EXTRA EDITION VARIETY TALK/ SKETCH/ HOST AUGUST 27, 2020 ADVERTISEMENT 0827 EE NBC_CVR1 REV.indd 1 8/25/20 11:03 AM 18 EMMY ® NOMINATIONS INCLUDING OUTSTANDING DRAMA SERIES “THE BEST SHOW ON TV” INDIEWIRE OUTSTANDING LEAD ACTOR IN OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING OUTSTANDING GUEST ACTRESS OUTSTANDING CASTING A DRAMA SERIES ACTOR IN A DRAMA SERIES IN A DRAMA SERIES FOR A DRAMA SERIES JEREMY STRONG MATTHEW CHERRY JONES OUTSTANDING MUSIC MACFADYEN COMPOSITION FOR A SERIES OUTSTANDING LEAD ACTOR IN OUTSTANDING DIRECTING (ORIGINAL DRAMATIC SCORE) A DRAMA SERIES OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING FOR A DRAMA SERIES BRIAN COX ACTRESS IN A DRAMA SERIES ANDRIJ PAREKH OUTSTANDING PRODUCTION SARAH SNOOK DESIGN FOR A NARRATIVE OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING ACTOR OUTSTANDING DIRECTING CONTEMPORARY PROGRAM IN A DRAMA SERIES OUTSTANDING GUEST ACTOR FOR A DRAMA SERIES (ONE HOUR OR MORE) NICHOLAS BRAUN IN A DRAMA SERIES MARK MYLOD JAMES CROMWELL OUTSTANDING OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING ACTOR OUTSTANDING WRITING SINGLE- CAMERA IN A DRAMA SERIES OUTSTANDING GUEST ACTRESS FOR A DRAMA SERIES PICTURE EDITING FOR KIERAN CULKIN IN A DRAMA SERIES JESSE ARMSTRONG A DRAMA SERIES (2) HARRIET WALTER Untitled-48 1 8/20/20 8:41 PM AN ARRAY OF CONTENDERS COVERAGE BEGINS ON PAGE 19 2020 EMMY EDITION DOWN TO THE WIRE VARIETY TALK/ SKETCH/HOST THE STAND-UPS SPEAK STATE OF REPRESENTATION LATE NIGHT'S NEW LOOK TIFFANY HADDISH AND JOHN THE INDUSTRY STILL HAS A BEHIND THE SCENES OF MULANEY COMPARE NOTES LONG WAY TO GO TO TRUE REMOTE PRODUCTIONS INCLUSION WITH NOMS Untitled-8 1 8/24/20 3:58 PM Untitled-8 2 8/24/20 3:58 PM TOP BILLING STRENGTH IN NUMBERS For Showtime’s “Love Fraud,” filmmakers Heidi Ewing and Rachel Grady followed a group of women as they attempted to bring fugitive Richard Scott Smith to justice. IN THE SIXTH EPISODE of Jehane Noujaim and Karim Amer’s docuseries “The Vow,” Sarah Edmondson, a whis- Victims Become tleblower who was once in the inner-circle of NXIVM and also a part of its master-slave subgroup DOS, is asked outright if she is a victim. Although she answers quickly in the affirmative, Victors she also makes it clear that she made choices during her time working with the organization. Some of these choices simply kept her involved, while others were direct recruitment of other young A KEY CROP OF DOCUSERIES ARE LETTING THE WOMEN women. To some, this may paint her in the colors of someone IN CRIMINAL STORIES TAKE BACK THEIR NARRATIVES more culpable than coerced. But the truth is much more complicated. And what Noujaim and WITH NUANCE AND PERSPECTIVE Amer endeavor to do with their nine-part HBO docuseries is peel BY DANIELLE TURCHIANO back the layers of the psychology of not only the women who found themselves in this organization that purported to be one of self-im- provement, but also of its founder and high-ranking officials, who twisted the trust of many of those enrolling. By letting women tell their own stories and shining a light on manipulative tactics used 2020 on them, a number of recent docuseries from “The Vow” to Life- EMMY time’s “Surviving R. Kelly” and “Surviving Jeffrey Epstein” and even EDITION Showtime’s “Love Fraud” offer a greater understanding of the “why” behind behaviors, exposing nuance and the gray area that defies any of those aforementioned, reductive descriptors. SHOWTIME 6 VARIETY WEEKNIGHTS 11:35|10:35c TOP BILLING “Sometimes the word ‘victim’ employs a able to talk about it is very useful,” Mennen Jeffrey Epstein.” “When we go into the stigma that doesn’t leave room to embody continues. “Although, if people get asked edit, we just look at their stories as exten- the comeback,” says Brie Miranda Bryant, about it too much, they begin to define sions of how we’d want our own stories senior vice president, unscripted develop- themselves as that. One of the things I to be told. If you respect your subject and ment and programming, Lifetime. “These would talk with my clients about is learn- you allow them in their own words and women, their stories are tales of the strong. ing to see that this was an experience, but voices to speak their truth, that is a good Some of whom might not have even real- it wasn’t your only experience.” foundation.” ized their own strengths in their most dar- Those interviewed for these docuseries This is extra essential when consider- ing moments. And rooting for them along may be at different stages in their healing ing how many women are judged by the way is rooting for all of us.” processes, which requires care in how cer- or left to fend for themselves after report- For years, the entertainment industry tain questions are asked. Some, such as ing instances of assault, abuse or other profited off of “women-in-peril” programs, Virginia Roberts Giuffre, came to the proj- wrongdoing to law enforcement, or even whether they were ripped-from-the-head- ect already very vocal in sharing her expe- the media. lines original television movies, episodes of riences with the late, accused sex trafficker There has also been a more sensitive police procedurals or “Danger at 11”-style Epstein. Others, such as the women in “Love eye on supplemental interviews in such true-crime special reports and docuseries. Fraud,” who were all in relationships with series. Stern and Sundberg brought in Recently, as women’s stories became more polygamist and alleged domestic abuser experts in grooming and sexual assault for centered in scripted narratives, there has Richard Scott Smith, had banded together “Surviving Jeffrey Epstein.” (“It was import- been an increased shift in real-life survivors as a community but had not told their sto- ant [to have] the contextual use of a psy- getting an onscreen platform. ries widely. Others still were reluctant to chologist because oftentimes the survivors While this is a strong step forward in become public figures at all. themselves are so deep in their personal empowering these women to take back “For many, telling their story — and experience, it’s incredibly helpful to have their stories, Ferol Mennen, associate pro- publicly — for years felt hugely, hugely a sense of the larger picture,” Sundberg fessor of social work, University of South- shameful. [They felt] targeted, somewhat says.) But they paid careful attention to ern California, notes that the women first responsible for it,” says Anne Sundberg, how and when those interviews were used. must “want” to tell their story. And then co-director of “Surviving Jeffrey Epstein.” “If the experts were talking back and forth they need to tell “it to somebody who can What made much of the difference in and there was one woman that they were react appropriately.” Those who “get a lot of their desire to get involved in the projects referencing, we said that could be belittling support and are believed, they tend to feel was the amount of time the filmmakers IN CONTROL OF to her story, taking away from who she is more power,” she says. spent with them even prior to cameras roll- HER OWN STORY and the nuances of her life and her story. “Oftentimes one of the aftereffects [of ing to ensure they were all in this together. Virginia Roberts We had to make sure that we weren’t target- abuse] is helping them change how they “We spend time with people before, on Giuffre sat down ing any individual woman as an example of, for extensive see themselves and how they define them- the phone or lengthy email exchanges, so because then you lose their individuality,” interviews selves. If a woman has been in therapy for when we get into an interview we make with “Surviving Stern says. her experiences, then she may have made sure that people feel comfortable and they Jeffrey Epstein” When it came to “Love Fraud,” filmmak- documentarians that transition to understand that [assault know their narrative is in their hands,” ers Heidi Ewing and Rachel Grady opted not Ricki Stern and or abuse] is not her fault. The idea of being says Ricki Stern, co-director of “Surviving Anne Sundberg. to use some of the interviews they shot at all because they felt they were “opining and mansplaining,” says Grady. “Why are we adding a bunch of mansplaining minutes when the women who actually experienced it are right here in front of us?” Their four-part series takes a first- person approach, focusing solely on those who had direct experience with Smith and that further eliminated the chance of the women being referred to in negative or triggering ways. “They were definitely cautious because they were definitely afraid they would be assumed to be dumb, stupid, naive or trusting as bad,” Ewing admits. But, “we had an opportunity to really highlight that crimes against women are often not taken as seriously. There’s a lot of victim-blam- ing, especially when it comes to crimes against a woman who intimately knew [her perpetrator].” Mennen notes the most important thing is how women willing and able to talk about their experiences, and filmmakers equally willing and able to let them do so, effectively gives them back the power and control over their own stories. This “makes it easier for [other] survivors,” she says. “They know they’re not the only one.” LIFETIME NETWORK 8 VARIETY 8 EMMY ® NOMINATIONS INCLUDING OUTSTANDING COMEDY SERIES “QUIETLY GROUNDBREAKING” INDIEWIRE OUTSTANDING LEAD ACTRESS OUTSTANDING CASTING OUTSTANDING IN A COMEDY SERIES FOR A COMEDY SERIES MUSIC SUPERVISION ISSA RAE OUTSTANDING OUTSTANDING OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING CINEMATOGRAPHY FOR A SINGLE-CAMERA ACTRESS IN A COMEDY SERIES SINGLE-CAMERA SERIES PICTURE EDITING YVONNE ORJI (HALF-HOUR) (2) FOR A COMEDY SERIES Untitled-48 1 8/20/20 8:40 PM IN THE RUNNING TThat makes sense, and as I recrecentlye noted in my column aaboutbou this year’s Emmy nomina- TOUGH TALK tiontionss trivia, the rule change Incumbent eexpandedxpa recognition in multi- winner “Last ple ccrafts categories.