Spotlight on Hulu’s Woke Panel Recap

The Spotlight on Hulu’s Woke panel for this year’s USC Comedy Festival featured co-creators Keith Knight and Marshall Todd, as well as executive producer Mo Marable. The virtual event started off by screening the season one finale, which the creators joked was a terrible episode to screen, since it’s the least comedic and most plot heavy episode that wouldn’t appeal to people who hadn’t seen the preceding episodes.

Following the screening, moderator Desa Philedelphia put a number of questions to the group, including ones submitted by fans. Much of the panel dealt with the concept of ‘woke-ness’ and how the creators incorporated it into the show. A fan questioned about the need to say something while also not alienating potential viewers. They didn’t set out to make the show ‘woke’. Instead, the show is just built on Keith’s journey from a lackadaisical guy to someone who could be called an accidental activist. At its heart, Woke is a comedy, but it pulls from the experiences of both Keith and Marshall, who draw from their own real-world experiences like being racially profiled by police. Executive producer Mo shared a quote they liked to keep in mind during season one: Funny, but not a joke.

Another audience question was about when comedy can go too far when it comes to sensitive issues. The creators agreed that there is no arbitrary line that can’t be crossed, but they did try to make sure no joke is mean just to be mean, and they always try to poke fun at themselves when they poke fun at others.

At its base, the show is about how Black men deal with trauma, and it incorporates the viewpoints of both co-creators. Keith has been in comics for a long time, while Marshall provides a more alternative form of humor, and the two of them come together to make the show what it is. Hulu provided them a ton of creative freedom in letting them make the show what they wanted it to be, although the executives  also wanted it to appeal to people it was never intended to reach.

When it comes to the animation style, Mo wanted the animation to be realistic, not like a purely imagintive form of a cartoon. Instead, he wanted it to be fresher, and hired a studio that worked on much of Robot Chicken to bring Keith’s creations to life. One of the consequences means the scripts have to be locked early on, in order to bring the puppet creations to life before shooting.

Finally, they talked about advice to future show creators and their approach to writing. Marshall emphasized that he doesn’t think aspiring creators should push themselves to say something important. Rather, they should focus on their character’s individual journeys and let the rest follow. Woke may be a show easily dismissed due to its title, but it’s clear that the creators and staff behind the scenes are determined to craft a show that means more than just a mere buzzword.