6 Days to Air
A documentary on South Park's six-day episode production.
6 Days to Air: The Making of South Park is a 2011 American documentary television film directed by Arthur Bradford. It details the six-day production schedule of the adult animated sitcom South Park, during which a 22-minute episode is completed just hours before its original air date. The film premiered on Comedy Central on October 9, 2011, and was nominated for an Emmy Award in the Outstanding Nonfiction Special category.
Quick Facts
- Director
- Arthur Bradford
- Starring
- Trey Parker
- Matt Stone
- Anne Garefino
- Vernon Chatman
- Bill Hader
- Frank C. Agnone II
- Theme music
- Joe Wong; Didier Leplae
- Country
- United States
- Language
- English
- Producer
- Arthur Bradford; Jennifer Ollman
- Editor
- Chad Beck; Bret Granato
- Runtime
- 42 minutes
Facts from the source article.
Synopsis
The documentary starts with Trey Parker and Matt Stone departing New York City after the 2011 opening night of their Broadway show The Book of Mormon, heading back to Los Angeles to start work on South Park’s fifteenth season. It follows the making of the season premiere, “HumancentiPad,” from the Thursday before it aired. Parker, Stone, and producers Anne Garefino, Vernon Chatman, Bill Hader, and Susan Arneson brainstorm episode concepts. Parker complains about downloading a new version of iTunes and having to accept its lengthy terms and conditions, which sparks story ideas. The film shows stages of production like voice acting, animation, lip sync, working with standards and practices, character design, and editing. By the following Tuesday, the day before the episode airs, the crew gets ready for their usual all-nighter, with Parker and Stone still refining the plot and Parker finishing the script. The episode is done just after 7 a.m. the next morning, with audio and picture locked by the afternoon. Supervising producer Frank C. Agnone II then carries the master tape to a nearby uplink facility, where it is transmitted to Comedy Central in New York just hours before the national broadcast.
Reception
6 Days to Air received positive reviews. Ramsey Isler of IGN wrote that the documentary's greatest success is giving a personal look inside the bizarre professional lives of two of the entertainment industry's most successful creatives. Neil Genzlinger of The New York Times stated that there are almost as many laughs in the documentary as in an actual South Park episode. Harry Sawyers of Gizmodo noted the intense work ethic driving the show's breakneck production cycle, saying the story of a single episode's genesis will resonate with anyone accustomed to long hours and a relentless pace. Phil Dyess-Nugent of The A.V. Club was positive, observing that as the creators stress out and forget what combs are for, one realizes how much they must love what they do, because nobody would do it just for the money if they already had carfare home. The film was nominated for an Emmy Award in the Outstanding Nonfiction Special category.
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