This week, the Department of Communication and Journalism at the University of New Mexico hosted a town hall at Rodey Theatre with Emmy award-winning directors Tom Cherones and Tom Azzari, who helped make “Seinfeld” one of the best loved sitcoms of all time.
Cherones is a Class of ’61 UNM alum who studied journalism with a focus in photography. He described his initial exposure to photography at UNM as a formative element in developing his directing style.
“I was a photographer for so many years at UNM, so I had a good sense of stage when I started working professionally,” Cherones said. “My style of shooting came from my photography experience and was a great influence for me. The experiences here at this University greatly solidified my interest in TV directing.”
Cherones later used these experiences as a framework for directing TV shows such as “Seinfeld” and “NewsRadio” and films like “Old Friends.”
Azzari worked alongside Cherones on many of his creative projects as a production designer. Azzari learned much of the mechanics of designing sets working for CBS Television as a draftsman. He later assisted Cherones by constructing many of the sets for “Seinfeld” in a creative direction that led the sitcom to great acclaim.
“I’m the pre-director before any of the shows go into production,” Azzari said. “My designing philosophy is to keep the set simple to let the characters become the emphasis of the show. The set can never be too vibrant so as to distract from the characters. That really helped bring out the nature and humor of the shows I worked on.”
The timelessness of the TV shows both guests directed was demonstrated by the diversity of age groups in attendance for the event.
“I really liked what the event had to offer,” said UNM journalism student Scott Green. “I never really understood why so many people liked ‘Seinfeld’ until I started watching myself. It’s nice to listen to great directors like Cherones and Azzari talk about their inspirations behind the shows they worked on.”
The depth of the topics ranged from questions about deleted episodes to specifics of many of the show’s famous scenes. Much of the discussion also addressed life after working for popular sitcoms and the passion necessary to live up to one’s acclaim.
“A show ending is like getting a divorce,” Azzari said. “You lose all contact with all the people who helped make the show. It is one of the sad parts in working with TV. I’ve had a long career as compared to most in this industry, but you have to know when to quit.”
The two also spent time correcting the many misconceptions audiences hold about the nature of the TV industry. Many of the responses Cherones gave demonstrated a level of humbleness required to direct not only scenes but also to direct a creative, imaginative staff.
“Jerry Seinfeld, Larry David and the writers were what truly made the show,” Cherones said. “As a director, you’re serving the head writer. If I had a question about an aspect of the show, I would ask Larry David for help. He’s the one who really made that show.”
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Shubham Chadha is a freelance reporter at the Daily Lobo. He can be contacted at news@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @DailyLobo.
