Kayla Compton joins the roster of Arrowverse talent that has now directed episodes of the series as she helmed the May 10 episode of the series which is called “A New World, Part Two.” It’s the second part of the final Flash story leading to the series finale in two weeks.
https://youtu.be/56VH0seQmd4
Many will surely be impressed with Kayla’s television-directing debut, and to promote the episode, FlashTVNews’ Craig Byrne was able to speak with her about what it was like to direct one of the final episodes of the series, in addition to some questions about her character, Allegra Garcia. You can read the interview below.
FLASHTVNEWS: Before you directed for The Flash, I saw you directed an award nominated short film called In Training with two of your Flash co-stars (Brandon McKnight and Danielle Nicolet). Did that help to prepare you for directing them on The Flash?
KAYLA COMPTON: Yeah, absolutely. It definitely prepared me to direct the episode; I had to do that short in order to get into the Warner Brothers TV directing program, which was like a bootcamp for learning how to direct TV.
Brandon and Dani were both fantastic. I don’t have to do anything with them… I just give them space to work, and they create magic. So yeah, it prepared me to work with my friends, but also, they’re just going to do an amazing job regardless.
Is it true that Danielle Panabaker was the one who kept pushing and encouraging you to finally direct an episode?
Yes, it’s absolutely true. She was championing me from the very beginning. I almost didn’t do the short, because we made it right in the middle of COVID, and I was afraid to do that. But she convinced me I should go ahead and do it, and I’m really glad I did. I wouldn’t have the opportunity that I had to direct in Season 9 if it weren’t for her, that’s for sure.
Did you shadow any other directors before doing this episode?
Yeah. I did shadow Danielle. I also shadowed another director in Season 6, and then this last season I shadowed Chad Lowe, so I shadowed three times altogether before I actually did it.
What was the most surprising part of the experience?
I think it was surprising how much leading people the job really is. The job is almost more about dealing with people, and opinions, and expectations, and wanting to do a good episode for all of them, even more so than it is actually making the project, sometimes.I was partly expecting it, but a little surprised by how much of the job was actually doing just that.
I find it interesting that kind of like how Allegra deals with color, you seem to do a lot with the color palette in this episode. Was that intentional?
It was intentional to have a color palette for this episode, yeah, but I didn’t think about it in terms of the fact that Allegra also kind of has her relationship with color and with the electromagnetic spectrum.
We did play with a lot of blues in this episode, I’ll say that.
Was there an extra pressure knowing you were going to be directing one of the four finale episodes?
Yeah, certainly. I didn’t feel the pressure in the beginning… I think I was just really excited to have gotten an episode, and I didn’t know until we were partway through the season that I would actually be doing Episode 11. Originally, I was going to do 10, but Eric [Wallace] and I switched.
As it got closer, I definitely felt a lot more of that pressure. as there was an emphasis on the fact that this is a four-part finale. That’s when the pressure was really high.
Might we get to see Allegra getting an actually good costume before the end of the series?
I think you’ll have to wait and see. I’ve always wanted Allegra to have a really cool costume and a name, from the very beginning.
Working with Rick Cosnett, was it interesting meeting someone who was there at the very beginning of the show?
Yeah, absolutely. I was so excited to work with Rick. I had seen his episodes, and I was fan of him and his work, but actually meeting him and working with him was such a pleasure. He is an absolute delight, and I think he did such an amazing job. I felt really honored to have that opportunity to be telling a story about Rick’s character.
Are you interested in directing more TV or movies in the future?
Absolutely. I’m now able to go out into the world and pursue acting and directing. I also write, so you know, I’m very ambitious. I’m trying to do it all.
Moving a little forward, how did it feel to be there for the Flash finale?
My actual last day was very emotional. It’s a very special thing to be a part of something that ran for as long as it did. Not many shows get to have nine seasons and 184 episodes, so of course, it was such an honor to have been a part of it for as long as I was, and to be there at the very end was a really beautiful thing. It was sad, [but] I was just really happy to be surrounded by a bunch of people that had become like family.
If someone calls you in 5 or 10 years and says “would you like to play Allegra again?” would you want to do it?
Absolutely. 100%.
What do you think would be the perfect happy ending for Allegra?
I don’t think she needs to have a happy ending, per se. She’s still young, and she’s at the very beginning of her superhero-ing, so I think she has a really long journey ahead of her. I think she has a lot of room to grow. I never pictured an ending for her, necessarily; more just a new beginning.
What was it like to be a part of The Flash in general?
This was such an amazing, huge, monumental show. The Arrowverse was such an important moment in TV history. I feel really lucky and really honored to have been a part of something that was so well received. We have fans all over the world that love and support this show, and I just feel so lucky and so happy to have been a part of it, especially for as long as I was.
If another actor might be reading this and needed encouragement, would you encourage them to also enter the directing program and try to direct?
Of course. I think if it’s something that someone really, really wants to do, they should do it. It’s the same advice I give people who are considering acting. It’s a really, really challenging and difficult industry and job to do, and field to be a part of, but if you love it, absolutely do it.
What else do you have to say to the fans about why they should be tuning in on Wednesday night?
I’m just so excited for the fans to see this episode. I thought about them the entire time we filmed, and during pre-production, and in the edit. I hope everyone is still pleased with it. It’s a lot of fun. There’s a lot of Khione, there’s a lot of iris. There are some horror film elements. I’m just very proud of it, and really excited for the world to see it.
See a trailer for “A New World, Part Two” below and don’t miss it at 8PM ET/PT May 10 on The CW!
