York gets a look into David Shore’s ‘House’

Aileen Ormoc
Contributor
David Shore, creator and executive producer of TV’s House M.D., provided students a glimpse into the ideas behind the show and his own experience in the television industry during his visit to York’s campus Nov. 8. The Accolade East’s Price Family Theatre, where the free event was held, was nearly full.
Shore began by explaining the unlikely turn of events that led him to television. Surprisingly, Shore initially pursued a career in law but decided to abandon his practice and move to Los Angeles, California to write.
As a Canadian citizen with very little formal training in writing, making the move took a lot of courage.
Shore got his break as one of the writers on the popular Canadian TV show Due South. Feeling he needed to go beyond the limits of Canadian television, however, he went on to write for a number of American TV shows, including Law & Order and Hack.
Shore offered sound advice for budding film producers and screenwriters. He explained his work is largely shaped by his experiences as a writer: meeting new people, listening to those who guide you and letting all of these experiences affect you deeply will only improve your ability to work through the creative process.
Shore’s original vision for House was completely different from what ended up making it to the screen. He was aiming to produce a mainly character-driven TV show; the medical aspect to House was later suggested by his team of writers.
According to Shore, the series is more philosophical than medical. The show’s viewers are accustomed to seeing House and his team of doctors face ethical dilemmas and struggle to decide between saving lives and acting morally.
“Every single episode of House has been resolved because [House] made a deduction on the humanity of a person,” said Shore.
Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes is one of Shore’s greatest inspirations when it comes to writing House. The cold intellectual Holmes was always someone he admired, and Shore claimed that in every episode of House he strives to focus more on this intellect than on emotion.
“Would you rather have a caring doctor who held your hand while you died or a bastard doctor who saved your life?” he asked.
With each episode, Shore tries to create a story and a patient that will allow him to explore something new about House and the show’s team of doctors.
For many York students who are fans of the series or aspiring television writers the opportunity to hear Shore’s creative genius was a special treat. Shore himself embodies all that is House – he’s sarcastic, funny, and most of all honest.