Television

HOUSE OF LIES

Sony Pictures Television for Showtime
Created by Matthew Carnahan
Produced by Matthew Carnahan, Steven Hopkins, and Jessica Borsiczky

“House of Lies” is a black comedy about big business and corporate greed. It aims to be subversive on every level; during my interview, producer Jessika Borsiczky made it clear that she wanted an editor who would rethink every scene and challenge any staid moment. I was leaving “Modern Family” to work on something different, and I knew immediately that this was it!

I got to edit the show’s season finale. It’s a fantastic episode of television. The story opens at a formal banquet, where Marty Kaan, played by Don Cheadle, shoots all of his coworkers and then himself in a massive, John Woo-style, guns-a-blazin’ action sequence.

Suddenly, the frame freezes, then rewinds through the action to three days prior, and the episode unfolds non-linearly. We jump between the banquet and the previous three days, building the tension and delicately unfolding the plot along the way. What was already great on the page got perfected in the cutting room.

The banquet scenes – including the huge shoot-out sequence – were shot during our last two days of production for the entire series. There would be no reshoots. On the last day, Matthew Carnahan, who created the show and directed the finale, called me from set. “Take a look at the shoot-out footage we got yesterday,” he said, “and tell me if we need to pick anything up. I need to know in an hour, or it’s too late.”

I quickly reviewed the footage and noticed that all the coverage had been shot from one side of the banquet hall. I threw a few shots together to confirm my suspicion: the sequence lacked a sense of depth and dimensionality. So I called Matthew and told him we needed pickups and inserts that went into the room and turned the camera in different directions. We needed a variety of vantage points to capture the depth of the chaos of Marty’s wild shoot-out.

Matthew shot the pickups, and in the end, they constituted about half of the shoot-out sequence.

MODERN FAMILY

Fox Television Studio for ABC
Created by Christopher Lloyd and Steve Levitan

“Modern Family stands alone at the moment as the best series on TV,
on any network, in any genre.” – Robert Bianco, USA Today

Jason Winer, the director of the pilot, asked me to edit test scenes for Ty Burell during pre-production. Creators Chris Lloyd and Steve Levitan felt Ty was perfect to play clumsy dad Phil Dunphy, but somebody at Fox or ABC didn’t agree.

In the end, Ty got the part, and I got offered an editor position when the series was picked up.

But I wasn’t sure I should take the job. As a feature assistant, I was climbing the ladder quickly, already cutting scenes for my editors. It was a choice between editing on “Modern Family” or being the 1st assistant editor on Oliver Stone’s “Wall Street 2,” which would potentially lead to an additional editor credit. With the blessing of Oliver’s editor, I made the decision to pop over to TV for a bit.

I won’t lie: working on a successful television show is really fun. Our press board quickly filled with clippings as season one began. By season two, the studio and network stopped giving us notes. After our spate of Emmy wins in 2010, Fox hired the Kogi Korean BBQ truck to cater our lunch.

In my two seasons, I was twice nominated for the Emmy for Outstanding Comedy Editing, and I won the 2010 Eddie, given by American Cinema Editors, for Best-Edited Half-Hour Series.

The biggest contribution that editorial made to “Modern Family” was in honing the tension between cynicism and sentimentality that the show is known for. Chris and Steve are both fathers and have long histories in (mostly family) television. The show’s other editor and I were both young; we watched more “Family Guy” than “Family Ties.” So, a lot of debate in the cutting room was over playing a joke sharply or sweetly, ending on a quip or a hug, playing to our characters’ faults or saving graces.

Because these debates were never black-and-white, I fell into the habit of executing both sides of the note. For example, if the comedy in a scene wasn’t landing, Chris might want to see the scene without any air. I’d do that, but if it seemed like it might have value, I’d also re-cut the scene with lots of air.

Sometimes Chris’s original note was dead-on. Other times, my executing the opposite seemed to work better. Chris, a nine-time Emmy winner who’s thirty years my senior, would not concede without properly sassing me. “On principle,” he’d say, “I don’t like letting you win. I’ll allow it this time, but don’t let it go to your head.”

I loved working with the team at “Modern Family,” but after two seasons, I asked my agent to keep his eyes open for my next show. Having started in features, I was hoping to work my way back, editing dramatic and cinematic cable shows along the way. As luck would have it, “House Of Lies” wanted to meet with me just a few weeks later.

I HATE THAT I LOVE YOU

Fox Television Studio for Fox
Created by Jhoni Marchinko
Directed by Nicole Holofcener

Nicole Holofcener is one of my favorite directors. I remember watching her first film, “Walking and Talking,” when I was in high school. It was a revelation. I’d never seen such a realistic, “small” story told so captivatingly. True to form, Nicole directed this half-hour comedy in a way that really humanized the characters.

It was also an utter joy to work with Jhoni Marchinko. Like Steve Jobs, she sees everything as amazing or terrible, totally successful or completely failing, friend or absolute foe. We developed a strong bond. She drilled me on my dating life every morning and bought me a cute pair of shoes because she thought mine weren’t stylish enough. I sent her a bouquet of her favorite flowers from her favorite flower shop – thanks, of course, to a tip from her assistant.

TRAFFIC LIGHT

Fox Television Studio for Fox
Created by Bob Fisher and David Hemingson
Directed by Chris Koch

I was the relief pitcher on this pilot. A very good edit had already been done, but director Chris Koch, with whom I had worked on “Modern Family,” wasn’t totally happy. He called me in to give the show a once-over.

It was an unbelievably gratifying job. Scene-by-scene, I did unsupervised re-cuts, adjusting timings and doing away with some conventionalities. When I played the new edits for Chris and producers Bob Fisher and David Hemingson, they rejoiced. I was making small and simple changes, but as I’d learned from watching Walter Murch re-cut “Lions for Lambs,” small and simple changes can make the difference. Still, the praise I garnered was a bit much.

SMALL TOWN NEWS

Independent
Created by Holt Bailey and Brian Steele
Directed by Bill Savage

Audience Award, Los Angeles Independent Television Festival
Official Selection, New York Television Festival
Official Selection, Los Angeles Comedy Shorts Film Festival
Official Selection, PilotLite Contest

This independently produced pilot was shot in two days and edited in my living room in two weeks. Director Bill Savage did an amazing job with an exceptionally minimal set. Creators Holt Bailey and Brian Steele still make the internet’s funniest videos. And what project isn’t complete with a cameo by Richard Riehle?

BUNKER HILL

Warner Brother Television
Created by Walon Green
Directed by Jon Avnet
Edited by Julie Monroe

Editor Julie Monroe is my favorite boss ever. This pilot was a beast, and her response was to give me more responsibility. After a notes session with director Jon Avnet, Julie would give me half the list and say, “Have at it.” She was extremely trusting, and I love her for it.

THE WEDDING ALBUM

Fox Television Studio
Created by Andy Tennant and Wink Mordaunt
Directed by Andy Tennant
Edited by Matthew Evans

This was my first job in TV. In fact, I think it was everybody’s first job in TV. Andy Tennant, who directed “Fool’s Gold” and “Hitch,” brought his entire feature team in to make this pilot.