Craig Zisk gives ensemble casts room to be funny and keeps the direction out of their way. We value that television craft, though his feature debut suggests he needs sharper material to make a lasting impression.
Fi1m perspective
In The Office (2005), Steve Carell makes an exhausting boss worth watching by letting his painful neediness show. We laughed at that neediness, though the occasional overplaying wore us down. Craig Zisk is one of the series’ directors, so its success cannot sensibly be laid at his feet alone. But it offers a useful introduction to an actor-led approach that puts script and performance ahead of heavy coverage. The pleasure comes from spending time with the cast, even when the boss makes us consider the advantages of working alone.
Zisk began directing series with Brooklyn Bridge (1991), then built a television career across comedy and drama. On Weeds (2005), his responsibilities included directing and executive producing. His collaborations with writer-producer Michael Schur also run through Parks and Recreation (2009) and Brooklyn Nine-Nine (2013). Those single-camera comedies allow for improvisation and leave alternative takes available for the edit. There is value in a director who can give actors that freedom while getting an ensemble through a television schedule, particularly when the actors need time to find the joke rather than simply deliver it.
His feature debut, The English Teacher (2013), has Julianne Moore and Nathan Lane, brisk pacing and lively banter. The familiar material gives that capable cast too little to work against. It hints at deeper concerns without pursuing them far enough, and the result fades from memory. We would have liked Zisk to demand more of the script before making it run so smoothly.
We are wary of treating every successful programme on a director’s credits as evidence of a personal style. With The Office, the important achievement is that Carell’s difficult boss remains worth spending time with, and that the surrounding cast gives us reasons to stay despite the borrowed beginnings. Zisk’s documentary-influenced approach is a sensible fit for such ensembles, where watching how people behave is much of the pleasure. Start with the television work; there is no need to make the feature your introduction.
Biography
Craig Zisk is an American director and producer. He grew up in Dallas and graduated from the St. Mark's School of Texas and the University of Southern California. He produced the series Cop Rock and directed his first television series, Brooklyn Bridge, at the age of 26.
Zisk has directed episodes of many series, including The Office, Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Parks and Recreation, Weeds, Shameless, American Horror Story and Halo. His first feature film was The English Teacher (2013). He has executive-produced series including Weeds, United States of Tara and The Larry Sanders Show, and received Emmy and Golden Globe nominations for his work. His brother Randy Zisk is also a director.
