Michael Nankin puts actors first, even when directing science fiction. His work on Battlestar Galactica gives us reason to value that approach, though the series’ unrelenting seriousness can be tiring.
Fi1m perspective
The handheld, documentary-style camera of Battlestar Galactica (2004) is the more conspicuous part of Michael Nankin’s work on the series. His greater interest is in the actors, whose performances he values above strict adherence to dialogue. That is a sensible priority in science fiction, where explaining how things work can leave little time for anyone to react to them. We rate him as a director who wants the people in a scene to be convincing before he worries about how to photograph it.
He came to television with experience of writing as well as directing. Shorts co-made with David Wechter preceded Midnight Madness (1980), which Nankin co-wrote and co-directed, and his screenplay for The Gate (1987). The decisive turn came with Life Goes On (1989), where he worked as writer, director and producer on a family drama. By the mid-1990s he was regularly directing episodes, a job that requires some willingness to work within somebody else’s programme.
Battlestar Galactica gives us the strongest reason to recommend his work, with a necessary limit on how much credit any guest director can claim. Nankin directed eight episodes between 2005 and 2009, often alongside writers Bradley Thompson and David Weddle. We were gripped by the series’ tense storytelling and the ensemble led by Edward James Olmos and Mary McDonnell, although its persistent gloom wore us down at times. Its seriousness is earned, but a director’s commitment to convincing performances cannot by itself give a programme the relief it sometimes needs.
His methods are practical: he asks actors to tell personal stories before takes to help them reach the feeling a scene needs. The visual approach can change, from the handheld work on Battlestar Galactica to locked-off shots on Defiance (2013), where he also served as supervising producer. That willingness to change the camera’s behaviour matters; giving performances priority need not mean neglecting the pictures. Start with Battlestar Galactica, but choose another programme if the evening calls for comfort.
Biography
Michael Nankin is an American television and film director, writer and producer. Born on 26 December 1955 in Hollywood, California, he began his career in features before moving into episodic television in the late 1980s.
He directed episodes of numerous series, including eight episodes of Battlestar Galactica (2005–2009), as well as work on Heroes, The Mentalist, Lie to Me, Black Sails, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, The Flash and DC's Stargirl. He has received a Peabody Award and Leo Awards for his directing.
