Oz Rodriguez served as co-director and picture editor on 50 Years of SNL Music, an NBC documentary that looks at the guests who’ve appeared on the show since it debuted back in October of 1975. Rodriquez partnered with Questlove to direct the project, which includes interviews with artists such as Miley Cyrus, Bad Bunny, Paul Simon, Mick Jagger, Jack White, Elvis Costello, Billie Eilish, Dave Grohl and Debbie Harry, along with members of SNL's creative team.
"I worked as a film unit director at Saturday Night Live for seven seasons, from Season 38 to 45," Rodriguez reveals. "During my time there, I got to direct a bunch of classic
SNL pre-taped sketches, but my favorite thing to do was sneak away on Thursdays to watch music rehearsals. It was a rare chance to experience legendary artists or rising musicians in an intimate setting, right from the front row. Studio 8H is tiny, so there’s really no bad seat."
Rodriguez says he's always felt there were so many untold stories in the world of music at SNL, and while several documentaries have been made about the show, none have really focused on the music.
"Getting invited to collaborate with Questlove on this project was a dream come true," says the director. "We had full access to the SNL archives and edited using Adobe Premiere Pro - the system preferred by the show. That allowed us to integrate our work directly into the ever-evolving archive."
In addition to being able to watch every performance, the team also had access to the ISO camera feeds that captured the moments just before an artist went on, live in front of millions of viewers.
"We could witness the exact second before someone broke through and their life changed," Rodriquez explains. "That’s how we found gems like Adele’s first televised promos, Olivia Rodrigo’s American TV debut, and behind-the-scenes moments from some of Kanye’s most legendary performances and rants. Putting it all together felt like bottling lightning, it reminded me just how magical those nights at Studio 8H really are."