"And yet, this is a story in which, in my opinion, those guys are heroes." "It's not just a crisis, it's a failure in policing that needs a complete, radical reimagining," Russell said. "We understand the human impact and that terrorizing feeling that everybody had that summer, of anyone could be next - it could be me."Īt the same time, there's also the issue of centering the story on the words of police in a time when policing is being re-examined by the culture at large. "It became critical to tell those stories in a very intimate, and personal, and hopefully emotional way," Russell said. The documentary anchors its story in the perspective of the two officers telling the story, but Russell wanted to make sure the viewpoints of victims, survivors, and family members were also included. The victims also came from a wide variety of socioeconomic backgrounds, with victims' stories being a key part of the narrative. There's Carrillo as Latino cop, Ramirez as Latino killer, and Latino citizens on the street that ultimately apprehend him. One way the story is being told differently now than it would have been in the past, according to Russell, is a focus on diversity in the story. "It's a subtle distinction, but it's in keeping with what would have been shot in the day, and also in keeping with the pre-existing archival footage that exists." "We went and got amazing helicopter pilots," Russell said.
#NIGHT STALKER NETFLIX SERIES#
Rather than going with the highly identifiable look of drone footage over Los Angeles, the series used helicopter shots. Russell wanted to avoid overly modern camerawork for the period piece.
#NIGHT STALKER NETFLIX TV#
It works to put viewers back in that time and place with a combination of nightly TV news, crime scene photos, and more. The series had a rigorous style guide that steered its aesthetics, making sure they captured the feeling of 1985 L.A. "It was straight out of a James Ellroy novel, the pairing of those two detectives," Russell said. The documentary pairs his story with Frank Salerno, in the role of the grizzled veteran cop. In narrative terms, Russell thought Carrillo was a great character, with his tale an unexpected hero's journey. In an era with numerous ripped-from-the-headlines docuseries, Russell realized that the story of the Night Stalker had never been told on film in a detailed, definitive way. Russell felt that it was an iconic story in an iconic city - with an iconic killer.
is a huge character,'" Russell told LAist. "As soon as I sat down and saw in this old school '80s-esque restaurant, and he began to unfurl the story, I thought 'Wow, here's this amazing canvas in which a bygone L.A. Walsh thought there might be a documentary here. He said that he'd just met a cop that worked the Night Stalker case, Gil Carrillo. when his producing partner and friend Tim Walsh came to him with a source.
#NIGHT STALKER NETFLIX SERIAL#
The new Netflix documentary series Night Stalker: The Hunt for a Serial Killer goes in-depth on the rampage, interviewing police, victims, and reporters about the search and ultimate capture of Richard Ramirez.ĭirector Tiller Russell was writing for TV dramas Chicago Fire and Chicago P.D. The killings began to ramp up in July of 1985, and for two months, Los Angeles was terrified as "The Night Stalker" killed, raped, and robbed seemingly random Angelenos by night. To support our non-profit public service journalism: Donate Now.
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