Darci Ricciardi

To a Certain Degree
To a Certain Degree
Darci Ricciardi
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It was a dark and stormy night. Then, a dark and slightly drizzly morning. Luckily, my guest Darci Ricciardi was not only full of energy, she was a compelling and thoughtful interview. So much so that we ran out of time and missed a few topics.

Darci Ricciardi

The good news is that’s even more of a reason to have her back soon.

We did manage to cover a few things. On a day where Funko announced a lot of new figures, we covered how one becomes a vinyl whisperer at the organization.

Darci’s a professional choreographer and dancer. An art form I know nothing about, I was really looking forward to the opportunity to learn more about it. She delivered, and we listened to songs through the ears of a dancer. I mean, she did, then she told me about it. Some of the songs:

There was a lot about zombies, including a Bad Business Idea (patent pending) involving an early escape planning app.

We also talked about minimalism, and Darci’s approach to decluttering and simplifying her life.

Follow along and do an interpretive dance of your own!

Photo cred: Loren Kahle

0:00 – It’s not new territory for Darci, who has been at the studio before. But this time, it’s personal. Because we get to know her.

2:40 – “At WPRK, no one can hear you scream.”

5:17 – “There’s lots of goo and juices and dirt.”

6:39 – “I’m the John Morgan of Snapchatters.”

11:08 – “My two week’s New Year resolution game is on.”

15:50 – “That’s the reveal. That the kid is Bruce Willis all along.”

19:59 – “Arthur Nintendo, whoever the owner of the Nintendo Company is, if you’re listening, you should hire me to do your stuff.”

23:26 – Let’s talk about an artform I know almost nothing about. Choreography. Even the name is artsy.

26:00 – “I kind of like being a MacGyver of things. I’m like that with food at my house, and I’m like that with choreography.”

30:25 – “That would be amazing if there was an alternate reality where everything was a musical.”

31:30 – “I am a very emotional dancer, I like to perform along with my face.”

33:24 – “That was my audition too. They were like, ‘Just send us a video of you being born and learning how to walk.’”

37:22 – We discuss how Raphael Saadiq’s 100 Yard Dash would be choreographed. Apparently there would be a Dirty Dancing lift.

40:35 – Dance discussion continues, talking about Ane Brun’s version of Wendy McNeil’s Such a Common Bird.

43:41 – There are no bad ideas, but there are Bad Business Ideas™. Zombies anyone?

45:57 – “I don’t have to run a bunch. I don’t want to have to board up a wall.”

48:33 – “It’s kind of like an all-inclusive resort basically. Everything is handled for you.”

49:14 – “And then you talk to the kids who like taking the medicine. I was like, ‘I’m unfriending you on whatever version of social media we have, which is the playground, where I’m going to kick you.’”

50:54 – “I think you know where I’m going with this. Do you know where I’m going with this?”

53:51 – Before we discuss minimalism, we chat about Funko’s Pop line of figures.

54:44 – “If they called you right now, and they said, ‘Come up, you’re going to pick characters for us to give the Pop treatment.’ What would you say?”

56:18 – “You have to become what is known in the industry as a vinyl whisperer.”

57:39 – “Think about all the different emotions. There’s anger. There’s…anger.”

58:22 – We use a lot of words in this segment to talk about minimalism. Not sure if that’s ironic or not.

1:00:21 – “You just have to be cutthroat about it.”

1:02:15 – “The emotional release of getting rid of stuff and not being surrounded by so much stuff feels so good.”

1:05:34 – “I don’t know why this has become my Waterloo for whatever reason, but I do not want multiple things of spices.”

1:11:19 – Popular culture time, in multiple choice quiz format.

1:14:57 – “But not just any candy. thousands and thousands of red Skittles.”

1:16:52 – “Sweet meat.”