‘The Office’ Made This Comedy Legend Throw out All His Plans
The Office made comedy legends of its cast. Steve Carell already came from The Daily Show and movies, but John Krasinski, Rainn Wilson, Mindy Kaling, Ellie Kemper, Craig Robinson and more all got a boost from working at Dunder Mifflin. When one comedy legend came to direct an episode, he was out of his element.
Cinematographer Randall Einhorn was a guest on Brian Baumgartner’s Off the Beat podcast on June 22, 2021. Discussing the unique camera work on The Office, Einhorn explained why this director’s plans didn’t work for the show.
Harold Ramis directed 4 episodes of ‘The Office’
Harold Ramis ended up directing three season 3 episodes and another in season 4. The director of Caddyshack, National Lampoon’s Vacation, Groundhog Day and other comedy classics, The Office cast and crew were excited to have Ramis at Dunder Mifflin for a week.
“We spent a lot less time on The Office blocking camera,” Einhorn said on Off the Beat. “For me, the best way of gleaning a scene on The Office was everybody be where they would be and I will shoot what I can. That’s how we did it. I remember Harold Ramis came in and everybody’s so excited, Harold Ramis is on our set. He spent like a week extra just blocking the show. There was a point where rehearsal was done and he had a theory of how it would be blocked.”
Harold Ramis realized he was out of his element on ‘The Office’
By season 3, Einhorn and Matt Sohn knew how to shoot The Office. They even coordinated close calls to get authentic documentary style footage. Ramis realized they didn’t need his help when he watched them block a scene.
“Matt and I just stood back and used our fingers as if they were cameras,” Einhorn said. “You get this, I’ll get this. We’ll cross the line here. We’ll come over there, we’ll come over here, Then you’ll duck because I’m zooming through you to get this line, then I’ll duck for you to zoom through. Harold looked at me and he says, ‘I should just throw my plans out, right?’”
Randall Einhorn humored Harold Ramis
Einhorn didn’t want to tell the legendary director he was wrong.
“I’m like, ‘No, Mr. Ramis, it’s a real privilege, sir. I’m sure all that work you did in there was great,’” Einhorn said. “He says, ‘Okay, I’ll keep it for a little bit.’”
But, Ramis was blocking it like a movie, not a fake documentary. The second time it happened, Ramis didn’t sugarcoat it. The Office would be the only TV show Ramis directed save for an unaired pilot.
“Then we blocked another scene, he goes, ‘I should chuck this out, right?’” Einhorn said. “I’m like, ‘No, Mr. Ramis, it’s really great to see you coming in with a plan.’ He says, ‘Don’t s*** me, kid, I should get rid of this.’ I’m like, ‘Oh, you can keep it as backup.’”
