By Nadine Whitney

Megan Seely’s indie feature “Puddysticks” is a marvel. The writer, director, and star takes the audience through an absurd but heartfelt journey of acceptance through the (mis)adventures of a worn-out video games coder. Seely plays Liz Satchel – a lonely coder at Braindead Games. All she does is work to create fun. Liz is a ball of anxiety and has given up anything resembling a healthy existence to follow her dream. After collapsing due to exhaustion, she comes across a mysterious group known as ‘Puddysticks’ run by Sylvester Cromwell (Dan Bakkedahl) who offers Liz the opportunity to not only play freely with other people but also find out what is really up with her headspace.

Part mystery, part comedy, part paranoid thriller, and filled with a massive heart – “Puddysticks” is deeply original. With a cast including James Urbaniak, Mamoudou Athie, Danny Deferrari, Benjamin Norris, Bethany Kay, and Eileen Grubba – “Puddysticks” is just what the doctor might or might not have ordered.

Nadine Whitney spoke with Megan Seely about her film.

Nadine Whitney: “Puddysticks” explores mental health and different abilities in a fascinating manner. Liz is the clumsy girl detective of her game, playing the game in real life. She defines what she thinks is a “good game” – one that makes people who feel they are stuck become unstuck – even for a moment. They can go into the game and come out feeling they can face their real-world challenges.

In a meta twist some of the real-world challenges you face are in the film. 

How does it feel to put yourself up on screen in such a radically raw way?

Megan Seely: I loved playing Liz and reliving some of my own trauma through this story was actually really enjoyable. It’s deeply important to me as an artist (and person) to share these private, shameful human moments that we don’t usually get to see. The drive to share my anxiety supersedes my anxiety of sharing.

Nadine Whitney: In the film you have two different taskmasters asking Liz to essentially do the same thing, creative interpretation. Eustace (Liz’s boss) and Sylvester both push and hinder Liz’s growth and they both offer ‘rewards’ if she gets to a specific point.

Can you tell me a little about writing those characters?

Megan Seely: The realm of “Puddysticks” is an upside-down version of Liz’s job at Braindead Games, and Sylvester is an upside-down version of Liz’s boss. Sylvester is based a lot on my dad, and also my acting coach of many years, Harry Mastrogeorge, who was one of the greatest. Eustace is based on a prior boss I had at a hellish job. Dan Bakkedahl and James Urbaniak are dreams who took these bizarre characters and made them layered, hilarious, and real.

Nadine Whitney: The design aspect of the film is quite stunning. Despite being American there is a sense of Tati (and a bit of Terry Gilliam). Were those directors reference points?

Megan Seely: Terry Gilliam wasn’t a conscious influence, but Tati’s “Playtime” was definitely a touchstone for Liz’s cubicle job at Braindead Games! That film has unparalleled physical comedy in the workspace and is just stunning. A story in every frame.

Nadine Whitney: When I was watching the credits, I saw a couple of familiar names, Amanda Kramer and Alex Coco. Both explore ‘America’ with a multifaceted approach. With the films Alex produces, especially with Sean Baker and Sean Price Williams there is an idea that perceptions and philosophies are malleable. Amanda Kramer looks into how things are “staged” – how did you find collaborating with these particular minds?

Megan Seely: Alex Coco has been my closest collaborator. As I’m acting in every scene, and with no time to watch playback, he was truly my second eyes on the monitor. He knew my vision inside and out and was able to keep us true to it — not directing himself, but there to let me know if anything was going off the rails. He has the best eye and is just the calmest, coolest presence on set. He’s the first teammate who came on board, believed in the film, and stayed true to it all these years. I couldn’t have made this film without him.

Amanda Kramer is a role model and friend. She’s just the best, and so generous with guidance. She’s the one who connected me with my sales agent for the film, and I’m actually acting in something for her this week!

Nadine Whitney: Dopamine. Adrenalin. Risk. Reward. Fight. Flight. Comfort. Sleep. Fun. Time. Fort/Da. Anxiety. Impropriety. Mine. Yours. Ours. Control. Release. Reset. Win. Lose. Refresh.

The above terms aren’t random. They are integral in human psychology and in game playing of any kind. Do you think they form part of the rhythm of Puddysticks?

Megan Seely: My dad used to be a children’s psychiatrist and is now an addiction specialist, so these terms are ingrained in my upbringing. While a wild dark comedy, I spent a lot of time making sure the human struggles were scientifically accurate. Through design, I wanted the audience to experience the control and release Liz experiences in the story. The way we shot Braindead Games starts like a paranoid thriller and ends much more expansively, an opening up as Liz gets more comfortable with herself. At Puddysticks, we capture the feeling of what it’s like to be a child — having the audience crawl upside-down with the characters and have the release of the Sailor Moon-inspired dance sequences. The music too starts high-anxiety and frees up overtime, and one of our inspirations was “Plantasia,” an album that is literally healing for plants.

Nadine Whitney: I’ve watched the film three times now and one each watch I find a new “Easter egg” – a small detail which is in the film that works as a key. Were these deliberate?

Megan Seely: That’s so kind of you to say and notice. I am very detail-oriented, and despite the very low budget and rapid shooting schedule, it’s important to me to be intentional about all aspects of the film. I also shot half of the film in November 2019 — we were set to shoot the rest April 2020 until we got interrupted with Covid. We came back to production two years later, so I had a long (far too long) time to play with the footage and think about what shots we needed in-between, leading to more plants and payoffs. I love that you picked up on these Easter eggs, it means a lot.

“Puddysticks” is currently on the festival circuit.