What does it take to build a world that feels as authentic as the people it represents? On The Lowdown, that meant storytelling rooted in place — and departments working in harmony.

This week on Below the Line, Skid welcomes Makeup Department Head Sharon Tabb and Production Designer Brandon Tonner-Connolly, who reunite after three seasons of Reservation Dogs to discuss their latest collaboration with creator Sterlin Harjo on the FX series The Lowdown, starring Ethan Hawke.

The discussion covers:

• Continuing the collaborative spirit from Reservation Dogs — and how Sterlin Harjo’s leadership fosters creativity and respect across the crew
• Finding shared visual language between makeup and production design — creating a lived-in aesthetic that balances grit, texture, and humanity
• Designing the show’s Tulsa block from the ground up, building interconnected sets like Hoot Owl Books, Sweet Emily’s Diner, and nearby stores into one functioning neighborhood
• Layering authenticity through local artists and real community involvement, from murals and set dressing to tattoo design
• Bringing lived experience into the work — honoring real figures like journalist Lee Roy Chapman while telling a fictionalized story of truth-seekers and corruption
• Sharon’s approach to Ethan Hawke’s tattoos and makeup continuity, balancing realism with subtle symbolism — and a few Easter eggs for sharp-eyed viewers
• Brandon’s creation of Sweet Emily’s Diner, complete with custom wallpaper that pays tribute to Reservation Dogs in the most unexpected way
• Coordinating large-scale sequences like the cop party “oner” that concludes Episode Five — blending chaos, choreography, and cinematic precision

Together, Sharon and Brandon reveal how every bruise, tattoo, and weathered wall becomes part of a larger visual story — one built from collaboration, trust, and craft in sync.

🎧 Press play and go Below the Line on The Lowdown. For more, visit belowtheline.biz.

What does it mean to edit a sports horror film that blurs the line between spectacle and nightmare? For Taylor Mason, the answer was finding the rhythm that carried HIM through its shifting tones.

This week on Below the Line, Skid is joined by Film Editor Taylor Mason to discuss her work on the Universal/Monkeypaw feature HIM, directed by Justin Tipping and starring Tyriq Withers and Marlon Wayans. Joining the conversation is Christopher Angel, a regular guest and co-host of the podcast, who adds his editorial perspective.

The conversation cuts across:

• Building Taylor’s creative partnership with director Justin Tipping, which began during their AFI collaborations
• Taylor’s career arc through high-end assistant editing (e.g. Blade Runner 2049, Dune) before making the jump to feature editing
• Shaping HIM’s hybrid genre — balancing horror, satire, and sports narrative in the edit room
• Sculpting tone shifts, from unnerving silence to explosive sequences, while keeping character central
• Using helmet POVs, flash cuts, and hallucinatory visuals to plunge the viewer into the chaos of football
• Integrating VFX and x-ray sequences to reflect Cam’s physical deterioration and internal collapse
• Bringing personal resonance to the material, informed by her father’s NFL legacy and her own complicated relationship with the sport
• Cutting the film’s finale — a climax that threads horror, absurdism, and social critique

In the end, it’s rhythm that defines Taylor’s edit — balancing precision and chaos in a story that’s both savage and deeply human.

🎧 Press play and go Below the Line on HIM. For more, visit belowtheline.biz.

How do you design a world that honors Hawaiian history while telling a story on a global stage? For Production Designer Jean-François Campeau, the answer was equal parts creativity, cultural respect, and collaboration.

This week on Below the Line, Skid is joined by Jean-François “JF” Campeau, Production Designer of Chief of War, the Apple TV+ historical drama starring Jason Momoa. Two special guests from the Smithsonian Institution add their perspectives: Kalewa Correa, Curator of Hawaiʻi and the Pacific at the Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center, and Halena Kapuni-Reynolds, Associate Curator of Native Hawaiian History and Culture at the National Museum of the American Indian.

We cover:

• JF’s first reaction to the project — both inspired and intimidated by the cultural weight of the story
• Research at the Bishop Museum and working closely with Hawaiian and Māori cultural advisors to ground the sets in authenticity
• Constructing major builds like temples, strongholds, and the bone tower — with blessings and protocols woven into the process
• Carving sacred objects from authentic materials, including shipping an ʻōhiʻa tree from Hawai‘i to New Zealand for sculpting
• Collaborating with Pacific artisans on woven mats, sails, and canoes that carried both cultural and cinematic weight
• Blending Hawaiian and New Zealand landscapes, balancing cultural similarities with visual continuity challenges
• Jason Momoa’s insistence on filming battle sequences on real Hawaiian lava fields — including a shoot delayed by Mauna Loa’s eruption
• Capturing the gravity of historically significant moments, like the Olowalu massacre carried out under Captain Simon Metcalfe, with sensitivity to sacred ground
• JF’s personal reflections on how the project changed him, and the values he carried forward from working alongside Native Hawaiian and Māori communities

The conversation also touches on recommended resources for further learning, including Ke Kumu Aupuni: The Foundation of Hawaiian Nationhood by Samuel Kamaka and Fragments of Hawaiian History by John Papa Iʻi, suggested by our Smithsonian co-hosts.

Through every set, carving and detail, Chief of War builds a conversation between past and present — one that honors place, people, and story alike.

🎧 Press play and go Below the Line on Chief of War. For more, visit belowtheline.biz.