Filmmaking methods are constantly becoming more innovative, and here's how Antoine Fuqua took that to the next level by directing The Guilty from inside a van. Jake Gyllenhaal stars in the new crime thriller which hits Netflix on October 1, along with voice cameos from other notable actors. Based on a 2018 Danish film of the same name, the screenplay was revamped in a fresh way by Nic Pizzolatto, the writer/creator of HBO's smash hit True Detective. In addition to its writing, the way The Guilty came to fruition also forged new ground.
The plot introduces Gyllenhaal's Joe Baylor, an LAPD officer who's been sidelined from the field for a role as a 911 dispatcher. A normal shift takes an unforeseen turn when a woman calls the line in serious distress. Her harrowing scenario stands out from other callers The Guilty's main character has grown accustomed to, and he becomes determined to help her survive in whatever ways he can from his location.
The gripping movie brings viewers along on a wild psychological ride, despite taking place (for the most part) at Baylor's desk. It's easy to see how it was filmed while the coronavirus pandemic was still at its peak. But, interestingly, that wasn't the only component of the film directly influenced by COVID-related events. The film was also directed from the inside of a van. According to The Associated Press, director Antoine Fuqua (who's known for similarly tense dramas like Training Day, The Equalizer, and another Jake Gyllenhaal-led film, Southpaw) "directed the entire movie from a van parked down the street from set" after he had a "close exposure to someone with COVID-19." Though he tested negative, he still opted to protect the cast and crew with his absence and everyone made the best of their work during such unprecedented times. In a recent interview with UPROXX, Fuqua even made it sound like the pandemic's terribly unfortunate twist of events was beneficial to The Guilty's production. After reading the script - which "struck" him, he said he had space in his schedule "because of Covid [lockdowns]." Even so, the task still seemed daunting. Fuqua also admitted that the film's team was nervous about how they "were going to actually pull it off."
Just like most other aspects of the world, the entertainment business was forced to get even more creative than usual during the height of the pandemic. Of course, it would've been better if the world had never experienced a pandemic in the first place. However, one of the silver linings of the last year and a half or so is how artists, and the teams behind the art, have really let their human resilience and problem-solving abilities shine through in their work. One notable example has been Bo Burnham's most recent comedy special, Inside. As has been widely discussed and praised, the comedian wrote, directed, edited, and produced the entire project himself. Much like The Guilty, the innovative project received good reviews.
Another example was when NBC's The Blacklist tied up its seventh season by infusing it with animated versions of scenes that hadn't been shot yet when production shut down. True to its inherently creative form, the entertainment industry really rose to the occasion after COVID threw the entire world off its course. As unfortunate as the pandemic has been, refreshingly innovative art is often molded during intense turmoil. This is certainly the case with how The Guilty, as well as other shows and movies, have recently been molded idea-wise and pulled together as final products.
