The Three C’s of an Auteur

Assuming that everyone watches the television hit Friends as much as I do, I am going to talk a little about the show and one of the main directors in the later seasons. While listening to the Television Director Gary Halvorson commentary during a few great episodes on many popular shows, such as Friends, What I Like About You, and Two And A Half Men I found his signature filming style in which he captures his audience by creating a strong relationship with a conflict between two of the main characters. Halvorson knows how to create Comedy, Characters and Chemistry. He directed 55 episodes of Friends, throughout their eleven seasons. He also made a name for himself in the other shows, directing thirty-four shows for Two And A Half Men and ten for What I Like About You. By watching a few episodes of each series, I found his signature filming style in which he captures his audience by creating a strong relationship with a conflict between two of the main characters. Halvorson also uses a comedic twist and relevance where the audience is laughing while also relating to the situation. In addition, Halvorson chose actors, sometimes adding a special guest star, that brought a strong chemistry, in both looks and comedic style, all the while keeping the stage simple.
In his younger days, he started out as a pianist, and at the age of twenty he decided to switch gears when he saw a pianist on television, “they weren’t showing his face or his fingers at the right moment in the music,” he said during an interview. Gary felt that he needed to step in and create a different feel while music was being watched. Halvorson is a kind of director that is trying to have the audience see and at the same time understand his work. During the same interview he also said that if he thinks his mom will understand it, then his work is good enough to be on the screen and communicate with a ‘family’ audience. This not only shows that he is a family man but has good intentions for film. One of Gary’s signature marks that he tries to capture, are the transitions from scene to scene. He also has a number of episodes on the different shows he directors for with guest stars. There are a few that I will point out. Halvorson is known for introducing a number of different characters to the shows. He takes the original cast to blend in to add in another character without too much drama.
The thematic motifs that each show incorporates, is the recurring theme of conflict romance. Halvorson focuses on different facial expressions to help the audience get a feel for the characters emotions. He does this a lot in Friends, with the whole Ross and Rachel tangled web of love. The two Friends episodes I watched were in season 6, episode 13, “The One With Rachel’s Sister” and in season 8, episode 5, “The One With Rachel’s Date”. The common theme that the show pulls, from episode to episode, is it has a solid group of six friends that live in New York City; this is shown when scenes switch and where they are going to go next, either an apartment and/or coffee shop. If you ever followed Friends, each episode it mostly filmed in their apartments, the coffee shop- Central Perk, and/or someone’s work, also known as a multi-camera shot or an establishing shot, where the scene is established. This is different than in the later season, where the audience walks right into the coffee shop that they know and love. A number of directors use these shots to get a base of the storyline. What Halvorson does is combines the featuring actor in the upcoming shot and the establishing shot, using strong characters, simple scenes.

In the sixth season of Friends, guest star, Reese Witherspoon is introduced, by having all six main characters in the apartment, as there is a knock at the door. They all look around wondering who it could be because everyone they know is there, (several characters were shown counting). This was a creative way to introduce the character, adding a person who was going to be an important person through the episode. Halvorson uses a lot of headshots to create the feel of how the other characters are feeling. Also referring to Two and a Half Men, when Steven Tyler, the lead singer of Aerosmith made a guest appearance on the show in the episode “Who’s Vod Kanockers”. Halvorson introduced the singer starting as though the original staff was having a typical day with Charlie Sheen as Charlie Harper was sleeping on the porch. Steven Tyler shrieks his loud voice that he is so well known for. Halvorson uses his unique directing by keeping the cast while incorporating the new character. The camera angle shows the ‘importance’ of Steve Tyler’s character; Halvorson shows a low angle on Charlie’s perspective. Throughout the whole episode Steven Tyler shows his power over others. A camera angle that Halvorson used a lot was a high angle, to show a hierarchy of the characters that should be paid most attention to. In these episodes, Halvorson focuses on the ability to feature a character while making it the main theme throughout the show.

Comedy, Character and Chemistry are the textural elements that define Gary Halvorson. He uses romantic conflict, comedic timing and chemistry amongst the characters, all the while using simple sets and smart camera angles. It is obvious that Gary Halvorson’s successful style and delivery is a magnet to a large and diverse audience. His signature uses relevant comedy by using good-looking, witty actors with impeccable timing. Their romantic conflict situations are funny and boarder-line believable. While keeping the set simple and the same throughout each episode, the focus is on the character, chemistry and comedic content. Halvorson’s signature style undoubtedly has attracted a large viewing audience, hence why people are still watching reruns.