It’s been a goal to speak with Jim Bissell since starting this podcast because on my wish list of designers and decorators I wanted to selfishly interview people who inspire me and inspire the world of cinema and tv. Jim Bissel has so many films that I cherish that of course I’m a total dork in this interview. He has a fascinating origin story that put him in the sights of Stevan Speilberg on one of his first films E.T. We talk about comparing his spaceship design from E.T. to The Midnight Sky. He reveals some Easter eggs from ET and The Rocketeer. The magic of trashing the house in Harry and the Hendersons. He won an Emmy Award in 1980 for his work on Palmerstown, U.S.A. followed by a BAFTA nomination for production design on Steven Spielberg's E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial. He has a Oscar nomination for Good Night and Good Luck. Three ADG nominations, and the ADG Lifetime Achievement Award in 2015, which.. He’s going strong, he might need another one.

In this part two of my interview with Set Decorator Jan Pascale we discuss her beginnings in Pittsburgh as a set painter on "Mr. Rogers"! Then the obvious shift to Roger Corman films. Her early work propping then moving to set decorating on films like "Forever Young", "Dracula Dead and Loving It", TV shows like "Gidion’s Crossing" and "Boston Public", then decorating "Training Day". Her string of heavy dramas intermixed with hilarious comedies like "Good night and Good Luck", "Anchman", "Spiderwick Chronicles", "Kicking and Screaming", "Leatherheads", "Horrible Bosses", "Argo", "Suburbacon", "VEEP", "All the Way", "Vice" and the upcoming "Maverick", the sequel to "Top Gun" and she is currently working on the Obi-Wan series for Disney. Jan’s beginnings to now is an extraordinary carer of decorating the screen.

In this episode I speak with the "Queen of White House Set Decorating" Jan Pascale. Her career includes so many great looking film I had to give you two episodes of her amazing decorating stories. With the highly acclaimed film "Mank" already sweeping up the nominations, I'm sure Jan will not be overlooked for her decorating in this black and white film. Her resume includes gems like "Good Night and Good Luck", "Sicario", "Argo", "Anchorman", "The Spiderwick Chronicles", "VICE", "Training Day" and the soon to be released "Maverick" the long awaited sequel to "Top Gun". A plethora of great stories decorating these films, so many this is part one of two... your welcome.

On this episode I explain the day to day of how Covid is effecting the way the set gets decorated. From meetings to last touches on set, the way we all work in this industry has changed, and I hope not for long.

On this episode I speak with Dean Holland, an Emmy winning editor for his work on The Office” He seven nominations fro his work on The Office and Parks and Recreation and the 76th annual Academy awards. He also has three Online Film and Television award nominations in directing for “Parks and Recreation” and “Brooklyn Nine-Nine”. I met Dean on “Parks and Rec” and was lucky enough to start up the Netflix series “LOVE” with him after Parks ended and then again work with him on “The Good Place”. Starting out in a post production house he quickly found his way to editing and working on shows like “Behind the Music” then comedies like Dave Attell ‘s ”Up All Night” and Comedy Central’s Celebrity Roasts. Working for nine years between “The Office” and then “Parks ad Rec”, Dean was able to move from Editing to Producing and then Directing. He has been directing recent shows like “Splitting Up Together”, “Bless This Mess” and “The Unicorn”.

As a holiday present to my loyal listeners I’m giving away my top 5 tips for breaking into the business. I’m sharing the story of how I got into production and eventually a job in the art department. It is hands down the most asked question I get over the years. I’ve spent hours emailing people back the same story and the same tips. So this is my holiday gift to anyone looking to get into his crazy business. Happy Holidays!

In this episode I describe the structure of the Art, Set Decoration and Prop department. I’ve been in this business since 1999, and I know in describing all this to you I’m still not right. Every show it seems some positions do more or less then what you thought they did. Some people bring out the union handbook to prove they do or do not have to do something or that it is or isn’t coming out of their departments budget. Some people like the control of doing more then their position. I am going to be reading from the the local 44 union book and the Art Directors Guild of what their definitions of positions are and then trying to explain it in everyday use. My hope is to be as instructive as I can in helping you understand all the different positions it takes to make these amazing cinematic worlds come to life.

On this episode I speak with Production Designer Rose Lagace. She is also the creator of the successful Hollywood art department insider website Art Departmental. We spoke in mid august and we both were starting back to work at the time. We talk about her show “The Baroness Von Sketch Show”, which if you haven't checked it out, it’s pretty funny and a little dark. We discuss the ebb and flow of the work in Canada in the past decade, some of our tricks we used for getting into the business and her work designing many short films like Patient, Close your Eyes, Suffer, Plus One and so many more. She also describes how she came up with the successful website Art Departmental. Incredible how she is able to juggle working, keeping up with this site, interviewing Designers and Decorators.

On this episode I speak with Director, Producer, Writer, AD Jeff Rosenberg. I’ve worked with Jeff for a couple of years on different shows as our first AD and second AD and he’s great in both positions. In this past year Jeff finished the film “We Broke Up” which he wrote, produced and directed. I wanted to have him on the podcast because it’s so interesting to me to hear how someone can wear all the hats and have the passion to get a project completed. It took him years to get this together and while working long hours on productions like “The League” “VEEP”, “The Good Place” and films like “Wine Country”. He has an ADG award for “VEEP”, and wins and nominations for writing, production and directing his film Orenthal:The Musical which is now showing on Amazon Prime. And he won the Audience Award at the Friars Club Comedy Film Festival for it. We talk about how we both started in Hallmark movies… he excelled a lot quicker then I did, his story of getting into this business is unbelievable.

On this episode I am joined by Production Designer James Pearse Connelly and we discuss the nominated designs and the winners of the 2020 Emmys for Production Design. If you have listened to James and I recap before you know we don't’ hold back, and we drink! I’m super glad that he’s up for this and is able to go head to head discussing all of these celebrated TV shows. We talk about who we thought would win, not necessarily who we voted for. And.. we were mostly wrong. Which goes to show, you never know… even as insiders, he’s even on the Emmy committee, ya just never know. James also just won a Daytime Emmy in June for his design of the Kelly Clarkson show, so cheers to that! He currently is the designer for show that are filming during covid like “The Masked Singer”. We talk about how designing for covid has changed his designing style.