Episode 11: Fallout

Last night’s was episode 11, which in some ways is the end of the first chapter of the first season. After last night we stop airing new episodes until late January.

It’s actually amazing that we’ve gotten that many episodes on the air in a row. I’ve worked on a lot of TV and - on any show that premieres in late September or early October - I’ve never seen one that got more that 9 on the air. Most 1 hour shows on TV shoot for eight shooting days… more or less 10 working days. A new episode airs every 7 days. The math of all this catches up to you, until there’s less and less time per episode to edit, do music and sound effects and visual effects. Add to that the fact that HEROES usually shoots for 10 or 12 days and it gets even worse.

Everyone who works in post production kicked butt on this … I’ll single out Donn Aron the editor - he did an amazing job in a short amount of time – and did some particularly inventive things in Peter’s dream sequence and in the scene where Matt interrogates Peter… Look for all the hidden jump cuts and speed-ups as the two guys try to read each other’s minds…. Hats off also to Lori Motyer the co-producer who is in charge of all things in post production. There was less than a week from the time Allan Arkush and the editor locked picture for Lori to color time the show, on-line it, oversee the sound mix and the visual affects and make sure that it physically got finished.


Editor Donn Aron


Co-Producer Lori Motyer's empty office (she was too busy running around working to be photographed)

The episode was directed by John Badham. He has a few credits: http://imdb.com/name/nm0000824/

It was crazy working with John Badham – I mean for God’s sakes he directed SATURDAY NIGHT FEVER, WAR GAMES, BLUE THUNDER and STAKEOUT. So it was frankly kinda weird to be like, “OK Mr. Badham, here’s how we shoot our show. And… “Make sure you get plenty of low angles and cool shots.”

I was actually pretty nervous meeting him – but he was full-on the world’s nicest guy. A true pro and a true gentleman. What surprised me when I went to his imdb sight was how much television he had done – starting in the late sixties and continuing recently it is A LOT. He’s the kind of director you really want on a show like this. No matter how big the scene was he was never flustered. He was cool with all of us producers and our many strong opinions about how we want our show to be. And he shot things with seeming effortlessness.


Director John Badham


John and Masi

Also, how cool was the final sequence – Peter’s dream sequence in NYC – Like I say, HEROES is like a TV show, only bigger. We shut down 4 city blocks on a Sunday. We jammed the streets with empty cars to create a deserted, neutron bomb look. It was also the first time ever that the whole cast was together. We had cranes stedicams and three cameras - It was intense amount of work to do in one day… And beside the scene you saw Monday night there was a second version shot with more characters and more information which will be used in one or more future episodes

All very exciting…. STAY TUNED!!!!


HEROES it's like a TV show, only bigger


Milo taking pictures - a handsome lad


Milo and I


The whole cast together


Getting picture taken for TV Guide


Tawny Cypress


Lori Motyer - HEROES Co-Producer/Head of Post for real