Filming Tyler Perry for Never Seen Again

I worked on several episodes of the show Never Seen Again, but it all started with an interview of Tyler Perry. I was originally hired as a AC, B-Camera Operator and Gaffer. But the crew really liked working with me and I was brought back on to work as Director of Photography on additional episodes. For this interview, I supplied my camera, lighting, backdrop, and even brought my motorized slider to add some movement to the B-Cam setup.

We filmed at Tyler Perry Studios in Atlanta. It’s a massive, newly built studio complex, and it’s just as impressive as you’d expect. Because Tyler Perry is a busy man, we had to get everything set up in advance. He wasn’t going to be there for any prep, and we had been told he’s very no-nonsense and likes to knock things out fast. So we made sure the entire interview setup was ready before he arrived.

I handled the lighting and backdrop, programmed the slider movement, and got my camera dialed in. Our key light was diffused by a large 6x6 frame that I provided, giving us really nice soft light source. One creative touch we used on this shoot was a small light placed on the backdrop stand. Since it was positioned far back and out of focus, it created a nice bokeh ball in the background. As the camera moved along the slider, the light would shift subtly in frame, adding a nice cinematic element that I was really happy with.

Once everything was ready, we waited. Tyler had spent the day working on one of his films, then filmed a separate interview next door before heading to us. Eventually, he walked into the room with his full entourage. He gave us a quick hello, sat down in the chair we had marked for him, and said, “Let’s go.”

What we hadn’t accounted for was how tall Tyler Perry is, he's a big guy. So we scrambled for a moment to raise the lights and cameras to the right height, then quickly got rolling. The interview itself went perfectly. Tyler was professional, prepared, and knocked out every answer without needing any retakes.

One cool aspect of this particular shoot was that the show included a behind-the-scenes camera to capture the full crew in action. So I actually have some BTS shots from this day, which is a rare bonus and a great memory from that experience. Here is the Episode on Paramount Plus: https://www.paramountplus.com/shows/video/VKJQeGxZPxOs96Zh6a8Rh5E79jqr17Vg/