Dan Attias, Director, Producer and Author: He had originally played it really oppositionally Then I’m a rat! You know angry at him and I said Since we’re dramatizing a transition I think it’d be much better if you realize you can’t communicate to this guy.
Film Courage: Can you tell us some of the challenges you faced directing the second episode of The Sopranos?
Dan: The Sopranos was interesting. I had met David Chase when he was a showrunner on Northern Exposure which was a wonderful show in the mid 90’s, which I really recommend people seek out. David then went on to direct the pilot for The Sopranos and there were several months before HBO decided to make it as a series and I was very honored and happy that David called me to direct the first episode that would air following the pilot. The company came together I think six or nine months after the original pilot had been shot. When I saw the pilot I just said Oh my God! This is the greatest thing I’ve ever seen. There were challenges. It was almost like shooting a pilot again because it was a whole new company coming together and it was the first episode. James Gandolfini for example who had made a wonderful career as a kind of part-time player in a lot of different shows was not used to a television schedule. I remember the first scene we shot, he was ready to call it a day and we said No James, we’ve got four more scenes today. But one of the interesting things in that episode (it was called 46 Long) and I directed other episodes of The Sopranos. That may be my favorite one if you haven’t seen it, I really recommend it. But among some of the more memorable moments in it was the episode actually about Tony having to commit his mother played…(Watch the video interview on Youtube here).
BUY THE BOOK – DIRECTING GREAT TELEVISION: Inside TV’s New Golden Age
BIO:
Dan Attias has worked as a director in the film and television industry for 37 years. As a director of series television he has received the Directors Guild of America award for outstanding direction of dramatic television and has been nominated for multiple Emmy awards for his comedy directing. He continues to work on some of the most celebrated and critically acclaimed American television shows, including Homeland, The Americans, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, Billions, and The Boys. Previously he has directed The Sopranos, The Wire, Six Feet Under, True Blood, Entourage, The Killing, The Walking Dead, True Detective, Ray Donovan, Bloodline, Friday Night Lights, Northern Exposure, House, Lost, Alias, among many others. His first professional directing assignment was the feature film, Stephen King’s Silver Bullet, produced by Dino DeLaurentiis. Dan started his career studying acting, then worked as an assistant director on E.T. The Extraterrestrial, Airplane!, One From the Heart and several other feature films. He has taught acting and directing workshops in the United States, and has appeared as a guest speaker at festivals in Italy, Brazil, Greece, Mexico and Canada. Before working in the film and television industry, Dan was enrolled in a Ph.D. program in English literature at U.C.L.A., then transferred to the Theater Arts Department where he earned an M.F.A. in film production.
CONNECT WITH DAN ATTIAS
Advertisement – contains affiliate links
(As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases)
More affiliates:
Camera we use for interviews – https://buff.ly/3rWqrra
Editing system – https://goo.gl/56LnpM
Sound we use for interviews – https://amzn.to/2tbFlM9
Writers, try Final Draft free for 30-days – https://ow.ly/Gz4w30rDSKt
Other books on Amazon that Film Courage recommends – https://buff.ly/3o0oE5o
