My first day DIRECTING!

Additional Director Sarah Knapp!

Tuesday morning I sat in a straight-backed chair, my feet up on an Amazon box, the sweater on my right arm pushed up to my elbow and rewrote journal entries with the notebook at a particular angle and the pen just barely grasped by my fingers so that you might not notice they were my fingers. All of this happened as a camera recorded my handwriting, the words appearing on the page and the journal entries growing longer with each shot. We did this for several hours. First with me in the chair, then with Ayelette, the star of The Couch, in the chair.

This is movie magic.

This is how a few seconds of a scene are made. Rubber bands and scotch tape and Elmer's glue holding the magic together behind the scenes. Whatever it takes to get the shot. Counting to twenty in my head to make sure we got enough footage at the end of each shot so that people can read the journal entries. And then Linda tapping me on the shoulder after enough time passed because we decided I count way too fast and can't be entrusted to tell time!

We're almost done with our web series The Couch. Tuesday was our last day of filming, a day of reshoots scheduled after a good chunk of the series has been edited and is in the throws of post-production. Takes are being assembled on screen, music is being written (we have our very own composer!), and one last scene had to be written and filmed to pull it together. That's what Tuesday was for, along with reshooting some of the written words on the page so that they are clear and readable.

And because our awesome director Katy had to be on another set that day, I was asked to step in as an additional director on the series.

Yep! That's right! Not only was I sitting (kind of) in front of the camera on Monday, I was also behind it for most of the day. I was helping to figure out the scenes, the shots, and -- just like you've seen in the movies -- calling Action! and Cut! to start and end filming.

And let me tell you, it was pretty freakin' cool.

I loved the idea of being a part of it. Of being one of the four women in the room making something. We all had very specific jobs. Actress, producer, script supervisor, writer, additional director of photography, director. Many jobs, just four women.

And we had a wonderful, productive day.

We did the reshoots. We worked together to get them just right. With someone in front of the camera, someone behind it, someone next to it, someone running the stopwatch, someone watching for the sound boom, someone holding the boom, so much to do and focus on and yet, with all of us stepping in to help, it went so smoothly.

And at the end, I was so excited to tell them all that it was my first day directing -- directing anything! How cool is that. To get to direct on my first ever produced project. To get to play another role on this very cool thing we're making. It was really so cool.

As I spend more and more time learning about and from directors I have found the same advice popping up over and over -- surround yourself with smarter, more talented people than yourself. And I was so happy to be surrounded by these women on Tuesday who brought us that much closer to our finished product. Women who might have a specific role, say script supervisor, but might have the best idea for how to start the scene (thanks, Linda!). Women who share a vision to make something, to share stories, to share our talents and make things.

The Couch will premiere soon. I promise. And in the meantime, know that I'm having an amazing time making it for all of you, and the world, to enjoy!

#awomandirectedthat

The director's view, my view, of the new scene we shot Tuesday. #thecouch