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This article was published on July 8, 2020, afterCouples Therapys first season.
It wasnt so easy.
They also needed to be able to catch every moment immediately, without redos or second takes.
Perhaps most crucially, the room itself needed to feel like a real therapists office.
Ultimately, they rejected that, too.
That really put us in this 360-degree shooting setup.
That need dictated everything that followed.
Next, they proposed using two-way glass to solve the maneuverability issue.
The initial ideas that we were talking about looked like an interrogation room, she says.
(The hallway even included other doors to other therapists offices, although none of those offices existed.)
The camera solution, meanwhile, was both elegant and exacting.
Its wonderful how straightforward the camera concealment ended up being, Kriegman says.
Its an old-fashioned trick, just a 45-degree angled piece of reflective glass.
Essentially, the mirrors are at an angle so they reflect what they see, Mendis explains.
After that, it was largely a matter of set dressing to create a convincing space.
Even something like the length of the couch was something we agonized over, Mendis says.
But it didnt work for the couples, so they had to keep tweaking.
With a small couch, people would always be straining to the outside, Depres explains.
When we gave them a little more space, it allowed them to be more expressive with their bodies.
I love how it opens with the waiting room, Despres says.
Its such a formal shot.
The cameras are moving, theyre cutting back to the other side, and theres nothing there.
Its a pretty remarkable illusion.
Because of that set design,Couples Therapyis one of the most aesthetically lovely docuseries on television.
It doesnt occur to you because theres not a camera in your face.
Although we knew, right?
But they did an excellent job of creating the space for us.
It allowed the authenticity to be able to happen.
