‘Ted Lasso’: Why the Apple TV + series doesn’t look like a typical sitcom



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Consider This: The conversations highlight award-winning TV productions through panel discussions with the artists themselves. The above video is brought to you by Apple TV +, produced by IndieWire creative producer Leonardo Adrian Garcia, and hosted by Associate TV Editor and critic Ben Travers.

When Apple TV + gave the go-ahead to make a 10-episode first season of “Ted Lasso,” for once the production team didn’t have to start from scratch – not technically. The series was inspired by a series of short films Jason Sudeikis made years earlier, in the character of the adorable American football coach who takes his talents to London as a Premier League football coach.

“We looked at the original shorts that were made, the music videos and everything, and the only thing that was really said was, ‘We don’t want it to look like that,’ ‘the director said. photograph David Rom, recalling the first guidelines given to him on the look of the series.

The only other note: “We don’t want it to look like [like a] documentary or too much like ‘The Office’, ”he said. “It was a helpful guide, but more on what they don’t want it to look like.”

So it was up to Rom and production designer Paul Cripps to build the world themselves, if not from scratch, rather than come close to it. Based on advice from showrunner and executive producer Bill Lawrence, as well as other EPs from Sudeikis, Jeff Ingold and Liza Katzer, the cinematographer and designer decided to create a distinctly non-sitcom sitcom.

“When everyone has come [to England]it became clearer that Jason really wanted the show to take on more of a drama / comedy feel, ”Rom said. “They wanted it to be more cinematic. […] We continued to suggest ideas; things that would upset the appearance of these tropes [other] sitcoms. Things like the handheld, which we started to use a little bit, and then ended up using almost everywhere. [With] things like the changing rooms, the idea was to be portable, free, in the style of “Friday Night Lights” so that we could walk around and watch.

Rom used wider lenses and shallower depth of field to create striking images that stand out from other TV comedies. Meanwhile, Cripps worked on the design of spaces like the office of team owner Rebecca Welton – where Cripps recorded our interview, as you can see in the video above – and the club’s locker room. Richmand, which was built after the team visited real football clubs like Chelsea, Fulham. and Tottenham.

Cripps took into account the different sizes and common themes, like the use of slogans and graphics, while also enjoying the competitive atmosphere.

“The changing rooms outside are interesting [too] because they make them as uncomfortable and un-relaxing as possible for away teams, which is quite instructive on how they try to psyche the opposition. One of them we went to even had urinals in the center of the room, ”he said.

Cripps and Rom both emphasized the collaborative nature of their experience on ‘Ted Lasso’, whether working together to develop scenes and spaces or speaking with actors and producers to ensure that some ideas translate as expected. There was a scene in a later episode where Ted has a panic attack at a crowded nightclub, and Rom praised the creator and performer for wanting to explain what that might be like with his DP.

“Jason really wanted to talk to me,” Rom said. “I had ideas like ‘Requiem for a Dream’ or ‘Pi’, where we would actually attach the camera to him, and that would give him a disconnected and out of the world experience, but he was very sure he wanted nothing like that. . It was great to talk to him about it. […] Very quickly I think we came to an agreement [on] the style, the natural and claustrophobic feel of these places, and not overlap – take a trip to this space and see the reaction of growing panic.

In the panel above, Rom and Cripps discuss how they approached the series initially, what kind of color scheme they wanted to incorporate, how to balance cheerful, bright colors with a more tone. realistic and, of course, the football matches themselves. , where more magic than normal kicked in. Watch the full panel above for all of this and more on what “Ted Lasso” looks like.

“Ted Lasso” is now streaming on Apple TV +. Season 2 is in production.

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