the seven husbands of evelyn hugo tv show: showrunner notes series
Subject: The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo - Showrunner Notes Meeting #1
From: Alison Haselden, Showrunner
To: Department Heads, Production Team
Subject: Welcome to The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo Limited Series!
Hi Team,
Welcome to the first meeting for The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo television series. I’m Alison Haselden, your showrunner. We are doing an overview for all department heads on our vision for the limited series adapted from the book by Taylor Jenkins Reid.
If you are joining us virtually I expect you to chime in down in the comments under the video feed as we go - yes?
Because this is a period drama, I’m not going to bore you with what you already know about historical fiction projects, but we are going to dive into some key points today as a group before we break out into individual department meetings. Cool?
Click to watch the full video from the first meeting for The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo TV show adaptation.
stakes & tone
Tone References from Other Film/TV:
Mantra for this project: The story is dramatic enough on its own so we do not need to add extra sauce to it. Understood?
Yes, this is historical fiction, but as we know…not all historical fiction is made equally. I’m going to walk us through some key reference points so we all know where we want this to land, cool?
The Crown
The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
The Notebook
Age of Adeline
Leverage the Titanic Flashback protocol - I think there is some beautiful symmetry there that would translate beautifully.
Locations:
We’re going to be in-studio for a lot of this project with select on-location moments in LA, NYC and Spain, but I want us to draw on the opulence of sets and shot set up such as in projects like:
The Crown - for the luxury and opulence
The Notebook - for the little period accurate details
Marvelous Mrs. Maisel - for the glam red carpet moments
As much as this film struggled in some ways, I loved the drama of the Anna Karenina lighting in particular to enhance emotional moments
Camera & Cinematography:
I really want the audiences to feel immersed in the world almost as though they ARE Evelyn. I think this will really help build sympathy and empathy for her rather than getting too lost in the aesthetics of the world.
I want to highlight this with complete shifts in how we shoot public facing Evelyn versus the personal world of Evelyn.
So YES for those fabulous public facing moments we’ll see her through the POV/eyes of others and everything will be on a broader, wider lens, a little gauzy / smudgy effect to everything that hints at the half-truth:
Early jobs in film industry / Don Adler
Oscars moments
Mick / Vegas moment
Max Girard
The most dear / personal / secret moments should be shot much more intimately, a little crisper and feature more POV shots from Evelyn’s perspective:
Evelyn chipping tooth when Celia wins
Evelyn and Celia moment in the bathroom at the Academy Awards when they get back together - this will be one of the starkest contrasts from shiny wides breaking into this raw moment
Deciding to have her daughter
Moments with the whole family unit in the happy NYC days
Harry’s car crash / funeral
When Evelyn and Celia meet for lunch and reconnect
Evelyn and Celia’s secret wedding/exchange of vows
I’d love to also discuss switching cameras and aspect ratio when we switch between Evelyn’s memories and the present day to enhance the shift and immersion in Evelyn’s story
Widescreen cinematic format (21:9 or 2.35:1)
Full widescreen (16:9 or 1.78:1)
Wardrobe, Hair & Makeup for Evelyn Hugo:
Do not fear, our budget is appropriately sized for the nature of the vintage we are going to have to acquire! Goals:
As much authentic vintage as possible
Nods to looks from Elizabeth Taylor, Ava Gardner, and Rita Hayworth, our inspirations, of course! I particularly like these looks but you tell me!
I can see us pulling some looks similar from Allie in The Notebook for young Celia
Bonus points if we can play with color theory and small details to plant Easter eggs in our plot. (I’d love to see some sneaky embroidery, symbols used in accessories like earrings or purses, and so on.)
Acting Style & Casting
The Crown casting protocol -
Young, Middle Aged, Elderly versions of our main characters - all separate actors who resemble one another
Longing and tension a la The Notebook between Evelyn and Celia - multiple chemistry tests please.
Key Scenes & Visual Approach
The first episode opens on Older Evelyn in present day getting ready for Monique to come over, doing her hair, putting on jewelry, and so on.
We flash to Monique and her boss in the office trying to figure out why she was requested for the interview (we will sprinkle in the details of Monique’s personal life later on throughout because let’s be honest, nothing about her storyline is nearly as interesting as Evelyn’s).
Flash back to Evelyn - we scan over old photos from her life as she walks down a hallway.
Back to Monique arriving in a huff at the door which is opened by assistant Grace. Veering from the book slightly, we see Evelyn descend the stairs partway and says “are you ready to learn the truth about evelyn hugo?”
Cut to the opening titles. Which I’d love to feature a series of old papers and gossip columns highlighting evelyn’s escapades and rumors
next steps
All department heads for The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo TV show, please watch the full video recap of our meeting above & submit your feedback in the comments by next Friday.
XO,
Your Showrunner,
Alison Haselden
This episode of the Showrunner Notes series is inspired by the novel The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid. **Note: this video is satire and intended for entertainment purposes only. All rights reserved to the owners of the IP mentioned. All creative strategy and ideas presented in this video created solely by Alison Haselden.
