BELOW THE LINE PODCAST

This is the first of two episodes discussing John Carpenter's The Thing, the 1982 sci-fi/horror classic starring Kurt Russell. I'm joined by crew from the film: Dean Cundey (Director of Photography), Ken Diaz (Special Makeup Effects Coordinator), Dave Kelsey (Mechanical Animation Coordinator), and Bruce Humphrey (DGA Trainee). Welcome to Season 6 of Below the Line.

This is the final episode of Season 5, and we're checking in with crew members from the season's first episode for status updates. Join Katie Carroll (assistant director), Allison Choi Braun (costumer), Dan Fisher (property master), and Dave Tuttman (cinematographer) for a discussion about how film production in both NYC and LA is responding to the ongoing pandemic.

My guests today represent the motion picture craft locals of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters: Tommy O'Donnell (Local 817 - NYC), Steve Dayan (Local 399 - Hollywood) and Lorrie Ward (Local 155 - Vancouver). We discuss how the pandemic is impacting their members, resources for those in need, and the strategy for getting back to work.

Earlier this month, Danger Force (the superhero tv show in its first season on Nickelodeon), produced and aired a special quarantine episode, and my guests today explain how it came together: Jimmy Brooks (line producer), Mike Caron (director), and Robyn Willey-Pratt (first assistant director).

Our series focused on the property department concludes today with a pre-pandemic visit to Independent Studio Services (a prop house headquartered in Sunland, CA, with offices worldwide) for a conversation with Gregg Bilson, Jr. (CEO of ISS) and Scott Buckwald (property master, ISS customer, and longtime podcast contributor). If you'd like to listen to this episode while looking at pictures from our tour, visit our YouTube channel for an edited slideshow = https://youtu.be/5v34PMDnHLI

My guest today is assistant property master Travis Bobbitt, whose work on 2019's Avengers: Endgame was the culmination of a journey he started a decade ago on 2010's Iron Man.

Today I'm speaking with the legislative directors from IATSE, SAG-AFTRA, WGA-East and the DGA, who collectively represent their members at the national level through their participation in the Arts, Entertainment, and Media Industry Coordinating Committee (AEMI). We discuss their work to-date on behalf of creative professionals in response to the pandemic ... and what's still to come.

Ken Levin and Jill Parry join me today to revisit their time managing props for Wizards of Waverly Place, the Disney sitcom that aired four seasons (2007-2012) and introduced the world to Selena Gomez.

My guest today is Erik "Dr. Booty" Kieltyka, an assistant property master on the television show, S.W.A.T. (starring Shemar Moore), currently airing its third season on CBS.

Last week, we lost one of our own:  Larry Lerner, an assistant director with a film career spanning more than 35 years, passed away after contracting COVID-19. My guests today are fellow Directors Guild members who knew Larry, both on and off set.