BELOW THE LINE PODCAST

What does it mean to "edit for emotion" in a show built around crime, identity, and betrayal? Eric Litman knows — and his work on Dope Thief proves it.

Eric Litman returns to the cutting room — this time, with Robert “Skid” Skidmore and co-host Christopher Angel — to share how he approached the editorial storytelling in Apple TV+’s Dope Thief, a show that lives or dies by its tonal precision and dual-lead structure.

Guided by Chris’s thoughtful questions, the conversation digs into Eric’s instincts as an editor, the creative latitude he was given on the show, and the real collaboration that happens between editors, directors, and showrunners — all while serving a distinct visual and emotional tone.

🎞 How does an editor decide when to hold or cut away from a performance?
🧩 What does Eric look for when selecting alternate takes during tense scenes?
🧠 How does post shape the story, not just the footage?

Whether you’re a film editor yourself, a creative working in episodic TV, or just a fan of layered, propulsive storytelling — this episode is for you.

🎧 Press play and go Below the Line with Eric Litman — and explore more at www.belowtheline.biz.

What does it take to keep track of iconic props across the Marvel Cinematic Universe? Assistant Property Master Travis Bobbitt would know—he’s been doing it for over a decade.

In this episode of Below the Line, Robert “Skid” Skidmore and co-host Gianni Damaia sit down with (returning guest) Travis Bobbitt to talk about his journey through the MCU, culminating in his latest work on Thunderbolts. From organizing massive prop warehouses to navigating the fast-paced demands of a Marvel set, Travis shares what it’s really like working behind the scenes on some of the biggest blockbusters of our time.

Whether you're a filmmaker curious about the property department's role or a Marvel fan eager for behind-the-scenes stories, this episode offers a rare glimpse into the creative logistics that keep superhero worlds believable.

🎬 How do props evolve from concept to screen?
🛠 What’s the pressure like working on a franchise with millions of fans?
🧠 What does continuity actually look like across ten-plus Marvel projects?

Listen in for practical insights, war stories from the lot, and a few laughs with someone who’s helped shape the MCU from the inside out.

🎧 Hit play and go Below the Line with Travis Bobbitt — and explore more at www.belowtheline.biz.

Set Decorator Regina Graves, Property Master Michael Jortner, and 2nd Assistant Director Brad Robinson provide a plethora of insights from behind the scenes of “A Complete Unknown”, the 2024 Bob Dylan biopic starring Timothée Chalamet and directed by James Mangold. 

Cinematographer Pedro Gomez Millan shares stories from the set of “Daredevil: Born Again”, Disney’s 2025 continuation of the live action superhero saga that aired on Netflix between 2015 and 2018. Also continuing his co-host streak: Gianni Damaia!

Film Editor Matthew Barber returns to the podcast to discuss his work on “Long Bright River”, the limited series starring Amanda Seyfried that is currently streaming on Peacock. Gianni Damaia joins us again as co-host!

For today’s conversation, Assistant Directors Robert Scott and Kevin Koster reminisce about their time on “JAG”, the long-running legal drama that aired 10 seasons from 1995 to 2005. Robert was there for Season 1, which aired on NBC, and Kevin joined the AD team for Season 2, when CBS picked up the show. Both ADs were there at the end, and have stories to share about the various studios that hosted production, how the show’s relationship with the military evolved over the years, and the overlapping seasons when the “NCIS” spinoff was waxing ascendant. Also some namedropping and a lot of laughs along the way.

Amazon Prime’s “The Sticky” is a clever bit of storytelling: the tale, inspired by the real-life heist of $18 million worth of maple syrup from Quebec’s national reserves, combines drama, suspense and comedy in equal parts. Helping knit together these disparate elements is the work of Score Composer FM Le Sieur, who joins us today to discuss his musical influences, his composing process and the specific inspirations for this very Canadian piece of work. Also happy to have fellow composer Louis Weeks join us as co-host, offering additional insights as we explore what makes the score for this six-episode series truly unique.

Kevin Bacon returns to the small screen with “The Bondsman”, and today we welcome back two veterans of the podcast, Production Designer Eve McCarney and Costume Designer Liz Vastola, to discuss the challenges of a show that’s balancing genre spectacle and family drama. Co-host Gianni Damaia has some good questions, but primarily he wants to know what it’s like working with Kevin Bacon (he has a “Tremors” image on his wall). All eight episodes of the first season are currently available on Prime.

One more look back at the 2025 Awards Season, and I’m joined by my go-to panel of fellow below-the-liners: Katie Carroll, Bill Hardy, Roger Mendoza and Shaun O’Banion. Did “Anora” deserve all those statues? Should “Dune: Part Two” have been awarded more? Who got snubbed, and which losses are we cheering? That and more, with lots of laughs. 

“The Bikeriders” is an ambitious film: star-studded cast, set in Chicago during the 1960’s and 1970’s, and - of course - lots and lots of motorcycles. My guests, 1st Assistant Director (and Producer) Don Sparks and Key 2nd Assistant Director Pete Dress, tackled these challenges head-on and helped deliver this underrated film on a tight schedule with a limited budget.  It’s an impressive accomplishment, which you’ll appreciate even more after going behind the scenes with us. 

“Zero Day” - the intriguing six-episode political thriller currently streaming on Netflix - is an intentional commentary about today’s politics. Score Composer Jeff Russo joins the podcast to discuss his work on the series, and co-host Louis Weeks provides expert context for a conversation that explores both Jeff’s specific intentions with “Zero Day” and his philosophical approach to score composing as an art.

“Zero Day” - the intriguing six-episode political thriller currently streaming on Netflix - is an intentional commentary about today’s politics. Score Composer Jeff Russo joins the podcast to discuss his work on the series, and co-host Louis Weeks provides expert context for a conversation that explores both Jeff’s specific intentions with “Zero Day” and his philosophical approach to score composing as an art. Bonus announcement: I’m instituting a new listener appreciation program! If you send me a picture of yourself in a Below the Line t-shirt, I’ll mention you by name on a future episode of the podcast. 

Season 23! Episode 251! Long-time listeners: thanks for sticking with us. New listeners: welcome! We’ve got a lot to offer you.

This episode is about “Last Breath”, the based-on-a-true-story film currently in theaters. My guest is Alex Parkinson, who directed both the feature film and the documentary which inspired the movie. First-time director stories! Check. Exploring the transition from documentary to film! Check. Is Woody Harrelson’s performance a realistic take on the person he’s portraying? Well, maybe we don’t tackle that last question. But we’re serving up an entertaining discussion, nonetheless. If you’ve read this far, you probably don’t need additional help finding the episode, but tell your friends! Thank you, from Below the Line.

Our sixth annual Academy Awards series — with panels of film professionals discussing the Oscar nominees in their category of expertise — concludes with Makeup and Hairstyling. Podcast veterans Angela Nogaro (Makeup) and Yvonne Depatis-Kupka (Hair) return to offer their assessment of this year’s slate of nominees. It’s a lively set of reviews to wrap up the series! I hope you’ve enjoyed these episodes as much as I’ve enjoyed publishing them.

The 2024 Nominees for Makeup and Hairstyling:

• “A Different Man”

• “Emilia Pérez”

• “Nosferatu”

• “The Substance”

• “Wicked” 

Film professionals discussing the nominees in their area of expertise: that’s Below the Line at the Academy Awards. We’re in the home stretch (episode 11 of 12!), and today we’re talking about the Oscar nominees for Cinematography. My returning guests — Patrick Cady and David Tuttman — are directors of photography (and directors in their own right!) with a keen eye for what makes these films worthy of the nomination. It gets a little technical sometimes for my understanding but I suspect you’ll enjoy it nonetheless.

The 2024 Nominees for Cinematography: 

• “The Brutalist”

• “Dune: Part Two”

• “Emilia Pérez”

• “Maria”

• “Nosferatu” 

It’s a wild and woolly episode of the podcast as editors Christopher Angel and Amy Duddleston return to discuss this year’s Oscar nominees for Film Editing. In all the years I’ve hosted these conversations, this pair has always complained about films being too long. Given that the shortest film on this list clocks in at two hours, I was anticipating some blistering critiques, but their assessments surprised me. Did we agree about all of these films on their merits? No. Was I entertained? Yes. I hope you will be as well.

The 2024 Nominees for Film Editing:

• “Anora”

• “The Brutalist”

• “Conclave”

• “Emilia Pérez”

• “Wicked” 

Costume Designers Helen Huang And Liz Vastola offer their insights on this year’s Academy Award nominees for Costume Design. This one runs a little longer than usual, but we take some time to discuss how costume design is different from fashion design, the role actors play in the shaping of their costumes, and other challenges of the craft. With the ceremony less than two weeks away, we’re in the home stretch, and I hope you’re keeping up.

The 2024 Nominees for Costume Design:

• “A Complete Unknown”

• “Conclave”

• “Gladiator II”

• “Nosferatu”

• “Wicked” 

Oscar season continues here at Below the Line, where film professionals discuss the nominees in the category of their expertise. Today’s animated conversation about the nominees for Animated Feature Film benefits from returning guests, Kent Seki and Camille Leganza. We also take a brief side quest to discuss the challenges currently faced by the Animation Industry.

The 2024 Nominees for Animated Feature Film:

• “Flow”

• “Inside Out 2”

• “Memoir of a Snail”

• “Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl”

• “The Wild Robot” 

Today we’re discussing the Oscar nominees for Original Song. My guests — Chris Molanphy (chart analyst and podcast host), Louis Weeks (score composer), and Tom Peyton (song writer) — offer both analysis and critique of this year’s nominees. Is there a lot of enthusiasm for the musical innovations these songs offer the listening audience? Well, no. Does it make for an interesting discussion? Yes, definitely. 

The 2024 Nominees for Original Song:

• “El Mal” from “Emilia Pérez”

• “The Journey” from “The Six Triple Eight”

• “Like a Bird” from “Sing Sing”

• “Mi Camino” also from “Emilia Pérez”

• “Never Too Late” from “Elton John: Never Too Late” 

Our tour through the technical categories continues with a discussion of the Oscar nominees for Original Score. My guests — Louis Weeks (score composer), Chris Molanphy (chart analyst/pop critic), and Jennie Callender (founder and music supervisor of Soundbloom) — offer a multi-layered set of insights.

The 2024 Nominees for Original Score:

• “The Brutalist”

• “Conclave”

• “Emilia Pérez” 

• “Wicked”

• “The Wild Robot”  

It’s non-stop conversations about the Oscar nominees in the technical categories from now until the Academy Awards, and I hope you'll follow us for the full season. Today, Kent Seki and Chris Batty return to discuss the nominees for Achievement in Visual Effects. 

The 2024 Nominees for Visual Effects:

• “Alien: Romulus”

• “Better Man”

• “Dune: Part Two” 

• “Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes”

• “Wicked”  

Below the Line continues our Sixth Annual Oscar Series with a discussion of the nominees for achievement in Directing, and I’m joined by a panel of fellow below-the-liners: Bill Hardy, Roger Mendoza and Shaun O’Banion. (This is the second year we’ve discussed the directors nominated for the Academy Award in lieu of the Directors Guild of America nominees.)

The 2024 Nominees for Directing:

• “Anora”

• “The Brutalist”

• “A Complete Unknown” 

• “Emilia Pérez”

• “The Substance”  

We’re continuing our deep dive discussions about the Oscar nominees in the technical categories, and today, Production Designer Bob Shaw and Set Decorator Regina Graves - Oscar nominees themselves - offer their insights about the five nominees for Production Design.

The 2024 Nominees for Production Design:

• “The Brutalist”

• “Conclave”

• “Dune: Part Two” 

• “Nosferatu”

• “Wicked”  

Our Academy Awards coverage continues, and now we’re into the categories proper. Today, Oscar nominees Steve Morrow (production sound mixer) and Erik Aadahl (sound editor) discuss this year's nominees for Achievement in Sound.

The 2024 Nominees for Sound:

• “A Complete Unknown”

• “Dune: Part Two” 

• “Emilia Pèrez” 

• “Wicked”  

• “The Wild Robot” 

Our Sixth Annual Academy Awards Series begins here! Each episode this season features a panel of Film Industry professionals discussing the nominees in their category of expertise. To kick us off: Achievement in Property Mastering. While the work of the property master is still not recognized with an Oscar, we’re carrying a torch. Gregg Bilson, Jr. (CEO of ISS) and Scott Buckwald (property master and friend of the podcast) propose a hypothetical slate of 2024 films that could have been nominated for their fantastic work with props.

Our 2024 Nominees for Property Mastering:

• “Alien: Romulus”

• “Blitz”

• “A Complete Unknown”

• “Gladiator II”

• ”Horizon: An American Saga”

“Henry Danger: The Movie”, now streaming on Paramount+, is the latest chapter in a storyline that started with the Nickelodeon television series in 2014. Director Joe Menendez joins me alongside an all-star panel of crew, including Costume Designer Farnaz Khaki-Sadigh, Director of Photography Chris Kempinski, Production Designer Bridget McGuire and Makeup Designer Jenn Kaminski. Not only did their collaborative efforts lift this multi-faceted film to another level, but they had a great time doing it.

We've also shared an album of behind-the-scenes photos on Facebook:

www.facebook.com/podcastbelowtheline/