BELOW THE LINE PODCAST

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S23 - Ep 8 - Long Bright River - Film Editing May 11, 2025

Show notes

Editing a character-driven crime series is never just about pacing — it’s about stitching together time, tone, and memory.

This week on Below the Line, Film Editor Matthew Barber joins Skid and co-host Gianni Damaia to talk about Matthew’s work on Long Bright River, the eight-episode adaptation of Liz Moore’s novel. From subtle flashback reveals to emotionally charged cross-cutting, Matthew shares how he and the creative team shaped the series’ visual language — often while discovering it in real time.

We cover:

How flashbacks replaced the novel’s internal monologue — and became a key storytelling engine
Balancing mystery, family drama, and editorial tone across episodes
Structuring the pilot to delay key character reveals — including the true identity of the killer
The emotional inspiration behind a flashback-within-a-flashback sequence
Using match cuts, location callbacks, and music cues to layer subtext
Capturing warmth and humanity inside a show full of loss, addiction, and institutional failure
Incorporating both classical and contemporary music to define character and mood
The editorial juggling act of cutting dailies, managing tone, and staying ahead of a tight production schedule

Matthew also shares how his personal life unexpectedly shaped some of the show’s most emotionally resonant moments — and how quiet, human moments often carried the greatest weight.

🎧 Press play and go Below the Line on Long Bright River. For more, visit belowtheline.biz.

S23 - Ep 7 - JAG - Assistant Directing May 04, 2025

Show notes

Before streaming and prestige TV, there was network television — and few shows ran tighter, longer, or more efficiently than JAG.

This week on Below the Line, Skid is joined by First Assistant Director Robert Scott and Key 2nd Assistant Director Kevin Koster to look back at their time on JAG, the hit CBS procedural that ran for ten seasons and laid the groundwork for the NCIS franchise. Together, they explore how the show combined military precision with Hollywood problem-solving — and how their team navigated last-minute script changes, tight location logistics, and complex stunts on a weekly basis.

We discuss:

Working with series creator Donald Bellisario — and his instinct-driven writing process
Balancing legal drama, action sequences, and military protocol within a single episode
The importance of trust and tempo in an AD team working at network speed
Designing efficient workflows for multi-location shoots, vehicle setups, and stunts
Welcoming new directors into a well-established style — while giving them room to breathe
Managing day players, guest stars, and recurring cast across episodes
Building and maintaining a core crew across ten seasons — and how long-term collaboration shaped production flow
Lessons learned from JAG that still apply to today’s television sets

Robert and Kevin also reflect on the camaraderie that sustained the crew across ten seasons — and why “making the day” meant more than just finishing on time.

🎧 Press play and go Below the Line on JAG. For more, visit belowtheline.biz.

S23 - Ep 6 - The Sticky - Score Composition Apr 20, 2025

Show notes

A score about maple syrup heists? FM Le Sieur makes it stick — with barrels, distortion, and a defiantly Canadian sound.

This week on Below the Line, Skid is joined by Score Composer FM Le Sieur and co-host Louis Weeks to talk about FM’s genre-blending music for The Sticky, the six-part comedy series about Quebec’s infamous maple syrup heist. From pitch process to percussion tricks, FM walks us through a score that blends character, chaos, and quiet emotion — all under a very tight schedule.

Among the highlights:

Pitching the show during the strike and getting hired twice after long delays
Building a sound palette from acoustic textures, folk instruments, and industrial objects (yes, including syrup barrels)
Channeling a “Quebec sound” that balances regional roots and narrative tone
Scoring for tone, not laughs — and why comedy music often works best when it holds back
Embracing small ensembles, distorted metal, and deep manipulation in the mix
Balancing groove, melody, and mood in a hybrid score
Highlighting key cues like “Chainsaw,” “Ruth and Remy,” and the opening track for Episode 2
Navigating the emotional demands of scoring intimate scenes — without going sentimental

FM also shares how he found his way into scoring through bands, gear tinkering, and a masterclass with Philip Glass — and why every great cue starts by trusting your gut.

🎧 Press play and go Below the Line on The Sticky. For more, visit belowtheline.biz.

S23 - Ep 5 - The Bondsman - Costumes and Production Design Apr 13, 2025

Show notes

The compound, Kitty’s porch, and a bondsman’s fraying wardrobe — design tells the tale in Prime Video’s The Bondsman.

This week on Below the Line, Production Designer Eve McCarney and Costume Designer Liz Vastola join Skid and co-host Gianni Damaia to talk about crafting the look and feel of Prime Video’s The Bondsman, starring Kevin Bacon as an undead bounty hunter.

Among the highlights:

An unusually long prep schedule that gave Eve and Liz time to fully develop sets and wardrobes before cameras rolled
Building the show’s four permanent sets, including the sprawling compound and the lived-in bond shop
Designing Kitty’s porch as the emotional heart of the series and Hub’s apartment as a reflection of his resourceful character
The evolution of The Boxcar, a richly layered club set complete with a memorable “one-er” shot
Collaboration on the swimming pool sequence, balancing costume colors and set design for striking underwater visuals
How production and costume design worked hand-in-hand, despite Eve and Liz never having collaborated before this project
Behind-the-scenes stories of working with Kevin Bacon, from fittings and design emails to his generous, collaborative presence on

What shines through is the close collaboration between Eve and Liz — an intentional partnership that ensured the environments and characters lived in the same visual world, reinforcing the show’s grounded but heightened tone.

🎧 Press play and go Below the Line on The Bondsman. For more, visit belowtheline.biz.

S23 - Ep 4 - 2025 Awards Season, Revisited Apr 06, 2025

Show notes

Revisiting the 2025 Awards Season means looking back at the winners, the surprises, and the snubs that defined this year’s Oscars.

This week on Below the Line, Skid welcomes back Bill Hardy, Roger Mendoza, and Shaun O’Banion from last season’s Oscar panel. They weigh in on what the Academy got right — and where it went off course. Joining them is Katie Carroll, who missed the original conversation but brings fresh perspective to the follow-up.

Our discussion ranges across:

Sean Baker’s Anora dominating with five Oscars, sparking debate over its strengths, flaws, and Baker’s unusual multiple credits (writer, director, editor, casting director)
The panel weighing campaign politics, including Anora’s $6M indie turned $18M Oscar push
Dune: Part Two emerging as a favorite for Skid and Katie, with the group questioning why it wasn’t more heavily awarded
Split opinions on The Brutalist — admired for its scale and craft, but dismissed by some as slow or austere
A Complete Unknown praised for performances and Mangold’s classic approach, despite being shut out on Oscar night
Conclave respected as a compelling, old-school drama, with debate about its Catholic framing
Emilia Pérez largely dismissed apart from Zoe Saldaña’s standout performance
Additional shout-outs and overlooked titles, from Challengers to September 5th to the animated Flow

What stands out in this episode is the way the panel blends craft critique with industry context — from union debates to campaign spending — while keeping the conversation fast-moving and funny.

🎧 Press play and go Below the Line as we revisit the Oscar season. For more, visit belowtheline.biz.

S23 - Ep 3 - The Bikeriders - Assistant Directing Mar 23, 2025

Show notes

Staging motorcycle clubs on film is no small feat — especially when the bikes, the actors, and the period details all have to ride in sync.

This week on Below the Line, 1st Assistant Director Don Sparks and Key 2nd Assistant Director Pete Dress join Skid to talk about building Jeff Nichols’ The Bikeriders, the period feature starring Austin Butler, Jodie Comer, and Tom Hardy.

On the call sheet for today’s conversation:

Shooting in and around Cincinnati, Ohio to capture a 1960s Rust Belt look the camera could believe
Managing a 41-day schedule on a modest budget, with both ADs heavily involved in prep and problem-solving
Creating a motorcycle “boot camp” to get actors licensed and camera-ready on period bikes
Insurance hurdles, safety protocols, and staging massive group rides — including the final pack ride of 30+ motorcycles
How Jeff Nichols personally matched bikes to characters and remained a constant collaborator with cast and crew
Navigating period authenticity challenges, from sourcing cars to designing original biker patches that avoided conflict with real clubs
Favorite moments on set, from Norman Reedus’s temperamental bike to watching Hardy and Comer deliver “a master class” in acting

What stands out in this episode is the sheer scale of logistical detail — and how the AD team turned it into a smooth-running engine, balancing authenticity, safety, and storytelling at every turn.

🎧 Press play and go Below the Line on The Bikeriders. For more, visit belowtheline.biz.

S23 - Ep 2 - Zero Day - Score Composition Mar 16, 2025

Show notes

Conspiracy, power, and the sound of unease — scoring Zero Day means writing tension into every frame.

This week on Below the Line, Score Composer Jeff Russo joins Skid and co-host Louis Weeks to talk about building the musical world of Netflix’s Zero Day.

In this episode, we dig into:

Coming aboard early with showrunner Eric Newman and director Lesli Linka Glatter to set the series’ tonal compass
Treating the main theme as a texture — a sound that signals doubt — rather than a traditional melody
Mapping George Mullen’s psychological point of view, including a recurring “wake-up” motif that threads through the season
Blending electronics with acoustic instruments (strings, piano, guitar): where texture carries the story and where harmony takes the lead
How Episode 1 “unlocked” the palette and became the musical template for later episodes
Spotting sessions, deadlines, and recording logistics — balancing live players with in-the-box writing under a TV schedule
What lessons from Ripley (restraint, negative space) carried into Zero Day without duplicating a previous sound

What emerges is a score built on restraint and perspective: Jeff writes to the characters’ doubt and the show’s creeping uncertainty — letting silence, texture, and carefully chosen motifs do the talking.

🎧 Press play and go Below the Line on Zero Day. For more, visit belowtheline.biz.

S23 - Ep 1 - Last Breath: From Documentary to Feature Film Mar 09, 2025

Show notes

What happens when the director of a documentary returns years later to retell the same story as a feature film?

This week on Below the Line, Skid talks with Director Alex Parkinson about Last Breath, first made as a 2019 documentary and now released as a feature film starring Woody Harrelson, Simu Liu, and Finn Cole.

We talk through:

How Alex first discovered the real-life story of diver Chris Lemons and shaped it into a documentary built around five minutes of chilling ROV footage
The deliberate choice to hide Chris’s survival in the documentary — and how the feature film shifted perspective to follow him underwater
Blurring lines between documentary and reconstruction, and carrying that visual style into the feature by weaving real footage with staged material
The long road to directing his first feature, convincing producers through lookbooks and rewrites that he could expand his own documentary into a drama
Building a crew from scratch and attracting world-class talent, including underwater DP Ian Seabrook, who signed on after watching the documentary
The critical role of First AD Jude Campbell in organizing the complex underwater schedule and keeping the production on track
Filming in Malta’s massive water tank and on full-scale ship sets designed to preserve authenticity and claustrophobia
Working with Woody Harrelson, Simu Liu, and Finn Cole to ground their performances in the documentary while making the feature cinematic

What emerges is a story about continuity and transformation — a director returning to familiar material but reimagining it at a different scale, with different tools, and for a wider audience.

🎧 Press play and go Below the Line on Last Breath. For more, visit belowtheline.biz.

S22 - Ep 12 - 97th Oscars - Makeup and Hairstyling Feb 27, 2025

Show notes

Our sixth annual Academy Awards series — with panels of film professionals discussing the Oscar nominees in their category of expertise — concludes with Makeup and Hairstyling. Podcast veterans Angela Nogaro (Makeup) and Yvonne Depatis-Kupka (Hair) return to offer their assessment of this year’s slate of nominees. It’s a lively set of reviews to wrap up the series! I hope you’ve enjoyed these episodes as much as I’ve enjoyed publishing them.

The 2024 Nominees for Makeup and Hairstyling:

• “A Different Man”

• “Emilia Pérez”

• “Nosferatu”

• “The Substance”

• “Wicked”

S22 - Ep 11 - 97th Oscars - Cinematography Feb 24, 2025

Show notes

Film professionals discussing the nominees in their area of expertise: that’s Below the Line at the Academy Awards. We’re in the home stretch (episode 11 of 12!), and today we’re talking about the Oscar nominees for Cinematography. My returning guests — Patrick Cady and David Tuttman — are directors of photography (and directors in their own right!) with a keen eye for what makes these films worthy of the nomination. It gets a little technical sometimes for my understanding but I suspect you’ll enjoy it nonetheless.

The 2024 Nominees for Cinematography:

• “The Brutalist”

• “Dune: Part Two”

• “Emilia Pérez”

• “Maria”

• “Nosferatu”

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