PALEY CENTER FOR MEDIA, THE: MEDIA AS ENTERTAINMENT: PRISON BREAK {LONG VERSION}
Summary
One in this series of seminars conducted by The Paley Center for Media which celebrate media as entertainment. Held at the Paley Center in Los Angeles, this evening celebrates "Prison Break," the action/adventure drama about Michael Scofield, a man attempting to combat the Machiavellian plan fostered in the penal system by a covert government agency.
Host Rebecca Faez (director of administration, The Paley Center for Media) offers opening remarks, and then brings moderator Craig Tomashoff (executive editor, TV Guide) to the stage. Tomashoff talks about the show's cultural impact before introducing executive producer Matt Olmstead. He sets up the episode "Greatness Achieved," which is screened in its entirety. (For synopsis and credits, see ACCNUM 101359.)
After the screening, Tomashoff introduces the panelists: Olmstead; and cast members Wade Williams (Brad Bellick), Robert Knepper (Theodore "T-Bag" Bagwell), Amaury Nolasco (Fernando Sucre), Sarah Wayne Callies (Dr. Sara Tancredi), and Wentworth Miller (Michael Scofield).
The panelists discuss topics which include: how the show "reinvents" itself each season; the cast's awareness that the characters are "all dispensable"; Callies' lack of concern about "credibility" in scripts; the actors' noticeable physical changes over four seasons; the "luck" of the cast's camaraderie; the challenge for the close-knit actors of not laughing during scenes that require fighting; frequent requests from network censors to omit entire scenes; Nolasco's sly use of Spanish profanity during the first season; the non-stop nature of the show's action scenes; the need for lightheartedness to contrast the dark plotlines, often instigated by prankster Dominic Purcell (Lincoln Burrows); Callies' determination to make her character's drug habit seem authentic; Knepper's "unique" conversation with actor Christopher Walken about mastering dialects; the show's strength in its "iconic" villains; Knepper's discomfort in playing scenes in which the pedophilic "T-Bag" preys on children; and Miller's all-time favorite Christmas gift.
Questions from the audience then lead to a discussion of the following topics: embarrassing roles which each cast member regrets taking; the reasoning behind the show's "instant flashbacks"; the decision to bring Callies' character back in season four after her "death" in season three; the need to prove that dramatic plot twists will never cease; and Miller's idea for a "catastrophic" series finale.
Details
- NETWORK: N/A
- DATE: October 27, 2008 7:00 PM
- RUNNING TIME: 1:41:59
- COLOR/B&W: Color
- CATALOG ID: B:93336
- GENRE: Seminars
- SUBJECT HEADING: N/A
- SERIES RUN: N/A
- COMMERCIALS: N/A
CREDITS
- Rebecca Faez … Host
- Craig Tomashoff … Moderator
- Matt Olmstead … Panelist
- Wade Williams … Panelist
- Robert Knepper … Panelist
- Amaury Nolasco … Panelist
- Sarah Wayne Callies … Panelist
- Wentworth Miller … Panelist
- Dominic Purcell
- Christopher Walken