ARAB TIMES, SATURDAY, AUGUST 20, 2016
24
Couch slouch
‘Saul’, ‘Americans’ showrunners
Dramas in the details for
Emmy-nominated series
LOS ANGELES, Aug 19, (RTRS):
Whether it’s planting seeds from which
future plot twists bloom or hiding
Easter eggs to tantalize die-hard fans,
the showrunners of this year’s Emmynominated drama series recognize the
high level of scrutiny their shows face
from eagle-eyed viewers in the social
media age.
“Better Call Saul” executive producers Vince Gilligan and Peter Gould
say they’re both reading a book about
the original “Star Trek” and while fan
scrutiny was acute during that classic
show’s run, fan theories now get distributed at warp speed. “What’s changed is
the technology nowadays — some form
of social media allows folks like Peter
and I instantaneous reaction from these
hardcore fans if we choose to partake in
it,” Gilligan says.
“Fan theories 50 years ago might
have been published in a mimeographed
fanzine. Now it’s up on Reddit or up on
Twitter and spreads really fast,” Gould
says.
“The Americans” creator Joe Weisberg says the scrutiny has always been
there, showrunners are just more aware
of it now. “I remember when I was a
kid, I watched TV with a careful eye but
I didn’t have anybody to talk about it
with,” he says. “I wasn’t posting about
it online. I think we just know what
everyone’s thinking now.”
Winner
Showrunners David Benioff and D.B.
Weiss of last year’s Emmy winner,
“Game of Thrones,” say the online
discussion after episodes air encourages
more scrutiny. “One person can only
notice so much, especially on a single
viewing,” they say. “But collectively,
hundreds of thousands of people notice
pretty much everything. When they
share those details with each other, then
go back and re-watch, lots of people end
up noticing things they wouldn’t have
otherwise. And, of course, HD helps.”
The “Thrones” showrunners say the
knowledge that viewers pay close attention encourages them to work in details
that set up future plots and can be a
bonus for the extra-attentive. “Knowing where the story is going lets you
layer major developments in gradually,”
they say, noting how they introduced
the dogs of uber-villain Ramsay Bolton
early knowing the role they would
ultimately play. “For a long time we’d
known that they would be the end of
him. So using them as his particularly
gruesome instruments of cruelty was
also setting up his own demise.”
“Homeland” executive producer/director Lesli Linka Glatter says her team
sweats the details in replicating places
they can’t go to film, including Syria in
the show’s most recent season. But they
can’t match some locations exactly — or
catch rogue production personnel. Street
artists hired to decorate the set with graffiti wrote “Homeland is racist” in Arabic
script on the wall. “When you do something that asks a lot of questions, you’re
going to get people who feel strongly one
way or another,” Glatter says. “Obviously we wish we had caught it, but it
opens up another dialogue.”
Song
Alex Sepiol, executive vice-president
of scripted development for NBCUniversal Cable Entertainment, says “Mr
Robot” showrunner Sam Esmail makes
deliberate, sometimes cheeky, choices,
including the song that played after the
revelation about the nature of Robot
near the end of season one. It was a
cover of “Where Is My Mind,” a Pixies
song used in the movie “Fight Club,”
which had a similar twist to the turn in
“Mr Robot.”
“That was very purposeful,” Sepiol
says. “There had been a lot of dialogue
on Reddit and in other places and
whether people called an homage or
a ripoff, the notion of a reference to
‘Fight Club’ was Sam wanting to be in
communication with the audience that
he was aware of that dialogue that was
happening.”
Easter eggs encourage viewers to
re-watch episodes because on a second
viewing they’ll see things they “don’t
necessarily catch the first time, which is
a fun part of the show,” Sepiol says.One
of Esmail’s Easter eggs in season one
was intended for an audience of one:
Sepiol. “In episode five, Elliott goes to
All Safe and gets a badge with a different name: Sam Sepiol,” Sepiol says.
“I didn’t know it was coming — they
actually said the name several times —
and I got a little flushed when I first read
it in the script.”
Most Easter eggs are intended to have
a broader audience, even if showrunners don’t expect the eggs to be quickly
discovered. Gilligan planted a hidden
code in episode titles in season two of
“Breaking Bad” (circa 2009) and no one
caught on. But in the most recent season
of “Better Call Saul,” Gilligan and
Gould planted hints in episode titles and
they were discovered sooner than the
executive producers expected.
In this Jan 10, 2015 file photo, Larry Wilmore speaks at the Viacom 2015 Winter Television Critics Association (TCA) press tour in Pasadena, Calif. Comedy
Central announced on Aug 15, that ‘The Nightly Show with Larry Wilmore’ which premiered in January 2015, concluded its run on Aug 18. (AP)
As Larry Wilmore leaves Late Night, TV loses a singular voice
PBS, ‘Masterpiece’ face life After ‘Downton Abbey’
LOS ANGELES, Aug 19, (RTRS): It
seemed the entire world mourned the
loss of “Downton Abbey,” but perhaps
nowhere else was the pain of departure
so strongly felt than at PBS.
The leisurely stroll through a more
genteel period struck a chord with a
wide range of viewers that no one could
have expected. At the time PBS opted
to pick up “Downton,” which was produced by Carnival Films for ITV in the
UK, the pubcaster was already looking
to revive some much-needed interest
in its programming by bringing back
another British story of the aristocracy and their faithful staff, “Upstairs,
Downstairs.” The original was a ratings
bonanza, and the commitment to the
revival was in place when an offer
came for the thematically reminiscent
“Downton.”
“There was a moment when it was
felt that ‘Downton’ would be too similar, and perhaps it wouldn’t work. But
it just looked like such a great series,
we went with it,” says Paula Kerger,
president and CEO of PBS. “Of course,
it turned out to be a phenomenon.”
Since its premiere in January 2011,
“Downton Abbey” has been a cultural
touchstone and a ratings and awards
magnet for the often-overlooked Public
Broadcasting System. It gave PBS
political currency when its budgets
came under intense scrutiny, but more
importantly it put the public broadcaster
on the stage with the biggest players in
the business. “Masterpiece” made deals
with deep-pocket companies Netflix
and Amazon to stream their shows after
the initial runs on PBS. Every show
from “The Colbert Report” to “Saturday
Night Live” was having its way with
“Downton” as it became the most buzzy
show on television.
“It was a gift from the TV gods for
all of us,” says “Masterpiece” executive producer Rebecca Eaton. “We were
suddenly up there playing with the big
boys. And it was a tremendous boost to
both ‘Masterpiece’ and PBS, because
it got more people watching all our
shows.”
❑
❑
❑
Larry Wilmore says he long harbored the thought his “Nightly Show”
might come to an end in ten years, not
later this evening. When he signs off
for the last time from Comedy Central
around midnight tonight, something else
will also cease and desist.
For approximately 20 months,
Wilmore and his staff have cultivated a
unique voice among the TV industry’s
ever-increasing number of wee-hours
talk-fests. Where many of the late-night
hosts seek to entertain, Wilmore always
hoped to make viewers just a little
uncomfortable. The clocks on his set
ran backwards. The graphics that accompanied his riffs and rants appeared
at the lower bottom left of the screen,
invoking a sort of topsy-turvy feeling
among fans.
“Nightly,” you see, was always
supposed to examine what it might feel
like to be down even when the rest of
the world might be up. The idea was to
shine a light on the plight of classes of
people who didn’t feel like they were
in charge, and share their perspectives.
Sometimes that meant talking about
race, gender or class - the type of stuff
you’re not supposed to bring up to a
tired audience that wants a few chuckles
before drifting to slumber.
“I’m so proud we were able to do
what we set out to do - get to American
voices that don’t always get to be heard,
and stick up for the underdog,” said
Wilmore in an interview. “We were
keeping it real, and not being afraid of
the outcome. We had a lot of people
who did not like that, but that’s the
chance you take.”
tv highlights
Cinema
Cinema programme from Thursday 18/08/2016 to Wednesday 24/08/2016
The Secret Life Of Pets
Sharqia 1
12:00 (No Fri)
14:15, 16:15
Sharqia 2 13:00 (No Fri)
17:30
Muhalab 3 11:30 (No Fri)
13:45, 15:45, 17:45
Fanar 4
12:30 (No Fri)
14:30, 16:30, 18:30, 20:30
Marina 3
11:45 (No Fri)
13:45, 18:00, 20:00
16:00 (No Tue)
Avenues 5 12:30 (No Fri)
14:30, 16:45
Avenues 11 11:30 (No Fri)
13:30, 15:30, 17:30, 19:30
360° 1
12:30 (No Fri)
14:30, 16:30, 18:30, 20:30
360° 10
13:00 (No Fri)
15:00, 17:00
360° 13
11:30 (No Fri)
13:30, 15:30, 17:30, 19:30
Al-Kout 1
12:00 (No Fri)
14:00, 16:00, 18:00
Bairaq 1
12:30 (No Fri)
14:30, 16:30, 18:30, 20:30
Plaza
15:30
Laila
18:30
Grand Hamra 1 14:00, 16:00, 18:00, 20:00,
22:00
00:00 (Thu, Fri)
Grand Gate 2 14:15, 16:00, 18:00, 20:15,
22:00
The BFG
Sharqia 1
Muhalab 1
18:30
11:30 (No Fri)
21:45
Muhalab 2 17:30
Fanar 3
21:00
Fanar 4
22:30
Marina 1
14:45, 19:30
Avenues 2 12:15 (No Fri)
17:15, 22:15
Avenues 5 21:15
Avenues 7 11:30, 14:00 (No Fri)
Avenues 11 21:30, 00:05
360° 1
22:30
360° 8
13:15 (No Fri)
15:45, 18:15, 20:45, 23:15
360° 10
19:30 (No Tue)
22:00
360° 15
14:00, 19:00, 21:30
Al-Kout 3
19:30
Bairaq 1
22:30, 01:00
Laila
16:00
Grand Hamra 5 14:15, 16:30
Grand Hamra 7 14:15, 17:30, 19:45, 22:00
Grand Gate 8 14:00, 16:30, 19:00, 21:30
Suicide Squad
Sharqia 1
Muhalab 1
Fanar 3
Marina 1
Avenues 2
Avenues 5
21:00, 23:45
19:15, 00:15
13:30, 23:45
12:15 (No Fri)
22:00, 00:30
00:45
18:45 (No Thu)
23:45
Avenues 10 11:45 (No Fri)
14:15, 19:15, 00:05
360° 2
13:00 (No Fri)
15:30, 18:00, 20:30
360° 10
00:30
360° 13
00:05
360° 15
00:15
Al-Kout 3
14:45, 00:30
Grand Hamra 4 14:30, 17:15, 19:45, 22:15
Grand Hamra 5 18:45, 21:30
00:15 (Thu, Fri)
Grand Gate 4 14:45, 17:30, 20:15, 23:00
Jaheem Fi Ilhind (Arabic Film)
Sharqia 2
Muhalab 2
Fanar 1
Marina 2
Avenues 4
Avenues 6
360° 9
360° 11
Al-Kout 1
Al-Kout 3
Bairaq 3
Plaza
Laila
Ajial 1
15:15, 19:30, 21:45, 00:05
20:00, 22:15, 00:30
19:30, 21:45, 00:05
16:15, 18:30, 23:15
20:00, 22:15
11:45 (No Fri)
14:00, 16:15, 18:30, 20:45,
23:00
19:15, 21:30
12:30 (No Fri)
14:45, 17:00, 19:15, 21:30,
23:45
20:00, 22:15, 00:30
12:30 (No Fri)
17:15
19:30, 21:45, 00:05
17:30
20:30
23:00
Skiptrace
Sharqia 3
11:30 (No Fri)
16:00, 18:15, 20:30, 22:45,
01:00
Muhalab 2 12:45 (No Fri)
15:15
Muhalab 3 19:45, 22:00, 00:15
Fanar 1
12:00 (No Fri)
14:15
Fanar 2
17:00, 00:15
Marina 2
11:30 (No Fri)
14:00, 20:45
Marina 3
22:15, 00:30
Avenues 3 12:45 (No Fri)
15:00, 17:15, 19:30, 21:45,
00:05
Avenues 4 13:00 (No Fri)
17:45 (No Wed)
00:30
360° 7
12:15 (No Fri)
360° 9
12:15 (No Fri)
14:30
360° 12
11:45, 20:45 (No Fri)
14:00, 16:15, 23:00, 01:15
18:30 (Sun, Mon, Tue, Wed, Thu)
360° 14
13:30 (Fri, Sat)
Al-Kout 2
12:15 (No Fri)
14:30, 19:45, 22:00, 00:15
Bairaq 2
16:15, 18:30, 21:00, 23:30
Plaza
22:15
Laila
23:00
Grand Hamra 2 14:45, 17:45, 20:15, 22:30
01:00 (Thu, Fri)
Grand Gate 5 14:00, 16:30, 18:45, 21:00,
23:15
The Legend Of Tarzan
Sharqia 3
13:45
Muhalab 1
Fanar 5
Marina 1
Avenues 2
Avenues 4
Avenues 9
360° 4
360° 9
17:00
16:15
17:15
14:45, 19:45
15:15 (No Fri)
13:30, 18:45
13:30, 16:00, 18:30
16:45 (No Mon)
23:45
360° 13
21:30
360° 15
11:30 (No Fri)
16:30
Al-Kout 3
22:00
Bairaq 2
11:45 (No Fri)
Bairaq 3
13:30 (Fri)
Grand Gate 3 14:30, 17:00, 19:30, 22:00
00:15 (Thu, Fri)
War Dogs
Fanar 2
12:15 (No Fri)
14:30, 19:15, 21:45
Avenues 7 00:05
Avenues 8 15:45, 20:15
360° 5
12:15 (No Fri)
14:45, 17:15, 19:45, 00:45
Al-Kout 4
13:30, 22:45
Grand Hamra 6 14:30, 17:00, 19:15, 21:45
00:30 (Thu, Fri)
Grand Hamra GC 15:00, 17:30, 20:00, 22:30
01:00 (Thu, Fri)
Grand Gate 1 14:15, 16:45, 19:15, 21:45
00:00 (Thu, Fri)
Grand Gate GC 15:00, 17:30, 20:00, 22:30
01:00 (Thu, Fri)
Free State Of Jones (Exclusive)
Mohenjo Daro (Hindi Film)
Muhalab 1
Fanar 3
Avenues 7
360° 7
Bairaq 3
Ajial 2
Grand Hamra 3 14:00, 16:45, 19:30, 22:15
Grand Gate 7 14:30, 17:15, 20:00, 22:45
14:00
18:00
13:30 (Fri)
16:30
14:30, 20:30
16:15
15:45, 21:45
Al-Kout 2
Bairaq 3
360° 3
360° 14
Al-Kout 4
Fanar 3
Fanar 4
Fanar 5
Avenues 8
16:30
15:45, 21:15, 00:15
16:00, 22:00
19:00 (Tue, Wed, Sat, Sun)
16:45
13:00 (No Fri)
360° 6
Al-Kout 4
11:30 (No Fri)
16:00
01:00
18:30, 22:45
11:45 (No Fri)
13:45, 18:15, 22:45, 00:45
12:00 (No Fri)
14:15, 21:00, 23:00, 01:00
16:15, 20:45
Life On The Line
Fanar 5
Avenues 6
360° 1
360° 7
Zahra’a Area, South Surra, 6th Ring Road, corner of King
Faisal Highway
2. Ajial
Ajial Complex, Fahaheel
3. Al Bairaq
Between Jaber Al Ali East & Al Agalia West
4. Al Fanar
Al Fanar Complex, Salem Al Mubarak Street, near Sultan
Center, Salmiya
5. Al Kout
Al-Kout Complex, at the end of the Coastal Road,
Fahaheel
6. Al Muhalab
Al Muhalab Complex, Behind Hawalli Clinic, Hawalli
7. Al Sharqiya
Arabian Gulf Street, Souq Sharq, near the Amiri Hospital
8. Laila Gallery
Salem Al Mubarak Street, near Sultan Center, Salmiya
9. Marina
Marina Mall, Between Salem Al Mubarak Street &
Arabian Gulf Street, Salmiya
10. Metro
Metro Complex, Farwaniya, near Crowne Plaza Hotel &
Farwaniya Garden
11. Plaza
Salem Al Mubarak Street, near Sultan Center, Salmiya
12. The Avenues The Avenues Mall, Al Reggai near Al Rai, 5th Ring Road
& Ghazali Road Intersection
NB: Friday no show before 1:30 pm
Regular show KD3:000; 3D-Digital — KD3.500; VIP show —
KD6.000. ‘On Monday, price is KD1.500 except Digital movies.
Cinescape cinema movies inquiries and Fax Back hotline 1803456
13. The Scientific Center
IMAX
Opp Holiday Inn, Salmiya, Gulf Road
14. Grand Al-Hamra
Grand Al-Hamra, tel: 22270333, www.grand
cinemas.com
15. Grand Gate
Grand Gate, tel: 22056464, www.grand
cinemas.com
09:30 am
10:30 am
07:30 pm
Journey to Space 3D
11:30 am
09:30 pm
Humpback Whales 3D
12:30 pm,
05:30 pm, 08:30 pm
Kenya: Animal Kingdom 3D
06:30 pm
01:15
01:00
23:30
Abu Shanab (Arabic Film)
Avenues 10 21:45
360° 6
18:30
The Conjuring 2
360° 2
23:00
Grand Gate 6 15:00, 17:45, 20:30, 23:00
Jason Bourne
360° 5
22:15
Grand Hamra 8 15:15, 17:45, 20:00, 22:30
Finding Dory
1. 360°
16:15
14:00
Rustom (Hindi Film)
360° 7
Ajial 2
Ajial 3
17:30
18:45
15:15
19:00 (Thu, Fri, Mon)
19:45
15:30, 18:00, 20:30
18:15, 21:15
Dharma Durai (Tamil Film)
Ajial 4
16:00, 19:00, 22:00
IMAX
Imax film programme at The Scientific Center
Sunday
Showtime Available for Groups 09:30 am
Humpback Whales 3D
10:30 am
06:30 pm, 09:30 pm
Journey to Space 3D
11:30 am
07:30 pm
Secret Ocean 3D
Kenya: Animal Kingdom 3D
Pandas: The Journey Home 3D
Thursday
Showtime Available for Groups
Humpback Whales 3D
09:30 am
10:30 am
07:30 pm
Journey to Space 3D
11:30 am
06:30 pm, 09:30 pm
Pandas: The Journey Home 3D
12:30 pm
Secret Ocean 3D
05:30 pm
Kenya: Animal Kingdom 3D
08:30 pm
Friday
Happy Bhag Jayegi (Hindi Film)
Ajial 3
Wednesday
Showtime Available for Groups 09:30 am
Mysteries of the Unseen World 3D 10:30 am
Humpback Whales 3D
11:30 am
06:30 pm, 09:30 pm
Kenya: Animal Kingdom 3D
12:30 pm
Journey to Space 3D
05:30 pm
Pandas: The Journey Home 3D
07:30 pm
Secret Ocean 3D
08:30 pm
Humpback Whales 3D
IDI: Inspector Dawood Ibrahim
(Malayalam Film)
360° 14
Plaza
Ajial 1
09:30 am
10:30 am
07:30 pm
Humpback Whales 3D
11:30 am
05:30 pm, 08:30 pm
Journey to Space 3D
12:30 pm,
06:30 pm
Secret Ocean 3D
09:30 pm
Tuesday
The Fall Of The Krays
360° 6
Bairaq 2
Monday
Showtime Available for Groups
Kenya: Animal Kingdom 3D
Showtime Available for Groups
Secret Ocean 3D
Avenues 7 19:30, 21:45
Avenues 10 17:00
360° 4
21:00, 23:45
11:45 (No Fri)
How to find us
14:00, 20:45, 00:45
13:00 (No Fri)
15:00, 17:00, 19:00, 21:00,
23:00, 01:00
12:00 (No Fri)
14:00, 16:00, 18:00, 20:00,
22:00, 00:05
01:00
11:30 (No Fri)
18:30, 01:00
Riot
Rabid Dogs
Min 30 Sana (Arabic Film)
Fanar 1
Avenues 9
360° 14
Avenues 1
12:30 pm
05:30 pm
08:30 pm
02:30 pm,
06:30 pm, 09:30 pm
Secret Ocean 3D
03:30 pm
Kenya: Animal Kingdom 3D
04:30 pm
Mysteries of the Unseen World 3D 05:30 pm
Pandas: The Journey Home 3D
Journey to Space 3D
07:30 pm
08:30 pm
Saturday
Showtime Available for Groups
Journey to Space 3D
09:30 am
10:30 am
07:30 pm
Humpback Whales 3D
11:30 am
02:30 pm,
05:30 pm, 08:30 pm
Mysteries of the Unseen World 3D 12:30 pm,
09:30 pm
Kenya: Animal Kingdom 3D
01:30 pm,
06:30 pm
Pandas: The Journey Home 3D
03:30 pm
Secret Ocean 3D
04:30 pm
Notes: All films are in Arabic. For English,
headsets are available upon request. Film
schedule is subject to changes without notice.
For information call 1 848 888 or visit www.
tsck.org.kw