Good morning, Jack, time for another day of life.

It sure is, God.

Today has finally come: Filming Day. I will take you behind the scenes of being an actor in the one-of-a-kind script, Texts From God, about a boy who has the most annoying text pal ever: God.

Personal Prep

Since I had none other than one line to memorize (“Good morning.”), I used my time to prepare for other aspects of the film.

The film is mostly facial expression- and reaction-based, so I rehearsed my “annoyed” face about a hundred…thousand times.

Another important aspect was my wardrobe, which, can I just say, is the best work attire ever. I wore a comfortable, gray shirt. Along with that, I wore fuzzy plaid pajamas from Old Navy to create that Saturday morning feeling.

I came equipped with boxes of supplies, i.e.: a toothbrush, toothpaste, and pillows. Yes, pillows.

We even had our own mini pajama party.

To learn more about the pre-production, click here. Seriously, click it.

Down to Business

And so, we got to work.

Scene 1: The Bedroom

The first scene takes place in Jack’s bedroom. And thus, I relaxed in a comfortable bed for quite a long time between shots. Bonus.

I will admit, it made me slightly anxious knowing the entire crew was watching me pretend to sleep, but it wasn’t too bad.

One of the hardest things about acting is keeping it consistent. Where did I put my hands? Where were the props placed? Which way did I get up? That’s why we have a script supervisor to keep track of everything.

Scene 2: The Bathroom

The second scene is of Jack brushing his teeth in the restroom. It was difficult fitting a crew in a small bathroom, so only a few people came in.

We filmed an awesome mirror shot, which was difficult because neither the camera nor the phone face should be seen in the shot if done correctly.

My teeth are definitely clean after that scene. Action, brush, cut. Action, brush cut. Action…

Scenes 3 & 4: The Kitchenette & Eating Area

At this point, we were running seriously late on time. One important feature of a filmmaker is the ability to skip a shot they know is unnecessary for the sake of time.

And so, we finally made it to the end (with very little time to spare).

The Aftermath

Next week, we will be working on my script, Seven Taps. I will be planning the film as camera assistant while a few students edit this film on Final Cut Pro X.

Texts From God will be released on Vimeo in mid-November.

Cut to black.