Digitally savvy in the Degrassi universe
Show’s executive producer says web presence is integral to the audience experience
When Bell Media announced last month that Degrassi would be ending after 14 seasons, the reaction was swift and not unlike the teenage angst that the series captured so well.
There were crying-face emoji. Impassioned YouTube videos. Twitter appeals to rapper Drake. And then joy when Netflix announced it would resurrect the show in 2016 with a new iteration: Degrassi: Next Class.
The final 12 broadcast episodes began Monday and end with a two-part finale on Friday.
Netflix is a fitting arc in the Degrassi narrative, which spans decades and includes award-winning shows such as The Kids of Degrassi Street, Degrassi Junior High and Degrassi High. Thanks to its 35-year history, the franchise boasts a quality that makes it perfect for the Internet: nostalgia.
As show insiders tell it, the Internet has been central to Degrassi: The Next Generation since it debuted in 2001, nearly a decade after the end of Degrassi High. The very first episode, in fact, featured a web-centric plot line: the show’s protagonist arranged to meet a boy with whom she had been chatting online, only to discover that her love interest was an adult predator. Off the air, the show kept its audience engaged with a website that allowed fans to enrol as students at a virtual Degrassi.
Stephen Stohn, the show’s executive producer, saw that website and the show’s overall digital presence as integral to the audience experience. Users could send emails (branded as dmails) to other fans and interact with characters on the show. A character might, say, post to a community board, asking for suggestions for the school’s upcoming dance.
Stohn is married to Degrassi’s cocreator, Linda Schuyler. They met when Schuyler, a former schoolteacher, was trying to buy the film rights to a book called Ida Makes a Movie (which gave way to The Kids of Degrassi Street) and sought legal advice from Stohn, an entertainment lawyer. They’ve co-produced a number of shows beyond Degrassi, including the late ’90s Canadian soap opera Riverdale and Instant Star.
“I like to consider myself to be the guardian of the core principles and values of the show and the storytelling,” Schuyler explained by phone. “Stephen is the guardian of making sure we keep technically and digitally as much ahead of the curve as we possibly can.”
Schuyler said that integrating digital culture — and eventually social media — went hand-in-hand with the show’s core themes, at the centre of which is a desire to “reassure young people that they are not alone.”
“Also, to be very bold about issues,” Schuyler added. “I don’t mean sensational or trivial, I just mean bold. If the kids are talking about it, we should talk about it in our show.”
Nothing has been off limits for the franchise, known for tackling (often controversial) topics affecting teens, including LGBT issues, school violence, teen pregnancy, abortion, drug use, sexual assault, self-harm and suicide. While the values of the show remained the same, Degrassi: The Next Generation had to acknowledge that the way in which teenagers communicated had changed and has continued to do so as technology has evolved.
In today’s digital landscape, it’s not surprising that Degrassi fans can follow the show’s actors, producers and writing staff on Twitter, marvel at Drake’s career trajectory on Instagram or reminisce about past seasons on Tumblr. But the Internet also plays a huge role in Degrassi story lines. Social networking sites first crept into Degrassi scripts with MyRoom and FaceRange, which made its Degrassi debut in Season 8. As one fan pointed out in a very Canadian tweet earlier this year, the writing staff has been pretty clever when it comes to naming social networks and apps.
Stohn started his own blog in Season 3, sharing behind-the-scenes tidbits with fans. During the show’s fifth season, the production team launched a series of webisodes called Degrassi Minis.
One of Stohn’s favourites is a webisode that cast Degrassi students as pirates. “We all loved that because none of our actors knew what a pirate sounded like, so they were sort of saying ‘arrgh’ in an Irish accent,” Stohn said. “It was hilarious.”
Stohn made a cameo in another webisode that featured a Degrassi reunion event. “This turned out to be prophetic,” he remembers, noting that Drake’s character, Jimmy Brooks, was revealed to be the most successful of his classmates. “I don’t think he came back as a rapper, but he had an entourage,” Stohn said.
To date, Degrassi has produced more than 100 original scripted webisodes, according to the franchise’s recently relaunched website, which chronicles its 35-year history. For Stohn and Schuyler, a home on Netflix brings that history full circle.
“For the past few years we’ve realized the teen audience is, more and more, leaving linear television and moving online, and it was our dream because we wanted to reach the teen audience and we wanted to reach them in the digital space,” Stohn said.
He paused for a second and thought of a tweet he sent last month to his more than 24,000 followers after the announcement was made:
“I’m still reeling in happiness. Degrassi on Netflix. Degrassi on Netflix worldwide!!!!!”