‘Trace’ the Series’ Creator and Actors Discuss the Show, Production and Preparation for Roles

“A group of strangers are mysteriously linked with a series of murders that have them struggling to save and cherish what time they have left,” describes the “two-year project in the making” limited series Trace, created by Anthony Bawn. 

Murder, Suspense and Based on Some True Events:

Some elements of the series are based on true events. Bawn drew inspiration from the Zodiac Killer, as well as The Doodler, a serial killer who only targeted gay men in San Francisco.

To this day, The Doodler has not been caught, which led Bawn to ask the question, “Why has no one ever really talked about this story?”

That question led to Bawn writing his fact-based series, which can be watched on WatchVIM.com, a Black-owned company.

He used the facts and made it his own, only using the first names of victims and creating his own story around the facts. 

While Bawn is the creator and one of the executive producers, Spencer Collins, a co-director, producer and Detective Ramos in the series helped complete the dynamic show.

Throughout the series, viewers see murder, mental health issues, sex, a powerful drag show performance and more. 

Wearing multiple hats on and off-screen, Collins said he “got lost in the work,” and that after looking back, he appreciates more what the team was able to accomplish. 

“I’ve been a fan of Anthony’s work for a long time and I was looking forward to working with him,” Collins said.  

Throughout the process, it was revealed that the series shut down production twice due to COVID-19. Other challenges were faced, one working with SAG and working with their requirements of filming during COVID-19 and witnessing how other productions did not specifically follow the same protocols, but no issues would have been known as viewers watch the series.

Co-starring actors Gary L. Gray and Eugena Washington as Detective Williams and Detective Miller formed an intuitive and captivating “tether” relationship as partners in their precinct. 

To prepare for his role as Williams, Gray said he watched all the serial killer and detective movies he could.  

“I’m actually the black sheep of my family,” Gray said, revealing most of the men in his family were either in law enforcement or the military. “I was also in their ear to make sure I had everything correct as much as I could. It was cool working on that during the pandemic because I got to take my time and dive.”

Washington, who emerged on the entertainment scene during her season on America’s Next Top Model, said her role as Miller allowed her to be who she is. 

“I am kind of like that tether to people in my life,” Washington said. 

Bawn said “things happen and faith led us to Eugena,” when speaking on Washington fulfilling the role of Miller. 

Gaining her way into the acting world, Washington said learning how to communicate and connect with people came from her experience in the modeling world.  

“In modeling, you’re not able to be an authority in your space,” Washington said. “You go where people tell you to go, you act how people want you to act. Who I am in the modeling field is not who I am.” 

“You’re allowed to take who you really are and put that on display, whereas people don’t necessarily see you as that because they just see what you look like and make assumptions off of that,” Washington added.

Due to the nature of his role, Gray said he sent a message to loved ones to let them know if they see or feel anything different with him, it was due to preparation of the role.  

“I’m a self-proclaimed hermit, just as far as my career is concerned when it comes to diving into anything that I have to do,” Gray said on getting into his character for the series. 

“I did a lot of research. Watched films and studied interviews of actors that had to go through the roles,” Gray said, citing Charlize Theron in Monsters. 

“The things that a lot of people go through to tackle these types of roles is not talked about and kind of glazed over when we see a lot of people having hard times in the industry,” Gray said. “Working on Trace, it was apparent there’s a different level of acting there. It was hard. I had to send a message to my friends and family that “I feel different.” 

“I was amazed because the level of commitment he was willing to do for the role,” Bawn said about Gray. 

Gray credited Washington with being a good cohort and being able to bounce off each other’s energy.  

The five-episode series effortlessly connects all the characters in an entanglement of suspense, relief, (remove comma) and questioning. After two years, dealing with the good, bad and indifferent, Trace is able to captivate the audience and tell a story where the characters shine throughput instead of the actors.