Novocaine Interview with Star and Directors on Practical SFX

WARNING: The following contains major spoilers for Yellowjackets Season 3: Episode 6, “Thanksgiving (Canada).”

Fans of Showtime’s feminist horror series Yellowjackets have been dying for answers to two major questions: who will the girls eat while stranded in the woods and how will survivors of that horrific plane crash eventually find their way home? While larger mysteries still remain, the latest episode brings us one step closer to uncovering the truth.

After an excruciating murder/execution, the girls “honor” Coach Ben Scott (Steven Krueger) with a ritualistic feast which descends into chaos. In the present day timeline, Misty (Christina Ricci) continues to investigate Lottie (Simone Kessell)’s murder while Van (Lauren Ambrose) begins to wonder who Taissa (Tawny Cypress) really is.

The episode’s final moments leave us on one hell of a cliffhanger while taking the 1997 timeline in a bloody new direction.

Though we’re still picking our jaws up off the floor, Bloody Disgusting sat down with Pete Chatmon, the veteran TV director tasked with pulling it all together.

Bloody Disgusting: You have an impressive resume! You’ve directed more than 65 episodes of TV, including legendary series like Grey’s Anatomy, Insecure, The Flight Attendant, Black-ish, and It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia. What do you love about directing TV and how is it different from directing films?

Pete Chatmon: I love the opportunity to hop in and out of so many different types of stories and worlds, I’ve been able to straddle comedy and drama, which not a lot of directors really get the opportunity to do. I often joke that I have to “Men in Black” myself because I’ll do Always Sunny where we’re done by lunch every day and it’s really, really fast. The writers are the actors, and we’re 17 years in. Then I’ll do something like Yellowjackets where I’m shooting one page for eight hours just because of how the show desires to present itself.

I love that challenge of being able to hop back and forth. And I think the big difference between TV and film is that TV is the writer’s medium. Film is the director’s medium, and I think it takes a unique skill to turn off the levers that make you successful in one versus the other. TV is finding myself in the story that I’ve been given to direct and interpret. And in film, it’s creating that whole world and delivering it to the audience. So it’s directing either way, but it’s just a different muscle to work.

BD: I want to ask about this specific episode of Yellowjackets, season three, episode six, Thanksgiving (Canada). What was it like to jump into this series?

PC: It was great! I was a fan from the start. I have been ever since Covid when work just kind of stopped. I really started getting proactive about trying to direct shows that I was really interested in. This was one of them and I was fortunate enough to get an episode. I think my comedy and drama background was helpful in that. I got the script and I was like, oh, this is crazy! I knew from the jump, and people on the show even told me, “you got a good one, man.” I was really excited about the opportunity to tell Teen Natalie (Sophie Thatcher) and Ben’s storyline. I was honored to tell that story and to give it some grace. I wanted to elevate it as a director in terms of how it’s shot and also knowing that the audience is going to have big feelings about this. I don’t want to say pressure, but I know this is going to have a big impact on a lot of people. So I wanted to take that reality and push it thematically and creatively.

BD: This episode also covers a lot of ground. We’re essentially moving from summer to autumn, and most of that time we see marked by Coach Scott’s deterioration, which is heartbreaking to watch. How did you approach these scenes where he’s essentially asking Natalie to transform his death sentence into a promise?

PC: It’s funny, when I made that Sunny and Yellowjackets comparison, I was referring to the montage right after the opening credits with Teen Natalie and Ben. It was one page long and I took eight hours to shoot it because I was doing all of these particular camera moves and match cuts, trying to really underline the themes of that scene. It’s the kind of thing where it’s worth the time. People are looking at me like, what are you doing? But I think if we don’t land this plane, I don’t think we earn everything that this storyline merits. So I’ll take the bullet for it, but I think we’re going to spend a little more time on it. 

The reality of working on a TV show where the actors are so strong, amazing, and instinctively accurate, is that I’ll come in with very specific ideas, but I’m definitely leaving room to absorb what the actors have prepared. I want to be a creative partner. It’s finding ways to enhance what they’ve already decided to do, finding new directions to try, and then giving or creating some kind of environment where we feel comfortable trying different things. 

BD: Those scenes are so intimate, too. There’s really nowhere to hide in those moments.

PC: Yeah, those actors were impressive. There were even things that I noticed later. When you’re in the thick of it, particularly on your first episode of a show, on the first day, you may not notice everything. I told Steven after watching my first dailies, I was like, “man, you were killing it.” But then I watched the dailies and I saw the tear that developed at this moment—I had missed it while we were filming. Watching that little moment where the camera just amplifies something to the thousandth degree, it was awesome.

BD: This episode also includes a power shift in the ‘97 timeline. How did you want to present Teen Shauna (Sophie Nélisse) at this moment, and how do you want us to feel about her and Teen Natalie?

PC: It’s funny because both of their names are Sophie, Sophie Thatcher and then Sophie Nélisse. They were just dialed in. I think there’s a lot of subtlety in Teen Shauna and you get this great opportunity to have every moment bookmarked. When we’re watching the teen story, you say, “that’s how she got to be like that.” And then when we’re watching the present day stories we’re like, “this is the residue of that.” So there’s two-directional trauma that you’re able to track. But I just gave ’em room to do their thing and tried to find moments with the camera to underline what was happening emotionally. And then also trying to avoid putting a hat on a hat. Sometimes a look is perfect without the extra closeup. So you’re trying to walk a tightrope of when to let the performance win and when to try and accentuate it with the camera.

BD: The show has always been built around the idea of cannibalism, though there aren’t many scenes where the characters actually eat human flesh. But we get one in this episode! How did you approach that bonfire sequence and this shocking cliffhanger ending?

PC: That was interesting. It’s funny because you’re working on so many levels, and you want to keep a light vibe on set because we can’t wallow in what we’re actually doing. There’s a nice moment where we introduce Ben’s head while tracking along a table, and we land on Misty, who’s kind of just looking at him and having a bite of food. Obviously this is sad, but Misty’s such an interesting character that I remember asking Samantha (Hanratty), who plays Teen Misty, “I just want some Misty shit.” [Laughs] You know what I mean? There’s no word for it. And then we did a take, and she was just kind of observing his face almost in amazement, while also being thankful for the food—so many things at one time. You’ve also got these emerging political blocks. You’ve got Shauna and her crew, you’ve got Lottie (Courtney Eaton) finding her powers. I really just tried to weave all of this into something that felt like four or five different emotions and character journeys combined in one pot, and let their dancing stir it all together. 

Then having that final beat, which really takes you into the next episode with an “oh, shit,” but also a little bit of comedy with that final reaction. It’s a show that really requires you to identify which moment is comedy, or even which breath is comedy. Sometimes it’s not even a moment, it’s just a beat, and then you’re back to the high stakes or you’re back to the action. 

BD: I watched it with my jaw on the floor. It’s a major shift in the show’s direction and I could not wait to watch the next episode!

PC: Well, it all starts from the script. It is the writer’s medium. They’ve tracked these seasons out, they’ve arced these characters. They know where this thing is going to land on episode 10 of season three and probably beyond. And so for me, it’s just coming in and finding a way to honor that and do something unique. I do think even though it is the writer’s medium, I believe there should be a reason why I’m there versus someone else. I think that’s the responsibility of the director to find yourself in that story and maintain the integrity of the show while bringing a unique vision. 

BD: That final moment is somewhat predicted by Akilah (Nia Sondaya)’s vision. It’s such a striking moment with a bear entering the deserted camp. How did you approach this scene?

PC: This is the beauty of TV. That cave is tiny. It’s built to be very cavernous so it actually does have scope as a set, but the parts that you shoot are pretty small. So in there, I was really trying to play with shadows and trying to use the camera to elongate the space and make it feel bigger. There’s a little bit of stop motion animation to the bear, which was such a cool idea. And some slow motion and inner cutting with the group in those montages as they’re moving around. I wanted to make it feel like the flittering flashes of consciousness and the hopes and dreams of trauma. 

BD: Yellowjackets fans are famous for dissecting images and really digging into the lore. Was that intimidating at all to want to get it right so that it fits with the larger storyline?

PC: I feel like the intimidation of it is fun. I was thinking, let’s figure out how to knock this out of the park. I would imagine that it’s in the pocket of what people expect from the show, and then hopefully there are some new things in there that might be particular to my take on a classic Yellowjackets episode.

BD: You mentioned you’re a fan of the show and I’ve also been watching since day one. I’m a Misty fan. She’s my personal favorite. Do you have a favorite character, and was there a particular storyline you were excited to tackle?

PC: That’s interesting. It’s funny because I didn’t write it, but I still kind of view them all as my babies. [Laughs] I know why people love Misty. Past and present, you’re going to get something that is a little off the cuff, a little off the beaten path, and it just keeps you so engaged. It’s like a palate cleanser. For instance, when adult Misty is meeting the guy with the vial, this could be a run of the mill scene, but the way Christina Ricci plays it just makes it more interesting. 

I was excited about the present day Van storyline, to explore this idea of bad Tai simmering underneath the surface and trying to navigate the realities of death and cancer. It’s just so layered. And I was obviously very excited to work with Melanie Lynskey because I’ve been a big fan of her work. It’s just so effortless. Everybody was great. It was just a really fun experience. 

It’s really directing two different TV shows because the stuff you’re doing in the wilderness, you don’t shoot anything else. We’re an hour out, just miles from the US border in Canada and so you might have two pages a day because you can only do so much. And you’re working with actors with varying levels of experience. And then you go and do the present day stuff, and now you’re working with folks who have an entirely different way of working, many of whom are feature film folks and have a different expectation, perhaps, of their director. So finding that footing was very important.

BD: I think one of my favorite parts of the show is all of these legendary actresses in the adult timeline just bouncing off of each other. What was it like to work with them?

PC: It was great. For the directors out there, there’s always one scene you think you’re just going to knock out. This is half a page, first up, we’re going to get ahead on the day. And for me, it was the scene where Van is going through a box and she finds a phone. And so I’m thinking it’s boom, boom, boom. The box is over here. Open it. And Lauren Ambrose says, “well, what if we do this?” So we walked through it and added a few more beats to it. But I was thinking, That’s great! That’s how you open a box! [Laughs] There’s this place you get to as a director where obviously you respect and honor what’s written, but you also have to honor the fact that actors want to bring it to life. Finding a way to let all of those things coexist while still going toward whatever idea you had of the scene is a dance. So it was a fun challenge to find the bullseye with so many different talented people.

BD: I did want to talk about that scene and what it foretells, but also chef’s kiss to that clear plastic phone! I had one of those. I think we all had one in the nineties. [Laughs]

PC: Exactly. [Laughs]

BD: And, we don’t know for sure, but I think it’s pretty clear that Tai is not Tai in the adult storyline and maybe has not been for a while. How did you handle these quiet moments? I’m thinking of one when she calls on the phone and then another where she’s laying in bed and seems to be begging Van for help. How did you approach them, and did you have to be wary of giving away too much too soon?

PC: With that scene in the hotel bed toward the end of the episode … every actor had a moment where I thought, oh yeah, you’re good! [Laughs] For Tawny, I was excited to see her manifestations of bad Tai or whatever we want to call her. I said, “wherever you land, go there and see how quickly you can flicker out of it.” Because I’m imagining Van in the bed next to her thinking, that is frightening! It prompts her response of, I care for this person, but also that’s fucking scary! And whatever the road ahead, we’ll deal with it in the morning. So I was trying to give that glimpse because up until this point, it’s been a little more subtle and this moment needed to be really clear. You needed to hang a hat on that one. It needed the lantern. But doing that gracefully is what I think Tawny did so well. 

BD: Well, I’m asking about some secrets, and some things that we might not be able to reveal just yet, but you have a live event coming up with your podcast Let’s Shoot! with Pete Chatmon which will include some familiar faces! 

PC: Yeah! It seems like all things point back toward the pandemic. I started the podcast in June of 2020. I was missing those scout van conversations where everybody can talk about their creative stuff and personal passion projects. And so I started the podcast to get back to that space and share. I’ve always remembered my journey to where I am now and being desperate for information, but even more desperate for vibes, if that makes sense. Just being in a van, you see things like, oh, that’s what a DP is like. Oh, that’s what an executive is like. And so the idea of the podcast is to share the journeys of these people in front of the camera and behind the camera, and talk about what they do in their particular craft. And along the way, hopefully impart some principles and lessons for both professionals and emerging talents, things that they can maybe put into play. I joke that maybe they’ll save four days of mistakes. [Laughs] 

We’re in our sixth season and wrapping that up with our first live event. We’re screening my Yellowjackets episode, and then having a conversation with Bart Nickerson and Ashley Lyle, the co-creators, producer and director Jeff Byrd, and then Courtney Eaton, who plays Teen Lottie and Warren Kole, who plays Jeff Sedecki. So it should be a cool time. And it’s at Dynasty Typewriter on March 19th.

BD: That sounds so exciting. And then after Yellowjackets, you’re going to be directing an episode of the final season of You, which I am dying to see. Is there anything you can tease about that?

PC: Well, we’re back in New York. Joe (Penn Badgley) has returned to where it all started. We’re back in the bookstore. We got the cage in the bookstore. 

BD: Oh, wow! The cage is back!

PC: He’s reached new heights in terms of money and influence now that he’s married Kate (Charlotte Ritchie) from season four. It’s just a really fun ride. I did episode three. We had a cool photo circle, which is this app where everybody can upload photos and I had to stop looking at a certain point. I was like, wait, I’m learning too much! [Laughs] So I backed out of the app so I could be a viewer when everything premieres on April 24th.

BD: You’ve also directed episodes of Ghosts, which I consider to be horror adjacent. Are you a horror fan? 

PC: That’s super interesting! I’ve never really thought of myself as a horror fan. I think what I’m connecting to are some of the other themes within the world. I’d compare that to most of the comedians I know. When they’re not doing their thing, they’re not funny and oftentimes they’re very brooding, but they take how they view the world and package it in comedy. And so I guess I’m responding to these themes, whether it’s trauma, or I think with Yellowjackets, it’s a dissection of the patriarchy. And what will you do when you are left with no other choice? I think that’s always so interesting, but it is wrapped in horror. And I guess maybe somewhere in there I’m a big, big fan.