Noted Director Reza Badiyi Dies at 81

We're sad to report that director and main title visualizer Reza Badiyi has passed away on August 20th at age 81. The Archive interviewed him in 2003. Badiyi began his career in Iran, where he won awards for documentary filmmaking. He came to the United States to assist with low budget films, including those directed by a young Robert Altman. He then began his own television directing career, helming episodes of such series as  Get Smart, Mission: Impossible, and Cagney & Lacey. He was also known for his innovative title designs for The Mary Tyler Moore Show, That Girl, and for Hawaii Five-O, which featured memorable location footage, jump cuts and slow motion effects. Badiyi holds the record for directing the highest number of hour-long episodes, at 417, according to the Director's Guild of America.

In the following interview excerpt, Badiyi talks about the title sequence for The Mary Tyler Moore show, and on what makes a good story:

Watch Reza Badiyi's full interview here, conducted in 2003.
Los Angeles Times Obituary