out. And so yeah, with the world building, the character building, the story outlining, the scripting,

we do that all together. And then I have the beautiful privilege of getting to work with our incredible cast to go in the studio and record everything. And so, you know, one thing that I know the two of you know is that we really pride ourselves in having everyone in the same room.

It's not recorded remotely. So we can really get that palpable energy of those moments where characters are just connecting on such a deep level, because at the end of the day after two scenes of working on this, and however God knows how many episodes is it 26 Emma? 26 yep 13 each season. Yeah we're all pals and you can feel that real emotion and that real energy in the performances

and so by this point my job has become easy because everyone steps in the booth and it's like I wish we could literally use every take. So at this point instead of giving small notes I mostly focus on okay well how does this scene fit in the structure of the whole story and are we moving the big pieces where we need to go. And then we get to post-production where again Emma and I are I'm working with our team to actually do the sound design the editing of the episodes that can take I God, up to 50 to 75 hours for an episode and post.

And then working with Emma on reviewing that, giving feedback, and making sure that you all have an incredible experience in your ears. What was it like directing each of us? Did you have a different approach to the different actors? Or would you say you kind of approached us all the same? Well, you know, the level of talent, to me, it's all about casting, right?

When you cast the right people who bring that unbelievable authenticity and who inhabit the character so organically, again, we don't know where the scene's necessarily gonna go. We can have these pillar moments, right? And so I think sometimes my job is to remind everyone of the moments where there's a turn in the scene, or if there's a certain momentum across the scene,

like we're getting angry and angry and anger. But when you have the level of talent that we're working with and you cast so thoughtfully, I mean, you can hear it in the show. It's like, everyone really inhabits these characters in such an organic, authentic way. And so then to me, it allows me to step back and have that more macro view.

You know, there were some people in the cast who were incredibly talented and newer to being on mic, you know, and I think that that was maybe more a confidence thing because everyone we cast, we cast for a reason. And so I think that it shows in, you know, the experience of listening to it. Wow. Do you have like a favorite moment, a favorite like directorial breakthrough moment for you while you were doing seasons one and two?

One of my favorite moments, it might have been at the end of season one or season two, but Ashton, who is our incredible AD production manager, you know, we're in there all week. We're there, I mean, I think it's like six or seven days, it's like 10 hour days we're recording with everyone. And Alyssa, you know, being Ella, she's there for most of it too.

And so there are, it just takes so much energy out of everyone. I mean, you know, even coming in, Steph, for like a four hour session, what that can take out of you. And I think it's like... Totally. There was a moment at the end of one of the seasons where Ashton and I went in to record,

um, like, all of the sort of bit parts that we need to capture extra voices for. Like, if you hear someone, you know, on the side having a conversation at the party or et cetera, et cetera. And so we actually let Alyssa direct us for that. And it was so amazing. She's just so incredibly creative. Hey, Alyssa. And, uh, it was just such. She's just so incredibly creative. Hey, Alyssa.

And it was just such a blast turning the tables and having her direct us. And so that was just a really fun moment. I wish we had footage of that moment. I know, yeah. That's incredible. What about you? What were two... Give me both of your favorite moments of recording.

Oh, my God. I mean, I was definitely one of those people that had a very, like, compact process. Like, I was always there for, like, one day only, which was, like, so precious, but, like, like, bittersweet, because, like, wait, like, one of you for longer. But I think actually having everything all at once provided for, like, a lot of continuity and, like, more of, more of an arc in the performance.

But season one, meeting Alyssa and having her be so just like, oh, duh, was really great. And then I feel like coming back for season two was so fun. And Burgundy, shout out to Burgundy. There was such a new energy in the room. And I have a brief stint where I would play her assistant. Ha-ha! Spoiler alert to the... What question we were asking.

Um, I was like, what part? And here's the answer. Uh, I... Yeah, I play her assistant at one point, and so it was really fun to just, like, explore new dynamics with the cast in season two. But I think, you know, I think what was really cool was that Lucy is the character that I, you know, I think what was really cool was that Lucy is the character that I, you know, like Lucy's Lucy, but I actually feel like in a weird way, there were some really dramatic moments with in season two with Ella with Margaret, which

was really moving and like, I feel like the room like shifted in that moment and we had like a really honest, I remember it was like palpable. I remember so well, you'd just be like, yep, great, moving on. But then also like- Those were my favorite moments. Yeah, yeah, it was so good.

And I also feel like in the end of season two when Ella calls Lucy in the middle of the night, like all upset and freaked out, I feel like that was like, I was like, oh my God, I want more of this. I want more of, like, the actual, tangible... Yeah. ...relationship between the two of them.

But, I mean, it was so great. Two things to call out before we move on, and what's your favorite moment is, one, Steph, you're touching on the fact, I don't think a lot of people who are listeners know that a lot of characters are voiced like Steph voices three or four characters in a season. And of course, you know her for Lucy, but yeah, she's also Margaret.

And there are other people doing the same thing where, you know, we're having them voice three or four people. And the way that they are able to just flex and inhabit all those different voices is incredible. And the second thing I'll come back to, but it's a comment on Lucy, but first, Emma, I want to hear what was one of your favorite moments?

Ooh, well, going off your point about how amazing these actors are at voice inflections, I really love the scene in episode six of season two. One of my favorite moments was when Chris and Erica, who are Reed and Reed's mother, are, they record the flashback scene with the lasagna and how Chris, who I think Chris is like in his 30s, how he was able to change his voice to sound more like, I think like a 15 year old was so impressive to me. So I think just witnessing them perform that was really special.

And you touch on those moments too, between the parental figures and the kids, and I think that's really beautiful. But one thing I really love about Lucy particularly, Steph, is I feel like the reason why I love this show is because Lucy in many ways is like the big sister of the series. And I know like at the age that we're all at, you know, like I don't have kids, I don't know what that experience is like. Nope. But I know, you know, in semi-recent, but not so recent memory of the experience of being a teen,

and in some, in many ways, you know, like, for me, there were shows like The O.C. and Gossip Girl that meant so much to me at the time. Um, particularly The O.C. and the way that it, um, you know, it just, like, leaned into the fun... It was my life. ...of the time. Yeah, but it also presented characters that were real people

and not some like constructed archetypes of what a high schooler is. And the third thing is just the beauty and kindness of their relationships. And I felt like in many ways working on this show was an opportunity like Lucy to me represents that sort of like big sister energy of like, hey, we know what you're going through. Like, we get it. There are highs that are extremely high, and there are lows that

are extremely low. And like, you're going to get through this. And that's why I just love every scene between the two of them. And I'm excited that we're also doing this show, because I think that was part of making this series, is like taking an honest look at those moments of those extreme highs and lows of being a young adult, and how do you move through those, you know, sometimes messily, and I think it's not always, like, a clean path, and that's what I like about our show, is that it's not a clean path.

Um, but you will get through it. You really will. I feel like that's actually a great transition into helping some more of our fans, because I just think everyone with social media, you only see what people are presenting, and that's obvious, we all know that, but I think the nuance that gets missed is that, like, there's no way, unless you literally make a really vulnerable pose,

being like, I'm not okay today and here's why, there's no way to really capture the, like, painful inner life that we all being like, I'm not okay today and here's why. There's no way to really capture the like painful inner life that we all like completely share, unless you choose to share an insight into that on social media, which is like your prerogative. Like we, you know, even people posting about a vacation, for instance, it's like, yeah, it is great. It is beautiful. You are having a good time.

Maybe you're really stressed out about something else the whole time, or maybe you're having a fight like three seconds before that. It's like there's an inability sometimes to see and take in the nuance that we all experience on the daily basis. And I just, that's what I love about Royals and like shows like this one, if we can just like peel the curtains back on, on all of it, just so everyone just realizes, like, oh, everyone's feeling, like, so anxious or depressed or stressed or unsure

or angry or completely numb. It's like we all feel everything. We don't all just feel, like, contentment and joy and, like, gratitude all the time, you know? Except for Savannah in, like, those two episodes. Except for Savannah in those two episodes. When your celebration of life is prepaid in advance, it becomes a gift from you to your family later because no one should have to plan for a loss while they're experiencing one paying in advance protects your loved ones and gives you

the peace of mind you deserve. Let us help you plan every detail with professionalism and compassion. We are your local Dignity Memorial provider. Find us at DignityMemorial.ca. Hi, everybody. This is Adriana Troggiani. I'm the host of You Are What You Read, a podcast about the books that built our souls. I have the privilege of interviewing luminaries of our times about the books that shaped them

from childhood until now. Don't miss it. We get everybody from Sarah Jessica Parker to Kristin Hannity to Jhumpa Lahiri, Susie Essman, Rainn Wilson, Amor Tulls, you name it, they come, they talk, they share. You can join us on Instagram for more behind-the-scenes content and giveaways at You Are What You Read podcast and at Adriana Treggiani. New episodes of You Are What You Read drop every Tuesday on Apple, Spotify, or any major streaming platform wherever you listen to your podcasts. All right, guys, let's move on to our first question of the day.

This one is anonymous, but she's from Texas and it's a bit of a longer one. So stay with me. I'm a 17 year old female and I am stuck in a situationship and it's not the kind where I want to advance in the relationship. It's the kind where I would like to get away from it. I met this guy after I got out of a relationship and he is the golden retriever kind of guy but not in a good way. He's too nice and not my type whatsoever but I still gave him a chance because he was pushing it. He started to tell his friends that I was his girlfriend

and marriage material and the news in my small town spread like fire. One thing about me is I hate people in my business when they shouldn't be there. He started to talk to my sister about things that I like and asking her for advice when he should come to me about those things. He also decided that it would be okay to sit down during my lunchtime and breaks when I would like to be with my friends or teachers and he's just overall not giving me space. So I did something that I normally don't do. I ghosted him for three months during the summer. I got a text from him yesterday saying that he got gifts for my birthday.

What do I do? I don't need or want a relationship with this guy. Oh, I have plenty of thoughts on this. Good, great. Yeah, I mean, look, at the end of the day, attraction is so strange and so particular. It's like every one of us is going to be attracted to a sliver of humanity for a weird myriad of reasons

that no one can explain. And that's not always gonna align with other people's little windows of attraction, right? So to try and force fit, if you like someone a lot and you're trying to force fit it, or they like you and they're trying to force fit it, it's gotta be a two way connection. So I really think in this case,

I wouldn't recommend waiting three months to say it. I would do it quicker, but I really think you're doing a favor to both people if you break it off, if you're feeling it's not the right fit. How you do that we can get back to, but to me it's like, this actually is a pretty black and white answer. Like if you're not having strong feelings for someone,

you're actually doing them a disservice by not opening them up to direct that love to someone else. And you're doing yourself a disservice because you're not freeing yourself to go and find the right person, if that's what you're looking for. I really understand the impulse to ghost. And it's, you know, I think this is one of those moments where like, you know, me being in my 30s,

I've learned over so many years how to be more direct, and I still struggle with it to this day. At 17, I would definitely have ghosted, because it's like, you're also... This is someone who, in all of the ways you mentioned in your, like, letter to us, is pushing your boundaries, love bombing, smothering. The talk of marriage at 17, like, are you delusional?

Like, I'm sorry, I also come from New York where people don't just immediately get married, and I stand by that. I think that's ridiculous. I think this guy is way too much, and it's so overwhelming. And I think perhaps what maybe you were trying to do in ghosting was like, this guy, like, I can't give him any wiggle room and has to be like a clean break and also I'm sure you were overwhelmed and like didn't know how to deal. But I think like Matt is saying, the time has arrived to be firm and to stand by how you feel.

This, there is, you owe this man nothing, you are a situationship, it is unfortunate that his feelings have like quadrupled yours and I know he's sweet and it was absolutely the right choice to like give it a try, but at the end of the day you are not feeling it and like Matt said it's time to set him free and I think you can be like, hey, I'm really sorry. I haven't been in contact the last few months. I know it's not a good look. To be honest, I just was really overwhelmed and not sure how I

felt and needed some space. I've done a lot of thinking and while I think you're so great, I don't think we're the right fit. And, you know, I'd like to like move on and continue as friends and like, bye-bye. You don't need a birthday gift. I was gonna say, yeah. Mm-hmm.

The directness is so important. I found that my age, you know, I've dated a number of people, and some of them, they've ended, some of the relationships I've ended, but I found being direct is also the best answer. You know, saying something really nice, like, you're really wonderful, and I've enjoyed spending time with you,

but I don't have romantic feelings for you. Like, I don't know why, but I think it's unfair to you and myself to continue this. And I have learned not to give a reason, because if you give a reason, they're gonna pinpoint, like, well, we can change that, or we can change this. When you've decided in your heart, you know that it's not the romantic connection.

So just be clear about that. Keep it high level and be like, I... You're a wonderful person. If they are, if they're an asshole, just then ghost them or say, F it. Just be clear about that. Keep it high level and be like, you're a wonderful person. If they are, if they're an asshole, just then ghost them or say F it. But like see you later. See you never. Thank you next.

But if they are not, you know, an asshole and they're a nice person, like in this case, just saying, hey, look, I don't know why, but for whatever reason, I don't have romantic feelings for you. I think it's unfair to both of us to keep doing this. I don't know, Emma, what do you think? Anything I say, I'm just gonna repeat what you guys said. I think it's the right thing to do and you're doing them a favor by letting them down now

so that they can recover from it quicker instead of just, it seems like they really like you and it's just gonna make it worse and worse the more time that they think that they have some kind of relationship with you. So it's better to break it off sooner rather than later. Especially if you're not interested in him. Why let it continue?

And I know it's hard. And it sucks. You're that age too. It's hard. Yeah. And being direct might seem a little bit scary, but I think as I've gotten older, I've really appreciated directness

in terms of like giving other people directness and also receiving directness. And I think maybe not right away, he might not be happy about it, but I think in the future, he'll be grateful that you did that. You know what's funny too is going back to, you know, when I was in college, I had this boyfriend who was awful. I mean, he was narcissistic. He was frankly like he would drink way too much and be obnoxious. And for

some reason, I was like, so madly infatuated with him, right. And he broke up with me and he did it in a very awful way. And it hurt me for maybe two, three years, if I'm being honest. But looking back, even though he broke up with me in an awful way, he did me a favor because he was not the right person for me and he didn't have romantic feelings for me. So at the time I was like, oh, devastated about it. But now, I don't know. It's like I look back and I'm like, you did the right thing for both of us, even if you did it in a terrible way.

So the point is, it might be messy, it might not go as well as the scripted version that we gave you, but you're still doing the right thing for both of you because if it's not the right connection, it's not the right connection. And God, the weight that you'll feel when it's a clean break and not a, like, ghosted break, I just, I, it's such a, I mean, like, ghosted break. I just, I... It's such a...

I mean, like, I... I just, like... I get really stressed out about all of this a lot. Um, I am someone that, like, is very good at avoiding dating and, like, in the name of career, just, like, grinding away and, like, prioritizing my friends and my family and myself. And I feel like, you know, even the other day, like, I went on

a couple dates with this guy and, like, he was absolutely, completely wonderful. But I was like, I literally was like, it's, I was like, it just feels like a friend. And I think even, even breaking off something after two dates felt stressful to me because I feel bad. But like, and you get that text and you're like, oh, like, there's always gonna be maybe this impulse to ghost because some people would, and maybe this is like a follow-up question to both of you guys, like, do you think ghosting is ever okay? I kind of don't as someone that's like really trying to be as communicative as possible, unless of course someone's like dangerous, like, of course ghost those

people, and like, people that, like, dangerous, like, of course ghost those people, and, like, people that don't understand the meaning of no obviously, like, need more forceful action. But if it's just the normal nuances of normal human interactions that are consensual, I think it's just, it's such a weight lifter when you're like, hey, like, so great spending time with you, but, you know, I'm just feeling like this is more platonic between us, but like, I wish you the best." And then they're like, oh my god, great, like, no worries. It's like, you're gonna, you're 17, you're so young, and you've so much more, like, learning and growing to do, and just know that, like, it's gonna feel so, you're gonna, it's like, it's like when you, like, are playing a video game,

but you have, like, a paper due, and it, like, feels good, but,, but like not really versus when you play the video game once your paper is done. It's like, let yourself fully relax. Let yourself fully be done as a lifelong procrastinator. Okay guys, on that note, we have been chatting so much. So we will be back next week with part two with Matt Sav where we answer the rest of our questions. See you next week.