PALEY CENTER FOR MEDIA, THE: INSIDE MEDIA: FROM HOMICIDE TO COPPER: LEVINSON/FONTANA IN CONVERSATION {LONG VERSION ANAMORPHIC}
Summary
One in a series of evenings and special screenings presented as part of The Paley Center for Media's Inside Media events. Held at the Paley Center in New York, this evening celebrates the collaborative work of television writers and producers Barry Levinson and Tom Fontana, with focus on their new drama series, "Copper," about an unorthodox Irish immigrant police detective in the Five Points section of 1860s New York City. Host Jennifer Juzaitis (vice-president of development, The Paley Center for Media) offers opening remarks and acknowledges several guests present in the audience, including William C. Paley, son of the museum's founder, William S. Paley, and then introduces moderator Ken Tucker (editor-at-large and television critic, Entertainment Weekly). Tucker then takes the stage and introduces Levinson and Fontana.
The conversation touches on such topics as: the common themes of a character's morality and personal choice in their works; their made-for-TV movie "You Don't Know Jack," starring Al Pacino; the absence of true "flesh-and-blood characters" in feature films, in contrast to television; the idea behind their short-lived 2000 series "The Beat," starring Mark Ruffalo; their interest in portraying beat cops rather than detectives; their alternating use of film versus video; the quick juxtaposition of funny and serious scenes; their acclaimed series "Homicide: Life on the Streets" and the beginning of their partnership; the show's lack of "obligation" to contain regular action and murder-solving in place of character development; the show's cast as a "repertory company" and the particular strength of Andre Braugher (Frank Pembleton); their new series "Copper" and its initial place on AMC before being "shopped around" for five years; the show's complicated historical visuals and their extensive research; their interest in the complex history of New York City; the show's lack of clear-cut heroes and villains; its "proto-CSI" scenes involving observant doctor Matthew Freeman, played by Ato Essandoh, and his use of forsenics; the show's focus on the personal journey of protagonist Kevin Corcoran, played by Tom Weston-Jones, and evolution of the other characters; the influence of Irish immigrants' music on the sounds of early Western America; the significant impact of the ongoing Civil War on the characters' lives and stories; the high numbers of immigrants immediately consigned to the army; the relevance of the 1863 draft riots; television's lack of focus on the Civil War era, with the exception of "Branded," which featured a memorable theme song; and their simultaneous work on the series "Borgia" and experience being "showrunners," a concept unheard of in Europe.
Questions from the audience then lead to a discussion of the following topics: feature films' lack of focus on intimate conversations between characters and desire to appeal to under-25s; comparisons to Martin Scorsese's 2002 "opera"-like film "Gangs of New York"; their long-term plans for the show, having already completed ten episodes; a memorable episode of "Homicide" entitled "The Subway" in which Pembleton assists a gravely injured man played by Vincent D'Onofrio and helps to "ease him into death"; their experience walking the modern-day streets of the Five Points for inspiration; whether television veteran Richard Belzer will appear on "Copper," as he has on their other shows; an unsolved murder on "Homicide" and its inspiration from a real story in David Simon's book "Homicide: A Year on the Killing Streets"; and whether real-life historical events will appears as subplots in "Copper."
Clips featuring Levinson and Fontana's work are interspersed throughout the program, including: "You Don't Know Jack"; "The Beat"; "Homicide: Life on the Street" and "Copper."
Details
- NETWORK: N/A
- DATE: August 16, 2012 6:30 PM
- RUNNING TIME: 1:15:17
- COLOR/B&W: Color
- CATALOG ID: 108095
- GENRE: Seminars
- SUBJECT HEADING: N/A
- SERIES RUN: N/A
- COMMERCIALS: N/A
CREDITS
- Jennifer Juzaitis … Host
- Ken Tucker … Moderator
- Barry Levinson … Panelist
- Tom Fontana … Panelist
- William C. Paley … Guest
- Richard Belzer
- Andre Braugher
- Vincent D'Onofrio
- Ato Essandoh
- Al Pacino
- Mark Ruffalo
- Martin Scorsese
- David Simon
- Tom Weston-Jones