I’m Also Here co-creator Liesl Lafferty and episode star Paloma Nuñez sat down with The Ontarion to discuss their roles
I’m Also Here is a new comedy anthology show that explores everyday life in rural Ontario. The series highlights an exclusively female and non-binary cast and crew, while showcasing the creative accomplishments of University of Guelph alumni.
Set in Kawartha Lakes, the show features six independent episodes, each set in a different town. Naomi Snieckus and Liesl Lafferty created the show with the current climate crisis in mind.
Lafferty explained to The Ontarion, “It was six episodes…but it had the through line which followed the lifespan of the plastic bag. It started off in the factory, and then you see it being used, and then in the end…your immediate image goes to a landfill site. But I wanted it to be a comedy, so it became art.”
Lafferty graduated from the University of Guelph with a bachelor’s degree in theatre studies before gaining a master’s degree in creative writing from the University of British Columbia. She first developed her love of theatrics at a young age, putting on performances for her family in their living room. After a career directing performances in Vancouver, she transitioned to writing due to a sensitivity to artificial light.
“I started transitioning more to writing and as soon as I did, I could see that it was going to be my outlet,” Lafferty said. “I didn’t have to wait for a whole production or somebody else’s play to be written, I was going to be able to do it myself.”
Lafferty and Snieckus joined forces after they both attended the same online reading during the COVID-19 lockdown. Shortly after, Lafferty became involved in Snieckus’s project, “The Firecracker Department.” What started as a podcast quickly became a large-scale network and collaborative group exclusively for female and non-binary actors and comedians. Their dedication to fostering a supportive and empowering environment for their peers is evident throughout the show.
Lafferty described the experience, saying: “My favourite moment on the set of I’m Also Here was seeing an exclusively female and non-binary cast and crew. This idea that Naomi and I developed was now a canvas for all of these other folks to explore their art. There were 22 lunches made that day, [and] 22 female and nonbinary artists able to flourish.”
Among the cast is fellow University of Guelph alum, Paloma Nuñez. Nuñez starred in the Lindsay-based episode of I’m Also Here, in which she plays an indecisive bride-to-be grappling with the decision of picking her maid of honour.
Nuñez graduated from Guelph with a degree in theatre studies before taking her formal training with her to Toronto, where she performed and taught with Second City. She is a recipient of a Screen Actors Guild Award for her role in the 2016 Best Picture-winning film, Spotlight.
Nuñez described her experience on the set of I’m Also Here to The Ontarion: “It was incredible. The crew was really, really game. It was a scorching hot day. I think we had one of those 30 [to] 32 degree days, and we were shooting out in a field in Lindsay for a cornhole tournament.”
She continued, “The crew works so hard. Always, in almost anything, the crew are the hardest working people…Everyone was in such a good mood.” Nuñez can also be seen in season two of the drama Sisters, streaming on Crave, while Lafferty’s upcoming short film Does Anybody Hear?, based on the Bruce Cockburn song “If a Tree Falls,” is set for release soon.