‘Barry’ Cinematographer Breaks Down References and Framing of Devastating Season 3 Finale
variety.comSelome Hailu SPOILER ALERT: Do not read if you haven’t watched “Starting Now,” the Season 3 finale of “Barry.”Season 3 of “Barry” was the dark comedy’s darkest yet, which was achieved in no small part thanks to cinematographer Carl Herse.“One of our big references is the Coen brothers’ balance between tragedy and comedy and how they find that line, allowing something to be meaningful but also comical and absurd at the same time,” Herse says about working with Bill Hader, who co-created the show, stars in the title role and directs many episodes, most recently including Season 3 finale “Starting Now.”“Bill is very specific as a director.
A lot of times on TV shows, you have showrunners who have a writing background but are not necessarily as visual, episodic directors who are trying to get many coverage options for the showrunners to decide what direction they want to go with,” Herse adds. “On our show, ‘coverage’ is a dirty word.
Bill is extremely intentional with the camera. A lot of times, the director and I will not want to move an actor if they want to stand or enter or exit a scene in a specific way.
But because Bill is an actor, he can speak to the actors from their perspective, which allows us to design shots ahead of time.” Seasons 1 and 2 followed Barry (played by series co-creator Bill Hader) as he tried desperately to escape his work as a hit man and question whether he was worthy of redemption, while the newest installment of the series sees him fall further and further past the point of no return.
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