‘Sons of Anarchy’ season 6: Kurt Sutter on episode titles, families, other assorted news
For those of you who are keeping track, “Sons of Anarchy” season 6 is just three and a half weeks away from its September 10 premiere, which feels almost like the end of one journey and the beginning of another.
We took a different approach to coverage this year than in the past in the off-season, mostly because creator Kurt Sutter tends to be very open when it comes to sharing some details about production and progress, and he does so without simultaneously spoiling anything. (See, it can be done and be interesting in the process.) You get a better sense of completion for those fascinated about how a show is made, and how long certain processes really take.
After we spent a good part of yesterday debating over what sort of show justifies having an episode that exceeds a certain run time, we’re pleased to see that Sutter tackles in his new “WTFSutter” video (subscribe here) something that we’ve been curious about from a creative point of view: How he goes about titling his episodes. There are several memorable ones in the past year alone, whether it be “Laying Pipe,” “Crucifixed,” or the premiere episode “Straw,” and he explains that there are a combination of factors that goes into these names:
“I take my titles very seriously … I like to perhaps engage folks with a title, obviously without spoiling anything. I don’t look at any of my titles being clever or funny, I try to avoid that. For me, it’s an opportunity to wink towards loftier ideals that perhaps the show never quite reaches. There’s a lot of literary references, there’s a lot of religious references. A lot of times if I can’t come up with a title I’ll just pick an obvious title and change the language … That’s a cheat, but I do it.
“I usually try to acknowledge the story in some way, and finding a common theme that runs in each episode, so that there is some sense of it all coming back around to an episode. I’m very proprietary with my titles … I always sort of have final say on titles.”
This is all very insightful to hear, though we have to say that it does not help us one bit to understand what “Straw” means. We’re pretty sure already that this is going to be one of those things where we watch the episode, then promptly mutter “oh” to ourselves as it all makes sense.
There is also some talk about characters’ families in the video, and some discussion about the comic and upcoming aftershow for those of you who have not heard the news previously. Watch it below and enjoy, and we’ll be back soon as always with more news.
Photo: FX