PARADISE: Hanelle M. Culpepper Reflects on Her Season 2 Episodes and Potentially History-Making Emmy Nomination

To make it all come together, director Hanelle M. Culpepper—who had previously directed two episodes of PARADISE season 1—was tasked with helming the final two episodes of the show’s sophomore season. And juggling the many different tonal elements of “The Final Countdown” and “Exodus” took a lot of teamwork.

“I had a really great first AD, Lisa Zugschwerdt, and, together, we really [were] breaking down those two scripts,” Culpepper told Give Me My Remote at Televerse. “And then [we were] working with all of our department heads to figure out the best way to tackle [the episodes], scene by scene. Like some of those scenes—like the elevator scene—had to be four different sets; [as was] talking to Link at the bunker doors. It was a lot to figure out. When you have a great partner, and you have great HODs, who can tell you their expertise, we collaborate. We can bounce ideas off each other.”