and you thought your job was hard over zoom
After devouring all ten episodes of Mindy Kaling’s very sweet Never Have I Ever on Netflix **only** a month after everyone else had been talking about it (a personal record!), I was watching some Instagram Live interview that actor Darren Barnet did a few weeks ago, and he mentioned shooting an entire movie over Zoom, and I remember thinking hmmm must be some bit role in like a teen flick that involves like ten min of video chatting, but Vanity Fair just wrote up a piece on the upcoming movie: This Cast and Crew Made a Film in Quarantine Without Ever Meeting, and even if the plot sounds very Unfriended (2014), the mind-blowing logistics of how this movie got made will definitely go down in history.
The two coolest details imo: Apparently, the hair and makeup team would send the cast video tutorials on how to fake bruises and wound, and the action consultants would tape themselves doing the choreography and then also do a step-by-step tutorial. The article makes a big point out of how unusual it is for cast members to handle so much of the non-acting work of making the movie, but in the DIY YouTuber (and TikTokker) era, it almost seems bizarre to remember that onscreen talent isn’t usually pulling double-duty as their own producers, costumers, directors, etc.
Anyway TL;DR, if not a general appreciation for the constantly evolving world of movie magic and Zoom complications, your takeaway today is that we as a society get Darren Barnet onscreen soon!!!! (hello obvi I am pro-Paxton but we should all ultimately and forever be Team Mohan.)
Signal Boost:
Yvonne Juris: A former employee of Law360, who for the past two years covered federal and state tax news and controversy, I am now looking for a position as a staff writer or editor covering politics, financial news, immigration, health, police brutality and/or the arts and culture. I am a multimedia journalist who also has experience with podcasts and audio and on-camera reporting. Additionally, I'm a classically trained singer and flautist and have a strong background in music reporting. Previously worked as a contributor for Bustle and People Magazine, interned at MSNBC and holds an M.S. from the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism. Please reach out to yvonnepeople21@gmail.com.