Honestly, my heart’s mission is to bring joy and laughter to folks while celebrating Southern culture, Southern language and the South’s most precious asset — Southern women.”
If you had a chance to read the summer issue of Charleston Women, then you saw a charming interview with South Carolina native, actress and screenwriter Julia Fowler. In that interview, Fowler gushed about her Southern roots, favorite Southern “sayins” and creation of the YouTube station sensation, “Stuff Southern Women Say,” which is part of “The Southern Women Channel.”
The idea to post the idiosyncratic phrases that we all know and love from our mamas and grandmamas was originally part of the “Sh!T People Say” trend of 2012. When Fowler saw that no one had done a Southern version, and with an ax to grind with a Hollywood studio which had just decided not to move forward on a downhome project she’d written, she proved the relevance of Southern content to the nation. “Sh!T Southern Women Say” went viral within 24 hours and is a brand which continues to reign in 2024. The latest installment, coming soon to an addictive device near you, was filmed in Fowler’s self-proclaimed favorite Southern city; her holiness herself, Charleston. Garnering the original cast, meeting in person for the first time since before Covid, Fowler rounded up Katherine Bailess, Sheila Hawkins and Delaine Yates to step back into the Lily Pulitzer and Sunday pumps and onto the cobblestone of King Street. Joined by guest-star, Alex Ellis, the spitfire content began spewing in those drawls we all know and love. Charleston Women was exclusively invited to peek behind this darlin’ little curtain and become part of the cozy and quick-witted YouTube powerhouse production.
Charleston Women was invited to attend the portion of the shoot at The Belmont, owned by Fowler’s college roommate Amy Timmons. Portions were also shot at another college friend’s (Connie Finkelstein) home in Mount Pleasant. Timmons graciously shut down her quaint watering hole for two hours — and found a nanny to watch a cast member’s baby — to allow the Southern women to film. They came delightfully clamoring in, almost in full character already, their authenticity beating them all through the door.
Sam Sokolow, Fowler’s husband — and a producer himself — couldn’t stop bragging on his wife from the second he rushed through the door with camera equipment in hand. “I’m the luckiest. She’s so authentic, so herself. She loves her Southern roots so much,” he gushed.
The cast soon followed, hugging one another, rehearsing lines and finding a million reasons to laugh before camera’s even began rolling. However, they moved quickly, showing they were on a mission, moving and shaking to get the task complete. There was nothing slow and snail-paced like stereotypes suggest. These were women on the move.
Fowler threw on a pair of glasses and stepped beside her husband behind the camera where she directed the enthusiastic cast on the lines she’d written. It was difficult not to laugh out loud watching the cast absolutely nail those one-liners while Fowler would shout something like, “Come on now, you’re really drunk. You’ve really had a few, and that man looks so good. Show it to me.”
In between takes, each cast member eagerly shared how this now 12-year-long journey has created a unique sisterhood between the cast members — and even the audiences who watch.
Mississippi-born Bailess said, “This is the first time we’ve been together in five years, but we’re a family. Back in L.A., Julia heard my Southern accent, and we immediately made friends. I ended up going to her birthday party and won the dance contest (she was soon cast on the show “Hit the Floor” about NBA cheerleaders). The rest is history. Now we’re like sisters. Sheila caught the bouquet at my wedding.”
Hawkins, the bouquet catcher, is the eldest in the group, and the mother hen in her was prominent. She said, “I’ve known Julia since she was 12. I cut her hair and her mama’s hair.” Though the entire group hails from various places across the Southern U.S., Hawkins is the only one who isn’t a formally trained actress. She is as “real deal” as it gets. However, Hawkins did end up under the lights of Hollywood herself, working for Sokolow’s production company along the way. However, she recently returned to the Palmetto state where she knows it is home for good.
Though they’re all sweet as sugar, not all the women’s first meetings were love at first sight. Yates comically shared, “Julia didn’t like me. We first met in acting class, and she didn’t speak to me for a year. There was just too much leading lady in the room, I think. Then she saw me sitting by the pool at the Ritz Carlton, freshly engaged, and we got to talking. Now we’re like sisters. We’re so close. I love these women, and I love embracing my Southerness.”
North Carolina newcomer Ellis met Fowler through a connection on Broadway. Ellis agreed with the sentiment that the cast is like family, even though she hasn’t been a part as long as the others. She said, “There’s a strong bond. It’s like a family, but it’s also a well-oiled machine. We have genuine friendships underneath.”
It’s surprising that this “well-oiled” Southern women machine hadn’t filmed in Charleston before because of many of the castmates’ connections to South Carolina and the reputation of the city as a Southern hub. However, this time the planets all lined up for the Lowcountry.
Fowler stated, “Charleston is my favorite Southern city for so many reasons, but the truth is, I recently shot in Charleston due to pure logistics. We’re now spread out all over the place. I live in Greenville, S.C., Sheila lives in Inman, S.C., Katherine lives in Nashville, T.N. and Delaine still lives in Los Angeles. Plus, Katherine recently had a baby, so she’s been unavailable to shoot for a while. I’ve creatively shot us remotely and separately but there’s nothing quite like the comedic chemistry of us all being together. Katherine informed me she was going to be on vacation in Charleston with her family for the month of July. Once I learned she would be in my beautiful home state, in my favorite and most magnificent Southern city, my wheels got to turnin’. I rented a house and gathered the original cast, plus two guest stars in Charleston. I reached out to my incredibly supportive Chi Omega sorority sisters, Amy Timmons and Connie Finkelstein, who live in Charleston and asked for help.”
After seeing so much production, commitment, travel and fan response to what Fowler and the other Southern women are doing, it’s easy to wonder about the end game. It seems that these women are unstoppable and headed toward even more success in the future. To that, Fowler made it clear that simply celebrating the voice of the culture will always be first, but added, “From a business point of view, the mission is to increase our brand awareness and followers across all platforms, to collab with Southern brand sponsors and to monetize the channel at a higher level so we can celebrate the South as a full-time job. And of course, I’ve worked on television comedies — as have many of my cast members — but the ultimate end game dream is to be a part of creating a sitcom that celebrates Southerners and all of their precious quirks.
By Lorna Hollifield
