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Capturing A Perilous World: A Conversation with Members of the Directing Team from HOMELAND

July 9, 2020

An Eastern Directors Council Focus on Women Committee Panel Discussion

On July 9, DGA members learned more about the making of an award-winning drama during the online panel discussion, Capturing A Perilous World: A Conversation with Members of the Directing Team from HOMELAND. Presented by the Eastern Directors Council’s Focus on Women Committee (FOW), the event featured Director/Executive Producer Lesli Linka Glatter, UPM/Executive Producer Michael Klick, 1st AD/Producer Sunday Stevens and 2nd AD Wendy Bledsoe in a conversation moderated by FOW Committee member Jan Eliasberg.

A meditation on the human costs of the “war on terror,” for eight critically-acclaimed seasons, HOMELAND followed Carrie Mathison (Claire Danes), a brilliant and volatile bipolar CIA operative and her longtime mentor Saul Berenson (Mandy Patinkin). The Emmy and Golden Globe award-winning series garnered eight DGA Award nominations and won the 2014 Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Dramatic Series Award for Glatter’s episode “From A to B and Back Again.”

Illustrated by clips from the series, the panelists discussed the challenges of shooting in a different country every season, and how each department adapted to that while maintaining a consistent tone. Glatter also covered the challenges of being a producing director for the show.

“I feel like we hire amazing directors and they are there for their skills so I want to be the producing director that a director wants to have,” said Glatter. “I want every director to have all the information that we have to tell the best hour of this 12-hour novel that we’re telling that season. I think each director would have a lot of freedom to tell that hour of the story the way they saw it because I think that’s really important and that’s where you get the most creative work.”

Following the panel discussion, the panelists took questions from the audience.

Watch video from this event in the gallery below.
ABOUT THE PANELISTS:

Director/Executive Producer Lesli Linka Glatter
A DGA member since 1985, Glatter’s directing credits include the feature films Now and Then and The Proposition; the movie for television State of Emergency; episodes of the series The Newsroom, The Walking Dead, Justified, Ray Donovan, Masters of Sex, Nashville, True Blood, The Good Wife, Weeds, House, Heroes, The West Wing, NYPD Blue, ER and Freaks and Geeks; and the pilots for the series Grace, Gilmore Girls, In My Life, Pretty Little Liars, Six and Law and Order: True Crime. In addition, Glatter was the Co-Executive Producer/Director of The Chicago Code, The Playboy Club, Citizen Baines and The Leftovers and was the Executive Producer/Director of Homeland Seasons three through seven. After earning an Academy Award nomination in 1985 for her short film Tales of Meeting and Parting (shared with Sharon Oreck), in 1990, she earned her first DGA Award nomination for "Episode 32006" of Twin Peaks. She garnered an Emmy Award nomination and took home the DGA Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in a Dramatic Series for her 2009 Mad Men episode “Guy Walks into an Advertising Agency.” She won a second DGA Award in the same category for her Homeland episode, “From A to B and Back Again.” Glatter was nominated for her sixth DGA Award and her fourth Emmy nomination for her Homeland episode, "The Tradition of Hospitality." Recently, she earned her fifth Emmy nomination for her Homeland season finale, "America First." She currently serves as the DGA’s First Vice-President; and also serves on the Guild’s Western Directors Council, the PAC Leadership Council and the Diversity Task Force. Prior to her work as a director, Glatter was a modern dance choreographer, working throughout Europe, Asia, and the United States.
 

UPM/Executive Producer Michael Klick
A DGA member since 1979, in addition to his UPM/Producer work on HOMELAND, Klick has directed three episodes of the series as well as episodes of 24, The Pretender and the mini-series short, 24: Day Six - Debrief. His UPM credits also include 24, 24: Redemption and The Haunting of Harrington House.
 

1st AD/Producer Sunday Stevens
In addition to her 1st AD/Producer work on HOMELAND, Stevens’ AD credits also include feature films such as Miguel Arteta’s Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day and Ben Affleck’s DGA Award-winner, Argo; as well as episodes of Law & Order True Crime, True Blood and Dexter. She has been a DGA member since 1999.

2nd AD Wendy Bledsoe
In addition to her 2nd AD work on HOMELAND, Bledsoe’s credits include episodes of Unbelievable, Law & Order True Crime, Pretty Little Liars, Shameless, Melrose Place and 24. She has been a DGA member since 2001.

 

Eastern Directors Council Focus on Women Committee member Jan Eliasberg (moderator)
Elisaberg has been a DGA member since 1985 and has served three terms on the Eastern Directors Council. Her directing credits include the feature films Past Midnight and Lovers, Partners & Spies; and episodes of Nashville, The Magicians, Parenthood,  Blue Bloods, Criminal Minds and Supernatural.
About the Committee:

In addition to Co-Chairs Maggie Greenwald and Annetta Marion, the Eastern Directors Council’s Focus on Women Committee members are Directors Marilyn Agrelo, Laura Belsey, Sarah Brooke, Jan Eliasberg, Shanta Fripp, Nicole Kassell, Martha Mitchell, Sarah Pirozek, Lara Shapiro, Shari Springer-Berman, and Vivien Vitolo. The Committee would like to remind members that while their events are designed with a special focus on women directors, all DGA members are welcome to attend.


Pictures & Video


View slideshow
Watch Highlight
FULL TALK: (1:17:22): Director Jan Eliasberg leads an overall discussion on the TV series Homeland with Director/Producer Lesli Linka Glatter, UPM Michael Klick, 1st AD/Producer Sunday Stevens, and 2nd AD Wendy Bledsoe.
Watch Highlight
HIGHLIGHT: Director/Producer Lesli Linka Glatter considers the impact of Homeland and how the themes of the show mirrored and, at times, predicted the problems of the United States.
(Top row) Director/Executive Producer Lesli Linka Glatter, UPM/Executive Producer Michael Klick, 1st AD/Producer Sunday Stevens. (Bottom row) 2nd AD Wendy Bledsoe and FOW Committee member Jan Eliasberg (moderator) discussed the making of the DGA Award-winning series HOMELAND.
Director/Executive Producer Lesli Linka Glatter speaks about her work on the DGA Award-winning series HOMELAND.
UPM/Executive Producer Michael Klick speaks about his work on the DGA Award-winning series HOMELAND.
1st AD/Producer Sunday Stevens speaks about her work on the DGA Award-winning series HOMELAND.
2nd AD Wendy Bledsoe speaks about her work on the DGA Award-winning series HOMELAND.
Eastern Directors Council Focus on Women Committee member Jan Eliasberg serves as moderator of the Committee’s virtual event, Capturing A Perilous World: A Conversation with Members of the Directing Team from HOMELAND

Calendar

6/6/2025 - 6/12/2025