Norman Buckley
Norman Buckley is an American television director and editor, best known for his work on THE OC, CHUCK, GOSSIP GIRL, MAKE IT OR BREAK IT, 90210, MELROSE PLACE, and most recently the new hit PRETTY LITTLE LIARS. He has also directed several commercials and is executive producer on a pilot in development at ABC Family. He writes a blog about cinema and television called The Buckley Bulletin at buckleybulletin.blogspot.com.
He grew up in Fort Worth, Texas, studied history at the University of Texas at Arlington, before moving to Los Angeles where he graduated from the University of Southern California with a degree in Cinema/Television. He intended to become a writer, but was encouraged to take up a craft, in addition to writing, and he soon discovered he had a natural aptitude for film editing.
Buckley’s first job as an assistant editor was on the 1983 film TENDER MERCIES, which featured his sister, actress Betty Buckley, who helped him land the job after hearing that the film’s editor was seeking a local assistant while on location in Waxahachie, Texas. The editor was pleased with Buckley’s work and took him to New York to begin his career. Work as an assistant editor followed on the Academy Award-nominated features SILKWOOD and PLACES IN THE HEART, both of which were shot in Texas.
Buckley moved to Los Angeles full-time in 1985, and continued editing for a number of years on many films, television series and made-for-TV movies.
One of his closest collaborations is with Fake Empire partners Josh Schwartz and Stephanie Savage. He worked as both an editor and director on their series THE OC and, following its conclusion, he went on to direct and edit respectively GOSSIP GIRL and CHUCK. His episode of THE OC “The Metamorphosis” was chosen by Entertainment Weekly magazine as one of the five best episodes of the series. His episode of GOSSIP GIRL “The Handmaiden’s Tale” was chosen by Newsweek magazine as one of the top ten television episodes of 2007. He also directed all twenty episodes of the Josh Schwartz webseries ROCKVILLE, CA.
Buckley also was associate producer on the feature HAPPY, TEXAS, and has twice been nominated for an American Cinema Editors award: in 2003 for JOE AND MAX, for best-edited motion picture for non-commercial television, and in 2008 for the pilot of CHUCK, for best-edited one-hour series for commercial television. He won the latter award at the ACE banquet on February 17, 2008.
In addition, Buckley is an assistant visiting professor in the film department at the University of California Los Angeles.
