Sometimes the incident that initially appears to be a mishap can ultimately prove to be the most life-affirming situation of a person’s life. That’s certainly the case for both the titular protagonist and the filmmakers behind the historical comedy television series, ‘The Coroner’s Assistant.’
The eponymous character is initially wary when he inadvertently finds himself entangled in Victorian London’s cadaver trade. However, he soon finds comfort in helping solving the mysteries, and helping the memory, of the people who unfortunately end up in his boss’ business.
The all-female creative team who worked on the show, including its writer-director-executive producer, Angeline Walsh, refused to stray from their commitment to sharing the project’s quirky nature with its viewers. Working with her fellow executive producer, Giorgiana Lascu, who also played Mary Cross on the comedy, the duo was instrumental in getting this project funded and produced.
Several distributors offered to release the project if the filmmakers edited it into a feature-length movie or a long-form six-episode television season. However, Walsh wanted to continue keeping the project unconventional, so she decided to release it as a four episode series. The show is currently streaming for free on YouTube.
‘The Coroner’s Assistant’ follows James Rigby (Cedric Gegel), a medical student who becomes unintentionally entangled in the dark underworld of London’s cadaver business. He’s hired by the strange and mysterious Oliver Cross (Robert Branch), a self-described coroner. After attending a coroner’s inquest, James is left puzzled as he observes the witnesses’ odd testimonies and Oliver’s strange lack of professionalism.
The comedy was entirely shot in Cleveland, close to Walsh’s hometown in Ohio. ‘The Coroner’s Assistant’ is the only independent and self-distributed series from YouTube to be nominated in the streaming category at the upcoming Astra Awards’ TV Awards (newly named by The Hollywood Creative Alliance) ceremony.
The Astra Awards’ ceremony will take place on January 8, 2024, in Los Angeles. Walsh is nominated in the Best Writing in a Streaming Comedy Series. She’s the only contender in her category who isn’t an industry established writer. She is in the same category with the writing teams from ‘Only Murders in the Building,’ ‘Poker Face,’ ‘Shrinking,’ ‘The Bear,’ ‘The Great’ and ‘The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel.’ ‘The Coroner’s Assistant’ is also nominated in the Best Period Costume category for costume designer Aimee Morgan.
In honor of ‘The Coroner’s Assistant’ being nominated at The Astra Awards, Walsh generously took the time recently to talk about scribing, helming and producing the project during an exclusive interview over Zoom. Among other things, the filmmaker discussed that she was in part inspired to make the show because she wanted to continue the titular character’s story that she introduced in her 2016 short film, ‘A Murder Party.’ She also noted that she’s grateful to be included amongst the other nominees at next month’s Astra Awards.
Film Factual (FF): You wrote the teleplays for the four episodes of the historical comedy television series, ‘The Coroner’s Assistant.’ What was the inspiration in penning the scripts for the show?
Angeline Walsh (AW): Back in 2016, I made a short feature called ‘A Murder Party.’ It was a silly little murder mystery, and there was a character in it called The Coroner’s Assistant. The character was played by a Columbus-based actor named Cedric Gegel. We ended up having to cut a lot of his scenes because we didn’t have time to film everything.
After I finished making that movie, I had a distribution deal for it that fell through, which was really disappointing. So I really wanted to return to that character because it was very intriguing to me.
So I originally had an idea to just create a short film with that character called ‘The Coroner’s Assistant.’ Then when I got down to actually writing that short film, it blossomed into something bigger and took on a life of its own. So I thought to myself, this is not a short film, it’s a series.
So that’s how this project started; it was sort of a spin-off of my own little movie that I made, and it became its own thing.
FF: In addition to scribing the comedy, you also directed the season’s four episodes. How did scribing the series influence the way you approached helming the project?
AW: Directing is always a challenge because it’s not something that you can really teach someone; it’s something that you just have to do. But since I wrote the episodes and knew the characters better than anyone else, I knew I was capable of directing the show. It was just a matter of trusting myself and letting others trust me in the leadership position.
Luckily, the team that I collaborated with on the show was the most amazing team ever. We were all learning together, and there wasn’t any judgment. It was all very collaborative.
That’s how I approach directing – it’s not a hierarchy. Instead, everyone’s contributing and everyone’s ideas matter. That makes the environment a lot more welcoming and open to creativity and expression.
FF: In addition to Cedric, ‘The Coroner’s Assistant’ also stars Jeremy Gladen and Meg Martinez. What was the casting process like for the show?
AW: Obviously, the title character of ‘The Coroner’s Assistant’ was going to be played by Cedric Gegel because he had played the character before.
Then for everyone else, I held local auditions in Cleveland during the summer of 2017. I also accepted video auditions, so I had about a month where people were sending me videos and I was auditioning people personally.
What’s funny is that we had an original cast, but we ended up having to recast three or four of the main roles because of scheduling conflicts. So I essentially had to go back to the drawing board and recast people.
For the character of Mary Cross, who’s the female lead, I cast a Cleveland-based actor named Giorgiana Lascu. We met the day before auditions for this show when we were on the set for a music video together at our local community college. She turned out to be perfect for the character.
When we had to go back and recast the main characters, she also recommenced a friend of hers, Robert Branch, to me for the role of Oliver.
Then for the role of Thomas, we had originally cast someone else, but he had to end up dropping out because of health issues and scheduling conflicts. Then there was an actor by the name of Jeremy Gladen who had emailed me after auditions were already over, asking about the role of Thomas.
I originally had to tell him that role had already been cast. So when we had to recast the character, I ended up reaching out to Jeremy again and telling him, “This role is actually open now. Would you like to audition for it?” So he sent me a video audition, and he ended up getting the role.
So it was a very complex process, but it ended up working itself out. You think you have something done the first time, and then you have to redo everything. It turns out the new way was the way it was supposed to be all along. (Walsh laughs.)
FF: Once the actors signed on to star on the comedy, how did you approach working with them to build their characters, as well as the humor?
AW: Since we had such a tight budget and such a short amount of time to film everything, we really took a big gamble with seeing if the actors had enough chemistry. We didn’t have time to rehearse
Bu luckily, everyone who was part of this project has the same dark humor and interests, so we meshed together really well. I think when you’re spending such long days together – usually 12 to 14 hours – in one location, you kind of have to get to know, and like, each other a little bit. (Walsh laughs.)
Everyone played so well together on set. Most of the actors hadn’t known each other before the shoot. By the end of filming the show, we were all really close.
FF: Speaking about the locations, you shot ‘The Coroner’s Assistant’ in Ohio. How did you decide where you would film the series? What was the experience like of shooting the show in the different locations?
AW: Well, when I was researching locations, one of the first things I did was approach the Northeast Ohio Historical Society. I went into their headquarters and told them what I was doing.
I said, “I’m making a historical show that I’m going to be making right here in Northeast Ohio. Do you have any recommendations for any house museums or any place that will let us film there?”
They gave me this brochure that was full of every single house museum in Northeast Ohio. I started looking into them and went on a couple of tours of different houses. Some of them just weren’t the right time period.
I remember taking a tour of The Hickories Museum in Elyria, Ohio, which is right down the street from where I went to high school. It’s nestled in this quant little neighborhood that looks nothing like the rest of the city.
I remember walking into the main parlor room with the fireplace and bookshelf and I gasped. I was like, “This is exactly how I imagined this room would look like when I was writing the script.” It was a match made in heaven because it was so perfect. They were so flexible with letting us film there on a budget and ask questions.
Then for the main exteriors, including for Oliver’s house, I was looking into historical societies. I found out that there was this Victorian home in North Olmsted that was right down the street from my childhood home that I never knew was there, as it has a hidden driveway.
So I contacted the city and asked, “Do you know who owns this house because I’m a filmmaker looking to film there?” They ended up getting me a phone number.
I called and wrote a letter to the main who owned it at the time. I said, “Hey, I’m a filmmaker. I’ve lived in North Olmsted my whole life. I was wondering if we could use the outside of your house to film this show? We won’t be filming inside, and we can work on your time.”
He was so welcoming and willing to let us film there. He was so great. It was amazing how everything fell into place, and how when you ask nicely, people will be willing to help you out.
There were also other historical locations that we filmed in and around Cleveland. When you ask nicely and explain who you are and what you’re trying to do, there are a lot of people here who would be willing to help you out.
FF: Further speaking about the series’ historical aspect, Aimee Morgan served as the costume designer. How did you collaborate together to create the look for the outfits the characters wear throughout the show?
AW: Well, our costume designer, Aimee Morgan, who’s based inCanton, Ohio, which is about an hour away from Cleveland, actually reached out to me. She contacted me after I had put an ad out on an online entertainment business forum. I was looking for a Victorian police uniform for the first shoot.
Before that, I had no idea how I was going to get any of the costumes. I had made stuff before, so I was like, “We’ll figure it out somehow.”
So Aimee messaged me and said, “I have the perfect uniform for you.” She showed me pictures, and I was like, “Awesome.” She asked, “Do you have a costume designer?” I said no, so she asked, “Do you want one?” I said yes, and she said, “I’ll be your costume designer,” and she introduced herself.
She had worked in theater for many years, designing and making costumes for plays, especially historical dramas. She had never done a film project before, but she was so willing to do it and excited about being a part of one. So she ended up being our costume designer.
FF: In addition to writing and directing the comedy, you also served as an executive producer. Why did you also decide to produce ‘The Coroner’s Assistant?’ How did you balance your helming and producing duties throughout the production?
AW: Well, when you’re on an indie set, you really wear many hats, and not just one thing. So I was technically the writer, director, producer, set designer and art director, as you just don’t have enough of a budget to hire dozens of people.
Truthfully, it was very stressful. (Walsh laughs.) In the future, I would love to not have to play so many roles because it would be great to just be able to focus on being on set and directing. But for what we did, it worked. I had to be a producer because we needed me to, so it was something more out of convivence.
I don’t necessarily see myself pursuing producing professionally. But on my own projects, I’ll do anything to get them done. So if that means donning a producer’s hat and getting business-minded, I’ll do it.
FF: ‘The Coroner’s Assistant’ is a double nominee at The Astra TV Awards. You’re specifically nominated for Best Writing in a Streaming Comedy Series. What does it mean to you that the series has been nominated by The Astra TV Awards?
AW: It’s very exciting! It was very surprising to me and really humbled me. It made me feel really grateful for the opportunity to just have my name included in the nominees. I’m also grateful to be going to the award ceremony. Being in the room with so many other writers who have been working in the industry for decades is such an honor.
That, to me, is winning. At this point, I’m really not expecting to win an award. The real prize for me is getting to be in the room and represent me and my work.
FF: The four episodes of ‘The Coroner’s Assistant’s first season is now streaming on YouTube. Why did you decide to stream the season on the platform?
AW: For about two years, we tried to approach different distributors, including both indie and mainstream distributors. We were having a lot of trouble getting someone to agree to distribute the show in the way that we wanted. A lot of the distributors wanted us to combine all of the episodes all together and make it a film, as it’s easier to market it that way.
But being as stubborn as I am (Walsh laughs), I said, “I made it as a series, so I want it to be shown as a series.” I could have just edited it together as a feature-length film, and that would have been fine. But that’s not how I wrote and made it, and how I wanted it to be seen.
So we did have to turn someone down who was willing to distribute it because they said, “A lot of the streaming services we have contact with aren’t going to want it the way it is. You’re going to either have to film more so that you have at least six episodes that are 22-24 minutes in length each, or turn it into a feature-length film.”
We made the series in a very unconventional way. So we thought, why would we stoop to convention, and do things in an ordinary way, now? (Walsh laughs.)
So we decided to just bite the bullet and put the series on YouTube for free. We were like, at this point, we just want people to see it, instead of having to wait on somebody else’s yes to distribute it on specific platforms that they thought it would work well on.
Again, that was taking a risk. But I think if we hadn’t decided to do that, and instead turned it into a film, we wouldn’t have been able to make it to where we are now, including going to The Astra Awards. The project would have turned into something completely different.
Film Factual 