Episode 3: Charlie Clausen Behind the Scenes

0:01 Voyage. All right, listeners high, It's Nat Mondell, the founder of Voyage. I'm super excited to introduce our listeners today to Charlie Clawson. Charlie is playing Jeff in our upcoming episode of our allegedly true crime series, in the episode called Love Gone Wrong in the Philippines, very exciting episode. You probably know Charlie as the lead in the long running Australian series Home Away, excuse me, Home and Away, and for those of you that know the Australian film and television market, you might also know him from the hit drama Blue Healers and also most recently, the TV spinoff of the horror film Wolf Creek. So that's going to be a very exciting project. So Charlie, thanks so much for joining us. No, it's exciting to be part of this. I've never done a true crime podcast. Some people would listen to my regular podcas Us and accused me of committing a crime. But the first time I've been involved in the true crime one. Right on. Well, we you know, we as we were talking before we came on, you know, we discussed just how long you've been involved in podcasting? How long have you been involved in podcasting, How on earth did you get started so early? And what have you been doing in this world? So yeah, I have a podcast network called too Fop, which was a little play on Russell Crowe had a band in the mid two thousands called thirty odd foot of

1:34 God what thirty odd foot of Grunt, which we changed to a thirty odd foot of pods, So therefore it turns into to Fop. And it was just a friend of mine, Will Anderson's quite a well known comedian. Here we were listening to podcasts. We're doing a road trip one day, and I think that was back when it was just Ricky Gervais and Kevin Smith and I think even Joe Rogan had just started out, and we were like, we can do this. It's just two people in a room talking. You know. We've done set a radio in the past and felt like it was very constrictive, just having short conversations two minute, three minutes and the new threat to a song or an ad. And so when podcasting came along, we're like, well, here's a medium design for us. We're two guys who like the sounds of our own voice, and all you need is a microphone. Because about one hundred episodes to work out how to use the microphone.

2:16 But yeah, twelve years later here we are, well, what were some of those early shows that you did other than TOFAP? Like, you know you have a sports show too, right, Yeah, that's that's that we did. That's the AFL show, which is Assie Rules. We started that one seven years ago or six years ago. We're going to us seventh year now. And that was a spinoff from TOFA because the listeners of TOFAP were like, we hate how much you guys talk about football. Can you please create a separate show so we don't have to listen to that? And then we started Will has another one called Whilosophy, which is more of a kind of highbrow interview show. We has various celebrities and academics and intellectuals on this show, and and then we started producing other people's shows. So m as you know, as a as a founder yourself, like, there is a tremendous market for content, and yeah, I think it's a it's exciting.

3:13 We just love the idea that Will used to describe it as like the punk rock era, that there were no rules or no gatekeepers. All you needed is like a couple of friends who have like an idea and the basics. With equipment, you can just get started. Unfortunately, there's just two million sid viciouses, so we just have to figure out how to get the right ones discovered, right, right? So this is your first true crime podcast? Is also is it also your first podcast where you're actually acting and playing a role? Yeah? Yeah, it's funny. I've always been fascinated. There's quite a few that I've listened to, and it seems like such a natural extension. You know, it's almost in a weird way, we're sort of almost going back to old media in the era of radio plays and stuff. But it makes sense that true crime is such a popular format and genre in podcasting because there are so many stories out there. And I until, you know, you guys got in contact, but I hadn't really thought of the idea of dramatizing true crime. A lot of the podcasts that listened to a more documentary style, but this makes a lot of sense. And you know, I was very excited when I read this script, and I'm like, Od's you know, it's really funny and it's really interesting, and I think the way that you know, the narration and the acting kind of go hand in hand. It's it's it's I'm really hope this is enjoyed because I think it's a tremendous script. Yeah, interesting, and yeah allegedly.

4:32 The our true crime anthology is that docu drama hybrid where we've got you know, the the real life people talking about their actual experiences and then cut together with these scripted and narrated re enactment sequences. We also have our first ever show was a true crime show, but it was fully scripted called let Me tell You About My Murder, So it's one hundred percent actor performed, but a real true crime story. I've noticed you've used the word allegedly a few times in our conversation, and so far, are you're just covering yourself legally? No? No, no, that's the name of our show, okay, And and yes, part of that strategy is to make sure we're we're not we're not saying that this is one hundred percent true where happened? But it might have been right? So um So on that note, you know, let's dig into your episode. Why why choose this role? You know what? What what attracted to you to this particular episode and show. I just think it's it's a it's it's something, it's going down the rabbit hole, you know, like it starts off as a failure innocuous story, and you know, Jeff is such a likable character, and then as situation continues to spend more and more out of control, you sort of just like, it can't get any worse, it can't get any worse, and sure enough, it gets worse. But there's a real sense of like humor to it, Like you get a sense of Jeff's personality throughout the whole thing. Um, you know, he has that kind of classic you know what people think of it, like a classic Australian laconic nature, Like even when you know he's sort of getting tossed and Gail and people like that, there is a there is a kind of rye sort of like sense of irony to the whole

6:04 thing. And I just found it really compelling and funny. And I think it's just the the shifts between the kind of uh scripted bits and also you know, Jest narration I think just complete the pitchure beautifully. Like it's like when you watch the rest of development, you know, Ron Howard's voice over, it just takes the drama and just makes it that much funnier, right right, Yeah, And you know the character so interesting and the real real life character so interesting in that you know, I mean he gets really worked over by you know, this villainous candy character. Um and and you know he's got some pretty clear red flags along the way. So as an actor, you know, if you don't if you dive into that role, like, what do you think was driving him to keep investing in her given all those red flags? Well, initially it sounds like she was very beautiful.

6:56 That was That was like the clear That's where it started. But I think there's also like an element you know when you sort of read between the lines of what Jeff is saying is that he's a romantic you know, I think he wanted this to work and you know, it was a second chance at love and he I think he wanted to believe her, you know, and he wanted this to work out, and even you know without sort of you know, spoiling anything like becoming a father and all that kind of stuff. Like I think there is a sense of obligation, like he's a very honorable man, Jeff, you know, even though he had everyone saying to him that your wife's a villain and you know, she's cheating on you and all this kind of stuff, like he continued to do the right thing and it almost to his own detriment in a lot of ways. Yeah, you know, like he sort of keeps sort of getting into trouble because he gives her the benefit of the doubt. And I don't know. I mean I often look at friends of mine who seem to ignore red flags, and I think there's some people, you know, who who do it because maybe there's just like an element of they love the danger, you know, And I think for Jeff that had to be part of it. You know, like living in the philip Philippines is like a pretty wild country to live in. You know, you are sort of going somewhere where you know, there's a lot of police corruption and the rules don't apply. And so I think to make your home there and start a family, you've got to have a little bit of element of this is exciting and this is great. There's something there.

8:18 Just to even start with, have you been to the Philippines? Uh? No, My parents is to travel to the Philippines quite a bit, quite a few Filippino friends. Yeah. Yeah, from everything I understand about it, it is you know, it is a bit of the wild West. Yeah, there's an edge there, right, there's a lot of edge and excitement and you know, the sort of the two sides of the coin of opportunity and and uh and fraud, right like, yeah, you know, it's a it's a it's an exciting place. So you so, Jeff is a father, and I believe you're a father, right Yeah. Yeah. If I sound a bit craky, it's because my two year old was up most of last night. So does that experience of fatherhood give you, you know, sort of an ability to connect to you know, Jeff understand the bond that he has with the son, even though it might not even be his Absolutely, Yeah, no, I think that's actually one of the bits.

9:09 One of the parts of the story that I really identify with is that it's a high wrenching when a child is used as a pawn against you, you know, when it's manipulated to lie to you, or you know, you know that the child has been lied to you by the mother to turn against you. I think that's you know, you're asking sort of what motivates Jeff. Well, if he's a man of honor and a guy who does the right thing, then that's a that's the sure way to hurt him or a sure way to get it in his own molum a tool. Yeah, absolutely, absolutely, Well, so Charlie, tell us what's next, man, Like, what are you working on? What do you want your fans to know? Well, to FOP the network, we've had an extended break. We're sort of bit burnt out like most people after twenty twenty one, but we are coming back. We're slowly incrementally bringing the shows back. FOP is back this week, two Guys, One Cup is going and to FOP will be back at the end FIB And then I'm working in a FACI film.

10:03 Just I'm almost finished a script for a facire film that we're hyping to put into production at the end of the year. My wife jim Lay's directing it. So yeah, we've got a lot of stuff on. I mean, that's it's been a nice break, but then you know, straight back into work now. Yeah. Wow, well, good man, I'm glad you're busy and excited. Well, thank you, um, you know so much for choosing to play the role and playing with us in this podcast sandbox. It's a new space for Voyage. It's an exciting space and we're having lots of fun doing it. And so, you know, listeners, let's let's give a you know, a nice welcome to Charlie is our one of our players. And also tune in watch or excuse me, listen to Allegedly and Charlie's episode in our upcoming show. You can find it on Apple and Spotify and Google and anywhere you listen to podcasts, so please do that, and also on Voyage Media dot fm where all of our podcasts live. And that's me at Mondell's signing off, and again thanks again Charlie. Cheers