WORLD SCREEN
World Screen @ 35: Homeland
As
World Screen celebrates its 35th anniversary, we want to present a series of articles that recap and highlight the best of the interviews we have conducted. We are focusing on the evolution of scripted TV series.
In our last article, we looked at the phenomenon that was
Game of Thrones. HBO was not the only premium cable outlet shaping the cultural conversation. Today, we look at Showtime’s
Homeland.
By 2010, industry insiders and viewers alike were all referring to television’s new “Golden Age.” Talent from feature films—actors, screenwriters and directors—were joining projects for the small screen, attracted by the opportunity to explore complex, layered characters—neither wholly good nor completely evil—in 10 or 12 hours rather than 90 minutes or two hours. Following these TV series became akin to reading chapters in a novel, with plotlines and character development carrying over from one episode to another, and this was particularly appealing to writers and showrunners.