Lee Sung-jin, creator, executive producer, and director of “Beef,” and Jason Bateman, executive producer, director, and star of “Black Rabbit,” spoke with Variety’s Clayton Davis and talked about their directing techniques and style choices. Variety partnered with Netflix to host this conversation.
Lee, who directed one episode of Beef Season 1, talked about taking on a larger directorial role in Season 2, saying he wanted to “push the surrealism a little more.” Bateman, who joined the Directors Guild of America at the age of 18, said he grew up as an actor and started paying attention to the set at an early age. “During my career as an actor, I always hoped and prayed that I would be given a responsibility to step up and take on a challenge, because directing can be incredibly complex and challenging, because you get to sit at the same table with all the different departments without feeling bad about it,” he said.
Lee also disrupted the filming of Beef season 2, episode 4, in which star Cailee Spaeney suffers a medical emergency and grapples with the pitfalls of the medical system. “That episode was based on a real-life ER incident that I experienced while writing the show,” Lee said, adding that he wrote everything down on a Notes app during the 11-hour visit. “It was interesting to see the reaction, because… all the comments from France and Germany were like, ‘This isn’t real, right? This is ridiculously ridiculous.'” And all the comments from Americans were like, “No, this is us.” This is what we have to deal with. ”
Bateman talked about the opening chapter of Black Rabbit, calling it “a love story about two brothers trying to figure out how to be better brothers to each other.” He added that “part of the fun of being a director, in my opinion” is thinking, “What does it feel like to not be together? What does that look like? What does it sound like? When you direct the first episode of something, you can establish an aesthetic.”
They also spoke about the hard work and long hours they put into their respective projects, as well as the work they did with an extensive team to create the final product. The panel discussion ended with Lee and Bateman each praising each other’s work. Bateman praised Lee for living up to the hype for Season 1 of “Beef,” saying, “You did it with incredibly high stakes. It was a very high-profile piece and I really enjoyed watching it. And you went above and beyond to do it.” Lee, in turn, praised Bateman’s “command” and his “precise instructions” on the “Black Rabbit” set.
Watch the video above.
