The Best Director

The fourth season of CBS’s “CSI,” the third season of FOX’s “24,” NBC’s tenth and final season of “Friends”…

Of course, this year also has a host of new works that people are looking forward to, including HBO’s thriller “Carnivàle”; CBS seems determined to develop investigative dramas, pushing out the homicide investigation branch’s “Cold Case,” as well as sitcoms like “Two and a Half Men”; FOX has “Arrested Development,” “Tru Calling,” etc.; ABC has the topical “Threat Matrix,” CW has the teen idol drama “One Tree Hill,” and Showtime has “Dead Like Me”…

NBC also has the crime drama “Las Vegas,” and the most anticipated by series fans, and the most publicized “Prison Break”—the crime drama is about to make its television debut on Monday the 15th, and its promotional campaign has also entered the final stage.

In the elegant reception room of “TV Series” magazine, Wang Yang and Miller were sitting on a small, white sofa, accepting an interview from the brown-haired female reporter Nadia Laet, who was seated on the opposite couch. While she asked questions and took notes, Wang Yang was laughing and gesturing animatedly, with Miller chiming in from time to time.

Although Miller had been through many interviews over the past year, the thought that the TV series he starred in was about to premiere on the 15th still filled him with excitement and nervousness. The past year to him had been like living in a dream, having the good fortune of meeting Zachary in a park and then unbelievably being favored by him, and with his encouragement, passed the “Prison Break” audition, then signed the contract, got the full script, started shooting, attended the San Diego Comic-Con…

Thinking back to the Comic-Con experience, Miller couldn’t help feeling very emotional; he actually had fans now, signing autographs for others… but more importantly, he was acting in a show.

If a series isn’t scheduled for a full season from the start, TV shows would typically shoot the first half of the season and then continue filming while broadcasting. Television ratings are without a doubt one of the primary and most important indicators of a program’s fate on the TV screen. If the initial ratings are poor and popularity is lacking, the network will ruthlessly cancel the show, replace it with a new program, and there would be no need to shoot the latter half of the season, so the series will not have a conclusion.

If the ratings reach a satisfactory level, subsequent episodes will be adjusted based on detailed viewership, audience reactions, character screen time, and even the order of episodes.

One of the main reasons for filming while broadcasting, with an episode airing each week, is that as the weather cools in the fall, people reduce outdoor activities and increase television viewing; plus, with the end of summer vacation, students resume their regular school schedules, making the period from mid-September to the end of May the peak time for viewership and market size. Besides these, Miller also understood this was to foster viewers’ “appointment viewing,” establishing their viewing habits and routines.

However, “Prison Break” was greenlit for a full season by NBC right from the start, thanks to Zachary’s clout. Of course, if the ratings are bad, NBC might not cancel it outright, but at least it would be likely to move it from Monday to another time slot.

“Yang, everyone is guessing that ‘Prison Break’ was a form of emotional venting for you during your time in prison. I’m sorry about your incarceration, but is there any truth to that?” the reporter Nadia Laet, with a keen look of interest, watched Wang Yang and let out a chuckle, rapidly jotting notes in her notebook as he spoke.

“Heh! Well… at first, I certainly did have those emotions,” Wang Yang burst out laughing upon hearing her question. Now, looking back on that time and those events, he faced them with much equanimity, and sometimes even found them quite amusing, though he definitely didn’t want to go through that again. He chuckled and said, “I longed to leave the cell. Of course, in the end, I walked out with my head held high, not by escaping.”

He furrowed his brows and countered, “What if I had to escape? What if you had a compelling reason to break out of prison? That was probably the original idea, but,” he patted Miller on the shoulder ardently, “‘Prison Break’ is the collective work of many people, not an outlet for my emotions. That would be a disrespectful way to describe it.”

“Sorry about that,” Nadia apologized, but did not plan to delete the question, leaving it to the editorial department. Seeing that Wang Yang said it was okay, she asked, “Yang, can you talk about the work you have undertaken in this series and the role you have played?”

“OK, this is exactly what I want to talk about,” Wang Yang nodded. He was just one of the creatives, saying, “You know, I wasn’t involved in the filming and production of specific episodes of ‘Prison Break’, I only visited the set a few times. However, we had a subscription for the whole series, so in the beginning, everyone gathered around a table, with scripts and storyboards in hand, discussing how to shoot, what style, what pace…”

“‘Prison Break’ was filmed on location at the State Penitentiary in Joliet City, Illinois, an old prison more than 150 years old. Miller remembered that Magical Yang had been to the set four times, even joking that “it’s more scenic than Rek Island!”

“My job was to frame these aspects, provide suggestions, solve doubts, and help the four directors unify the style of the 24 episodes; later in post-production, I made a quick trip to the editing room. Then this summer, during the promotional phase, I ended up here,” Wang Yang said with a laugh, looking at the female reporter and spreading his hands, “Actually, I’ve always taken it easy on set, and working with so many talented people has been a pleasurable process.”

“How do you define this TV series?” Nadia asked with a smile, a question that had been asked many times before. At the San Diego Comic-Con, the creators of ‘Prison Break’ had already discussed it extensively, but she wanted to hear Magical Yang say it again in person.

Hearing this, Wang Yang recalled the ‘Prison Break’ episodes he had seen in the editing room, the ones about to be broadcasted on the streets, which, compared to the version in his mind, had many and significant differences. First, it was necessary to understand what made ‘Prison Break’ appealing, why it was worth watching. Simply put, he smiled at the female reporter and said, “Tension, thrill, intellect, coolness.”

In fact, it centered on two aspects: the classic “comradeship” and the “death penalty crisis.”

The latter did not specifically refer to Michael Scofield’s brother’s death penalty crisis—the biggest in the series—but not the most tense. “Death penalty crisis” encompassed the new crises that arose in every episode, the new crises that every character faced. In this respect, it was similar to ’24’, with heart-pounding crises occurring, creating a tense atmosphere and suspense, crises leading to resolutions, plot development, and climaxes, and then a new crisis emerged.

So why wouldn’t it be good? It wasn’t good because it was too verbose in many places, soap opera-like, using too many characters to bloat the story or even creating awkward conflicts.

This naturally had to do with shooting while broadcasting. The feedback from the audience surprised the screenwriters, leading them to focus their efforts on non-key areas. If a character seemed popular, they were forced into giving them more screen time, lacking the most core “prison break plan” aspect. As Michael Scofield used up the limited layers, new crises would increasingly lose their impact.

“It’s gripping, keeping you glued to the TV, making you feel breathless!”

This was what he was truly doing—clearly identifying the strengths and weaknesses of the series and then, together with the main creators, amplifying the strengths and compensating for the weaknesses, directly deleting, making the series “become” more exciting. This version no longer had the soap opera filler, added more layers to the prison escape action, and in every episode, there were more than two small crises with a major crisis at the end, making it even more tense and compact, where missing a second was unacceptable.

However, reducing the story did not mean completely eliminating character flashbacks and reverse chronology; besides stretching time, these techniques were for character development and explaining the present, and developing characters was for “comradeship.”

Fernando Sucre, T-BAG… these inmates involved in the prison escape needed to be liked by the audience, who wanted to see their faces on the screen for the story to progress and for high viewership. Thus, these characters needed to have moving or detestable relationships with Michael Scofield.

To make the audience like these criminals, the original treatment painted them as “innocent,” “forced by circumstances,” or minor lawbreakers, and even if they were major criminals, there was always a justification. But regardless, it was far-fetched for an inmate with a minor violation and a short remaining sentence to want to escape prison; the most obvious cases were the “laundry fat man,” the veteran, and even Sucre, who, in reality, would have no interest in escaping.

Even if they escaped, their families and lovers wouldn’t accept them, only cursing, “Idiots! Get back there!”

This is the most lethal point, never underestimate the intelligence of the audience. It’s very difficult to resolve this aspect: not all prisoners are “inherently good people” with convincing reasons for breaking out of prison…

Actually, this is related to the “death penalty crisis,” where minor offenders who were reluctant to escape changed their stance. This process provided many crises and solutions. But as long as the types of crises in the plot are shifted to other things, avoiding those cliché betrayals by girlfriends or daughters with severe illnesses, there won’t be so many far-fetched characters. On the other hand, felons can either repent or not, the key is to thoroughly transform them into “crisis characters” rather than half-hearted “comrades-in-arms.”

That character played his threatening role and brought about credible crises, a million times better than eliciting unconvincing, trite emotions from the audience.

Of course, brotherly camaraderie is necessary. A TV series that brings suspense and mystery to the extreme will be successful; if it also has moving moments, it’ll be even more successful! Luckily, they’re doing well now.

In terms of acting, the original “Prison Break” failed terribly in handling female characters. They underestimated the negative impact of “dead women” and neglected the ratings boost that a beautiful, enthusiastic, or even average and mediocre female lead could bring. After all, this wasn’t “Ugly Betty” specifically designed to sell on that point.

Wang Yang wasn’t going to make the same mistake. For the role of Sara, the prison doctor, he chose a younger and prettier actress who passed the audition—Evangeline Lilly, a then-unknown Canadian actress born on August 3, 1979. She had played a minor role in “Smallville” without Tom Welling, and she originally was going to play the lead role of Kate in “Lost.”

“With beautiful actresses and handsome actors, ha!” Wang Yang laughed and glanced at Miller, who immediately smiled as well. Wang Yang continued, laughing, “And every episode makes you go ‘Wow!’ and at the end ‘Oh!’ and then you’ll be thinking, ‘What’s going to happen next? Oh my God, I have to wait until next week?’ Oh heavens! If there was a remote control, press fast forward, and it’s next Monday already, that would be cool!”

“Haha!” reporter Nadia Laet laughed at his joke, jotting down on her notebook “Remote control, fast forward to next week,” then asked with a smile, “Why did you choose Wentworth?” As she spoke, she looked at Miller and felt he indeed was good-looking. Even though Hollywood was full of handsome men, someone with such an attractive gaze, distinguished air, and such a tall and well-built figure was rare to see.

It was somewhat unbelievable that Wentworth Miller had only just now landed a lead role in a TV series.

“That day, while I was walking my dog in the park, I ran into Miller, who was walking, what, a hundred dogs?” Wang Yang struggled to keep a straight face, miming being tugged forward. Miller’s smile turned shy as he interjected, “Just eight.” Wang Yang raised his hand, laughing, “Then he said, ‘I’m an actor,’ which is great! He is the most suitable leading man for ‘Prison Break.’ I invited him to audition, and the rest followed.”

“I’m really grateful to Yang,” Miller said with a look of gratitude in his eyes. Wang Yang shook his head, earnestly adding, “Actually, Wentworth is very hard-working and talented. He just needed to overcome the lack of confidence and nervousness during the audition, and he would soar high. So it’s not about me.” Miller still appeared very thankful: “You encouraged me, thank you.”

Nadia Laet nodded, writing while thinking to herself that in terms of male actors, the incredible Yang had already uncovered quite a few heartthrobs. Not counting Zach Galifianakis and the like, Bradley Cooper from “The Hangover,” Daniel Wu promoted in “MIT-21-TEAM,” Jay Baruchel were all striking finds; and the shining new stars following their debuts on the big screen with him, Zachary Levi, Tom Welling, and Michael Pitt, were remarkable.

She knew that Tom Welling was starring in the superhero blockbuster “Superman Returns”; Zachary Levi had just finished a comedy and was rumored to join “The Hangover 2”; Michael Pitt was involved in independent films. Suddenly, an obscure name flashed through her mind, Joshua Alba, and she wondered what he was up to now. Of course, there was the incredible Yang himself; his guest appearances were becoming more and more astonishing.

“Yang,” Nadia Laet asked with a smile, “Do you think Wentworth could make it on the big screen? Have you thought about casting him in a movie?”

“Yes, of course!” Wang Yang nodded without hesitation, patted Miller’s shoulder, and said with a laugh, “I’ve said that his potential and talent are extremely high, and besides, he’s so handsome! If there’s a chance, we will collaborate.” Although he knew these were just polite words, Miller still smiled happily.

After asking a few more questions about “Prison Break,” Nadia Laet smiled and started to delve into some gossip, “Yang, what kind of impact did TV series have on you growing up? What role and position do they hold in your life?”

“Oh! The impact was huge. I started watching TV series when I was 2, with ‘Knight Rider.'” Wang Yang’s eyes rolled upwards as those memories had become so blurry he wasn’t sure if they were imagined or had really happened. He laughed and said, “After watching a few episodes, my mom found some parenting book out of nowhere that said TV is bad for health at such a young age! So, I was banished from the world of TV series.”

Wang Yang spread his hands helplessly. He didn’t know if his future kids could watch TV that early, but Jessica, well-versed in parenting books, would definitely know. He’d have to ask her when he got back. Thinking about this, he continued with a laugh, “Later, when I was 4, I was allowed to watch again! That year ‘Knight Rider’ was still airing its third season, and I kept watching until the fourth season ended. Afterwards, I even caught up on the episodes I missed.”

“It wasn’t only ‘Knight Rider,’ but when it comes to TV series, it had the biggest impact on me.” The imposing image of Michael Knight faintly appeared before his eyes. Looking at the female reporter, he said excitedly, “Actually, I really like the concept of a heroic Ranger, striding through a world full of evil and danger, awesome and cool, bringing down the bad guys. All through my adolescence, I was conceptualizing such a story…”

He laughed and stopped without continuing. Later on, starting in junior high, he began writing the script for ‘Ranger,’ a story about a martial arts superhero punishing villains in the modern city, which he gave to Jessica as a present for her 17th birthday five years ago.

“Is that going to be one of your future projects?” Nadia Laet asked with interest on her face, “A movie or a TV series?”

“Yes, it’s a plan,” Wang Yang hummed, but that plan had to be put on hold for now. Time flies, but youth remains. His passion for and grasp of ‘Ranger’ were not at their peak just yet. He pointed to the journalist’s notebook and said with a smile, “Don’t write this down. It’ll divert attention from this interview. Why not promote ‘Firefly’? No, stick with ‘Prison Break,’ haha!”

Nadia seemed genuinely disappointed as she crossed out the question per his request, and said, “So, you really like TV series too!” Wang Yang shrugged with a “Isn’t it obvious?” expression and replied with a chuckle, “Movies and TV are both ways to tell a story, and directors like telling stories.” Nadia then asked with a smile, “Other than ‘Prison Break,’ will we see any TV series produced by you in the future? When?”

“Of course,” Wang Yang nodded. Life was so long, how could he have only ‘Prison Break’? He thought for a moment and said, “I’m sure I will produce more TV series in the future. If we’re talking about the next few years, given the chance, I’d try producing a sitcom, the funny life of a few people. You know I also really like ‘Friends,’ and this year is its final season. I really can’t bear to see it go.”

“Wow!” Nadia’s eyes lit up with anticipation as a regular series viewer. One of the public images of ‘Magic Yang’ was his humor and wit; if he were serious about it, he could make anyone laugh with his spontaneity on stage. When NBC wanted to turn ‘Juno’ into a sitcom, he refused; but the following drama series and sitcoms that rode the trend all achieved high viewership. What if he produced a sitcom himself?

As she took notes, she smiled and said, “This tidbit will make series fans scream with excitement!” Wang Yang said thanks. Nadia’s gaze then turned to Miller, and with a laugh, she asked, “Wentworth, Yang is getting married soon, do you have a girlfriend?”

“No,” Miller shook his head and smiled, “Not yet, I’ve been too busy these past few years to have time for dating.” (To be continued…if you want to know what happens next, please visit . More chapters to support the author and legitimate reading!)