WARNING MINOR SPOLIERS INCLUDED:



Episode 14 is on tonight! If I do say so myself, it?s an all around satisfying episode. Again, I try to keep up with the writers room, and know what is coming up? But, frankly, the pace of the show is so fast ? that a lot of times, reading the first draft of the script is the first time I really know where we?re going.



Tonight, Peter gets a mentor/master ? who?s a little rougher than Yoda. Claire gets quality time with her birth mother ? a real ?hottie.? Sylar pulls a fast one on HRG and spends some quality time with Claire?s Mom. Hiro stands up to his Dad (a ?trek? for any young man.) And more!



One of the great things about being on a hit show with a reputation for great writing is the quality of actors that are attracted to the show. Last week I spoke a little about Christopher Eccleston http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001172/ I knew him mostly from the movie ELIZIBETH where he was chilling. Many know him from DOCTOR WHO ? but suffice it to say, he?s a deep and talented actor who has never been seen on American TV before. Originally we offered him the role of Sylar. But, to his credit, Chris declined. I guess he?s played a lot of villains before and didn?t want to play one on HEROES. We kept him in mind though, and when Tim and the writers began to discuss Peter?s mentor ? the invisible man ? we remembered Chris and began to tailor the character to him.



Fate is our friend on this show ? because after Chris passed on the Sylar character, we began to audition, and into the audition walked Zach Quinto http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0704270/ Zach?s audition was one of the most amazing things I?ve seen. He had two scenes to read that were completely different. See at that time (back in late October?) there were no real Sylar scenes? (remember before episode 10 he was always just a black shadow with a baseball cap? Well, before then we used to film a stuntman or a stand-in ? once we cast Zach we had time to go back and shoot him in the diner watching Charlie and Hiro.) In Tim?s very first draft of the pilot script was a strange intense scene for Sylar ? he was imprisoned in a cell in Italy with long claw-like nails and sharp teeth. That version of Sylar, which never even made the final pilot draft, was way weirder and more monstrous, -- like Nosferatou. The writers had also banged out a version of what eventually became the first scene of meek Gabriel the watchmaker. So Zach came in cold to a room with 6 producers and 2 casting directors (I don?t know how actors take the pressure of auditions!) and read, first this intense monstrous scene, and then, second, a meek mild mannered role. After his first version of Gabriel ? which he read kind of ominously, I gave him the note to play it like an incredibly introverted person who can?t even look people in the eye, but who loves watches and machines. He did an amazing adjustment ? doing that perfectly. Then he read the monstrous Sylar scene ? very monstrously. Dennis Hammer gave him the note to read it more casually, humanly and to be menacing subtextually. He again made this adjustment perfectly. As he left the room ? we all turned to each other, blown away and said ? ?that guy just gave us four completely different characters ? he can do anything!!! So Zach got the job. And as we keep shooting we keep delving into his amazing facility. Watch tonight how he slips into the character of the charming, shy Texas deliveryman with a slight accent ? and then back to creepy Sylar ? so fluidly! He?s the nicest guy too! Love Zach!



Then we auditioned for the role of Meredith, Claire?s real biological Mom - Jessalyn Gilsig http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0319698/ The two Claire/Meredith scenes from tonight?s episode were in the script. A few actresses came in and were OK. Frankly I kept thinking to myself ? ?Man these scenes are kind of long ? we?ll probably have to trim them down in the editing room.? Then Jessalyn came in, and the scene suddenly sprang to life. Acting is an art/craft that I so deeply admire. It?s REALLY hard and when someone makes it look easy it?s amazing. But this actor stepped into the room (again with at least six people staring her down) and took the scene to a whole different level. She floated between nuances of joy, sadness, guilt, fear, almost laughing but not, almost crying but not. I was not aware of her before. But Jeannot Scwarcz, our director, had worked with her before ? I think on THE PRACTICE where he claims she played a completely different (vampy and malicious) character. I was blown away. And the work she does in tonight?s episode is so great. I was in the audition, on set, in the editing room ? but when I saw the final version of the scene where Claire first meets Meredith at the trailer park I got choked up! What?s up with that?!?



Obviously, Hayden regularly works with a lot of talented actors, but I always feel that Hayden brings out something more in the actors she works with ? that there?s a real relationship there. With Jessalyn that effect was doubled. Even though the characters had never met we really felt a connection between the two.



A scene I want to focus on, which I mentioned a bit last week, is the opening scene of the show. Claude and Peter walk through NYC talking. They?re invisible moving in a visible world. I think this scene turned out very well. Trust me this is a tough concept to get across? Peter and Claude are invisible, but we photograph them normally. They move in and amongst the background and there?s nothing inherently in the shot to tell you that they?re different than the rest of the world. Two main elements sell this concept of invisibility: The first is the bagel and scarf that lift into the air with an immediate match cut to Claude grabbing them. The second is the interaction of the extras who are surprised to be bumped out of the way. Yes we had the bagel and scarf on a piece of green screen fishing line - but beyond that there are no visual effects or tricks beyond basic filmmaking to tell this story. The fact that what?s happening is actually clear is a result of excellent planning and coordination between the director, Jeannot Szwarc Director of photography, Nate Goodman and first assistant directors Tony Adler (who prepped the scene) and Mark Lyon (who shot it as a second unit.)





ISAAC AND SIMONE ? UP ON THE ROOF





MILO ? HUMMING FOO FIGHTERS ?LEARN TO FLY? (IN HIS HEAD)





CHRIS ECCCLESTON ? A LAD FROM MANCHESTER



Tonight?s episode is directed by Jeannot Szwarc. You gotta check out this guy?s imdb: http://imdb.com/name/nm0844358/ He?s been around 4-Ever! He directed JAWS 2, SUPERGIRL and SOMEWHERE IN TIME (with Christopher Reeve and Jane Seymour.) But he also directed episodes of KOJAK, IRONSIDE and THE VIRGINIAN in 1962 for Goddsakes!!! And he?s never lost even a scrap of enthusiasm. I met him on a show I used to direct, called JAG. When I started producing SMALLVILLE I brought him over. Jeannot is one of those rare people who is a favorite wherever he goes. He?s hard to book on a show because he?s every shows favorite director and every show he does would use him for as many episodes as they can. This is because he?s not only an excellent filmmaker who always gets all the style and emotional beats right, but he?s a delightfully funny and warm guy who makes it a pleasure to come to work. He?s about five foot nuthin?, with a thick French accent and an impish (or is it elfin?) vibe about him.





JEANNOT SCWARCZ



Tonight I interview Jeannot about what it?s like to direct HEROES, as a visiting director ? and other thoughts about cinema and life in general.



(Imagine the following responses in a thick, sophisticated French accent!)



GREG BEEMAN: Hi Jeannot, thank you for doing this interview



JEANNOT SCWARCZ: My pleasure. You know, Greg, you have a phenomenon on your hands. You know that don?t you?



GB: Yes. It?s becoming clear.



JS: What is your secret?



GB: Me? I just showed up, and was happy they picked me for the job. But, yes. It?s very exciting and invigorating. The show is starting to feel like more than just a weekly TV experience. I personally just felt like I followed my heart and I?ve been very fortunate to get to be involved in two projects in a row that I passionately believed in. But, anyway, enough about me? I?d like to talk about your experience of HEROES ? how was it for you as a visiting director?



JS: Overall ? excellent. I love the cast. I love the crew. You?re very fortunate. You have no high management personalities either in front of or behind the camera. The show is quite difficult and challenging, and that is the part that makes it fun, but the people are wonderful.



GB: Now being a director who travels from show to show can be difficult. Always fitting in. Always having to adapt to new styles. But you seem to be a favorite everywhere.



JS: I do find I have affection wherever I go. I must be doing something right.



GB: Do you have a philosophy that helps you?



JS: Well, yes. The philosophy is that you are a guest wherever you go. You want to preserve your style and sensibilities, but you must also fit into the style of the show and into the group. I?ve never believed in the dictatorial approach. . I find a show functions better with love and not hostility. My style is more to convince and cajole. First thing is to try to make the show the best it can be within the parameters that are established. Try to improve the script as best you can. And to try to convince everyone to see it your way.



I?ve never liked tense sets. My approach, especially to performance, is like sculpting. Chip away to make it better. You know directing is about choices. Directing is about the art and about the art of time management. But then, you know. You?ve been very successful as a director as well.



GB: Yes. I think I have a similar philosophy to you. I take the work very seriously, but I like to have a lot of fun doing the work, and I like for everyone to feel they?re allowed to contribute.



JS: Indeed. If everyone feels relaxed. If everyone feels they are participating, then everyone can do better.



GB: How does your personal visual style mesh with the HEROES style?



JS: Well, I?d like to think it does very much so. I prefer bold angles. Not boring, tepid over-the-shoulders. I hate to be at eye level.. Nate (the director of photography) said I fit in perfectly..





GB: Let?s talk about the Japanese sequence, with Hiro and his father. It fits into the HEROES ?look? very well, yet it is also different.



JS: Nate, the D.P. is a real film buff, as am I. We had a lot of conversations about taking that sequence into a Kurasowa style. Meaning that we played with depth and composition. Besides being spoken in Japanese, the scenes had a very Japanese content and conflict. They were formal in nature with lots of changes in the power dynamics between characters. So, beyond the dialogue, Nate and I said, ?let?s do a Kurasowa style.? A very full frame. Not much camera movement. Instead the characters walk into their close ups. People move within the frame as the power dynamics change. Whoever has the power in the scene in any moment is also the largest in the frame. As the dynamic switches the composition switches. Also we used a lot of negative space, meaning the space between the characters and to the left and right of the characters. Nate and I were both very versed in this film language. We discussed it in prep, and we had shorthand about it on the set. At the end of the day, I think the sequences work well because they are supported by the very Japanese theme.



GB: Very much so.



JS: Greg, may I ask you, this blog ? did you invent it? Or did it find you?





GB: Huh? Oh. Well I guess a little of both. Back in May when the show was just starting, Jesse Alexander and Jeph Loeb were really promoting the idea of HEROES having a strong on-line presence? They had experience with it with LOST and ALIAS. I had done SMALLVILLE, which does a lot on line too, but had no personal involvement other than the odd interview. So, I volunteered to do a blog. I like to yak and I thought it would be interesting for the fans to peek into the behind-the-scenes. But I had no idea how much work it would be. As the show gets more popular and the blog gets more popular, I feel more and more obligation. Now every Sunday before the show is on I have this massive homework project? But, hey, you got me talking about me again. I want to talk about you.



JS: I am so sorry.



GB: Okay, let?s talk about the episode.



JS: What I felt was special about my episode was that, I would say it was very Hitchkoian ? more than the average HEROES.



GB: How do you mean that?



JS: I mean that there were many stories that were reaching their apex in this episode. There were many revelations and that they were very theatrical revelations as well. There is a lot of sleight of hand, meaning when you think you?re looking at one thing and then another is revealed. The most famous Hitchcock switch is in NORTH BY NORTHWEST when Cary Grant goes into the U.N. building and shows the man the photograph. The gentleman appears to be having one reaction and then, boom, he falls over dead with a knife in his back.



GB: What moments were like this in your episode?





JS: There were many. When Claire goes to see her mother. First there is the surprise of the mother?s powers. Then the surprise of who Claire?s father is.



My favorite is Sylar. When the little dog runs into the room and he grabs the dog. You think he?s going to do something, you think, ?My God, he?s going to kill the dog. But he?s quite gentle with the dog. There?s mis-direction. And the same when he meets the mother. We keep stretching out the expectations.



Which is fun. Very few shows give you this opportunity. That?s the good writing. The audience is a little ahead of the characters ? or thinks they are ? but they still don?t know exactly what they?re up to or what?s going to happen.



The biggest success of HEROES is that it?s never predictable. I watch the show with my two sons. They are 17 and 21. And, usually, with most shows, twenty minutes before the end they know exactly what?s going to happen. Not with this show.



GB: Are your son?s legitimate fans?



JS: Oh my God, yes. It?s fun. And they don?t want to hear anything? any spoilers. Usually, with my work, they?re not that interested. But on this one they said, ?Dad, you have to do a good job.?



GB: And you did.



JS: Thank you. You understand, it?s nerve wracking and traumatic to do a show for the first time. You don?t know the power structure the personalities or the references. I think I?m good at this because I try to read the show, the style, of course, the producers and the cast? whether the actor is strong or weak. If the actor has a strong ego and a lot of opinions it?s actually easier to be direct about their performance ? what?s working or not. If they?re fragile, you have to be more delicate. If one wants to be a good director it?s not just about camera and angles it?s a lot of people skills.



You know, Greg, I want to make sure that you write down that I had a great time. It is not only a great show it is also a good experience behind the scenes.



GB: What?s great about you, Jeannot, is that ? no matter how long it is you?ve been working, you?re still passionate. You?re a fan of films and you love what you do.



JS: You know, last summer I had lunch with an old college friend of mine, from Paris. And he said to me, ?Jeannot, we remember you always busting our balls about how you were going to go to Hollywood and make movies.? And I have been lucky enough to do so. My parents were Eastern European Jewish immigrants. To them what was most important was that I get the right diploma. So I did. I did classical studies at The HEC (in Paris). Trust me it is a very fancy diploma. And the next day I got a job as a runner for a small French company that was doing documentaries. I love it because I never thought I?d get to do it.



GB: And to stay enthusiastic too. A lot of people get bitter, you know?



JS: Bitter. In what way?



GB: I don?t know. I?m sure you?ve seen it. It seems more common than not as far as I can see. Writers. Directors. Producers. It seems that many people who have done this job for a long long time just get bitter.



JS: Bitter about what? What we do is a dream. I love being on set. I get such a charge. Maybe a while ago when I was doing big pictures I got that way for a while ? but it didn?t last. I have had my best years ever now. I have found my place in the sun. I am happy.



GB: Thank Jeannot. I know you?re busy with all your other shows this year ? so I hope to see you next year!





JEANNNOT AND D.P. NATE GOODMAN DISCUSS HOW TO DESTROY CLAIRE?S HOUSE





ME AND JEANNOT ON OUR MAGICAL MYSTERY SCOUT BUS



And that?s it for this week. Next week ? Matt gets a new gig. Claire?s Mom twists another knife. And Niki goes Terminator.



See ya then!



GB

WARNING: SPOILERS ARE KEPT TO A MINIMUM, BUT THERE ARE SOME!!!!



Tonight?s episode pushes the HEROES story forward on several levels. Peter meets a mentor, invisible man Christopher Eccleston http://imdb.com/name/nm0001172/ Hiro meets ?The Big Boss? who may be behind it all! (And fans of sci-fi synergy get a major treat!) One of the series regulars is revealed with a new power (one which may seem small now but will play out in a big way at the end of the season!!!) And Claire makes contact with her birth mother (Who is pretty hot! :o)! )



The episode was directed by Terrence O?Hara http://imdb.com/name/nm0641343/ I originally hired him for SMALLVILLE because of an awesome X-FILES episode he did. He?s a super nice guy, efficient, visual and great with cast. He?s a favorite on SMALLVILLE, and has done eight or ten episodes. I thought he?d fit in well here also.





DIRECTOR TERRENCE O?HARA





TERRENCE, THOMAS AND HAYDEN IN THE BURNT TOAST DINER



This episode was another one of the handful that was designed to be smaller budgetarally. Most of the show shot in or around our sound stages with only 1 day and one scene shot ?out.?



For instance the entire Hiro storyline was shot in the parking garage where our crew parks. We dropped a huge blue screen for one angle and we matted in an NYC city street in the background. It was kind of a pain in the butt because we had to park the crew 2 blocks away and shuttle them in that day. I thought the director and the Stargate VFX team did a good job of putting it together? Especially the shot which dollys with Hiro and Ando as they walk away from the ticket booth and tilts them up the stairs.



The scene on the NYC city street at night where Peter first meets and confronts the invisible man was filmed in one night in downtown LA. The original plan was to have only a very little bit of that scene in episode 12 and most of it in episode 13? But in the editing bay Tim Kring decided he liked going all the way up to Chris Eccleston choking Peter in episode 12 and then reprising most of that scene again in 13.



A very interesting thing in this series, that I?ve certainly never experienced before, is the vast flexibility of how we tell the stories episode-to-episode. Sometimes we pick up stories right where they left off, actually reusing previously shot footage. Sometimes we re-shoot scenes that have been previously seen, using new angles to tell new nuances. Sometimes we ?park? a story and don?t come back to it for 2 or 3 episodes. It?s both enormously freeing and challenging creatively.



One of the big challenges of this episode was, how do we tell the story of two invisible people, who can see each other, but who can?t be seen by the public, in the middle of a downtown New York street. Tim never wants this show to lean too heavily on visual effects, and is always looking for the more human way to tell the stories. And in this case, even if we did want to go VFX heavy? what would they be? If we made Milo and Christopher look transparent amongst the other people they?d look like ghosts. We talked about ways to switch between visible to invisible on camera, but worried that that would tell the story that they were transitioning back and forth instead of staying invisible in and amongst other people.



In the end, after much discussion, we decided to try to ?double-cover? lots of the scenes, seeing it sometimes from our characters points of view and sometimes from the world?s. Frankly, this episode became a learning experience. We made a couple of mistakes. One was not using the exact same angles when we transitioned from Chris and Milo struggling and knocking over the table, we change angles to a slightly wider view as the table they bumped is knocked over. This moment isn?t as visually clear as I wish it was. Also, I don?t think we hired enough actors (as opposed to extras) to react to the invisible struggle. The first cut seemed confusing? Can people hear them even though they don?t see them? We improved this a bit in post by adding dialogue, but we could have done better to see more specific reactions from the street people.



I think you?ll see at the beginning of the next episode (#14) how we greatly improved these problems. TV is a learning medium on many levels.





MILO AND CHRISTOPHER ECCLESTON



We also built a new major set for the series, which makes its debut in this episode. It is the rooftop of the Deveaux building. That?s right, the rooftop of the building where Simone?s father lived and died and where Peter first met Simone.



In upcoming episodes this will be scene in the past, the present and the future. In it?s glory, in mild disrepair and in destruction. Of course, the Deveaux roof is in downtown Manhattan ? so how do we achieve its look?



During this episode?s prep we had a spasm of financial responsibility where we decided not to build it at all and to rewrite it to Isaac?s loft. Another, more minor spasm, where we decided to build it on stage ? but build it mostly surrounded by close-in walls and a very minor blue-screen. And then we did it the HEROES way. We built a 1,200 sqaure foot set, elevated 12 feet off the ground, surrounded by a 300 foot wide 40 foot high blue screen which can only be adequately shot by using a 50 foot techno crane. And then, when all is said and done 80% of the shots are visual effects shots where we matte in New York City in the background? Day and Night!!!



Like I always say ?HEROES, IT?S LIKE A TV SHOW? ONLY BIGGER!?





OUR NEW SET: THE DEVEAUX ROOF





IT TAKES TWO DP?S (JOHN ARONSON AND NATE GOODMAN) TO NOT BE ABLE TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO SHOOT THIS BABY





SET DETAIL ? IT?S ALL ABOUT THE DETAILS





D.P. JOHN ARONSON





JOHN ARONSON PRECISELY MEASURES A SET WE?RE BUILDING ON LOCATION



Well, that?s it for this week. Hope you like the episode.



Next week? The adventure continues!!!

Well, we?re finally back on the air.



HEROES went off with episode 11 on December 4th. We kept shooting through December 20th and actually got 15 episodes in the can. December 21st thru January 3rd was our winter hiatus. Everyone on the cast and crew disbanded for a couple of weeks ? some on vacations to warm weather like Hawaii and Cabo, some back East to see family and some just stayed here in LA. Let me tell you, we were all really exhausted.



I actually prepped episode 16 before the break and came straight back to work shooting it. I guess I?ll talk more about 16 when it airs, but lemme tell you? It wasn?t that well prepped. Everyone was so tired that we don?t exactly remember that last week. Also, I spent three of my seven days of prep directing scenes from other episodes. We?d gone so long on episode 13 and 14 that both directors had to leave to start their next jobs before we?d finished ? and I had to mop up.



But ? more on that later?



Twelve is where we restart our story. I think we left the audience with a pretty satisfying cliffhanger in December? Peter dreams he is the bomb that will destroy Manhattan. Eden is dead. Sylar has been captured. The Haitian is protecting Claire who knows her father has mind wiped her family and now she has to pretend she?s been mind wiped too. Niki has turned herself in to the police for the murder of Linderman?s men in episode 1. Hiro has lost his powers and has met Isaac who paints a future (or is it the past???) in which Hiro battles a dinosaur with a sword!



So, what?s next??



A pretty exciting second half I think!



A lot of us are nervous that we now go head-to-head with ?24??. We knew our last run of episodes had to be great! Personally, I feel confident.



In part 2 of our season - which will go for 6 episodes - the noose tightens and the characters are drawn inevitably more together and towards the bomb blast, which they will either stop - or which will destroy Manhattan. 3 major new characters will be introduced and some that we have come to love may be killed!



Episode 12 was directed by Paul Shapiro. Paul also directed episode 5 (Frankly, I can never remember the titles of the episodes? I have to think about them in numerical sequence, because, from my point of view, what number they air in dictates many decisions we make.) Paul did another great job. It?s funny, he?s gotten both of the Hiro-Nathan scenes we have had. Which are always hilarious. Masi brings out comedy in Adrian. In fact, the whole ?billan-villlian? thing in this episode was ad-libbed by those two. On set Jeph Loeb and I were dubious and thought the boys were going too broad with the comedy ? we made sure a straighter alternative was shot. But Tim Kring loved this version, and, in fact it was the piece that they showed when Masi went on Jay Leno.





PAUL SHAPIRO





PAUL SHAPIRO AND PRODUCTION DESIGNER RUTH AMMON AT THE OIL DERRICK





HAYDEN AND THOMAS AT THE OIL DERRICK (IT WAS FREEZING OUT THERE!!!)



The main thing I remember about episode 12 is that it took FOREVER to get done filming. It had lots of small scenes in specific locations which couldn?t be scheduled with other work. There were also numerous conflicts with actor schedules between other episodes that were shooting at the same time. Also, we had to get several of our cast to New York for the Macy?s Parade, Regis and Kelly and the Carson Daley show, etc. There was also a situation where many scenes in this episode also appear partially in other episodes. The bomb sequence that concluded episode 11 recurs here but re-visualized and with new elements ? including the dialogue with Nathan and the introduction of Christopher Eccleston ? but Chris Eccleston, who?s from England, had issues with getting a work visa in time which delayed shooting his shots? The final scene where Peter walks away from the hospital on the NYC Street also plays in episode 13 ? not enough work for two nights, but too much for one?. There are two scenes of Claire and the Haitian at the oil derrick in this episode and one in episode 13 - which is a distant location ? we had to shoot all three in one day, in the eight hours of available November daylight (i.e. that?s FAST!!!)... The museum scene with Hiro and Ando was shot at the L.A. Natural History Museum ? which was only available from 6 PM to 6 AM... The crew shot until dawn and then many (including the director) had to go directly up to the PrimaTech paper company to film scenes from this episode and episode 11. There was one brief scene of Hiro and Ando running out of the museum in day NYC which didn?t schedule with anything. We started filming the padded cell with Ali Larter ? but there were problems with the set that caused us to have to stop and re-work it. Hayden Panettiere got sick, etc. etc. ? All of this resulted in the episode shooting many partial days and having many ?hold? days -- we were actually finished with most of episode 14 before we had12 completely finished.



To make matters worse, from a post-production point of view, we wanted to lock picture, score and mix episode 12 before we broke for vacation. We knew that episodes 16 and 17 would have very tight post schedules ? so if we could get ahead it would greatly benefit us down the road. Tim Kring and the writers got us the scripts in plenty of time, but we couldn?t get it done.



The late shooting and the complex visual effects (Peter exploding, Ted?s nuclear hands, invisibility - as well as many other subtle VFX, made this impossible. We were able to lock picture before the break, but that was all.



Ah well, The best laid plans of mice and men?



There were a lot of cool things done in post, though. I love the way editor, Scott Boyd, treated Peter?s dream with many little flashes. And we went bold with the color of the show again ? as we had in the very early episodes. Separating NYC as blue, Texas as gold, and draining color and adding grain to Nevada.





MASI CONTEMPLATIVE









FUN ONES FROM EP. NINE ? MILO WITH 4 LEGS



Last thing to talk about is what an exciting time it?s been as HEROES has been nominated for several awards ? the writers guild award for best series, the American Society of Cinematograpgers award for Adam Kane, D.P. of the pilot, The Art Director?s Guild award for Ruth Ammon for episode 10 (?Six Months Earlier?), The Golden Globe for best drama and for Masi Oka as best supporting actor (which we lost) and The People?s Choice award for best new drama (Which we won!!!)



It?s an amazing feeling to be recognized for your work like this. We?re all so proud of the show, but to have others acknowledge the show as well is especially gratifying. But more amazing than any awards show is the personal effect the show is having on people. Dennis Hammer and Tim Kring recounted a story from NAPTA (The National Association of Professional Teaching Assistants) in Las Vegas where a school teacher from, I believe, Indiana, told them about her class of special needs students who have adopted HEROES as their own and used it as a tool for why it?s good to be special. It?s so touching.



See you next week?

Interview With HEROES Production Designer RUTH AMMON



Warning: While I try to keep spoilers to a minimum ? some do slip out.



While HEROES is on a six-week hiatus we?re still working hard on making episodes that will air in January. Today, for instance, we had two units shooting. The first is in downtown LA shooting the last day of episode 14 - involving Milo Ventemillia and a new (exciting) character doing a NYC street scene. As night falls they will do a big stunt high fall into a Taxicab. The other unit is shooting day 3 of episode 15 ? scenes involving new disturbing developments at Claire?s house ? and later a scene set backstage involving Hiro, Ando and chorus girls. Today, I, personally, scouted locations and laid out scenes for episode 16 (which we prep now but begin shooting in the new year) ? I also spent time in the editing room, first doing a visual effects spotting session on episode 12 and 13 and later with Tim Kring and Dennis Hammer reviewing and polishing the edit of episode 12 (which looks like it?s gonna be terrific by the way.)



This TV show is like a freight train moving 100 miles an hour. You have to jump on, dive out of the way or get dragged under the wheels.



So? While we try to catch up to get new episodes on the air for you ASAP, I thought I?d do a couple of blogs about the behind the scenes.



Today I?m going to talk about, and with, our production designer Ruth Ammon.



The look and design of the show, its sets and locations, are as big a star as the cast? okay, who am I kidding? The sets aren?t nearly as sexy and they can?t go on TRL. But they?re still good.



Ruth is the person who deigns and/or finds every set we shoot on and runs one of the biggest departments on the show





GB: Ruth, what?s your background? How did you get started as a production designer?



RA: I was waiting tables at the Jersey shore. I waited on a producer, Peter Schulberg (his uncle Budd wrote ?OnThe Waterfront?) who was making an after school special called ?Mystery At Fire Island.? He said that I should be in the art department. That day I quit my low paying waitress job for a no-paying gig as an art department p.a. They didn?t pay me but they gave me a moped.



GB: Wow, that sounds like a pretty bold move. Did you have any design background at all before that?



RA: Yes. I had just graduated from Muhlenberg College in Allentown PA. I had studied Art History. This was my summer job to make money. I didn?t know exactly what I wanted to do with my life at the time ? but I knew it was in the arts. That was my background. A year abroad at Oxford had also stirred me up.



GB: But you didn?t have a formal architectural background per se?



RA: No.



GB: OK so then what?



RA: From that experience the production designer, named Vaughn Edwards invited me to come to New York City and work for him as an art department p.a. I moved there, and by luck, someone I knew moved out of their apartment and I moved in. I was still working for free, but I also had a free place to live and free meals.



GB: Sounds like fate.



RA: Fate. 100% fate. Fate and destiny pushed me into the film business. My whole career has been like that.



GB: Yeah, but you grabbed ahold of it. I think that?s worth noting for anyone aspiring to be in this business. When an opportunity appears, go with your gut and grab it, even if it doesn?t look like it?s ?good enough? or pays enough. My own career has certainly been from one chance event that led to a relationship with someone who could help which led to another chance event? etc.



OK, so then what? How did you go from p.a. to production designer?



RA: I was an art department p.a., which is very different from a set p.a. ? but I moved from job to job and shortly, to early really, fate came in again. I was a designer?s assistant on a very low budget independent movie called ?Hard Choices.? The designer got a better job and left, and suddenly, because there was no one else, I became the production designer. After that I had one credit. So I could use that to get more work.



GB: That?s wild.



RA: I know. I?m so lucky. I have a great job. A really great job.



GB: I?m glad you feel that way. I love my job too. We?re in a rarified field doing really exciting stuff. We work crazy hard. I know you?re here every day at 6AM or 6:30AM and you leave at, like, 9 PM ? but it?s very satisfying work. Especially on a show like this where the visual design is encouraged, appreciated, and seen. So many shows live only in close ups of actors. On HEROES your work is really on display.



RA: Yeah. It?s great.





GB: OK, so, the generally held belief is that the production designer is the person who designs and builds the sets, finds locations for the show and oversees the way the sets are decorated.



From your point of view, what is a production designer?



RA: The person in charge of the look of the film. Certainly that?s it in movies. In TV it moves so fast that you can?t really be in charge of everything.



For me, it?s about telling the story visually. Closing your eyes and pretending there are no words. I try to imagine how I can tell the story of the movie with color, architecture, surfaces, objects. How can a lampshade tell the story? How can a car? How can the color of a wall?



It?s crazy, but when I talk to the painters, we talk about the history of the wall. When was it built? When was it changed? When was it damaged? When was there an earthquake? What colors were in vogue when the wall was last painted? Where did water drip down and for how long? The painters love that. We have some of the best painters in the business on this show. Film or television included. Phenomenal painters and they are really into it.



GB: I notice you do talk with people in your department a lot about ?character? which is actually, maybe unfortunately, unusual. I notice you wanting your designers and set decorators to be very specific about what objects a character surrounds themselves with, how and why they chose them and so on.



RA: It?s very important. You can?t just be generic and say, ?She?s a grandmother.? You have to know what her background is, what her politics are. What she cares about. Why she does or doesn?t keep things around her.



I try to create a visual arc to the whole story? where do you want color or no color, what is the emotional impact of the scene visually.



I learned something important on this show - from you really - which is not to have preconceptions about what a set can or can?t be. We shot a room with four white walls and no windows and it looked great.



GB: Yeah. That was on episode 3, which I directed. The scene where Audrey first interrogates Matt. The schedule pre-dictated that we had to film the interrogation room the same day we filmed at Claire?s high school. And it had that white box of a room. I actually liked it because it had a viewing room attached and I had an idea (which wasn?t scripted) of someone?s hands in the foreground scribbling notes. I was also excited about shooting with the swing and tilt lenses and filming ?flat space.? I embraced the space and so did John Aronson the cinematographer, who has a very bold untraditional point of view as well.



RA: It looked great.



GB: Back to you, you hadn?t done much TV before HEROES.



RA: Sketch comedy, ?The State? ? those guys do ?Reno-911? now. And one season of ?Without a Trace?



GB: Also the pilot of ?Weeds?



RA: Right. My features were mostly comedies too, like ?Drop Dead Gorgeous?



GB: So how did the Bruckheimer camp come to hire you for ??Without a Trace"?



RA: My book. And an interview. They were making a change at Christmas time ? I think I was one of the few, the only, one available. Fate again.



GB: Your book is fabulous by the way. Beautiful. Without question it?s what got you the job here.



RA: Thank you. I worked hard on it. My book is very important to me. It?s my artwork. I take all my own pictures and I only take pictures if the set is lit the right way and from angles, which I feel, are cinematically the best angles to film from.



GB: Sounds a little obsessive.



RA: Yeah.



GB: But always with great result. Which brings us to us. To HEROES.



RA: Again, I think I was the only one available.



GB: Not exactly. We were a little late hiring our designer. Many of the other shows that had been picked up already had someone lined up. But you got a very strong recommendation from John Aronson who was already hired as DP, and whom you?d worked with of ?Without a Trace.? Dennis Hammer was already very focused on you. I had just been hired and was still feeling very tentative with Tim, and Dennis and Allen who had all worked together for five years and had shorthand. But they invited my opinion in. We kept using the word ?real? ? meaning, that we had to believe in the spaces that these people lived in and the words ?texture? and ?layers? because real people?s environments are built up over time.



Your book perfectly reflected what we were talking about.





RA: Good. I feel lucky. Because I only find I get hired, or even go up for certain shows ? maybe I?m a bit difficult ? but I find I only get hired on shows where the producers want someone who wants to be involved in all aspects of the visual design, and wants to get involved with all the other departments.



GB: HEROES is kooky big right?



RA: Kooky, kooky, kooky big! And on every level.



For example. On every episode you always do a set list. Which is just a list of the sets the characters will be in, in the episode. On most shows there?s just a handful and most of them are recurring from pervious episodes. On HEROES it?s almost always a full page and always at least half of them are brand-new sets we either have to build or find.



We shoot more sets per episode than any other show. I?m sure of it.



And we?re building so much. We build 3 or 4 sets per episode and a lot of them are really big. And we still have to develop the character of each set (like we?ve been talking about) as we go. Our construction coordinator was voted MVP by one of our producers.



Right now, I think, I?m in a fog I have no sense of when an episode begins or ends or what show we?re shooting or what day it is.



GB: Let?s talk about a couple of sets specifically. The clock repair shop where Sylar worked in episode 10 was very popular.



RA: I know? I know?



GB: But I always sensed you were disappointed with it.



RA: I wanted it to be bigger. But it became smaller because of financial restrictions and space restrictions. When I knew how small it was going to be, I painted the walls shiny black.



GB: I think people really liked the glass window with the big clock in reverse and the hundreds of cabinets and clocks.



RA: That?s it. The set became all about the set dec. But that?s New York. That?s a place I know. A place I?ve been in. So it was easy for me.



Also, I think if it worked visually, it?s because I designed it to allow camera movement without pulling walls.



GB: Ok another one that impressed me. The Odessa police station where a lot of episode 11 takes place. Peter?s cell, hallways, interrogation room. A lot of the episode happens in it and it feels big and real?



So, from the time you knew we were going to build it, to the time it was shooting on camera? How many days was that?



RA: I would say... eight



GB: That?s crazy.



RA: I know but I had it in my head and I wanted to build it and because of other things that were going on at that time there were less financial restrictions than on most of the other sets. I didn?t want us to shoot a Barney Fife police station.



GB: Still it looks great and to do it in so little time is phenomenal.



RA: It was fun. There are sort of two levels to our Odessa Texas. The old west traditional, like our diner, and the new generation ? kind of a falsely optimistic world that?s over scale and perfect but will crumble in ten years.



GB: Like the High School.



RA: Yes.



GB: I love Claire?s high school.



RA: I knew I was going to enjoy myself on this job when all the producers liked that location ? because it was a bold and not obvious choice.



GB: I love it. It?s very ?Triumph of the Will.? It reflects a kind of grandiosity and menace that seems so appropriate for Claire?s story. It reflects what?s going on in her family life. It looks clean and strong and secure, but on closer look, it?s oppressive and a little frightening.



RA: I never read comic books and can?t keep up with some of you when you talk about them. But I?ve come to appreciate the strong graphic visualization that you guys love. We can push things over the top all the time.



GB: Really? But Tim has always mandated ?real.? And I do think the show ? at least the environments ? feel ??real.? How do you think we balance that?



RA: Because there?s no style for style?s sake. Because everything?s thought out. We don?t punch holes in the wall for light to stream through just so it will look cool. We come up with logical valid reasons for our light sources.



GB: Speaking of? You think about light and design light into your sets more than any other designer I?ve ever worked with,



RA: Because that?s what you see. What?s lit or not lit is the first stroke of design. I try to build windows and lights into my sets because ? it?s like painting, light is what shapes the architecture, light is what says what it is.



Besides if you don?t light it someone else will and you might not like the results.



GB: What else?



RA: Just that, my focus is also very much on having the set be the smoothest set for production it can be. Not just the look, but how easily the walls move so the crew can access it. How easily it lights. If the crew is happy and not fumbling about the set the actors can relax.



A well-finished set will get the best performances from the actors because they will believe in where they are.



GB: Awesome. Thanks for your time.



RA: My pleasure.





STAY TUNED!





Ruth Ammon and director Paul Shapiro on location





A new little set that's being built - HEROES it's like a TV show only bigger





Set detail - it's all about the details





Ruth and her crew hard at work





Ruth in the ever popular van





Ruth with one foot in





Location scouting (with Alex Reid location manager) "I wuv you thiiis much"

Last night?s was episode 11, which in some ways is the end of the first chapter of the first season. After last night we stop airing new episodes until late January.



It?s actually amazing that we?ve gotten that many episodes on the air in a row. I?ve worked on a lot of TV and - on any show that premieres in late September or early October - I?ve never seen one that got more that 9 on the air. Most 1 hour shows on TV shoot for eight shooting days? more or less 10 working days. A new episode airs every 7 days. The math of all this catches up to you, until there?s less and less time per episode to edit, do music and sound effects and visual effects. Add to that the fact that HEROES usually shoots for 10 or 12 days and it gets even worse.



Everyone who works in post production kicked butt on this ? I?ll single out Donn Aron the editor - he did an amazing job in a short amount of time ? and did some particularly inventive things in Peter?s dream sequence and in the scene where Matt interrogates Peter? Look for all the hidden jump cuts and speed-ups as the two guys try to read each other?s minds?. Hats off also to Lori Motyer the co-producer who is in charge of all things in post production. There was less than a week from the time Allan Arkush and the editor locked picture for Lori to color time the show, on-line it, oversee the sound mix and the visual affects and make sure that it physically got finished.





Editor Donn Aron





Co-Producer Lori Motyer's empty office (she was too busy running around working to be photographed)



The episode was directed by John Badham. He has a few credits: http://imdb.com/name/nm0000824/



It was crazy working with John Badham ? I mean for God?s sakes he directed SATURDAY NIGHT FEVER, WAR GAMES, BLUE THUNDER and STAKEOUT. So it was frankly kinda weird to be like, ?OK Mr. Badham, here?s how we shoot our show. And? ?Make sure you get plenty of low angles and cool shots.?



I was actually pretty nervous meeting him ? but he was full-on the world?s nicest guy. A true pro and a true gentleman. What surprised me when I went to his imdb sight was how much television he had done ? starting in the late sixties and continuing recently it is A LOT. He?s the kind of director you really want on a show like this. No matter how big the scene was he was never flustered. He was cool with all of us producers and our many strong opinions about how we want our show to be. And he shot things with seeming effortlessness.





Director John Badham





John and Masi



Also, how cool was the final sequence ? Peter?s dream sequence in NYC ? Like I say, HEROES is like a TV show, only bigger. We shut down 4 city blocks on a Sunday. We jammed the streets with empty cars to create a deserted, neutron bomb look. It was also the first time ever that the whole cast was together. We had cranes stedicams and three cameras - It was intense amount of work to do in one day? And beside the scene you saw Monday night there was a second version shot with more characters and more information which will be used in one or more future episodes



All very exciting?. STAY TUNED!!!!





HEROES it's like a TV show, only bigger





Milo taking pictures - a handsome lad





Milo and I





The whole cast together





Getting picture taken for TV Guide





Tawny Cypress





Lori Motyer - HEROES Co-Producer/Head of Post for real

Tonight?s episode is the second episode that I directed. It was, by design, a smaller episode? It follows fewer characters and goes to fewer locations than the first 5. HEROES, as you hopefully can tell, is a big and relatively expensive TV show. To balance out the big episodes, Tim Kring and the writers have planned that there will be three or four smaller, less expensive ones which, effectively, offset the costs of the big ones.



Also, truthfully, we?re still learning what stories to tell and how to tell them. Do we always need to see the whole cast in just a handful of scenes? Or should we, sometimes, concentrate on just a few of our characters and give them more intensively developed stories.



The good news was that the script, written by Natalie Chaidez, was great. It takes Peter into the next step of his journey. It presents Hiro with a challenge to his concept of what a hero is. It answers one of Claire?s important questions about her biology (or does it???) It amps up Niki?s story and explains who?s in the mirror. It also finally introduces Niki?s husband, DL, into the show ? and resolves how much a menace to Niki?s life he is.





Natalie Chaidez ? writer of episode 6



But despite the great drama and character development -- I wanted to make sure that we didn?t lose the visual design or the intensity that we?ve been developing for the last 5 weeks. Directing this episode was challenging? Most of it takes place in Niki?s house? A lot in a parking garage. A lot in Niki?s house. One scene outside Claire?s. One scene in a garage poker game. One scene in Isaac?s loft ? AND THAT?S IT!!!



Compare that to my last episode, episode 3, where we were all over the world!!!



I?m very happy with the way the show came out. I reminded myself that Akira Kurosawa directed a whole movie ("High and Low") that took place in one house. I tried to use conventions of noir movies, supper low angles, super high down angles, and any other trick I could think of to keep the tension of the show alive? I think it worked, and taught me that the noir angles work for HEROES? great!



But all that aside, I thought I?d concentrate this blog on performance direction, and the role of the director as a director of actors in television.



Ultimately this is a performance-intensive episode. Everyone is great. Leonard Roberts is an obvious great addition to our story. But Ali Larter was faced with a particularly challenging task, one that she really rose to the occasion on.



Ali plays two characters in this episode. One, Niki, who is breaking down continuously and trying to hold it together while experiencing ever-escalating amounts of fear and trauma. Then, her alter-ego is introduced ? a cool and in-control character we call ?Jessica.?



On top of all that, the nature of filming is that we shoot wildly out of sequence ? so that Ali from scene to scene had to play varying degrees of her breakdown. Now my job, and her job are to each do the homework (together and separately) to track what that character is doing at any one point and kind of regulate each other.



We also had the benefit, (rare in TV) to rehearse her scenes with DL and for Natalie to rework them a bit. This was an amazing asset.



I felt good about it all during shooting, but it wasn?t until I saw the first cut put together that I realized how masterfully Ali had handled the assignment.



To digress for a moment, I thought I?d describe my own journey as a performance director. I first came out of USC film school in 1984 ? and was very well trained by that education in all of the technical aspects of film making. I understood lighting, production design, staging to camera etc. And I was ready in most respects to begin work in film. Unfortunately, at least at that time, there was not much emphasis on performance direction. There had been a kind of Hitchkokian ?Actors are cattle, the director moves them where he wants and when he wants? attitude.



I was lucky enough to begin directing shortly out of school, but kept finding myself butting heads with actors ? especially older, experienced ones. I would tell them to do something. They would ask ?why?? And my only response was ?Because it looks cool,? Or ?Because I planned it this way ? and it looks cool.?



After enough of this head butting I realized I was missing something in my skill set. So, I enrolled in an acting class with an acting coach named Larry Moss. This was like ten years ago, and Larry was a very well respected teacher? (A couple of years later Hillary Swank was holding the Oscar for ?Boys Don?t Cry,? and she said something like, ?And I?d like to thank my acting coach Larry Moss without whom this performance would not have been possible.? Moments later Larry?s classes were a lot harder to get into.)



I took the class for about a year and took it very seriously. I did monologues; I got acting partners and put up scenes. What I learned (besides that I was a terrible actor) was that acting is an enormously difficult craft. If you?re doing the job well you are, as they say, ?in the moment? and the minute the scene is over or the director yells ?cut?you feel foolish and confused and vulnerable. The director of photography and production designer have hard jobs too, but they have more objectivity to know how they did.



I also learned that the currency of the craft is (a) emotion and (b) physical action. To communicate effectively to an actor you need to know what emotion or combination of emotions their character is experiencing and how that is to be physicalized with their bodies. The saying is that an actor?s body is their instrument ? and it?s true. Like a cello or a paintbrush the actor uses their body, their voice and their emotions to depict a character.



Anyway, long story short, I believe I became a much better director of actors from that experience and I highly recommend studying acting to anyone who wants to direct. Also, as my own craft became more proficient - I learned that I can approach my craft similarly to how an actor approaches theirs. I too can ?be in the moment,? meaning that I have certainly planned how I?m going to shoot and stage a scene and what results I want, but that if the scene evolves differently, or something I didn?t expect happens I can evolve my plan to incorporate it.



Finally, I learned that the best thing I can be for an actor is being a safety net. When an actor learns to trust me, we can have the experience where I encourage them to take any risk they want, and they can know that I will be observing them carefully, telling them when it works and when they have gone to far. In the years since Larry Moss?s class I have had a very fulfilling time working with actors. It is one of the most rewarding aspects of my job.





Another day at work for these three actors





Niki and DL together at last!



Now, to top things off I thought, since Ali had done such an amazing job, I would do an interview with her and give her a chance to talk about ?Niki?, ?Jessica? and her process as an actor.



GREG BEEMAN?S ALI LARTER INTERVIEW:



GB: Ali, your performance in episode 6 is so great. You play Niki, who is kind of continuously breaking down throughout the episode, and introduce a new character - Jessica ? who is completely in control. And, of course we shoot in bits and pieces and completely out of sequence. So, for me, the control you demonstrated throughout this process to get to the result that?s onscreen, is fantastic. I?d like to talk about your process.



AL: Okay, let?s go.



GB: So.. You?d never done TV before HEROES, and it goes so fast with a new script coming out literally every week and a half. How do you break down and prepare your work?



AL: Well, first I just read the script once through and I try to see and feel my way into it, to have and instinctual emotional reaction. I believe that your first instincts are really valid..



Then I take the script and break it down chronologically. I try to track the characters intentions and feelings. I work on that and write down notes on the pages of the script. When we get to shooting my script looks like a roadmap.



Then, on the day of filming I check over my notes to remind myself of my intentions before we do the scene.



GB: Like in your trailer?



AL: Exactly. And also, when I?m doing a show as emotionally intense as episode 6, frankly there?s just no room for personal life for that period of time. It?s all about the work.



GB: I?ve found with actors, and with my own work as well, it?s really important to do a lot of homework and planning, but it?s also important in the moment on set to forget it all and be open to what?s happening right now. Your homework is valuable until it?s not.



AL: Right. That?s a great way of putting it.



GB: Talk about Niki and Jessica and the experience of playing these two very different characters.



AL: Before episode 6, really from the pilot, I felt deeply connected to Niki. She?s a voice I know. It?s more work to play Jessica.



GB: Even though Jessica is more like you?



AL: I know. I know.



GB: Why is that?



AL: Niki is so honest. She?s sensitive to the world around her. She?s my voice for women in bad situations who are trying to do the right thing. There?s something very honorable about her.



GB: And what about Jessica?



AL: Jessica is a struggle, because I have to own my sexuality and my voice to play her. I can?t rely on my emotional life.



GB: Because Jessica is so clearly focused and goal oriented? She seems like she?s very ?Need-Plan-Result? oriented. There?s no second-guessing, or self-doubt in her..



AL: Exactly.



GB: Let?s talk about your relationship to directors in TV. You haven?t done TV before, but how do you deal with the fact that (a) there?s a new director every week, and that (b) some of them may be more technical than performance oriented and (c) they may only have the needs and point of view of their own script than the big picture of the character.



AL: Actually, in film, I always felt that I yearned for directors that were vocal with me. But I never got that. For some reason, at least the ones I worked with, were more worried about the technical versus the emotional needs. I?ve actually found that there?s more attention to performance here, than in the movies I?ve done.



It?s also great to have you and Allan (Arkush) always around to push my buttons. It?s great when, every once in awhile someone gets something out of you didn?t expect.



As an actor, I?m always open to anyone?s thoughts and opinions. I want to try anything. But I?ve also learned I?m not always going to have the director focus me, so I have to trust myself.



GB: How do you do that?



AL: Everything is a growing, ongoing emotional experience, including learning to trust myself. Also, the TV schedule moves so fast that it makes me trust my instincts.



GB: I also notice that you?re very interested and aware of where the camera is and what it?s doing? How did you get to that?



AL: I don?t know. I?ve always been aware of it. It?s great though when you get to know a director, like you, and know that your shots are so good. It gives me a freedom to act ?within? the shot; do you know what I mean?



GB: I think so. I?ve been doing this a long time, and I still love it? I?ve stayed fascinated in the way that - where you put the camera, and what lens you use, and how you move the camera, in harmony with the actors movements and performance, can lift up and support the performance. It?s possible to do a shot that is all about itself, that serves being ?a cool shot? first and foremost, and I can certainly so that sometimes. It?s also possible and very common for the camera to, kind of, just layback and record the performance ? in which case the actor is kind of on their own. What I try to do is lift up the performance, the same way the cello?s in an orchestra lift up and support the first violin. The violin is the star, but it is better for the cellos.



AL: Also if you?re doing a specific shot and I understand what it?s doing, I can sometimes lay back and give a subtler performance.



GB: Right on. Okay that?s enough of your time taken up between setups. I know people are going to love what you did in tonight?s episode.





AL: Thanks.



See ya?ll next week!!!