This month's Encounter is with 9 to 5'er artists, CT Marie and Eric Doviak. In addition to their "9 to 5" jobs, CT Marie and Eric are writers, directors, and actors in their new show called, Rent Control. For their Encounter, CT Marie and Eric share behind-the-scenes of the making of Rent Control as well as a few clips from this upcoming web series which will be released this winter. If you would like to learn more about CT Marie and Eric and Rent Control, I encourage you to check out their story on The Characters page of this website. I have also included a brief written story of my Encounter with CT Marie and Eric below.

And now, without further ado, I present to you our Encounter with Rent Control and its creators. Enjoy! (P.S. If you would like to skip my intro, the official Encounter begins at 03:59)

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As my sister says, New York City brings together the odd edges of life...

and that is what the show, Rent Control, examines through its own unique and humorous lens. I Encountered it's co-creator and co-star, CT Marie, a long time ago as we are close family friends. I always remember having such imaginative and exciting playdates with CT Marie as kids. Together, we'd make up stories often centered around magic (in which I would often try to incorporate Santa Claus, regardless of the season) and CT Marie was never short of new characters and their voices to match! I am so happy that as we grew up, that sense of play never left us as we pursued our own creative endeavors. Our families are bonded by a likeness in our passion for art and affinity for the eccentric and strange and I am forever grateful for this connection to such a talented, unique, and lively family.

When CT Marie shared with me the premise of the show, Rent Control, that she was co-writing with her friend, Eric Doviak, I thought it was perfect. The apartment in which Rent Control was filmed exhibits a physical conglomeration of ideas, thoughts, and feelings and that is what this show examines: snapshots of the lives of New York City eccentrics. I was invited to be a part of Rent Control in a small role and while I was on set, I Encountered Eric for the first time and was excited by the passion that he and CT Marie exuded for the show, their creation. Every little detail during filming was discussed and carefully considered and they talked so freely of the characters as though they were real people that I started to believe them! To me, that is the sign of great writers and actors, when you dive into their world so readily without hesitation. Furthermore, the number of people who were a part of this project, as film personnel or actors, outside of their own 9 to 5's, is a real testament to how many of us believe in CT Marie and Eric and this show.

Rent Control will be released as a web series this coming winter and so I hope you guys will tune in! To stay up to date, you can follow the show on Instagram at @rentcontrol.theshow