The panel of 'creators' introduce themselves and their overlapping roles on the quarantine film 'Breakout!', including a COVID officer who also directed and a writer who forgot to mention he wrote it.
"I'm Kelsey Kelsey and I was the COVID officer on Breakout."
"I played obviously the lead, the romantic lead and also at the end kind of the main horror villain."
"I did write this. I guess I should have led with that."
The Plot of Breakout!: Toilet Paper and Border Drama
The cast discusses the plot of their film, which involves a woman spiraling in a Canadian Airbnb, a romantic lead turning evil, and a high-stakes search for toilet paper on day three.
"She runs out of toilet paper day three and getting the toilet paper is a huge issue."
"Border drama, toilet paper drama. That was just the song of the day."
The panel discusses how they feel more like themselves on Zoom than in person, leading to a pitch for a movie about a filmmaker who is only comfortable behind a digital interface.
"Sometimes I feel more myself on Zoom than I do outside of Zoom."
"That's a movie, by the way. We should write that down."
Sebastian Bastian recounts the 'generational' trauma of his family being wiped out by the 1918 influenza, which inspired his obsession with pandemic filmmaking.
"My family was very affected by the influenza of 1918."
The group discusses the rotating role of 'The Approver' on set, revealing that the original Approver, Jarmy, was hospitalized with COVID, which the group views as a 'perfect mistake.'
"Every mistake is perfect. Every mistake is absolutely perfect."
"When our Approver got COVID and had to go to the hospital, I would not change a single thing."
A clip from the film shows Kenny Kendall's character, Glenn Gary Glenn Glenn, having a 'happy but evil' breakdown while making coffee and referencing the Gal Gadot 'Imagine' video.
"Yum, yum, Mr. Coffee."
"I'm going to need some toilet paper after all this coffee."
The panel discusses their deep connection to Zoom, admitting they feel more like themselves on camera than in person, leading to a physical Pavlovian response to the interface.
"Sometimes I feel more myself on Zoom than I do outside of Zoom."
"My mouth is salivating, exactly like... my mouth is absolutely salivating."
The artists argue that the film industry should move toward 'communal directing,' comparing filmmaking to a factory line of spaghetti where no single leader is necessary.
"I think it proves that actually movies don't need directors."
"Not one person can make a plate of spaghetti, you know?"
Sebastian Bastian recounts his family's generational trauma involving the 1918 influenza, including a baby raised on a boat and a deli shop tragedy, which inspired his COVID-19 film.
