Women Behind the Scenes Spotlight: Celine Geiger

Today’s Women Behind the Scenes spotlight is shone on TV writer, executive producer and series creator Celine Geiger.

Celine has an impressive resume, thus far, for someone who moved to Los Angeles from New York just 12 years ago. She started out as an assistant to one of the producers on the pilot of The Return of Jezebel James in 2008 and the short-lived 2008 series Miss Guided. She moved on to become a script coordinator on the short-lived 2009 series The Beautiful Life and the 2010 short-lived series 10 Things I Hate About You. The next TV season she was the script coordinator and writer on the U.S. version of Being Human and in 2013 she was a staff writer on The Lying Game.

Over the past couple of TV seasons, Celine has worked as a writer on the AwesomenessTV series Royal Crush; an executive story editor and writer on The Vampire Diaries; a writer and co-producer on Valor and is the creator, executive producer and writer for the Go90 series Relationship Status. Her next project will be working as a writer on The Bold Type.

Here is our exclusive interview with Celine Geiger:

Can you tell our readers a little about yourself? Please share anything about your background that you would like our readers to know.

I’m originally from New York – I had a dream of becoming a TV writer, so after graduation, a friend and I packed up a Jeep and drove out to L.A. together. 12 years later, here we are!

What made you want to work in the entertainment industry? A show? A person? Or something else?

I always loved writing – I studied creative writing and fiction writing in school. My senior year at Hamilton College, I took an elective course for my English major called The Hollywood Novel – it was about the myth of Hollywood, and an examination of adaptations from book to film. For our final project, I worked with a small team to create a short film based on a short story. I wrote the script, and two of my classmates directed and edited it, and we cast our theater major friends to star. I had never made a film before and the process was so damn fun and exciting that I was hooked, and knew I needed to pursue screenwriting.

Where did you get your start? And how was that experience for you?

My first job in L.A. was as an assistant in the TV Literary department at Creative Artists Agency. My boss represented TV writers, which was awesome, because I got to have a front row view of how his clients wrote spec scripts and got staffed and sold shows. It was also a great grad school of sorts – we interacted with so many production companies and studios and networks that I got to learn the business of making TV very quickly. The CAA library was massive, and I read everything – classic TV pilots, scripts in development, shows sold to series. Being able to read and study scripts was its own form of grad school as well. I also formed an incredible bond with the other assistants in my “pledge class” – many of whom are still my best friends today.

What influenced you in creating Relationship Status? Were you involved in the casting? Are there plans for more seasons?

I wrote the first draft of Relationship Status in 2007 – at the time, cool, low budget digital content was beginning to bubble up on places like Funny or Die and YouTube and MySpace – Sam Has 7 Friends, LonelyGirl15, Prom Queen were some shows I was watching – and I was really interested in the idea of making something short form. I had been in L.A. around two years at that time, and Facebook was starting to gain popularity, and I was surprised by how many people here knew someone I knew from college or summer camp or New York. So, I was also influenced by the idea of connectivity between social circles. I was definitely involved in casting – that’s one of my favorite parts of the process. As for now, 3 seasons of the show are up on Go90. I’m not sure what’s going to happen next in terms of additional seasons! But it’s a project that is very near and dear to my heart, and I’d always love to make more.

Do you have a dream project that you want to work on one day?

Relationship Status was my dream! I lived with it for 8 years from the time I wrote the first draft ’til the time we finally shot Season 1 in 2015. I got notes over the course of those 8 years that the cast was too big, and that an audience wants to watch the same ensemble every episode, and that the structure of the show would be confusing – every episode focuses on a handful of characters who are all part of a larger social circle, and we jump around to different people’s stories without any sort of particular pattern. But I believed in the concept, and I waited until I found the right team of people who believed in it, too.

What do you like to do in your spare time? Any hobby that you love doing?

I love going to concerts. I love cooking and trying out new restaurants. I try to travel to a new place every year – I find travel to be incredibly creatively inspiring. And I get pretty competitive during fantasy football season.

What has your experience been like working on The Bold Type?

It’s such a strong, proud, feminist show that wears its heart on its sleeve – it’s an amazing feeling to write positive, emotional stories about young women and female friendship.

Is there a charity or organization that you support or are involved in?

I really love the Young Storytellers Foundation – I volunteered with them recently. Helping students learn the basics of screenwriting and watching them write their own material is really cool. Film 2 Future is another awesome, LA based organization that mentors underprivileged students and helps them learn the basics of filmmaking. I never really thought a “Hollywood” career was for me growing up – I didn’t know anyone in the business, and I had no film school background. Demystifying the process and introducing a new generation to the idea that it could one day be their reality is empowering.

You can watch Relationship Status online on Go90 and the second season of The Bold Type will premiere on Freeform on June 12.

You can follow Celine at Twitter @celinetherese.