The National

It’s three days before my wedding day and I just kissed somebody else.
But only because it was a rehearsal and it has to be practiced in order to be right by the time we film.

It’s a web series called “The National,” about a guy who moves to a town away from home to start college and get a job. Bryson starts working at a local movie theater where he makes both friends and enemies.
Only one girl works there. Seventeen year old Sarah takes his breath away from the first hello. She’s a vibrant and tangled up creature, struggling with many difficult decisions.
The story goes in all sorts of ways, creating both hilarious and tragic moments for all members of The National team.

The guy who plays Bryson is twenty four years old. He graduated from SF State as a theater major of some kind. He’s a nice guy who broke up with his girlfriend last week. Se seemed kind of wrong for him anyway, from what I could gather from her Facebook.

In rehearsing our first scene together, he kept on avoiding the “accidental kiss.” That’s when I said that we really should just get it over with because if we don’t do it now, it’s only going to get harder to do later. The scene turned out quite well.

The next few scenes were focused more on character and feelings. Luckily, Steven and I have good chemistry. This really helped lighten the mood and maintain a light and friendly environment.

The last few scenes of us together involve a lot of kissing. Two separate scenes to be precise.

I’ll tell you honestly that it felt pretty awkward having to run my hands through someone else’s hair. To hit my teeth against some huge choppers that I did not choose. Physically it felt all wrong. But in my mind I went totally numb. No feeling of attachment or curiosity crossed my mind, not any sort of enticement or desire to pursue some kind of affair. I just focused on my character and what she had to say. Let the laughs come from her elation, not mine. For the first time in a long time, I could feel my character take over me. That’s the way it’s supposed to be when you really understand your role. And I think Sarah and I could be very close.