You may not recognize Julie Anne Robinson’s name, but she’s an industry “lifer.” She’s directed studio movies such as “One For The Money” and “The Last Song” alongside a wide range of television series including “Brooklyn Nine-Nine,” “Weeds,” “Pushing Daisies,” “Masters of Sex” and “The Good Place.” It was her collaborations with Shondra Rhimes on episodes of the seminal dramas “Grey’s Anatomy” and “Scandal” that found her front and center directing the first episode of “Bridgerton.” A blockbuster series that has made Rhimes massive producing deal with Netflix more than worth its weight in gold.
During a conversation earlier this month, Robinson raved about the first season’s “uninhibited” breakout star, Regé-Jean Page, broke down the show’s unique tone, the surprise over her first Emmy nomination for directing and chimed in on those very sexy and controversial love scenes.
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The Playlist: Congratulations on your Emmy nomination. What was your reaction to it when you found out?
Julie Anne Robinson: I was in England, walking alongside a kind of a big fun fair area, and I was absolutely delighted. I was watching the rollercoaster going by and really, really happy. My phone blew up. So yeah, I’ve got a million texts all at once. It was a huge deal.
I know you’ve worked with Shonda before; how did this project come your way?
People ask me this a lot, and I’m afraid the answer is rather unsatisfying. The answer is that Shonda and Betsy [Beers] called me and asked me to do it. It was as simple as that. And of course, when I read the material, I fell in love with it, and here we are.
When you read the pilot, was it obvious to you what the tone of the show was? Did you have any questions regarding that?
We all had a meeting, and it was great because I came to the meeting with some powerful ideas about how we could make it. I mean, I wanted it to reflect Shonda’s kind of vision and sensibility and to make it really very much only something that she would have brought forth from her imagination. I mean, probably because I’ve worked with her so many times before, I really put myself in that head-pace. I’ve worked with Chris before as well. So, I was trying to think of how this could feel unique and create an internal language to make sense.
If you were to watch the pilot episode you’re nominated for again, is there a moment, is there a sequence that you can say, “This is what I brought to it that wasn’t on the page”?
That’s a good question. It’s hard to say, I mean, because the book wasn’t fully there. I think something like this becomes what it is through the collaborative efforts of everyone. So you can’t really crystallize it like that. I guess I was trying to bring a very modern sensibility, but that was something that we were all on board to do. But I was hoping to bring humor to it. And that was also something that we’re all on board to do.
Robinson continues: I mean, if you were to read the script and then watch the pilot, you wouldn’t imagine the pilot from reading the script. But it’s sort of too complicated to say a crystallized moment that I uniquely brought to it. It evolved through rehearsals and modern music and by shooting the scenes in a slightly different way that would be traditionally thought of to period drama. Jeff [Jur] and I, the DP, worked to bring a unique sensibility to the shooting. I think of it as a very collaborative exercise.
Well, one thing that I noticed that might’ve been different from other sorts of period shows or movies of this ilk is that “Bridgerton” does have a pace to it. It purposely feels like it doesn’t linger to linger. Is that an accurate observation?
It is. Yes. That’s brilliant that you noticed that. It’s a very accurate observation. Yes, yes. We wanted it to fly. We wanted it to fly very much so. And in terms of the camera work as well. There’s a certain momentum that we were bringing to it; in the emotional moments of beats, you would hope that there could be reverberations around those beats.
Yes. And because it’s doing that, when it does slow down, you pay more attention.
Yes.
I don’t know how much you were involved in the casting process, but clearly, the gigantic breakout star was Regé-Jean Page. Was there a moment while shooting or in the editing room where you realized, “Oh, he’s going to blow up after this.”?
I was involved throughout the casting process. Yes. And we worked very hard to cast him. He was somebody that was on everybody’s mind. I met him in a coffee shop in London before shooting. We sat down together, and he outlined his vision for the role. And it’s actually something very unlike him as a person when you meet him, and you talk to him. So I’m just super impressed at the way that he embodied the duke, the kind of Byronic, smoldering character. And so, yeah. I mean, I knew right away that this guy was going to be a star. And he’s really uninhibited. That was something I very much appreciate about him. Very uninhibited in the sense that, as an actor, he will go. He will go anywhere emotionally. He’s great to work with.
I think what he showed as a host on “SNL,” after being on “Bridgerton,” told everyone, “Oh wow, he can do everything.” It made a lot of people pay even more attention to him because of the contrast.
Yeah. I remember we were shooting that scene in the rain in episode six, and he would just run around in these rain clouds, and it’s just absolutely pouring. And he’s just holding his arms out and twirling around and embracing the rain, whereas everybody else would try to hide from it. It was obvious that he is somebody to watch.
The other interesting thing about the program is many people had a surprising reaction to the intense sex scenes in the series. What were the conversations around that?
I’m always looking to the script, and I want to tell the story and really make sure that we’re communicating the story. And I would never want to do anything gratuitous, but it seems particularly for episode six that this is a story about sex. It’s a story about sexuality, and it’s from a female perspective. And it’s about power, and it’s about relationships. And you have to tell the story honestly. And part of the storytelling in that particular episode was through sex. So, it had to be what it was. There was never a conversation. And in fact, the opposite of any conversation that we [could have] about just making the sex gratuitous in any way. So we worked very closely with an intimacy coordinator and on set to make sure that everybody felt confident and comfortable with the work we were doing.
The show is a massive monster hit and fans all over the world. After it debuted, and obviously you’ve helmed the first episode, did you go on Twitter or any social media, to sort of seeing what the reaction was? Was there anything that surprised you from it?
I’m on Instagram, but I don’t tend to get involved too much in social media, reading reviews, previews, or anything. So I was sort of out of the loop, and that’s just a very strict rule that I have for myself. And so, basically, I heard about it. Somebody’s emailing me, texting me, saying, “This is crazy. What’s going on?” And so, I had to run along behind to catch up. And obviously, it was really nice. But I think, just as a creator if you get ahead of it too much or think about it too much, it’s never a positive experience because sometimes it doesn’t go the way you want it to go. So it was really, really nice just to become gradually aware of it. I was so happy that it spoke to so many people and that people seemed to see themselves on the screen, and that it was such a great cross-section of people that were touched by it. And that’s the thing that I absolutely love. I love it for the actors. They’re a really, really fantastic, talented group. And yes, obviously, it was great. So I’m happy for everybody involved, most specifically Shonda and Betsy and Chris.
Are you expecting to return for the second season? And can you tell us what you’re working on next?
I am no on the second season; I was already booked. I was really sad not to be able to go. I would really like to be, but I was not available. I’m doing another pilot for Netflix right now.
O.K. So you are booked and busy then?
I am, I am.
Well, that’s the best news.
It took a while.
“Bridgerton” season one is available on Netflix worldwide.