DGA members seeking ways to better prepare for their next episodic directing assignment received valuable information on May 26 when the DGA Director Development Initiative hosted its second interactive lab of 2021, The Role of the Episodic TV Director: Pre-Prep and Prep.
Following a welcome from DGA Executive in Charge of Diversity & Inclusion Programs Frank B. Gonzalez, the attendees heard a panel discussion where DGA Diversity Task Force Co-Chairs Michael Goi (Big Sky), Todd Holland (The Real O’Neals), Bethany Rooney (Law & Order: Organized Crime) and Carl Seaton (Snowfall) discussed what it means to be a Director — and examined the curious cocktail of humility, gratitude and confidence demanded of that first episode. The panelists covered subjects including prep tools, show politics, and gave a breakdown of the meetings a Director needs to navigate such as tone, concept and production, and answered questions generated by the topics of the discussion.
In the following section of the lab, the Co-Chairs were joined by DGA First Vice President Lesli Linka Glatter (Homeland), and Directors Tessa Blake (Riverdale), Andy Cadiff (Last Man Standing), Joe Chappelle (Godfather of Harlem), Chris Grismer (Designated Survivor), Edward Ornelas (Locke & Key), Michael Pressman (Justified), Rosemary Rodriguez (Peacemaker), Ron Underwood (The Good Fight), Tom Verica (Bridgerton), Michael Waxman (Chicago Med), Jet Wilkinson (The Chi) and Andy Wolk (Station 19), who served as moderators for the breakout sessions and guided the attendees on how to break down a script’s scene and gave advice on how to approach the politics of the tone meeting to guarantee success.
The lab ended with a summary meeting where the attendees had a further opportunity to have their questions addressed by the VIPs.
DGA Members can watch the full video from
Director Development Initiative events by clicking here.
About the Director Development Initiative:
The Director Development Initiative is designed to provide current information on the Director’s craft in order to further the Guild’s mission to increase diversity and inclusion in the industry.
See video highlights from this lab in the gallery below.