The saga of the residents of a large English estate continues in Director Michael Engler’s new costume drama, Downton Abbey.
Based on the beloved television series, Engler’s film returns us to the early 20th Century with another tale of the Crawley family and their home nestled in the English countryside. As both the hosts and the help prepare for a royal visit from the King and Queen of England, scandal, romance and intrigue will leave the future of Downton hanging in the balance.
Following the DGA membership screening in New York on September 15, Engler sat down with Director Ritesh Batra (Photograph) to discuss the making of Downton Abbey.
In addition to Downton Abbey, Engler’s credits include the feature film The Chaperone; the movies for television Single with Parents, Twenty Questions and Mastergate; the pilots for the series Notorious, Welcome to the Family, Psych and Life as We Know It; and episodes of Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, The Big C, Six Feet Under, Party of Five, Sisters and Dream On. He is a three-time DGA Award nominee in the Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Comedy Series category for his 2006 30 Rock episode "Rosemary’s Baby" and his 1998 Sex and the City episodes "Hop, Skip & A Week" and "My Motherboard, Myself." He was also nominated for the DGA Award in the Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Dramatic Series category for his 2015 Downton Abbey episode "Downton Abbey: Christmas Special." Engler has been a DGA member since 1992.
You can listen to Engler's Q&A by clicking the podcast episode embedded below. You can find more DGA podcast episodes here.