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Interview: Pretty Little Liars director Norman Buckley

Recently Pretty Little Liars celebrated it 100th episode, which was directed by teendrama veteran Norman Buckley, who has been with the show since its inception. MySeries asked him about the cultural relevance of the girl-skewing show, its ties to noir films and what his favorite moment was so far. Mr. Buckley was kind enough to refer to some of the pieces he wrote on his blog to supplement his answers.

One hundred episodes is quite the achievement, congratulations. How did you celebrate with the cast and crew?
We celebrated during the shooting with a cake and cast photo. About a week after shooting the episode there was a huge party at the W Hotel in Hollywood on their rooftop terrace.

One of the things I love most about Pretty Little Liars is that it's very modern and fashionable and all that, but it's also one big love letter to classic films. You've declared your love for noir, Hitchcock and old Hollywood many times on Twitter. Rarely an episode of yours passes by without a black and white film in one scene. How much has your personal interest inspired the homages in the series? Or is it a team effort from the entire crew to teach a new generation about classic films?
The answer is both. There is a deliberate effort on the part of the writers to use a lot of Hitchcock tropes and his films inspire a lot of homages. Certainly the noir episode, written and directed by Joe Dougherty, was inspired by specific noir films. In my own work I look for opportunities to draw upon the work that has inspired me, and the show provides opportunities to do that. The art of Edward Hopper has always been an inspiration, and for me also the photography of Gregory Crewdson. I don't think it's a calculated effort on my part to "educate" as much as it's something that occurs to me in the prep, and then others get enthused about the ideas. In the season 5 premiere there were deliberate riffs on EYES WIDE SHUT and STAGE FRIGHT. And during the 100th episode there is a brief glimpse of DIAL M FOR MURDER, which inspires a scene in my next episode, the 101st, which follows the next week. PRETTY LITTLE LIARS provides the opportunity to play with form and I appreciate that.

On his blog in relation to the show's noir elements, Buckley writes: "Beyond the clothes, music, romance, and plot, the show is ultimately a psychological journey more than a mystery to be solved. And I think that’s why it has successfully arrived at 100 episodes with its audience still engaged."

Pretty Little Liars has always diversified itself from recent teen dramas, many of which you directed or edited, by adding the mystery to it. It's high school but it can be legitimately scary, thrilling and suspenseful. How do you, as a director, find the balance between the normalcy of contemporary teens with the exceptionality of murders and harassment?
I think the show is a metaphor about the paranoia and uncertainty of adolescence. I wrote an essay with a quote from The New York Times that said "Largely because of a quirk of brain development, adolescents, on average, experience more anxiety and fear and have a harder time learning how not to be afraid than either children or adults." I love the premise that PRETTY LITTLE LIARS is about facing the shadow, individually and collectively, and not succumbing to the fear and paranoia that have become so prevalent in our age. I think it's a powerful statement to suggest that no matter how dark, frightening, disappointing, confusing, or puzzling events may be, that the individual psyche can expand in the face of it and ultimately triumph.

As a bona fide hit Pretty Little Liars might just be the show to prove to Hollywood that teen drama is here to stay. Perhaps more importantly: teenage girls are a powerful demographic. How do you see the show regarding its portrayal of female empowerment through complex and diverse female characters and what it teaches the audience?
Teen drama is a staple of television because we all understand what it's like to be a teen. An adolescent may not be able to relate to the concerns of MAD MEN but every fan of MAD MEN could also relate to the concerns of a teenager because we've all been there. The teenage years are a time defining oneself, but also of uncertainty and doubt, both of others and oneself. I think PRETTY LITTLE LIARS taps into that.

Mr. Buckley also refers to a blogpost about the subject, in which he writes: "Like GOSSIP GIRL before it, PRETTY LITTLE LIARS presents high school students as adults, functioning in the world as autonomous beings, each deciding for herself or himself what is and is not acceptable, as opposed to accepting without question the moral framework of society, religion, or the parents (in fact the parents in PRETTY LITTLE LIARS are all morally suspect.) Where I depart from the “shippers,” as they call themselves, is the idea that any of these female characters should define themselves by their relationships. I like that the show promotes the friendship of the women over their romantic entanglements, and promotes the idea of their individual development as something that’s completely separate from whomever they currently love."

What's with the glow over day scenes and specific lighting/filters over night scenes? (For example, Hannah's bright kitchen versus blue looking Ravenswood). How did that came to be and what's your take on it?
In general terms I think one always uses the lighting and timing of an episode to enhance the emotional impact. How one does that is very specific to particular scenes and episodes. There's a retro-feeling of studio films, with their artificial backdrops and dreamlike settings. I've never been a fan of taking the show off the backlot because I feel the whole construct falls apart when it's harsh glare of the "real world".
As far as Ravenswood goes, I personally never liked the desaturated look. I didn't understand it but my speculation is that it was an aesthetic decision to make the town more foreboding.

In 100 episodes the show has gone to many exciting and memorable locations, has pulled mind blowing twists and has looked marvelous while doing it. What episode or scene you directed do you look back on most fondly? And which one are you most proud of or taught you something?
Actually the show almost never leaves the back lot. And as a general rule I don't like to single out particular episodes or particular scenes. Whenever anybody asks me about my favorite, I always say 'the next one.' It is important for me to stay in the moment, to focus on what I'm shooting now. But, since you asked, i'm very happy with the premiere episode of season 5, in terms of its look. I think it has the right balance of moving camera versus montage, i don't think it's overcut as I often feel with some of my episodes, and i particularly liked shooting in the theater. I'm also very fond of episode 506, which is coming up. I think it has the right balance of suspense and character development.

In terms of what I've been taught: as a director I think I'm always learning to be more precise, both in my articulation of what I want from others, and in terms of my figuring out the specifics of a scene. The filmmakers I most admire are those who used specificity to get at the truth of a scene--so I'm always looking for the specific dramatic event, the specific turning point, the specific emotional realization. It's my job to illuminate those for the audience.

Last week's episode of Pretty Little Liars was also Mr. Buckley's last episode of the season. For more of his thoughts on directing the hit drama check his blog or follow him on Twitter: @norbuck.
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